White glutinous rice cake

White glutinous rice cake

　　White glutinous rice cake

　　White glutinous rice cake, one type of glutinous rice cake. This food is a special treat during festivals and holidays. It is made from high-quality glutinous rice: the rice is thoroughly rinsed and soaked, then steamed in a bamboo steamer until soft and fluffy. After steaming, the rice is scooped out into a stone mortar, where two people pound it with wooden pestles until it becomes a smooth paste. The pounded rice is then returned to the steamer to be steamed again. The steamed glutinous rice is mashed into a soft and elastic dough, scooped into a basin, and while still hot, divided into small portions. Each portion is flattened into a round shape, with each cake about one centimeter thick and typically 15 to 20 centimeters in diameter. For weddings, they are made larger, 30 to 40 centimeters in size, and decorated with characters such as “Dragon and Phoenix Bringing Prosperity” or “Good Fortune as Wished.” If the white glutinous rice cake is soaked in alkaline water, it can be preserved for several months and taken out at any time for washing and eating — it can be boiled in soup, pan-fried, or grilled. This food is known for its delicious, sweet taste, and soft, palatable texture.

　　Preparation Method

　　1. Roast the sesame seeds and peanuts separately until cooked. Then grind the sesame and peanuts separately. After roasting the peanuts, crush them using a hard object and remove the skins. Mix the peanuts and sesame seeds together, then stir in 250 grams of white sugar to make the filling.

　　2. Pour in 2.5 jin (approximately 1.25 kg) of glutinous rice flour. Knead it with warm water, preferably adding some sugar to give the outer layer a slight sweetness. Take the remaining half jin (approximately 250 grams) of glutinous rice flour and dry-toast it in a pan over low heat to prevent burning. (This toasted flour is used to dust the cooked glutinous rice cakes to prevent sticking.)

　　3. Knead the wet glutinous rice flour into small balls, press them into flat shapes, and boil them in boiling water. When the rice cakes float to the surface, they are cooked. Scoop them out one by one and place them in a basin to be kneaded together. Since glutinous rice flour is quite sticky, a lot of force is needed for kneading — ideally, use a wooden stick to pound it. I didn’t have a stick, so I used a soup ladle and slowly mashed it.

　　4. After mashing, sprinkle toasted glutinous rice flour on top, and remember to sprinkle some inside as well to prevent sticking.

　　5. Finally, shape the mashed glutinous rice dough into small balls and wrap them like buns. They can be eaten directly. To prevent the wrapped glutinous rice cakes from sticking together, it’s best to also sprinkle some toasted glutinous rice flour on them. Just pat off the flour before eating.

　　Customs

　　Pounding glutinous rice cakes is a Spring Festival tradition in various regions across southern China, with differences among ethnic groups. In the lunar month of La (around December to January), “pounding glutinous rice cakes” is a major joyful event of the year, bringing the whole family together happily, with relatives and neighbors coming to help. Children know that once glutinous rice cakes are being made, the New Year is just around the corner. According to the “Yongshun County Customs Record” from the Republican era: “Glutinous rice cakes are made by pounding glutinous rice into a paste in a stone mortar, then pressing it into round shapes, some as large as the full moon — the biggest being about five chi (approximately 1.67 meters) in diameter, the common ones about four cun (approximately 13 cm) in diameter, with thickness ranging from three to eight fen (approximately 1 to 2.7 cm). Regular glutinous rice cakes are only about the size of a palm. Cakes as large as five chi in diameter are generally used only for special occasions such as ancestor worship.”