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Hokkien Bak Chang
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My Grandparents' Hokkien Bak Chang (福建咸肉粽 / Glutinous Rice Dumplings)

This is my attempt in recreating my maternal grandparents' Hokkien bak chang based on my memory and tons of research. Makes 35 to 40 dumplings, depending on the size of the bak chang.
Recipe updated in 2025.
Servings: 40 dumplings

EQUIPMENT

  • Pressure cooker

INGREDIENTS
 

For Wrapping

  • 250 grams bamboo leaves
  • Bamboo twine or kitchen twine, 75-80 cm each to tie 1 bak zhang

Pork Belly

Shallots

  • 500 grams shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 300 grams oil, preferably peanut oil

Dried Shrimps, Mushrooms and Chestnut

Rice

INSTRUCTIONS

The Day Before

  • Bamboo Leaves: Dry bamboo leaves are brittle - so handle gently. Cut off the string tying the bamboo leaves into bundles and place them in a large pot / container. Add enough water to cover and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and steep for 10 minutes.
    Pour away the hot water and rinse the bamboo leaves under running water, separating them piece by piece, and wipe both sides with a clean tea towel. Discard leaves that are badly damaged (e.g. with large holes in the middle). Trim off the head and ends of each bamboo leaf.
    Place the leaves back in the pot / container and add enough water to cover. Place weights to keep the leaves submerge, cover and set aside for at least 12 hours until the next day. (If using the bamboo twine, soak it together with the leaves; no soaking required for kitchen twine.)
  • Pork: Combine pork belly ingredients and mix well with marinade ingredients. Cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Stir the pork belly one or twice if possible so that the meat marinates evenly.
  • Mushroom: Soak mushrooms with enough water to cover until softened. Trim off the stems. Cut into half or quarters if they are large mushrooms. Continue to soak the mushrooms overnight in the refrigerator.
  • Shallots: Heat oil over medium-low heat in a small pot. Add in the peeled shallot and stir regularly. Once half of the shallots start to turn a light golden, remove the pot from the heat and allow residual hit to cook the shallots, stirring regularly. Don't worry if it's not fully golden, since you can cook it a bit more later on. But you'll have to start over if the shallots are burnt.

The Day

  • Rice: Rinse glutinous rice several times until the water is translucent - about 5 to 6 times. Soak in water for 1 hour, then drain well.
  • Drain and squeeze dry the mushrooms to remove excess water. Reserve 100g of mushroom water for the pork belly.
  • Mushrooms: Heat wok over medium-high heat and add in 1/4 cup of shallot oil mixture. Cook until shallots are golden (if needed) and add in the mushrooms.
  • Lower heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are fragrant. Remove mushrooms into a bowl. (No need to clean the wok.)
  • Shrimps: Heat wok over low heat and add in shrimps. Add a little more shallot oil if needed. Cook over low heat until the shrimps are fragrant - you can tell they are ready when they start to spit and sputter ("piak"). Remove shrimps into a bowl and stir in a little dark soy sauce to colour the shrimps.
  • Pork: Heat wok over medium-high heat and add in about 1/4 cup of shallot oil mixture. Cook until shallots are golden (if needed) and add in pork belly, reserving the marinade.
  • Stir-fry until meat is cooked on the outside. Add in the cooked mushrooms, reserved marinade and reserved mushroom soaking water. Cook over medium heat until water has been absorbed, stirring frequently. Remove pork and mushrooms into a bowl and clean the wok.
  • Rice: Heat wok over medium-high heat and add in remaining shallot oil. Cook until shallots are golden (if needed) and add in salt.
  • Lower heat to low and add in drained rice. Toss to coat rice with oil. Turn off the heat and add in all the rice seasoning. Toss to coat rice evenly with seasoning. Remove from heat and transfer rice into a large bowl. There is no need to cook the rice for long as you want the rice to be loose (not sticky) for wrapping. If your wok is too small, cook the rice in batches.
  • Bamboo Leaves: Rinse the leaves again. Shake excess water off the leaves and set them aside for wrapping. Cover with a damp cloth or keep them soaked in the water if not using them immediately. The leaves should be kept moist. If they dry out, the leaves may crack when wrapping.
  • Secure the bamboo twine / kitchen twine on a rod / hook.
  • Wrap: Use two to three bamboo leaves to form a cone. Fill the cone with the ingredients - my order is: rice → shrimps → 1 pork belly, 1 mushroom, 1 chestnut → rice → shrimps → 1 mushroom → 2 pork belly → rice. Wrap the bak chang and secure with bamboo twine.
  • Pressure Cook: Fill 6-quart pressure cooker with bak changs and submerge them completely with boiling water (I can fit around 8 bak chang each time). Add in 1 tablespoon salt. Pressure cook on high for 45 minutes. Force release the pressure. For subsequent batches, top up with water and add in 1 teaspoon salt for every alternate batch.
  • Storage: Let the bak changs cool completely on a wire rack before storing in the refrigerator or freezer.
  • Reheat: Steam for 10 minutes (refrigerator) / 20 minutes (freezer) until heated through before serving.

NOTES

  1. Do read the entire blog post for my own tips and notes.
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