Dongguo

Dongguo

　　　This is a specialty delicacy used by the Dong people to entertain distinguished guests. The preparation method involves steaming glutinous rice into cakes, pounding them while sprinkling wild sweet vine juice to make glutinous rice cakes, then airing them for a day until they are semi-soft and semi-hard. They are then cut into finger-sized pieces, dried in the shade, and deep-fried in vegetable oil. Finally, roasted and fragrant sesame seeds are sprinkled on top—thus, the fragrant, sweet, and crispy Dongguo is made.

　　 Dongguo from southeastern Guizhou is a traditional offering used by the Dong people during festivals, as well as a popular tea-time snack. It is widely enjoyed in counties such as Liping, Rongjiang, Congjiang, Jinping, and Jianhe within the Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture. After years of continuous refinement, it has become a beloved and well-known treat among various ethnic groups in the region, including the Miao, Yao, Shui, and Han peoples.

　　 During the annual "Third Month Third" festival in Qiandongnan, Dongguo is an essential food item. Typically, before the festival, Dong women—sisters-in-law, mother-daughter pairs, and other female relatives—gather in small groups to prepare Dongguo. The making of Dongguo requires using the sweet juice of wild plants as a natural sweetener, aiming to impart the vine’s fragrant aroma. The “Supplement to the Herbal Legacy” records that “sweet vine juice is mashed and mixed with rice flour to make snacks that are sweet and help stop diarrhea.” This shows that the use of sweet vines in snacks has a long history. The Dong people have inherited and elevated this traditional method, keeping it alive and turning it into a renowned delicacy.

　　 However, it is regrettable that Dongguo has not truly entered the mainstream. Most Dongguo is still handmade at home, and it is rarely found for sale in markets.

　　 Ingredients: 1000g glutinous rice, sweet vine juice, tea seed oil, brown sugar, fried soybean flour, roasted sesame seeds, and others as needed.

　　 Steps:

　　 1. After autumn harvest, cut the vines, chop them into pieces, and repeatedly pound them to remove the outer fuzz. Then crush them thoroughly with a heavy hammer, further pound them into a mud-like consistency with a stone mortar, soak in water overnight, filter, and extract the juice.

　　 2. Wash and soak the rice overnight, then steam it into glutinous rice.

　　 3. Pound the glutinous rice while gradually adding sweet vine juice until it becomes sweet vine glutinous rice cake.

　　 4. Spread the cake on a bamboo tray to air-dry for one or two days until it reaches a semi-hard, semi-soft state. Cut it into finger-sized cubes, mix with soybean flour, spread out to dry in a ventilated indoor area, and store it sealed in jars or plastic bags.

　　 5. Stir-fry the dried glutinous rice cubes in oil until semi-puffed, then deep-fry them in tea oil until they expand. Within seconds, the dried cubes, resembling white pebbles, will float to the surface, puffing up to the size of kiwifruit and turning a soy-sauce yellow color. Remove and drain the oil.

　　 6. Mix brown sugar and water in a 3:1 ratio in a clean pot, simmer over low heat while stirring continuously until the sugar syrup threads. Add the fried ingredients in batches, stir and toss them—this process is commonly known as “coating with sugar.” Remove the coated pieces and quickly roll them on a tray covered with roasted sesame seeds, flipping swiftly to ensure an even coating. This creates Dongguo.

　　 7. Allow the Dongguo to cool and dry, then seal them in jars or plastic tubes for storage. Take out as needed to maintain their crispiness.

　　 Tips:

　　 1. Sweet vine is best harvested after autumn and serves to make the texture fluffy and enhance sweetness. Using sugar water instead will result in a dry and tough final product.

　　 2. Once the dried glutinous rice cubes are made, they must be stored sealed, or they will mold and spoil.

　　 3. Make sure to stir-fry before deep-frying to achieve fluffiness.

　　 4. The heat control when simmering and caramelizing the sugar is crucial—too low and it won’t stick, too high and it turns bitter.

　　 Flavor: The exterior is puffed and fluffy, with a cross-section resembling loofah pulp. The outside is aromatic and the inside is crispy, offering a sweet, refreshing taste. The sesame adds a rich fragrance, combining crispness, crunchiness, and sweetness. It has a strong local flavor.