Just in the nick of time for Dragon Boat Festival 端午節! Except well, this post was originally planned to go out much earlier but I've been laid up sick, one of the many sicknesses that children bring back from school. So let's just say just barely in the nick of time shall we, lol!
We decided to go a wee bit fancy this year for Dragon Boat Festival and thus ended up with a platter of new and exciting zongzi flavors to tickle the palette and please the eyes. We proudly present this Five Flavors Mini Crystal Zongzi 五味迷你水晶粽子, five different delicious fillings cradled in crystal skins of translucent tapioca pearls, wrapped in fragrant bamboo leaves before being steamed to perfection!
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| 龍舟競渡 Dragon Boat Race, attributed to 李昭道 Li Zhaodao, 8th century |
Before we begin a quick historical note: The Dragon Boat Festival 端午節 commemorates the beloved prime minister Qu Yuan 屈原 of the Warring States period (600BC-200BC) who, overwhelmed by sorrow for his beloved but failing motherland, drowned himself in a river. The common folk frantically rowed across the river, beating drums and throwing rice into the water to keep the fish and evil spirits away from Qu Yuan's body.
From this scenario was born the majestic dragon boat races 龍舟競渡 and bamboo wrapped rice dumpling zongzi 粽子 traditions of today!
And straight onto the Five Flavors of zongzi filling we'll be making! Flavor one is a Matcha Filling 抹茶餡 . Matcha 抹茶 is the finely ground powder of green tea that has a uniquely fresh, grassy, slightly bitter and slightly sweet flavor. We've been so into matcha recently, the flavor so unique and addictive and the color such a vibrant beautiful green!
Flavor two is for the fruit lovers. This luscious Pineapple Custard Filling 鳳梨蛋奶餡 is creamy with a bright burst of refreshingly sweet and sour fruit flavor and just a touch of nutty coconut. We couldn't believe how freshly pineapple-ly this filling came out and how beautifully yellow the colors were!
Flavor three is the most subtle yet no less yummy. This Coconut Milk Custard Filling 椰香蛋奶餡 is a lovely pale ivory color with a creamy and coconut-y flavor that is oh so delicious and comforting. This filling is also used as the base for the Matcha Filling and the Pineapple Custard Filling.
Flavor four is a more sophisticated version of an old favorite. This Black Sesame Filling 黑芝麻餡 is embellished with the addition of almonds, peanut butter and condensed milk to up the flavor layers to make a sexy, sophisticated black as black filling that is just nutty-licious!
The final flavor, number five, was a completely new flavor to us and a surprise hit. This Winter Melon Filling 冬瓜餡 has a ever so slightly crunchy, chewy texture and a subtly clear sweet flavor from the melon, all infused with the addition of the aromatic floral notes of the lovely osmanthus flower. Sooooo good!
Which filling to make for your mini zongzi? Choose one or all, they're all filling-ly yummilicious! We're gonna be posting on all of these gorgeous fillings in short order so stay tuned, dear readers! And then, with your choice of fillings made and in the fridge, it'll be time to make some zongzi!
Besides the fillings, you're also gonna need some dried bamboo leaves 乾竹葉 to make zongzi. The bamboo leaves, around 12 inches long (30cm), are rehydrated by soaking in hot water overnight and then used to shape and wrap the zongzi. Cooking the zongzi wrapped in the leaves infuses a natural tea like herbal aroma that is crazy fragrant.
Look for the dried bamboo leaves at your local wet market or Asian grocery store, remembering that usually these shops only stock these around the time of the Dragon Boat Festival.
Instead of the usual rice used for the traditional zongzi, the crystal zongzi uses tapioca pearls 珍珠粉圓 to surround the filling. When cooked, tapioca pearls become translucent, thus achieving the unique 'crystal' look of these delicate dumplings.
The tapioca pearls vary in size from 1/25th to 3/8th inch (1mm to 10mm). Look for the smallest pearls you can find cuz you're gonna to be making mini crystal zongzi.
The tapioca pearls are cooked by adding the dry pearls directly into boiling water. Be sure to add in a swirling motion while stirring as this will prevent the pearls from sticking to each other. The pearls are cooked for a short time before being removed from heat to continue cooking in residual heat until the pearls are plump and translucent.
Water is then drained and sugar is added to the hot pearls. The sugar melts from the heat and is absorbed into the tapioca pearls. A smidge of oil prevents the cooked pearls from sticking to each other. Finally a couple of spoonfuls of starch mixed in will help the zongzi stick together when the cooking heat gelatinizes the starch.
With the tapioca pearls ready we turn to prepare the fillings. Here we introduce a tool to the arsenal - edible rice paper! Any Chinese kid will recognize this as the deliciously edible paper that the famous 'White Rabbit Candy' comes wrapped in.
Here we use edible rice paper to wrap the soft fillings before adding to the zongzi. It makes the handling of the filling a breeze! Previously, we would need to weigh out the zongzi fillings, roll into rounds and then freeze til hard enough to handle while wrapping, a much more tedious and time consuming process, trust me.
With this amazing edible rice paper, we just needed to weigh the filling out to the desired weight, place onto the rice paper, scrunch up while shaping...
