Oil Glutinous Rice Wine

Oil Glutinous Rice Wine

　　Made from glutinous rice fermented into wine dough, then pan-fried in oil with additions like sesame seeds, dried tangerine cakes, walnut kernels, crispy fried peanuts, candied dates, and white sugar. It is then briefly stir-fried before being simmered in boiling water. The dish is uniquely sweet yet not cloying, and highly nutritious. Locals traditionally prepare it for new mothers after childbirth to help them recover quickly

　　(Chongqing)

　　In earlier years, Fuling Oil Glutinous Rice Wine was a traditional pre-meal hospitality drink in folk culture. Upon a guest’s arrival, the host would serve a bowl of Oil Glutinous Rice Wine, sometimes with one or two poached eggs cooked in it, as a gesture of goodwill. In some areas, this way of receiving guests was also referred to as “serving hot water.” Occasionally, the traditional oily version might be replaced by a plain white glutinous rice wine, which highlights the pure, rich aroma of the brew, lightly sweetened, mellow, and fragrant.

　　Fuling Oil Glutinous Rice Wine was once featured in the book "China’s Snack Collection." Because of its role in making a “first impression” on guests, its preparation is especially meticulous and refined. Eventually, its fame spread far and wide, entering the culinary scene of Fuling and earning the reputation of a “Chongqing Famous Specialty Snack.” To make Oil Glutinous Rice Wine, glutinous rice must be carefully selected—husks, broken grains, and impurities removed—leaving only plump, full grains. It is steamed with precise heat control to ensure neither undercooked nor overdone texture. The yeast used must be locally produced by renowned makers, fermenting at just the right time. This results in a wine dough resembling white cotton, cohesive yet loose, with a rich fragrance. Premium walnuts, sesame seeds, crispy peanuts, winter melon slices, jujube paste, and dried tangerine cakes are then ground into fine pieces, stir-fried in high-quality pork back fat until most moisture is gone. The mixture is stored in earthenware jars and naturally sealed, remaining preserved for years without spoiling…

　　Before New Year’s Eve, homemakers would exchange it as gifts and taste each other’s versions. The skill in making Oil Glutinous Rice Wine was even considered one of the criteria for judging a housewife’s capability. In earlier years, nearly every household owned a small wooden box, which could serve both as a vessel for fermenting the wine dough and for proofing bread or fermented bean pastes. Inside the wooden box was a layer of fine cotton wadding, surrounded by thin cotton batting on all sides, topped with a wooden lid—essentially a homemade cooler, much like the wooden boxes once carried by childhood street vendors selling popsicles. The cotton padding ensured an airtight environment. My mother said that in winter, placing a hot water bottle outside the cotton layer helped speed up fermentation; within a couple of days, white glutinous rice wine was ready. In summer, it could simply be placed in a basin inside the box, and it would be done in a day. A few years ago, my girlfriend would regularly bring bottles of Oil Glutinous Rice Wine made by her mother every year, so our refrigerator always had a jar of it.

　　In the past, there was a shop diagonally opposite the Port Authority on Zhongshan Road that made the most authentic Oil Glutinous Rice Wine. It was always packed with diners from all over, but somehow, a big fire later reduced this famous eatery to ashes. Later, the Oil Glutinous Rice Wine served at the Yangtze River Hotel was also quite good, but because the prices were high, ordinary folks rarely visited. Then, at the Gao Suntang traffic circle, there was a shop that specialized in Fuling Oil Glutinous Rice Wine. Its thick black plaque bore bold, striking characters reading “Fuling Oil Glutinous Rice Wine,” and beneath it sat a large earthen jar holding the delicacy. In addition, below the Tax Bureau at Gao Suntang, there was a place famous for its small Oil Glutinous Rice Wine soup dumplings. Guilin Garden also carries on the essence of Fuling Oil Glutinous Rice Wine—richly aromatic, with dark sesame crumbles, peanut fragments, and walnut bits faintly visible beneath a layer of floating pork fat, while small cubes of white soup dumplings peek out. The contrast of black and white is visually delightful. But take a big sip, and you’ll likely gasp and spit it out—the layer of cooked pork fat on top means that if you’re not careful, the scalding hot Oil Glutinous Rice Wine can easily burn your tongue.