Get ready for the annual Dragon Boat Festival which is just around the corner! 
Rather than buying changs this year, why not make your own? In this article, we will be showing you how to process the Bamboo leaves for wrapping the dumplings and demonstrate how to make not one, but three different kinds of sticky rice dumplings: the Traditional Bak Chang, Nyonya Chang, and Kee Chang.
The traditional Hokkien Bak Chang features fried glutinous rice soaked in dark soy sauce and is wrapped with familiar ingredients like chestnuts, mushrooms, salted egg yolks, and dried shrimp. The secret behind the dumplings’ distinct aroma is the use of five spice powders 
- Boil a pot of water and with the leaves still tied, put the leaves into the pot and boil for 15mins. Then, flip the leaves and boil for another 15mins.
- After boiling, snip a small portion of the edges of the leaves on each side. Rinse the leaves and clean each piece carefully with a cloth.
- Prepare a pail of water and soak the leaves overnight.
Bak Chang (Savoury Glutinous Rice Dumplings)
咸肉粽(Serving: 16-17 pieces)
Ingredients A
/ 500 g glutinous rice, rinsed
/ 40 g light soy sauce
/ 40 g oyster sauce
/ 20 g dark soy sauce
/ 1 tbsp Chinese five-spice powder
/ 1 tsp white pepper powder
/ 1 tsp salt
/ 30g Garlic oil (to drizzle on rice after cook)
Ingredients B
/ 600 g pork belly, cut into appx 2cm cube
/ 40 g light soy sauce
/ 40 g oyster sauce
/ 30 g dark soy sauce
/ 1 tbsp Chinese five-spice powder
/ 1 tsp white pepper powder
/ 1/2 tsp sugar
/ 20g Garlic oil (recipe here)
Ingredients C
/ 5 garlic cloves
/ 60 g shallots
/ 30g Cooking oil
/ 15-17 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked overnight to soften
/ 15-17 dried chestnuts, soaked overnight to soften
/ 100 g dried shrimp
/ 200 g of water
/ 15-17 salted egg yolks (optional)
USEFUL ITEMS
30- 40 pieces bamboo leaves and hemp strings, soaked overnight and cleaned
Method:
1) Place a bowl onto mixing bowl lid, weigh in all ingredients A and soak overnight in refrigerator. Place another bowl onto mixing bowl lid, weigh in all ingredients B and marinate overnight in refrigerator.
2) Place 1000 g water into mixing bowl, insert simmering basket, add reserved glutinous rice, cook 13 min/Varoma/speed 3.5.
3) Remove simmering basket with spatula, remove cooked rice onto a dish and immediately drizzle with 30g of garlic oil. Set aside to cool.
4) Place garlic cloves and shallots into mixing bowl, chop <5 sec/Speed 6>.
5) Add oil, mushrooms and dried shrimp, sauté 3 min/120°C/Reverse/Spoon Speed>.
6) Add reserved marinated pork, chestnuts and water, cook <40min/100/Reverse/Spoon Speed>.
7) Take 3tbsp of remaining sauce from the cooked meat and add to the reserved glutinous rice.
8) Place 2-3 soaked bamboo leaves overlap, fold and form a cone shape. Scoop some glutinous rice, meat filling and salted egg yolk into bamboo cone, wrap into triangular dumpling shape and tie up with hemp strings. Continue the steps until finished.
9) Place dumplings in Varoma dish. Place 1600g water into mixing bowl, set Varoma into position, steam <40 min/Varoma /Speed 2>.
8) when cooked, hang the bak chang up to let it cool.
Tip :
Ingredient B’s meat may be substituted by chicken, beef, smoked duck or any other meat in the same proportion. Cooking time may differ.
Cooking time for frozen meat differs. We suggest using room temperature/chilled meat instead of frozen unthawed ones for better results.
Nyonya Chang, characterized by its blue color on some part of the dumpling 💙, is a traditional dumpling with roots in Peranakan culture, a fusion of Chinese and Malay influences. Nyonya Chang’s flavours lean towards sweetness rather than savoury, enhanced by the use of candied winter melon. The addition of coriander seeds and kencur (aromatic ginger) further enhances the flavour with an unforgettable sweet and savoury taste. ✨
Ingredients
10 g blue pea flowers (bunga telang), dried
100 g hot water
600 g glutinous rice
2000 g water, plus extra for soaking in step 2 and step 3
8 pandan leaves, tie 4 into a knot each OR Bamboo leaves
2 tsp salt
100 g shallot oil
Fillings
300 g pork belly, skinless, cut in slices (1 cm)
6 garlic cloves
150 g shallots
2 cekur roots (aromatic ginger roots)
30 g cooking oil, plus extra for greasing
8 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked to soften, stems removed, diced
20 g fermented bean paste (taucu)
15 g ground coriander seeds, adjust accordingly
30 g sugar
20 g light soy sauce
20 g oyster sauce
20 g dark soy sauce
10-15 g white pepper powder, adjust to taste
80 g candied winter melon, diced
20-30 pieces dried bamboo leaves, soaked overnight, patted dry with kitchen towel
3600 g water
Preparation
1. Place a bowl on mixing bowl lid, weigh in blue clitoria flowers and hot water. Mix well and set aside for 30 minutes. Sieve through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl for later use.
