Treats fit for a dragon

[Photo provided to China Daily]

A typical pork-stuffed zongzi is available at Din Tai Fung. Founded in Taiwan in 1958, the restaurant has since offered Huzhou-style dumplings from East China's Zhejiang province.

This zongzi is known for the softness of its rice and the good flavor of its stuffing. Other options offered are mashed red bean stuffing and a creative mix of purple rice and purple sweet potato stuffing.

"We choose side pork containing a medium amount of fat, so that it will not taste too dry or greasy," says Zhan Zhiming, Din Tai Fung's dim sum chef in Beijing. Using Taiwan soy sauce to marinate the pork gives it the ideal fragrance and flavor.

Din Tai Fung's zongzi are boiled for one to two hours, then kept in a closed boiler overnight, so that they become very soft but keep a good shape. The rice in the zongzi absorbs the juice and flavor of the pork.

The mashed red bean zongzi employs another secret: a little pork fat for flavor and aroma.

The third stuffing's ingredients, purple rice and sweet potato, have anthocyanin, which is anti-aging. It also helps to reduce inflammation, has anti-carcinogenic properties and contains minerals, according to Zhan. The purple rice is soaked overnight because it has a coarse texture. Then additional round-shaped glutinous rice is added to increase the stickiness.

The restaurant offers a popular zongzi package of six dumplings that costs 148 yuan ($24).