Nyonya Rice Dumplings (Nyonya Chang) Recipe
Festive Dumplings Recipes

A 5th day of 5th moon Specialty for the Straits-born Chinese

Ingredients

60
905 g/2 lb
680 g/1 1/2 lb
680 ml/24 fl oz
225 g/8 oz
225 g/8 oz
115 g/4 oz

2.5 cm (1 inch)
60 g/2 oz
2 cloves
5
3 tbsp
3 tsp
3 tsp

dried bamboo leaves
glutinous rice grains
belly pork
water
roasted groundnuts
candied melons (tung kua
roasted coriander seeds OR
4 tbsp coriander powder
kencur/zeodary OR kencur powder
pepper corns OR 2 tbsp ground pepper corns.
garlic
shallots
cooking oil
salt for rice and filling
salt for boiling dumplings.

Method

1. Wipe bamboo leaves with a damp cloth and soak in boiling water overnight.

2. Pick out plain rice grains and other impurities which are often mixed with glutinous rice grains. Soak rice overnight.

3. Boil belly pork in 680 ml/24 fl oz water. When cooked, remove and dice finely. Put aside pork stock.

4. Grind or pound finely roasted groundnuts.

5. Dice finely candied melons.

6. Prepare spices as follows:
   (a) Pound coriander seeds finely. Add a little water for easy pounding. When fine, add kencur and pound together into a smooth paste.
   (b) Separately, pound pepper corns finely.
   (c) Separately pound garlic and shallots together into a smooth paste.

7. Heat oil, lower fire and fry garlic/shallot paste until soft and fragrant. Add coriander/kencur paste. Stir until fragrant.

8. Add diced belly pork, pounded groundnuts, diced candied melons, pounded pepper corns and 2 tsp salt out of 3 tsp. Mix thoroughly and the filling is ready. Leave to cool in a basin.

9. Drain off overnight water from rice grains and fry with pork stock and 1 tsp salt out of 3 tsp. Continue to fry until the rice grains have absorbed all the pork stock. Remove rice grains to another basin.

10. Wipe dry bamboo leaves and place in a basin.

11. Set up rack for wrapping and tying the dumplings. Take a strong rod of about 1 meter and set it between 2 high stools. Tie 10 strings (raffia or grass) together and loop them through the rod. Leave them at the centre.

12. For wrapping, sit on a low stool in front of the strings. have the rice grains, filling and bamboo leaves within easy reach. Begin wrapping.

13. Take 2 bamboo leaves 1 slightly overlapping the other. Fold to form a funnel. Put 1 tbsp rice into the funnel and use forefinger to dig a hole in the little pile of rice. Fill the hole with 1 tbsp filling and cover it with another tbsp of rice. Gently press in. Fold the leaves over the rice to form a triangular prism. Tie with string. Repeat until all the rice and filling are used up. The completed 10 dumplings form 1 bundle.

14. Boil a large pot of water. Add 3 tsp salt and boil the dumplings, 1 bundle at a time. Boil for 1/2 hour. Open 1 dumpling first to check if rice is cooked. If so, remove bundle from fire. Hang on rod again and put a basin underneath to catch water dripping off.