ZONG

Zongzi (or simply zong) is a traditional Chinese food, made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves. They are cooked by steaming or boiling. In Indonesia and Malaysia, they are known as bakcang, bacang, or zang. 

Zongzi are traditionally eaten during the Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar (approximately late-May to mid-June), commemorating the death of Qu Yuan, a famous Chinese poet from the kingdom of Chu. Known for his patriotism, Qu Yuan tried unsuccessfully to warn his king and countrymen against the expansionism of their Qin neighbors. When the Qin general Bai Qi took Yingdu, the Chu capital, in 278 BC, Qu Yuan’s grief was so intense that he drowned himself in the Miluo river. liberia According to legend, packets of rice were thrown into the river to prevent the fish from eating the poet’s body. 

Making zongzi is traditionally a family event of which everyone helps out. The rice used is always glutinous rice and usually precooked by stir-frying or soaked in water before using. 

The fillings include: 
• Mung beans, split and dehulled 
• adzuki bean paste 
• Jujubes 
• Char siu (Chinese barbecued pork)
• Chinese sausage 
• Salted pork fat 
• Chinese black mushrooms 
• Salted eggs 
• Chestnuts 
• Cooked peanuts 
• Mung beans 
• Dried shrimp 
• Dried Scallops 
• Red-cooked pork