Yingcheng Rice Pancakes

Yingcheng Rice Pancakes

　　Among cooked foods primarily made from finely broken rice, Yingcheng has an ancient and unique traditional snack called Zengren Cake, also known as Tingsheng Cake. Vendors carry shoulder poles and tap bamboo clappers as they make, steam, and sell the cakes on the street. Customers gather around the pole, eagerly buying while waiting and snacking. Only one steamer basket can be used at a time, with two to three baskets rotated in steaming. The small wooden baskets are quaint and classic. Inside each small wooden basket is a piston; once steamed and the basket is opened, pressing a small wooden post causes the cake to pop out, ready to be plated and eaten. Zengren Cake is snow-white in texture, fluffy and delicate, deliciously soft, sweet and refreshing, rich in nutrition, easy to digest, beneficial for nourishing deficiencies, strengthening the intestines, and supporting the spleen and stomach. It’s a nutritious and delicious treat suitable for all ages.

　　Rice sponge cake is also made from finely broken rice, but its preparation differs slightly from Zengren Cake. For Zengren Cake, the rice is ground into powder, stir-fried until half-cooked, and then steamed, whereas rice sponge cake requires a slurry fermentation process. The fermented batter develops pearl-like holes on the top and bottom, with a fragrant hint of rice wine. When steaming, if a round shape is desired, small iron hoops (usually mooncake-sized) are placed inside the steamer basket, lined with fine white cloth, and scoops of the fermented rice slurry are poured into the hoops. Alternatively, it can be poured directly into a steamer lined with white cloth, sprinkled with red and green threads, and steamed over high heat for twenty minutes until cooked. When cut with a string, it often forms diamond shapes. The rice sponge cake is snowy white, soft and sweet, with a smooth texture and pleasant flavor, making it a seasonal favorite in summer and autumn.

　　Dry Slurry Pancakes and Soda Pancakes are also widely praised breakfast items. Among those well-known for making Dry Slurry Pancakes is Liu Jinbao. His steamer is larger than others’, and he scoops the rice slurry from the basin with his hands, layering four scoops in the steamer. The slurry doesn’t spill or drip but takes on a droplet shape. Once layered, he covers the steamer, listens to the bubbling water inside, and directs the fire tender on how to adjust the wood. After a strong head of steam builds, the fire is turned off to let it sit briefly before being scooped out with a spatula. The bottom of the pancake is golden, the inside white, with a crispy, sweet flavor.

　　There’s also a type of fine rice pancake, also called “Full Moon Pancake,” a traditional festive food for the annual Lantern Festival. In the days leading up to the Lantern Festival, people busy themselves sifting rice to obtain the finest grains, which are then ground into powder. Children carry small bamboo baskets along riverbanks and slopes, using small trowels to dig up shepherd’s purse (also called shepherd’s purse or groundleaf), used as filling. In Yingcheng, the Lantern Festival is commonly referred to as “passing the Full Moon,” hence these fine rice pancakes are also called “Full Moon Pancakes.” Families who make them often share them with neighbors and relatives, exchanging blessings for a full and harmonious new year. Besides eating the steamed pancakes fresh, leftovers are hung in bamboo baskets. Later, during regular cooking, a few are taken down and placed in the stove’s residual heat to warm through. After a while, they’re retrieved with a golden-brown crust, offering a uniquely delightful taste. In the past, there were vendors in Yingcheng who specialized in baking fine rice pancakes. They placed the steamed pancakes on the mesh of a stove and continuously flipped them by hand to ensure even heating. Soon, a sizzling sound would emerge, filling the air with aroma. The pancakes would bake to a crisp outside and soft inside, making mouths water.

　　Mung Bean Sticky Rice Cakes also belong to the category of rice-based products and are a traditional seasonal delicacy for which Yingcheng is famed across Hubei. Made mainly from glutinous rice with added mung beans, they are deep-fried in hot oil. This snack embodies simple folk characteristics and a strong rural charm. Its features include a golden color, a crispy exterior with a soft interior, and a savory, delicious taste.