Boil down to a nice sticky paste full#

Boil down to a nice sticky paste full#

The lye water is key to giving these jianshui zong their attractive amber and slightly translucent appearance!įor more information on this ingredient, check out our full post on potassium carbonate/lye water. So it’s not as unfamiliar of an ingredient as it seems at first blush! Chances are, you’ve eaten it at one point or another. Lye water is also used to make Eastern European breads, such as bagels and pretzels and Chinese mooncakes to help them develop a richer brown surface during cooking.” It gives them their distinctive yellow color, springy texture, and helps to prevent them from disintegrating in the broth. Lye water is also used to make traditional ramen noodles. “It’s a potent liquid alkaline ( potassium carbonate) used in home brewing and baking, to raise the pH of dough. So why lye water? Why alkaline water? Here’s a good description of food-grade lye water, courtesy of the internet: Just one of the reasons why we have to document them and share them with the world. It’s a shame that these old cooking techniques like those for making gan sui rice dumplings are slowly becoming extinct. If you know what we’re talking about, please share in the comments! His parents used to prepare them with red bean paste and a small piece of a special kind of red wood inserted into each.Įven after doing a little research, I’m not sure exactly what kind of wood it was and what its exact utility was. Bill remembers eating these Gan Sui Joong (Cantonese) special homemade treats growing up. These jianshui zong really are a part of our family’s culinary genealogy. In short, it boils down to three things: selection, authenticity, and affordability! And this Jianshui Zong (Gan Sui or Kansui joong in Cantonese) stood out from that dimsum meal, because you really don’t see this special Cantonese classic everyday. Travelers take note, because Shenzhen is where we had some of the best dim sum experiences *of our lives*. In case you are looking for the savory version of zongzi, be sure to check out our savory Cantonese Zongzi recipe. In fact, the last time we had this type of zongzi rice dumplings was at a dim sum restaurant in Shenzhen.

Pronounced “Gan Sui Jong” in Cantonese dialect, these rice dumplings are served with sugar or syrup, often as a breakfast or dim sum item.

Jianshui Zong (碱水粽), also known as Lye Water Rice Dumplings, or Alkaline Rice Dumplings, are a Cantonese-style rice dumpling popular this time of year. Happy Dragon Boat Festival! You’ll have to look elsewhere for your dragon boat races, but we do have a pretty special Alkaline zongzi recipe to share with you today as a holiday treat.