This Friday (June 7th) will be the Dragon Boat Festival of 2019, then every one must be busy in eating zongzi. In Jiangsu Province, there are 13 cities totally and the zongzi in each city is also of local characteristics.
Nanjing
Small foot shaped zongzi of white sticky rice: in Nanjing area it is dominated by small foot shaped zongzi and usually reed leaves are used to wrap the zongzi. As a place mingled by the south and north, Nanjing is all-inclusive in catering and there are more kinds of stuffing for zongzi. Many net friends believe: the most traditional zongzi in Nanjing is the white sticky rice zongzi which is eaten by dipping in sugar after steaming.
Wuxi
Local people prefer to small foot shaped zongzi and triangle zongzi: Wuxi people prefer to wrap small foot shaped zongzi and triangle zongzi etc. In the households of common people, most zongzi they eat has red bean paste, white rice stuff (with some red date)and meat stuff, which are most popular now.
Xuzhou
Zongzi stuffed with soup: it is to smash the cooked peanut, sesame, green and red fruit shred, sweet-scented osmanthus,nutlet and preserved fruit etc. and then add white sugar, lard oil and stir together. Whether it is able to fix the filling well, the most important is to add into a mysterious seasoning: malt sugar. The steaming and cooking requires over two hours. Before putting into the pot, it’s necessary to “rinse in water”, the stuffing is required to put into clear water and flour three times and finally put on a layer of rice flour. Finally it is able to judge if the stuffing shape has been successively finalized or not by the experience and hand feel of the zongzi maker.
Changzhou
The quadrangle zongzi is innovated as “dragon boat zongzi”: generally Changzhou people like to wrap the small foot shaped zongzi which is tightly wrapped, tough and appetizing, while Changzhou people also make a kind of innovative zongzi called as “dragon boat zongzi”which is actually prolonged based on the quadrangle zongzi.
Suzhou
The ash soup zongzi: it is a traditional featured snack in Suzhou; generally it is wrapped by the following steps: burn straw stalk into ash, which is put into a cloth bag and then soak in water in a basin for a half day, finally mix the light yellow water into the sticky rice which is used to wrap the zongzi. The color is brownish gray and semitransparent, it’s unnecessary to dip sugar at eating; instead it’s required to pour a kind of specially made sugar oil, which is soft, moisten, sweet but not oily.
Nantong
The small foot shaped zongzi is also called as bean curd zongzi: according to the size and shape, the zongzi is categorized as “one mouth zongzi” and “small foot shaped zongzi” ( also called as “bean curd zongzi”).
Lianyungang
The pillow shaped zongzi: it is to use banana leaf to wrap long striped zongzi, which is very big and weighs a half jin (250g) each, as its shape is similar to pillow, local people call it as “pillow zongzi”.
Huai’an
Zongzi: Huai’an area people pay attention to that there must be teeth mark after biting the zongzi, or otherwise it is not good zongzi. 盐城
Yancheng
Yancheng zongzi is made by passing the leaf through the zongzi with a special needle with which it’s unnecessary to fix the zongzi by string. The zongzi is not only nice looking, but also it’s convenient for eating.
Yangzhou
The ham zongzi: it is the most famous one. As recorded in the article Suiyuan Menu: the most famous Yangzhou zongzi was right the ham zongzi, which is made with sticky rice as the main material, a ham slice is put inside and after cooking, it is very delicious.
Zhenjiang
The parents of a married woman are required to send “the first year zongzi” : in the first year for the newly married couple, the parents of the bride are required to send “the first year zongzi” before the Dragon Boat Festival. There are two types for “the first year zongzi” : the quadrangle “pillow shaped zongzi” has red date filling etc.implies to conduct righteously like a “square” and “have a baby soon”; the “small zongzi” in a cluster of five implies “an abundant harvest of all crops” and the the “small zongzi” in a cluster of ten symbolizes “the peak of perfection” and “the more sons, the more happiness” etc.
Bunch of Chinese rice dumpling or zongzi tied hanging against white background
Taizhou
Hands and mouth are used together when wrapping the zongzi, and the food materials are richer: in the past inside zongzi, it was put with broad bean petals and red bean etc., later some people put into peanut, honey red date and lean meat etc., while in the present, the zongzi has stuffing including ham, sausage etc. which were “unthinkable” in the past.
Suqian
The taste is very rich for the local eight-treasure zongzi and preserved meat zongzi.
