Home » Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings (Bak Chang) 潮州粽子

Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings (Bak Chang) 潮州粽子

by Angie Liew
Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
Huang Kitchen Rice Dumplings Zong Zi Recipe Collection 粽子食谱系列

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Sticky rice dumpling, better known as zongzi 粽子 is a traditional Chinese food eaten to celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival ( 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar ) which falls on 20th June this year. It is a bamboo leaf wrapped dumpling filled with sticky rice and other ingredients. Generally speaking, there are 2 types of zong zi, namely the sweet and savoury ones. The sweet dumplings are normally filled with red bean paste and the savoury ones are filled with pork, salted eggs mushrooms, dried shrimps or chestnuts.

What is Teochew Bak Chang (Sticky Rice Dumpling)? What Are The Typical Ingredients Used?

What is so special about our Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings (Bak Chang / Bak Zhang 肉粽) is that they are a combination of savoury and sweet. Also known as Double Flavour Zongzi (Shuang Pin Zongzi 双拼肉粽子), these are savoury as well as sweet, because of the red bean paste ball that is added together with the savoury fillings. 

The typical fillings in my family’s Bak Chang are shiitake mushroom, 5 spice pork belly, chinese sausage, chestnuts, dried shrimps, salted egg yolk and the star of the dish: red bean paste ball. Traditionally, the red bean paste ball is wrapped into balls using caul fat (or pork lard netting) to keep the sweet filling apart from the savoury fillings, which also makes it much more aromatic too.

My family especially loves the red bean paste in the teochew sticky rice dumplings, without which will not be complete.

Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings

The Process On How To Make Bak Chang Sticky Rice Dumplings

The process of making these rice dumplings can be pretty dramatic as the preparation and cooking them take at least a real two whole days, beginning with marinating the pork and preparing other ingredients to the washing of the bamboo leaves.  

Also wrapping a sticky rice dumpling can be quite a challenge, especially for a beginner. However, with practice, it’s really not that difficult and you can really enjoy a sense of satisfaction after mastering the skill of making such a classic and popular dish.

Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings

Lastly, I like to express my appreciation to my sister for this wonderful family passed down recipe. Without her, I may not be able to document and put this recipe together. Thank you Ji Chair for all your guidance.

You may also be interested in our other Zongzi Recipes:

Chicken Sticky Rice Dumpling Recipe 鸡肉粽子食谱

Nyonya Rice Dumpling Recipe 娘惹粽子食谱

Chicken Nyonya Rice Dumpling Recipe 鸡肉娘惹粽子食谱

Alkaline Water Plain Rice Dumpling (Kee Chang) Recipe 碱水粽子食谱

Huang Kitchen Rice Dumplings Zong Zi Recipe Collection 粽子食谱系列
Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings 潮州粽子(肉粽 Bak Chang)
Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings 潮州粽子(肉粽 Bak Chang)

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Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings (Zong Zi) 潮州粽子

Recipe by Huang Kitchen, Angie Liew
These dumplings are made from sticky or glutinous rice and are often eaten while celebrating Dragon Boat Festival. It’s packed with rich and flavourful ingredients, customized to suit our own liking.
Prep Time2 hours
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time5 hours

Tap or Hover to Adjust Servings

Servings: 34 dumplings

Ingredients
 

  • 68 pieces bamboo leaves
  • 2 kg glutinous rice
  • 1 kg pork belly, with skin, cut into big pieces
  • 200 grams shiitake mushrooms, small size
  • 250 grams chestnuts
  • 18 pieces salted egg yolk
  • 200 grams dried prawns, soaked in warm water
  • 3 pieces Chinese sausage, cut to big pieces
  • 100 grams garlic, chopped
  • 500 grams shallot, fried, retain oil

Marinade for pork belly

  • 3 tbsp Oyster Sauce
  • 8 tbsp soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 2 pieces cinnamon stick
  • 2 pieces star anise
  • 2 tbsp chinese five spice powder
  • 2 tbsp white pepper, to taste
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp msg, optional
  • 3 tbsp chinese cooking wine

Seasonings for shiitake mushrooms

  • 1 tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp sugar

Seasonings for glutinous rice

  • 2.5 tbsp salt, to taste
  • 2 tbsp chinese five spice powder
  • 1.5 tbsp white pepper
  • 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp msg, optional

    Instructions
     

    Day 1: (Preparing the ingredients)