2. Place another bowl on mixing bowl lid, weigh in 200 g glutinous rice. Add reserved blue clitoria flower water mixture and mix well. Cover with extra water to soak.
3. Place another bowl on mixing bowl lid, weigh in 400 g glutinous rice. Cover with extra water and set aside both bowls in refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.
4. Place 1000 g water in mixing bowl, insert simmering basket, add reserved white glutinous rice and 1 pandan leaf knot to it, cook 15 min/Varoma/speed 3. Remove simmering basket with spatula. Transfer cooked rice into a bowl, mix the rice with 1 tsp salt and 70 g shallot oil. Clean mixing bowl.
5. Place 1000 g water in mixing bowl, insert simmering basket, add reserved blue glutinous rice and 1 pandan leaf knot to it, cook 15 min/Varoma/speed 3. Remove simmering basket with spatula. Transfer to a bowl and mix the rice with 1 tsp salt and 30g shallot oil. Rinse and dry mixing bowl.
6. Place pork belly in mixing bowl, chop 20 sec/speed 6. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
7. Place garlic cloves, shallots and cekur roots in mixing bowl, chop 5 sec/speed 6. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl with spatula.
8. Add cooking oil, mushrooms, fermented bean paste and ground coriander seeds, sauté 6 min/120°C/speed 2.
9. Add reserved pork, sugar, light soy sauce, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and white pepper powder, stir fry 15 min/120°C/ reverse /speed 1.
10. Add candied melon, cook 2 min/120°C/ /speed 1. Transfer to a bowl, let cool for later use.
11. Using a pastry brush, lightly grease bamboo leaves with cooking oil. Overlap 2 bamboo leaves with smooth surface facing up, fold to form a cone. Fill with reserved blue rice until ⅓ full, arrange reserved filling and top with white rice. Fold top of the leaves down covering rice and fold two sides to
form a triangle. Secure dumpling with cotton string. Repeat until rice and bamboo leaves are finished. Clean mixing bowl.
12. Place 1800 g water in mixing bowl, set Varoma dish into position, arrange 5-8 wrapped Nyonya chang to it. Close Varoma lid and steam 1 h 30 min/Varoma/speed 2 or until dumpling fully cooked. Carefully remove Varoma. Carefully open Varoma Lid. Remove the cooked dumpling from varoma dish and set aside, empty bowl. Place 1800 g water in mixing bowl, set Varoma dish into position, arrange the remaining wrapped Nyonya Chang to it. Close Varoma lid and steam 1 h 30 min/Varoma/speed 2 or until dumplings are fully cooked. Serve warm
Tips
- Approximately 50 g of glutinous rice and 35-40 g of filling for each dumpling.
- Make sure the smooth surface of the bamboo leaves were used to wrap the dumpling to avoid sticking.
- Once the dumplings are fully cooked, hang them up to air dry for at least 1 hour before storing them. Dumplings can be kept in room temperature for 48 hours, store in refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Ingredients
500g glutinous rice, soaked overnight
30g lye rock dissolved in 50g hot water. Or 30g alkaline water
15g cooking oil
1/4tsp salt
Bamboon leaves
Twine or string for tying
Preparation
- Wash and rinse the glutinous rinse and soak overnight or at least 4hours.
- Dissolve the lye rock in hot water.
- Add the lye rock solution or alkaline water, oil and salt. Mix well and let it stand for 1hour. Rinse the rice 1time.
- Take 2 leaves and fold into a cone shape.
- Add in about 1.5 tbsp of glutinous rice.
- Fold in the 2 side and the lid to form a triangle.
- Bind it with a string. Do you tie it too tightly as it need some space to expand when cooking.
- Insert the blade cover. Add in appx 16pcs of kee zhang. Fill the water till it reaches the max level.
- Set 60mins / 100degree / spoon speed
