Before the Dragon Boat Festival, zongzi of all sizes have already flooded the market, attracting even more attention than the holiday itself. As usual, the media will undoubtedly hype up the nutritional value of zongzi and who should not eat them. — Rather than talking about who shouldn't eat zongzi, it's better to discuss how they should be eaten.
I suspect that when ancient people ate zongzi, besides the cultural significance of commemorating Qu Yuan, it was probably more for health benefits. A traditional food of a nation that has been passed down for a thousand years, a food closely related to the seasons, could not possibly be without health benefits.
Zongzi, with bamboo or reed leaves as the skin and glutinous rice as the filling, is actually a very reasonable combination. The leaves not only bring a fresh aroma but also provide polyphenols and potassium, which seep into the rice during steaming, helping to improve the body's heat resistance.
On the other hand, glutinous rice is warming and has the effect of warming the spleen and stomach. After the Grain in Ear solar term, the weather becomes increasingly hot, blood flow on the body's surface increases, and gastrointestinal function gradually declines, making people prone to summer heat-induced weight loss. Eating glutinous rice can help improve this problem. Not to mention the fillings, the fragrant leaves and soft glutinous rice alone are enough to whet one's appetite.
The glutinous rice of ancient times was not polished white rice. Coarse glutinous rice could provide more minerals and B vitamins. Adding fillings like small dates, peanuts, lotus seeds, Chinese yam, or Gordon Euryale could have certain tonic effects, while adding red beans, mung beans, or bean paste could, on one hand, clear heat and detoxify, and on the other, increase protein content. Making meat or egg zongzi can increase protein and fat content and add iron.
Speaking of which, a problem arises: many experts say that although zongzi are good, they are not suitable for everyone.
Although meat zongzi are high in protein, they also contain a lot of fat. Any soft, cooked meat must be high in fat, not to mention that pork belly is commonly used for meat zongzi. People with high blood lipids should naturally avoid them and can choose varieties like bean paste zongzi, small date zongzi, or eight-treasure zongzi.
What about sweet zongzi? They often worry diabetics. In fact, glutinous rice itself has a high glycemic response, and diabetics should avoid it, whether it's sugar-free or not.
People with gastrointestinal problems are also advised that zongzi are not easy to digest and can easily cause indigestion; especially after eating greasy food, eating zongzi can easily lead to indigestion and stomach discomfort. People with excessive stomach acid and stomach ulcers should also eat less.
So, why have zongzi, which the ancients used for health preservation, become a troublesome food for modern people? There are probably three reasons for this:
1. The ancients were more physically active and had a higher metabolic rate, and the vast majority of them did not have problems like diabetes or heart disease. The Dragon Boat Festival was the "double rush" season for agriculture—rushing to harvest and plant—with a huge amount of physical activity. At this time, there was often no time to cook, so for farmers to be able to eat "hard-to-digest" zongzi was, rather than a disadvantage, a very healthy thing.
2. The lives of the ancients were relatively hard, and they probably couldn't often or in large quantities eat greasy meat zongzi and egg yolk zongzi. Eating a small amount was not a problem.
3. The ancients mainly ate freshly made and hot zongzi; that is, they made them themselves, started steaming them as soon as they were wrapped, and ate them hot right after they were steamed. Now, many people eat cold zongzi, or at least semi-cold zongzi, or zongzi that have been frozen or refrigerated for a long time and then reheated, which are harder to digest. In addition, people also eat a lot of greasy food during the festival.
Traditional Chinese medicine believes that glutinous rice warms the middle and replenishes qi, making it suitable for people with spleen and stomach problems, not as it is said today that people with poor gastrointestinal health cannot eat it. However, the way of eating glutinous rice is very important—using glutinous rice to cook congee and drinking it while hot can nourish the spleen and stomach; people with a weak or cold spleen and stomach feel very comfortable after drinking it. But when glutinous rice is made into sticky cakes, eaten after cooling, or reheated after cooling, it is difficult to digest and can harm the spleen and stomach. If a large amount of animal fat is added, it is something not everyone can tolerate.
In my research, I also found that the glycemic response of freshly made long-grain glutinous rice (indica glutinous rice) is not too high, but it becomes quite high after it cools, and the insulin response is the same. For short-grain glutinous rice (japonica glutinous rice), it is high when hot. The reason for this is not yet known and requires further research.
These issues at least remind us—when eating zongzi, it is generally healthier to eat freshly made hot zongzi, and not to reheat them after they have cooled. For middle-aged and elderly people and those who are weak, it is best to eat a small amount each time, choose small zongzi, choose zongzi with coarse grains and tuber fillings, and zongzi without added oil or meat. It's best to make them yourself and eat the hot zongzi right after they are wrapped, which allows you to enjoy the fun of making traditional foods and gives you peace of mind regarding health.
Warm reminder:
1. It is normal for the color of zongzi leaves to darken after being steamed and left for a while. Do not choose zongzi with very fresh green or even blue-green skins, as they may have been treated with copper sulfate, and their safety is not guaranteed.
2. Zongzi are a staple food. If you eat zongzi, you should reduce the amount of other staple foods like rice, steamed buns, or bread to avoid excessive energy intake in a day, which can cause weight gain.