The origin story of eating zongzi during the Dragon Boat Festival The evolution of zongzi
Eating Zongzi during the Dragon Boat Festival is to commemorate the great patriotic poet Qu Yuan.The general of the Qin State, Bai Qi, led his troops southward and broke through the capital of the Chu State.Qu Yuan’s political ideology was shattered, and he felt hopeless about the future.However, he was unable to return to the sky, and his heart was full of grief and anger.On May 5th, he threw himself into the Miluo River with a big stone in his arms.In order to prevent the fish and shrimp from damaging Qu Yuan’s body, people poured rice into the river in bamboo tubes.Over time, the Dragon Boat Festival was formed.The custom of dumplings.
The legend of eating zongzi on the Dragon Boat Festival
In 340 BC, Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet and doctor of the state of Chu, faced the pain of subjugation of his country.In order to prevent fish and shrimp from damaging his body, people put rice in bamboo tubes into the river one after another.In the future, in order to show respect and remembrance for Qu Yuan, every day, people would put rice in bamboo tubes and put them into the memorial.
Why did they use mugwort leaves or reed leaves and lotus leaves to make dumplings later? There is such a record in "Beginners":During the Jianwu period of the Han Dynasty, Changsha people dreamed of a person at night, claiming to be Dr.Sanlu ( Qu Yuan’s official name), and said to him:"The things you sacrificed have been stolen by the dragons in the river.Later, you can wrap them in mugwort leaves and tie them with five-color silk threads.The dragons are most afraid of these two things." With "wild leaves wrapped in millet", "horn millet" is made.Passed down from generation to generation, it has gradually developed into my country’s Dragon Boat Festival food.
The historical development of eating rice dumplings on the Dragon Boat Festival
According to literature records, as early as the Spring and Autumn Period, wild rice was wrapped with wild leaves (Zhibai) into the shape of horns, called "horn millet"; Packed with rice, sealed and baked, it is called "Tong Zong".At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the millet was soaked in the ash water of plants and trees, and the millet was cooked in a square shape with wild leaves.It was not until the Jin Dynasty that the zongzi was officially designated as the food for the Dragon Boat Festival.At that time, in addition to glutinous rice, the traditional Chinese medicine Yizhiren was also added as the raw material for making the zongzi.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, the raw materials of zongzi increased, mixed with animal meat, chestnuts, red dates, red beans, etc., and there were many varieties.At this time, the production of zongzi was relatively fine, and gradually it became a very common food, often used as a gift for communication.
The production of zongzi in the Tang and Song Dynasties focused on the exquisiteness of the raw materials and the exquisite appearance of the zongzi.During the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the raw material for wrapping zongzi has evolved from wild leaves to loquat leaves, and later, zongzi wrapped with reed leaves appeared.At this time, bean paste, pork, pine nuts, dates, walnuts, etc.were added to the raw materials of zongzi, and the varieties were more colorful.
The popular popular rice dumplings on the market today also follow the wisdom of the ancients in terms of ingredients, and they are available in shopping malls all year round.Combined with the current food processing technology for vacuum packaging, the shelf life is long, and you can eat it after buying it at home and heating it at will.The packaging box is beautifully made and has become a common local specialty and a good gift.
With the improvement of people’s living standards, the Dragon Boat Festival has been officially designated as a legal holiday in my country.It will not only help the public to increase their attention to traditional culture, but also help to expand the international influence of Chinese traditional festivals and traditional culture.
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