Three Big Cannons

Three Big Cannons

　　Three Big Cannons is a famous Sichuan snack, mainly made of glutinous rice. It gets its name from the sound it makes — when the glutinous rice balls are tossed, they resemble “bullets” and produce a “dong, dong, dong” noise, hence the name “Three Big Cannons.”　

　　Three Big Cannons is a glutinous rice-based snack and a special selling form of “ciba” that was available only during the old “Flower Fairs.” Each serving (plate) contains only three pieces. These are made by taking a large lump of ciba from a hot pot, dividing it into three small pieces on the spot, and then forcefully slapping them onto the center of the chopping board one by one.

　　Since there is a steel plate on one side of the chopping board, the impact causes a metallic clanging sound. You hear “bang, bang, bang” three times, and the three pieces of ciba have already flown across to the bamboo tray leaning on the opposite side, rolling into another bamboo tray filled with sesame powder and soybean flour. Another person picks up the three pieces and places them on a plate (by this time, the ciba has naturally been coated with a layer of powder), then pours thick syrup over them and serves them to customers.

　　Ingredients: 1000g glutinous rice, 150g brown sugar, 50g sesame seeds, 250g soybeans

　　Preparation method:

　　1. Wash the glutinous rice, soak it for 12 hours, rinse again, then pour it into a steamer and steam over high heat. Sprinkle water 1–2 times during steaming, then turn it out into a wooden bucket, mix in an appropriate amount of boiling water, cover with a lid, and let the moisture soak into the grains. Pound it into a paste using a wooden pestle (or use a blender to mash it into a paste), resulting in the base material for the ciba.

　　2. Place the brown sugar in 300g of water, bring it to a boil to make a syrup. Roast the sesame seeds and soybeans separately, then grind them into fine powder.

　　3. Divide the ciba base material into 10 portions, then divide each portion into 3 pieces. That is, using your hand, throw each of the three pieces in succession onto a wooden tray, producing three slaps as they bounce into a tray filled with soybean flour, ensuring each piece is evenly coated with soybean flour. Then drizzle with the syrup and sprinkle with sesame powder to finish. (Chengdu)