Bak Changs for Dumpling Festival 2021 (端午节 Duan Wu Jie)
Zong Zi” (糯米)
There is a wide variety of bak changs, or glutinous rice dumplings, available in Singapore. The hotel restaurants will introduce luxurious and even exotic flavours. The traditional bak chang stores have also upped their game. They have added to their offerings rice dumplings with new fillings, and many of them have online order and delivery facilities for Dumpling Festival 2021.
For Dumpling Festival 2021, Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant (萬豪軒) is featuring five new-fangled rice dumpling creations and perennial favourites, available for dine-in or takeaways. From new flavours encompassing of an indulgent, premium 5-Head Abalone with Iberico & Parma Ham Rice Dumpling (伊比利亚黑豚鲍鱼火腿粽); a spicy Sichuan Pepper Chicken with Lotus Root, Fungus, Peanuts & Mushrooms Rice Dumpling (香辣风鲜粽); sweet Honey Red Dates with Salted Green Beans, Red Beans and Melon Candy Rice Dumpling (蜜枣咸香甜粽) to best selling Vegetarian Black Truffle 5-Grain Rice Dumpling (黑松露五谷素粽) and Signature Pork & Salted Egg Rice Dumpling (蛋黄咸肉粽), there is one for everyone, young and old.
There’s A Lot More To Dragon Boat Festival Than Dumplings & Boats
Dragon Boat Festival Or ‘端午节’ Is More Than Just Eating Dumplings
Come this time of year, Singaporeans will notice colourful dragon boats sailing along our shores. Wet markets across the country will also begin hawking sticky rice dumplings wrapped snugly in bamboo leaves. We call this event the “Dragon Boat Festival”, but it is somewhat of a misnomer.
The true meaning behind the festival belies its original Chinese name, 端午节 (duan wu jie), which refers to the summer solstice. To be precise, the Chinese commemorate the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, which signifies the longest day of the year.
Like in all good Chinese festivals, delectable food will be usually be involved. However, everyone’s favourite glutinous rice dumplings have rather tragic origins. Beloved poet and outspoken statesman Qu Yuan, was falsely accused of treason after speaking out against corruption. He decided to drown himself in the Mi Luo River on this very day. Rice dumplings were wrapped in leaves were thrown into the river by villagers who loved the poet and wished to prevent fish from consuming his corpse. They also tied their offerings with auspicious five-coloured threads, which apparently stopped river dragons from eating them.
