dumpling making in the kampong


































these days, fewer and fewer people are making the dumplings (bak chang) at home. somehow, bak chang has lost some of its allure as there is nothing special about it any more as they are easily available all the year round. katong rice dumplings have outlets all over the island.

in those kampong days, we did not have to check the calendar to know that the dragon boat festival was approaching as many families would be busy making rice dumplings about a week prior to the festival. the preparations and the cooking would usually be carried out outside the house. the festive mood would be in the air long before the actual day. these days, the festival could just come and go without our realising it.

i remember it as a rather time-consuming affair. first, you had to buy the large bamboo leaves and the hemp strings for tying it into a tetrahedral package. these materials were obtained much earlier, about a month or so before the festival.

then as the days got nearer, you have got to get the ingredients - glutinous rice, mushrooms, pork, chestnuts, fried onions and hae bee (dried prawns) ready. a day before the actual cooking, the leaves had to be blanched in boiling water in a large kerosene tin, which we bought from the provision shop for about eighty cents. this kerosene tin came with two wooden grips on opposite sides of the tin. after that the leaves had to be wiped with a damp cloth, one by one.

in those kampong days, we used an earthen stove and firewood to cook the rice dumplings in the kerosene tin. my mother would cook about 5 to 10kg of glutinous rice to make the dumplings. my sisters would help with the wrapping and tying. i would help by feeding the firewood into the fire and of course, the eating.

apart from the rice/meat dumplings, my mother would also make the smaller, sticky yellow dumplings which did not come with any filling. as children, we actually preferred eating this type of dumpling, which we dipped in sugar before eating.

i have fond memories of the dumpling festival because of the kampong spirit which is difficult to replicate in our housing estates. folks who did not know how to make or who did not have the time to make would receive dumplings from the neighbours. those who made would also get dumplings to sample. there would be a lot of exchanging going on and we ended up trying all types and qualities of dumplings.

those days, hemp sting was used to secure the dumplings. today, the raffia has replaced the hemp string. we still use the earthen stove but charcoal has replaced firewood. instead of the kerosene tin, we used a huge pot.