Meigan Cai Pork Zongzi
A traditional Chinese sticky rice dumpling filled with savory pork and preserved mustard greens.
Story
Meigan cai pork zongzi is a beloved regional variation of the classic Chinese sticky rice dumpling. Combining the rich, savory depth of braised pork with the distinct umami flavor of preserved mustard greens, these dumplings are carefully wrapped in bamboo leaves and steamed to perfection, offering a comforting and aromatic taste of culinary heritage.
Ingredients
Glutinous rice
to taste
Dried pickled mustard greens
to taste
Pork
to taste
Bamboo leaves
to taste
Rice wine
to taste
Salt
to taste
Soy sauce
to taste
Chicken bouillon powder
to taste
Instructions
1
Step 1
Wash the glutinous rice, drain the water, add all the seasonings and mix well. The amount of seasonings can be adjusted according to personal taste; during the mixing process, you can pick up a grain of rice to taste the flavor.
2
Step 2
Add seasonings to the pork and marinate for more than three hours to allow the pork to fully absorb the flavors.
3
Step 3
Wash the zongzi leaves and set aside for later use.
4
Step 4
Trim off a little from the head and tail of two zongzi leaves. Overlap the heads and fold them inward to form a cone pocket. First, lay down a layer of glutinous rice, then neatly place the dried mustard greens (meigan cai) and pork, and then cover with another layer of glutinous rice. Fold the zongzi leaves over to wrap it well and tie it with cotton thread (using palm leaves as the tying string is the best as it imparts a fresh fragrance, but I found it troublesome, so I used cotton thread instead). These are the zongzi I have wrapped.
5
Step 5
Place the wrapped zongzi into a pot and braise for more than four hours until the pork is completely tender and melts in the mouth. I cooked mine on a coal stove. Since I wrapped the zongzi at night, I left it boiling on the coal stove overnight. Once the water came to a boil, I sealed the coal stove to let it simmer slowly, and it was perfectly ready to eat when I woke up in the morning.
