Today is the lunar fifth day of fifth month and a time for us to remember Qu Yuan by.
Honestly, my knowledge of this celebration is limited, with mere understanding that Qu Yuan was a Chinese patriot during the period of a corrupt Government in China, and in order to protest against the wrongdoings of the Government, Qu Yuan deliberately jumped into Mi Lo River.
The locals tried to save him while throwing drums and rice into the river to scare away the fishes so that they may not be able to harm Qu Yuan. In order to pay a tribute, patriot, boat races were held and rice thrown into water to symbolize the struggle made to rescue Qu Yuan.
It is interesting that to date, I have never witness a dragon boat race in Singapore nor any other countries like China. However, what is close to my heart is the dumplings.
Today, the variety in the market is wide ranging from simple fare to those with shark's fin or abalone. The one I used to make with mum when I was a teenager contained glutinous rice, belly pork, lean pork, mushrooms, chestnut, and dried prawns.
It was a tradition then to prepare the dumplings - from washing & frying glutinous rice, cutting and marinating the pork and other ingredients to wrapping the dumplings and cooking them in boiling water over burning charcoal.
All of these is art in itself. Mum tried to teach me but I obviously failed the test, and have yet to master the art.
Sigh... Is it a regret? Possibly but I am not harping over this. I shall find time to relook at mum's recipes again. And, I have every intention to learn Mum-in-law's recipes too. These recipes are precious and definitely, food is a good way to help connect and bond family and friends.
Come August, we shall start on the road to learning again.
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