Xindu Ye’er Ba

Xindu Ye’er Ba

　　Also known as mugwort cake, Ye’er Ba is a traditional Qingming Festival food from rural households in western Sichuan. It is known for its fragrant, moist texture, sweet and mellow taste, rich lotus aroma, and dual flavors—both savory and delicious.

　　Introduction: Also known as mugwort cake, Ye’er Ba was originally a traditional Qingming Festival food from rural households in western Sichuan. In 1940, Tianquanzhai, a snack shop in Xindu, refined the preparation of the mugwort cake and renamed it Ye’er Ba. Due to its unique flavor, it gained widespread fame. After the liberation of Xindu, its production techniques were further improved. There are both sweet and savory versions of Ye’er Ba, made using ingredients such as glutinous rice, regular rice, fragrant mugwort, brown sugar, lard, vegetable oil, preserved mustard greens, white sugar, soy sauce, peach kernels, and cooking wine.

　　Ingredient formula: 3.5 kg glutinous rice, 1.5 kg regular rice, 500 g brown sugar, 200 g peach kernels, 1 kg pork back fat, 70 g preserved mustard greens, 70 g vegetable oil, 10 g monosodium glutamate, 70 g sweet bean paste, 400 g mugwort leaves, 600 g rendered lard, 3.5 kg white sugar, 100 g flour, 3 kg half-fat half-lean pork, 1 kg cured meat, 100 g white soy sauce, 25 g rock sugar, and an appropriate amount of banana leaves.

　　Preparation method: 1. Wash the glutinous rice and regular rice, soak them in water until swollen, then grind them with mugwort leaves (or green vegetable leaves) into a fine pulp. Place the pulp in a cloth bag to drain, forming a wet powder. After removing it, mix in finely chopped brown sugar and rendered lard, and knead evenly.

　　2. Toast the flour, deep-fry the peach kernels until crispy and chop them finely. Remove the skin from the lard and mince it finely. Mix with white sugar and knead into a sweet filling. Chop the preserved mustard greens and cured meat finely, and mince the fresh pork into rice-sized grains. Soak the banana leaves in boiling water with a little oil until wilted, then remove and dry them.

　　3. Place a pot over medium heat, add oil and heat until six-tenths hot. Add the minced fresh pork and stir-fry until dispersed, then mix in the chopped cured meat. Add salt, preserved mustard greens, pepper, soy sauce, sweet bean paste, and 50 g white sugar, along with cooking wine. Stir-fry until aromatic, then remove from heat and add monosodium glutamate to finish the filling.

　　4. Knead the powder evenly, divide it into portions of about 25 g each, and wrap each portion around either a sweet or savory filling. Wrap them in banana leaves, steam them in a steamer over high heat until they develop a honeycomb-like appearance, indicating they are cooked. They are then ready to eat.

　　Product characteristics: Salty filling is savory and aromatic, highly popular.