On the 5th day of the 5th month of the Chinese lunar calendar, the Chinese celebrate Duan Wu or Dragon Boat Festival. Legend has it that this date commemorates the death of patriotic poet Qu Yuan who drowned himself more than 2,000 years ago when his beloved Chu state fell to the State of Qin. According to the legend, the locals made rice dumplings (“zongzi”) and threw these into the river to lure the fishes away from eating his body. And that’s how the tradition of making rice dumplings wrapped … [Read more...]