Dried leaves are unable to be used, they are needed to rehydrate in water before using them for wrapping.

The easiest way to prepare the leaves for wrapping is to boil them for 30 minutes or to soak them in water overnight.

Place a heavy bowl on top of the leaves to stop them from floating on the water.

the leaves will become dark green color when they are fully rehydrated next day.

Wash the leaves under running water, and keep the leaves in water until you want to wrap the zongzi.

The glutinous rice! It is the only type of rice suitable for making rice dumplings.

there are two kind of glutinous rice, the short grain and long one (see the picture)

If you use the long glutinous rice, then needs to soak it in water at least 4 hours.

the short one doesn't need to soak in water.

Wash the glutinous rice a few times until the water is clear.

Drain the water away, and set aside for wrapping the zongzi.

【 the filling 1 】

Cut the pork into 3cm squares.

Put the pork in a stew pot and add soy sauce + 5 spice powder + white pepper + sugar

Bring the pot to boil, then simmer for 30 minutes, the meat won't so tender after 30 minutes, and that is ok as it needed to cook again later.

Take out of the meat from the pot, only leaves the gravy in it, the meat is for wrapping the zongzi, and the gravy is for stir-frying the rice. set them aside for using later.

【 the filling 2 】

Soak the dry shiitake mushrooms in water until fully rehydrated.

Remove the stems. cut into 2 or in the size you like ~

Stir-fry them with some oil for a few minutes until gets their flavor, then aside for wrapping the zongzi.

【 the filling 3 】

Salted duck egg yolk

Taiwanese zongzi often includes the salted egg yolk for its unique flavor.

Try to get it at the Asian grocery shop. if you couldn't find it, then simply use stewed eggs instead that would be ok too.

【 the filling 4 】

Dried shrimps are one of the indispensable ingredients, it brings a deep savory flavor to the rice dumplings.

Soak them for at least one hour, then clean and remove impurities.

Stir-fry with some oil for 2~3 minutes to gets their savory flavor, then set aside for frying rice later.

【 the filling 5 】

Wash peanuts, put them in pot covered with water and add a little salt, bring to boil and then cook over a medium heat for 20 minutes. then set aside for using later.

Put oil in a large wok and add chopped red onion in, stir-fry with gentle heat, be careful don't over fried and let it goes bitter.

Put the rice in the wok when the red onion started turning into the golden color.

then add ↓

2 bowls of gravy - the step 3
stir-fried shrimps - the step 6
cooked peanuts - the step 7

Mixture well, stir-fry with gentle heat and make sure the rice coating with gravy nicely, keeps to stir-fry until the gravy reduce, then turn off the heat.

Wrapping the zongzi

take two leaves and crossing each other. Fold up the bottom to create a cone. (see the picture)

Find a place to hook a bunch of twine

Holding the cone leaves with left hand, the add the fillings

firstly some mixed rice, then meat + mushroom + egg yolk and then put some mixed rice on top to covered the fillings....

Use one hand to hold the zongzi and the other to then to fold and wrap, and then to tie it tightly with a knot.

★★★ It is very important, Please Make sure to tie the zongzi tightly, so that it doesn't fall apart. (as it is still raw rice.)

It tastes very softly when cooked in the water, but its aromatic flavor would be less a bit. the good part is lower calories.

you would feel amazing when you cook zongzi by steam, smell so good, fabulous taste, it was the way that I took.

anyway, if you cook it in the boiling water, needs at least 40 minutes, it takes about 1 hour by steaming. Both ways might be needed to take longer in cooking, it is judging by the taste of our own.

Serving hot or cold are all great!