    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      First boil the bamboo leaves for about 5 minutes, making sure they are fully submerged until the leaves turn soft. Then leave to cool down on its own.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Rinse the leaves thoroughly with water. Use a clean cloth to wipe the leaves, piece by piece.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then leave to soak in water overnight. If you are using the leaves the next morning, then only wash and soak the leaves the night before.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Be sure to soak together with the grass strands.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Prepare all the ingredients needed to marinade the cut pork belly.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Marinade the pork belly and keep it covered in the refrigerator overnight. This will make the meat taste more flavourful.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Wash shitake mushrooms to remove dirt and soaked them overnight.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Wash chestnuts, soak for 30 minutes. Then briefly boil the chestnuts.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then using a toothpick or any sharp object, remove the membrane and dirt from the chestnut. Wash again and keep refrigerated until needed.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Finely chop garlic ( keep in refrigerator) and fry the sliced shallots. Retain the shallot oil to fry the pork and glutinous rice.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Have ready some homemade red bean paste, wrapped into balls. It’s our family’s favourite and a MUST have in our teochew rice dumplings.

    Day 2: (Cooking the ingredients)

    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Drain well the mushroom after soaking and seasoning with sesame oil and sugar.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Wash, soak and drain the dried shrimp.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Wash glutinous rice several times until the water runs clear. Leave to soak in water for about 1 hour.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Cut salted egg yolks in halves..
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Soak chinese sausage for 15 minutes.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Using a pair of scissors, cut to remove the membrane surrounding the sausages.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then cut the chinese sausages into thick pieces.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Drain the soaked glutinous rice and season with salt, pepper, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, chinese five spice powder and msg.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Using a big wok, first stir fry the dried shrimp with the shallot oil and set aside.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then stir fry the mushrooms and set aside.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Next stir fry the chestnuts and set aside.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Briefly stir fry also the cut chinese sausage.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then in the same wok, heat up some more shallot oil and saute chopped garlic till fragrant.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Stir fry the marinated pork belly and add in some chinese cooking wine, to taste.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Transfer to a large plate or tray and sprinkle half of the fried shallot over it.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Lastly using low heat, briefly stir fry the seasoned glutinous rice with some shallot oil.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Transfer the rice to a large tray, sprinkle the other half of the fried shallot and mix well. And we’re ready to wrap!

    (Wrapping the dumplings)

    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Gather all the ingredients needed before you start to wrap the rice dumplings.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Select 2 bamboo leaves. Overlap them by 80% of the area. Starting at 1/3 lengthwise from one end, bend the leaves to form a cone making sure the smooth side of leaves is on inside of cone.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Create a well in the cone by filling with 1 tbsp of sticky rice.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then add a layer consisting of one piece each of shitake mushroom, redbean paste, chestnut, pork belly, salted egg yolk and some dried shrimp.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Lastly, cover with another 2 tbsp of glutinous rice. Press it down gently before wrapping up. Each dumpling is about 200g.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      To close the opening, fold over the remaining 2/3 of the leaves.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Cover the top completely and press down to partially cover the sides.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Wrap the edge of the leaves to either left or right side of the rice dumpling. And you’re done wrapping it!
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Use a grass strand to tie the rice dumpling. Wrap the dumpling with the grass strand twice, each time with an easy knot to ensure no loose ends. And we’re ready to cook them!

    (Cooking the dumplings)

    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      In a large pot of water, add in salt and bring the water to a boil under high heat.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Then slowly place the dumplings into the water, making sure they are fully submerged. Cover the pot with lid and cook slowly over medium heat for about 3 hours, depending on size.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      To check if they are cooked through, unwrap one of the dumplings in the pot, check for doneness and taste it.
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Once the rice dumplings are cooked through, remove from the pot immediately, hang it up and leave it to air dry for at least 1 hour. And we’re done!
    • Teochew Sticky Rice Dumplings
      Enjoy the rice dumpling while it’s still hot, preferably with hot chinese tea. Enjoy and Happy Rice Dumpling Festival!

Enjoy!

Tried this recipe?Mention @HuangKitchen or tag #huangkitchen!

Notes

When buying bamboo leaves, choose those that are light yellow or light green in colour. (Not the bright green colour as they may be chemically treated).
Only boil, wash and soak bamboo leaves the night before you use them. Otherwise the leaves may dry up. And do soaked more as some may break apart while wrapping. Also do not over boil the bamboo leaves, or the fragrance will be lost.
Bamboo leaves come in different sizes. Generally, we use only 2 pieces to wrap a dumpling. If leaves are too small, just add 1 additional leaf to wrap.
Just stir fry the glutinous rice briefly using medium low heat as we just want to add fragrance and not to cook the rice. Otherwise we may end up will half-cooked rice dumplings.
Do not tie the dumplings too tightly to allow some room for the cooked ingredients in the dumplings to expand.
Do not use high heat to cook the rice dumplings as this may cause the dumpling leaves to end up cracked and rice will ooze out.
Always check to ensure the water level is always enough to cover the dumplings when cooking in the pot. Otherwise we will end up with half-cooked dumplings.
Cooked the dumplings in badges if the pot you are using is not big enough.
For quick cooking, boil rice dumplings in a pressure cooker with enough water to cover the dumplings for about 40 minutes on pressure. Release pressure before removing lid of pressure cooker.
Always keep the extra rice dumplings in the FREEZER and reheat them in a steamer when needed.
 
