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MIRI: A zhongzi maker here has decided to give the rice dumpling a healthy makeover for the Duanwu Jie or Dragon Boat Festival tomorrow.
Sin Yean Yean said traditional zhongzi recipes use glutinous rice.
“In these modern times, people are getting more conscious about eating healthy. Some might not be permitted to consume glutinous rice as it needs a longer time to digest. Thus, I tried substituting glutinous rice with multigrain.
“Though I am not a professional when it comes to food nutrition, I did plenty of reading.Multigrain rice contains fibre and essential minerals like magnesium, copper, and iron.
“These nutrients help the body with better maintenance of the colon and the body’s metabolism,” she said.
With the help of a friend, she has adapted recipes to include oats, barley, red wheat, buckwheat and 10 other grains, as well as mushrooms, shrimp, and meat.
She also does not use monosodium glutamate or caster sugar.
“I use brown sugar instead because it is less sweet but still helps to enhance the taste and flavour,” she said.
Sin also offers a premium abalone zhongzi, made with South African abalone as well as scallops from Japan.
In the last 12 days, Sin has sold 1,500 rice dumplings of different varieties.