Bak chang/ba chang/zong zi (however way you call it) is a traditional Chinese rice dish made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves. It is best served steaming hot, accompanied by a fresh brew of Chinese tea.
It’s especially a hot favourite during the Dragon Boat Festival, which occurs on the 5th day of the 5th month of the lunar calendar every year. If you swear by traditional flavours, here are some of the best offerings you can get this year.
Joo Chiat Kim Choo has a Hakka Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables dumpling that combines the notable Hakka dish with a rice dumpling. Encased within the glutinous rice is steamed pork belly with preserved mustard greens that lend to a deliciously savoury bust of flavours.
Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel’s Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant has an array of unique rice dumplings this year, from a mala-inspired dumpling to one stuffed with luxurious 5-head Australian abalone, and Iberico and parma ham.
But if your tastebuds lean towards traditional flavours, go for the restaurant’s best-selling Signature Pork and Salted Egg Yolk, with premium pork marinated in a house-made secret marinade, salted egg yolk, mushrooms, black beans and chestnuts.
Purchase a minimum of four rice dumplings in a gold premium box and enjoy 15 per cent off, till 14 June 2021. Available for takeaway or delivery. Call 6831 4605 or visit its website to order.
Pry open this substantial dumpling by award-winning Cantonese restaurant Golden Peony and you’ll find a luxurious combination of time-honoured ingredients that’ll whet the appetite of any traditionalist. Think abalone, mung beans, roast pork, ‘Dong Po’ pork, chicken, dried scallop, salted egg yolk, Chinese mushroom, lotus seed, and chestnut, all enveloped in soft, aromatic glutinous rice.
Available for takeaway or delivery, pre-order from now till June 13, 2021. Visit its website to order. Call 6432 7482/88 or e-mail sinci.goldenpeony@conradhotels.com for more information.
Complete with a tinge of blue from butterfly pea flower, the traditional mark of a Nyonya rice dumpling, this rendition stays true to the dumpling’s original recipe. It is carefully made with glutinous rice, minced pork, salted egg yolk, chestnut, diced black mushroom and sweetened winter melon.
Besides this, its menu also offers other delicious flavours, such as the Sweetened Lotus Seed Paste Rice Dumpling ($14.80) and the Signature Barbecued Pork Rice Dumpling with Yunnan Ham and Conpoy ($27.80). For a family feast or to treat a loved one, you can also consider ordering their Shang Palace Rice Dumpling Gift Set ($78) which consists of five types of dumplings and a canister of Chinese tea.
Or if you’re up for something more exotic, there’s the luxurious Applewood-smoked Rice Dumpling with Abalone, Matsutake Mushroom, Foie Gras and Smoked Chicken ($108) that weighs a hefty 750g.
Available from now till June 14, 2021. Visit Shangri-La Singapore’s website to order.
This traditional Cantonese rice dumpling is a signature dish from master chef Lap Fai. Filled to the brim with abalone, roasted duck meat, salted egg yolk, and mushrooms, this dumpling is one that will keep you full for a while.
Other highlights from their menu are the collagen-rich Rice Dumpling with Pork Bone Cartilage with Preserved Vegetables and Mushrooms ($18.80) and the Sago Rice Dumpling with Bird’s Nest and Green Beans ($18.80), which makes for a great dessert option.
Like many other restaurants, they are also offering a dumpling set of three. Great for gifting or for a family meal, you can get the Assorted Dumpling Set ($65.80) which packs one of each dumpling flavour. Or get the restaurant’s homemade sauces, XO Chilli Sauce, Shrimp Paste Sauce or Soya Bean Chilli Sauce, to amp up your dining experience.
Available for delivery or takeaway from now till June 10. Visit its website to order.
Traditional pastry shop Thye Moh Chan is a go-to for traditional Teochew baked goods, and for the Dragon Boat Festival this year, it has teamed up with Breadtalk to unveil two Teochew-style dumplings, each priced at $6.50.
Sink your teeth into the Teochew Double Delight Bak Chang, stuffed with homemade Mung Bean Paste and Traditional Teochew Pork for a hint of sweetness. Or if you enjoy a savoury dumpling, go for the Teochew Salted Egg Bak Chang with juicy pork belly, dried shrimp, chestnut, and a salted egg.
Or get the best of both worlds with the bundle sets – six at $39 with one complimentary bak chang, or 10 at $65 with two complimentary bak changs.
Available at all Thye Moh Chan, BreadTalk and Toast Box stores, delivery platforms and Shopee (Thye Moh Chan only), as well as BreadTalk’s e-store.
Text: Tan Gin Yee Additional reporting: Michelle Lee
Grand Shanghai restaurant has various Shanghai-style rice dumplings to celebrate with your loved ones. Inside the parcel of glutinous rice, the usual suspects of pork belly and salted egg yolk are elevated with the earthy and aromatic flavour of ji cai (Shepherd’s Purse), which is widely used in Chinese, especially Shanghainese cuisine.
Available for takeaway from now till June 14, 2021. For pre-orders, call 6836-6866/8202 0836, or e-mail restaurant@grandshanghai.com.sg. Grand Shanghai is at 390 Havelock Road, King’s Centre, Level 1, Singapore 169662. Closed on Mondays.
From Pan Pacific’s award winning restaurant Hai Tien Lo, this huge rice dumpling is generously filled with succulent pork belly, Japanese mushrooms, dried scallops, salted egg yolk, chestnuts, green beans, lotus seeds and premium glutinous rice. It is the perfect sharing size for the whole family to enjoy together as a meal on its own.
Other equally delicious dumplings on their menu include the Traditional Nonya Dumpling ($9.80), Cantonese Pork Dumpling ($13.80) and more. For a hearty family treat, give their rice dumpling gift sets ($68-$98) a try as they offer different flavours of dumplings and a bottle of Hai Tien Lo’s Signature Homemade XO Chilli Sauce or Sweet and Sour Spicy Bean Paste Sauce.
Available from now till 25 June. Visit this website to order. Key in discount code “TAKEAWAY25” to enjoy 25 per cent discount on your order. Delivery charges apply and free delivery is available for orders above $100.
Peach Blossoms’ traditional offering is a Hakka rice dumpling carefully filled with Kurobuta pork belly, mushrooms, dried shrimp, chestnuts, salted yolk, and fermented beancurd. One of the bestsellers on their menu, this dumpling promises to delight your tastebuds.
For a family feast, you can order the Bundle Set ($68.80), which consists of all three dumpling flavours, including crowd-favourite, the Hokkaido Sweet Potato “Lava” Rice Dumpling ($16.80).
Available for delivery or takeaway from now till June 14, 2021. Visit its website to order. Call 6845 1118 or email peachblossoms.prsmb@parkroyalhotels.com for more information.
Stuffed with a generous amount of ingredients, this dumpling is brimming with the flavours of savoury Jinhua ham, top quality conpoy from Hokkaido, roast pork and roast duck among others.
Crystal Jade also carries a variety of other dumpling flavours like their Classic Five Spice Marinated Pork Dumpling ($8.35) and more. Order for your whole family and save with their dumpling bundles of three ($25.04) and five ($41.73). If you’re ordering their dumplings, do note that products from other categories cannot be checked out at the same time!
Available for takeaway from now till June 14, 2021 at selected Crystal Jade outlets or visit its website to order. Get an additional 15 per cent off with the promo code ‘5OFFCJRD’.