Here’s where to order celebratory bak chang and rice dumplings for Dragon Boat Festival 2021 on Monday 14 June 2021.
Looking for rice dumplings to celebrate Dragon Boat Festival (also called Dumpling Festival or Duanwu Festival) on Monday 14 June 2021 (the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese Lunar Calendar)? The traditional Chinese food for the Dragon Boat Festival is bak chang or zongzi — pyramid-shaped glutinous sticky rice dumplings with different fillings of pork, water chestnuts, mushrooms and other fillings wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. Nyonya (Peranakan) rice dumplings are stuffed with braised pork, five-spice powder and candied winter melon. while the rice dumpling ‘Kee zhang‘ has no filling and is eaten as a sweet, dipped ‘gula melaka (palm sugar). Scroll on for all the tastiest spots to find rice dumplings in town!
Dragon Boat Festival History
The Dragon Boat Festival commemorates the death of Qu Yuan, a Chinese poet and minister during the Zhou Dynasty Warring States period who was banished and accused of treason. He later drowned himself in the river when the Chu capital was captured by Qin. Legend has it that he couldn’t be saved by locals who tried to race out in boats to reach him in time. Fishermen beat their oars against the water to stop the man-eating fish in the river from devouring Qu Yuan’s body. Some say they threw cooked rice wrapped in leaves into the water, in the hope that the fish would eat them instead. This legend has resulted in the celebratory Dragon Boat Festival, with dragon boat races and the eating of rice dumplings wrapped in reed leaves.
So now you know a little about the Dragon Boat Festival history – let’s check out some of the rice dumpling takeaways and gifting options in Singapore to celebrate this festival.
Bak Chang / Rice Dumpling Takeaways and Gift Deliveries in Singapore
1. Premium crafted rice dumplings at Peach Blossoms
Peach Blossoms at PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay offers crafted rice dumplings packed with premium ingredients. Curated by award-winning Chef Edward Chong, the Premium XO Cantonese Rice Dumpling ($36.80/piece for 4 pax to share) is stuffed with abalone, Kurobuta pork belly, dried oyster, with housemade XO sauce. For something special try the sweet rice dumpling Hokkaido Sweet Potato “Lava” Rice Dumpling ($16.80/piece) filled with purple and orange Hokkaido sweet potato custard, wrapped in butterfly pea rice!
Rice dumpling orders: Enjoy up to 25% savings on rice dumplings when you use the following promo codes: PBD25OFF or 15% discount on rice dumpling bundle set with PBD15OFF. $23 delivery charge for orders below $100.
Peach Blossoms 6 Raffles Boulevard, Marina Square, PARKROYAL COLLECTION Marina Bay, Level 5, Singapore, www.parkroyalcollectionmarinabay.oddle.me/en_SG
2. Luxury Trio Rice Dumplings Gift Set at Paradise Group
Paradise Group’s newly created rice dumpling: Spicy Smoked Duck with Dried Shrimp Dumpling also features pork belly, salted egg yolk, chestnut, dried shelled shrimp, dried shrimp, shiitake mushroom and mung bean. This rice dumpling is red hued thanks to the house-made mala sauce. Available as part of the Luxury Trio Dumplings Gift Set ($42.80), the rice dumpling set comes with a Spicy Roasted Duck with Dried Shrimp Dumpling, a Deluxe Pork with Conpoy and Chestnut Dumpling, and a Black Truffle Five Grain Dumpling (which is also available separately at $12.80). Other rice dumplings on offer include the Deluxe Pork with Conpoy and Chestnut Dumpling ($11.80) and Salted Pork Belly Brown Rice Dumpling(S$10.80). Paradise Group’s rice dumplings are wrapped in a pentahedron shape, a classic Cantonese style of wrapping rice dumplings.
Rice dumpling orders: Rice dumplings available for purchase till 12 Jun 2021. Rice dumplings available for delivery via delivery.paradisegp.com/en_SG/ Deliveroo, Foodpanda and Grab Food. Citi, Maybank and PGR cardmembers enjoy 15% off with a takeaway of four or more.
Paradise Group, various locations, www.paradisegp.com
3. Rice Dumpling Gift Sets at Hai Tien Lo, Pan Pacific Singapore
Pan Pacific Singapore’s award-winning Cantonese restaurant Hai Tien Lo (海天楼) celebrates Dragon Boat Festival with handcrafted rice dumplings from the Traditional Jumbo Rice Dumpling with Abalone ($38.80 per piece), generously filled with succulent pork belly, salted egg yolk, chestnuts, green beans, lotus seeds and a luxurious new addition of whole abalone. New rice dumplings this year – Classic Taiwanese Dumpling with Sesame Oil Chicken ($18.80), Teochew Dumpling with Yam Paste and Gingko Nuts ($10.80), inspired by the yam dessert Orh Nee. Looking to gift rice dumplings? The Classic Bundle Set ($68) and Premium Bundle Set ($98), comprises six dumplings in three flavours beautifully packaged with a bottle of Hai Tien Lo’s Signature Homemade XO Chilli Sauce or Sweet and Sour Spicy Bean Paste Sauce.