...and TA-DA! A few seconds later a perfectly shaped filling is ready to go! You can see from the photo that I cut away the extra bits of rice paper but as I worked on I realized that you don't really even need that step. I just twisted the extra paper a bit and tucked it all under the filling round. The rice paper holds the shape of the filling all the way thru wrapping and steaming. However when you bite into the zongzi the rice paper has mysteriously disappeared! What a neat trick, amirite?!
For the wrapping technique, please refer to our guide on How to Wrap Mini Zongzi Rice Dumpling. Once you have the basic folds of the bamboo leaf in place and the cradle made, add a portion of tapioca pearls. Then add the filling round.
Add another portion of tapioca pearls to the top and use your fingers to spread the pearls to cover the filling evenly. The pearls are sticky and will need some help to spread out.
Again, following the How to Wrap a Mini Zongzi Guide, complete the wrapping of the zongzi and tie it off. The wrapping and the tying of the zongzi need not be that precise; as long as it is shaped in one piece and tied in such a way as to hold together while cooking then you have succeeded. Do remember to be gentle while handling and tying, a zongzi needs TLC!
To differentiate the different fillings we used a system of knots tied onto the ends of the wrapping string. For flavor one, no knot. For flavor two, one knot. And etc.
Once the zongzi are all wrapped it's time to steam these babies. Pack these minis into a steamer and steam for a short time, just long enough to allow the tapioca pearls to gel and set into that distinctive zongzi shape. Meanwhile enjoy the heavenly aromatics released by the steaming bamboo leaves.
After a cool down, all it takes is a quick snip with the scissor to loosen the string, a gentle, careful unwrapping of the bamboo leaf and you're ready to serve these delicate, translucent Five Flavor Mini Crystal Zongzi with a steaming cup of your favorite tea. Happy Dragon Boat Festival!
Five Flavors Mini Crystal Zongzi
五味迷你水晶粽子
(adapted from The Complete Book of Authentic Chinese Dim Sum by Katsumi Yoshioka)
(makes 40) Soak time: overnight Prep: 30 mins Cook: 28 mins
Ingredients:
- 40 dried bamboo leaves
- 1 tbsp oil, for brushing bamboo leaves
- 40 sheets of edible rice paper
Zongzi Fillings:
- 11oz matcha filling, 320g*
- 11oz pineapple filling, 320g*
- 11oz coconut cream filling, 320g*
- 11oz black sesame filling, 320g*
- 11oz winter melon filling, 320g*
*recipes for these fillings coming up on next posts, pls stay tuned...
Crystal pearls:
- 1 1/4 cups tapioca pearls (1mm diameter), 10.5oz/300g
- 1 1/4 cup sugar, 250g
- 6 1/2 tbsp cornstarch, 50g
- 2 tbsp oil
Directions:
Soak the leaves: Soak the dried bamboo leaves in hot water and leave it overnight to rehydrate. The leaves should become completely bendable without breaking. While wrapping the zongzi keep the leaves in the water.
Make the fillings: Follow the links above to make the filllings. Chill the fillings while you make the tapioca pearls.
Prepare the tapioca pearls: Heat up a large pot of water. When it boils add in the tapioca pearls, pouring in a circular motion while stirring (to prevent pearls from sticking together). Let cook over medium heat for 8 mins. Turn off the stove, remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 10 mins or until the tapioca pearls are translucent.
Drain off the hot water, add pearls to a mixing bowl and add 1/2 cup sugar (100g) and mix in. Let sit for 20 mins. Add to a sieve and let drain for 10 mins. Add in the rest of the sugar (3/4 cup or 150g), the cornstarch, and the oil. Stir gently until thoroughly incorporated.
Weigh and Roll Fillings: Weigh the fillings into 0.7oz/20g portions. Place each portion onto a sheet of edible rice paper and use the sheet to shape the filling portion into a ball. Any extra rice paper can be snipped away or just scrunched and tucked under the filling ball.
Wrap the zongzi: Take one bamboo leaf and dry it with a towel. Brush a thin layer of oil on the leaf, on the side that will be 'inside.' Weigh out 2 portions of tapioca pearls, 0.7oz/20g each, for the top and bottom. Fold, wrap and tie the zongzi as per our step by step guide at our post on How to Wrap a Mini Zongzi, but adjusting to use the portions of 0.7oz/20g tapioca pearls on the bottom and top.
If you're making multiple types of filling, you'll want to mark the zongzi so that you can tell what filling is inside. A cool trick is to tie knots in the ends of the string used to tie the zongzi. Use the number of knots made in the string to designate the filling inside. Or you could use different types of string. Just remember to write it down somewhere so you don't forget.
Steam the zongzi: Place the wrapped and tied zongzi in a steamer and steam over medium high heat for 10 mins. Remove from the heat and let cool for a bit. You can have the zongzi hot or chilled. To serve, cut the string and carefully unwrap the bamboo leaf around the zongzi, using a butter knife to help the unwrapping along if needed. Place unwrapped zongzi on a plate and serve with a cup of fragrant tea if desired.
Store the zongzi: Once cooled to room temperature, store in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. To serve chilled, place in the fridge overnight to thaw. To serve hot, steam the frozen zongzi for 10 mins over medium heat. Enjoy!
Zooty Zongzi at The Hong Kong Cookery:
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