Zongzi

Zongzi (zòngzi) are steamed or boiled parcels of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves, tied into pyramid, pillow or cylindrical shapes with plant string. They are eaten throughout the year but are most strongly associated with the Dragon Boat Festival (Duānwǔ Jié), the fifth day of the fifth lunar month (typically June), which commemorates the Warring States-era poet Qu Yuan. The link to the festival is traced in multiple ancient texts, making it one of the longest-documented food-festival associations in Chinese culture.

Two broad regional traditions define the field. Northern zongzi tend to be sweet: plain glutinous rice is wrapped around a filling of candied red dates, red bean paste or a mixture of dried fruits, with no salt or soy in the recipe. The result is a dessert-format food, eaten as a snack or at the end of a meal. Southern zongzi — particularly from Guangdong, Fujian and the Jiangnan region — are typically savoury: glutinous rice marinated in soy sauce, dark soy and five-spice is wrapped around braised pork belly, salted duck egg yolk, dried shrimp, shiitake mushroom and sometimes chestnuts. These require four to six hours of continuous boiling to cook through.

The wrapping technique varies by region: Cantonese zongzi are often large and rectangular or cylindrical, wrapped in multiple banana leaves; Jiangnan versions are smaller, tighter triangular pyramids from a single bamboo leaf; Fujian versions are sometimes triangular with a flattened base. Each shape reflects the leaf available and the cook's tradition.

Zongzi are made in large batches at home and given as gifts. Jiaxing in Zhejiang, home to the Wufangzhai brand, is considered the centre of commercial savoury zongzi production.