Rice dumpling orders: available until 14 June 2021, at ppsinshop.com. Pan Pacific Privileges members enjoy 10% savings with point accruals. For enquiries, call 6826 8240 or email [email protected]
Pan Pacific Singapore, 7 Raffles Boulevard Singapore, www.ppsinshop.com
4. Bak Chang (Hokkien style rice dumpling) at Hoo Kee Bak Chang
Hoo Kee Bak Chang 和记肉粽 (in the Bib Gourmand 2017 Singapore list) is a family business that has been selling Hokkien style rice dumplings or bak chang for over 60 years throughout the year not just during Dragon Boast Festival. Bak chang flavours range from the original flavour of roasted pork with chestnuts as well as bak chang with salted duck egg yolk.
Price: from $3.50
Rice dumpling orders: all year-round.
Hoo Kee Bak Chang 和记肉粽, Amoy Street Food Centre, 01-18 Singapore, www.hookeebakchang.oddle.me/en_SG/
5. Handcrafted rice dumplings from Award-winning Man Fu Yuan
Award-winning Chinese restaurant Man Fu Yuan at InterContinental Singapore offers seven varieties of handcrafted rice dumplings this year. Their new rice dumpling flavour is Mala-braised Beef Brisket Dumpling ($15) a meaty rice dumpling packed with beef brisket, mushrooms, bamboo shoots, coriander and mala spices. Something different? An iconic circular-shape Smoked Duroc Pork Char Siew Dumpling with Black Gold Garlic ($12). Other rice dumplings include the X.O. Sauce Nyonya Rice Dumpling ($12), Signature Black Bean Chicken Dumpling ($12), Traditional Hokkien Style Dumpling ($10) with pork belly, braised in five spice; and for something sweet, the Black Sesame Rice Dumpling ($8). There are also rice dumpling gift sets from $78 comprising four dumplings packed in a limited edition dumpling bag plus two of Man Fu Yuan’s signature teas in a traditional tea canister.
Early bird discount of 20% savings when you order before 1 June.
Rice dumpling orders: until 14 June 2021.
Man Fu Yuan, InterContinental Singapore, 80 Middle Rd, www.singapore.intercontinental.com
6. Nyonya and Hokkien rice dumplings at Eastern Rice Dumpling
Eastern Rice Dumpling 东园肉粽 is known for their affordable Nyonya and Hokkien rice dumplings. This Dragon Boat Festival 2021, tuck into rice dumplings ranging from the standard Nyonya Rice Dumplings ($3.40), to Hokkien Dumplings ($3.40) as well as more interesting flavours like Black Eye Beans Mushroom.
Rice dumpling orders: online.
Eastern Rice Dumpling, various locations, www.easternricedumpling.com
7. New rice dumpling creations at Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant
Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant (萬豪軒) is featuring five new rice dumpling creations – think premium 5-Head Abalone with Iberico & Parma Ham Rice Dumpling ($28); a spicy Sichuan Pepper Chicken with Lotus Root, Fungus, Peanuts & Mushrooms ($14); best selling Vegetarian Black Truffle 5-Grain Rice Dumpling ($13); Signature Pork & Salted Egg Rice Dumpling ($14) and new veggie rice dumpling Honey Red Dates with Salted Green Beans, Red Beans and Melon Candy Rice Dumpling ($14).
Rice dumpling orders: available until 14 June 2021. Buy a minimum of four rice dumplings packaged in a gold premium box and enjoy 15% off.
Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant, 320 Orchard Road, Singapore, www.celebratorydelights.com
8. Traditional Chinese Glutinous Rice Dumpling
#SupportLocal when you get your rice dumplings from Love Dumplings, a home-based food business selling freshly handcrafted Traditional Chinese Glutinous Rice Dumpling (Kiam Bak Chang) and Mini Kee Chang in plain or red bean flavours. Bak chang with pork, chestnut, mushroom and salted egg is $5 or the premium bak chang with abalone & scallop is $15.
Rice dumpling orders: Order before 8 June and bak chang will be $1 cheaper at $4 each. Order these rice dumplings via Instagram and WhatsApp at 88391109.
9. Rice Dumplings from Resorts World Sentosa
This Dragon Boat Festival, RWS’s signature Dumpling Feast returns with a set of 8 handcrafted rice dumplings in an array of Asian flavours from Hakka and Nonya to Japanese and Thai. Highlights include the pink-hued Ocean’s Jewels Rice Dumpling where the glutinous rice is infused with Japanese hoshi ebi overnight, and is packed with responsibly harvested sea whelk from France, or there’s Thai-inspired Siamese Jade Rice Dumpling – a rice dumpling wrapped in banana leaves with glutinous rice infused with fresh coconut milk, palm sugar, lotus seed and a creamy taro filling. There’s also the Golden Summer Rice Dumpling, a Hakka-style rice dumpling with eight premium ingredients to signify abundance including abalone, smoked duck, and five-spice premium pork belly, as well as a sapphire blue Peranakan-style rice dumpling with a spicy XO kick.
Price: $118 per set of 8 rice dumplings ($98 for RWS members) plus $25 delivery fee per location applies or enjoy free delivery for online orders of three rice dumpling sets.
Rice dumpling orders: Preorder from 14 May to 11 June. Collection from 25 May to 16 June 12pm to 8pm daily
Resorts World Sentosa, www.rwsentosa.com/dumplingfeast.
So which rice dumpling offering will you be choosing to celebrate Dragon Boat Festival?