Cuisine: Asian, Chinese, Malaysian, Teochew
Keyword: dragon boat festival, mushroom, teochew, Zongzi Rice Dumplings

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5 from 1 vote

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15 comments

Jill May 28, 2022 - 7:56 pm

Do you use the sweet or non-sweeten ready made red bean paste available from supermarket?

Reply
Angie Liew June 30, 2022 - 4:16 pm

You can make your own sweetened red bean paste or can be store bought as well.

Reply
Fan June 18, 2020 - 12:50 pm

Did you miss the red bean In the ingredient list?

Reply
Angie Liew June 26, 2020 - 11:56 pm

Yes, thanks for pointing out. Its actually optional for this rice dumpling recipe. Just that it is my family’s treat. Can’t do without it. But for some others, they prefer not having this sweet red bean paste in the savoury dumplings. So its totally optional. Enjoy!

Reply
Maharani Lawira June 18, 2021 - 8:41 am

5 stars
Hi Angie, could you please kindly share the recipe for the red bean paste. Thanks

Reply
Peggy June 14, 2020 - 5:32 pm

Hi Angie, If i am unable to get caul fat to wrap the red bean paste, can i replace it by coating the red bean paste balls with glutinous rice flour? (something i saw online to ensure the rice around the red bean paste will be cooked)

Reply
Angie Liew June 14, 2020 - 10:07 pm

Hi Peggy, I am not sure coating with glutinous rice flour works as I have not done so before. Do let me know as well if that’s possible if you do try. But I do know that you can actually put the red bean paste first, then a piece of thin beancurd sheet before adding the glutinous rice and other ingredients when you assemble the dumpling before cooking them.

Reply
Kay Raymond June 6, 2020 - 6:21 pm

Hi Angie, Thank you very much for sharing your bak chang and nyonya chang recipes.. Love the flavor.
My bak chang glutinous rice was rather soft and sticking on the leaf. Is it due to overcooking or lack of oil?

Reply
Angie Liew June 7, 2020 - 12:56 pm

If the glutinous rice sticks on the leaf, it means there is lack of oil. Perhaps you did not use enough oil to fry your glutinous rice or ingredients. Maybe adding some oil into the water when you cook the remaining of the other dumplings can help. Good luck!

Reply
Kenneth June 5, 2020 - 10:22 am

Hi thank you for the detailed recipe!
I’m just wondering if 8 tablespoon of light soy space and 3 tablespoon of dark soya sauce will make the filling too salty? I’ve been looking at other recipes which call for no or less soy sauce. I have not made bak changs before so I’m really clueless. Thank you for your help!

Reply
Angie Liew June 5, 2020 - 10:30 am

Hi, the reason for the 8 tbsp of light soy sauce is because the recipe I am using is for 2kg glutinous rice to make 34 dumplings which is quite a bit. Dark soy sauce is to give it a nicer darker colour ( varies depending on the brand you use). So you need to vary the quantity according to how much glutinous rice you are using. Hope this helps to clarify. Thanks

Reply
Mimi June 2, 2020 - 9:57 pm

Hi, I want to tell you that I have been trying recipes from your blog and you have been truly generous to share true recipes that worked! From your bak chang, to your sweet and sour pork and marmite pork.. Nothing fails.

Sincerely, you are one of the rare few food bloggers who will share fool proof recipes to readers like us to try which really works.

Thank you sincerely from my heart

Reply
Angie Liew June 3, 2020 - 8:39 am

Hi Mimi, you are most welcome. Thanks for giving me your feedback about my blog. Really happy to know you appreciate and thanks for the encouraging words. Happy cooking too!

Reply
Mimi June 6, 2020 - 5:10 pm

Just to share, your bak chang received raving reviews from my family and friends. I made another batch of bak chang today. Even my neighbour can smell the delicious bak chang whilst boiling in pot.

Thank you once again! I will be stalking your posts if you don’t mind a stalker drooling over your good yummy food 🙁

Reply
Angie Liew June 7, 2020 - 12:10 am

Hi Mimi, you are most welcome. Feel very happy to know you and family love our bak chang recipe. It is our family’s favourite too. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and comments. It’s really very encouraging to know. Happy cooking!

Reply
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