Cífàntuán () or simply, fantuan is a glutinous rice dish in
Chinese cuisine
Chinese cuisine encompasses the numerous cuisines originating from China, as well as overseas cuisines created by the Chinese diaspora. Because of the Chinese diaspora and historical power of the country, Chinese cuisine has influenced many o ...
originating in the
Jiangnan
Jiangnan or Jiang Nan (; formerly romanized Kiang-nan, literally "South of the River" meaning "South of the Yangtze") is a geographic area in China referring to lands immediately to the south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, incl ...
area of
eastern China
East China () is a geographical and a loosely defined cultural region that covers the eastern coastal area of China.
A concept abolished in 1978, for economical purposes the region was defined from 1949 to 1961 by the Chinese Central Governme ...
which encompasses
Shanghai
Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
and surrounding regions. It is made by tightly wrapping a piece of ''
youtiao
''Youtiao'' (), known in Southern China as Yu Char Kway is a long golden-brown deep-fried strip of dough of Chinese origin and (by a variety of other names) also popular in other East and Southeast Asian cuisines.
Conventionally, ''youtiao ...
'' (fried dough) with
glutinous rice
Glutinous rice (''Oryza sativa var. glutinosa''; also called sticky rice, sweet rice or waxy rice) is a type of rice grown mainly in Southeast and East Asia, and the northeastern regions of South Asia, which has opaque grains, very low amylose ...
. It is usually eaten as breakfast together with sweetened or savory
soy milk
Soy milk (simplified Chinese: 豆浆; traditional Chinese: 豆漿) also known as soya milk or soymilk, is a plant-based drink produced by soaking and grinding soybeans, boiling the mixture, and filtering out remaining particulates. It is a sta ...
in its native Jiangnan.
Today, cifantuan is commonly available in two varieties. Whereas the "
savory" variety includes ingredients such as ''
zha cai
''Zha cai'' (; ), also romanized as ''Cha tsai'', is a type of pickled mustard plant stem originating from Chongqing, China. The name may also be written in English as ''cha tsai'', ''tsa tsai'', ''jar choy'', ''jar choi'', ''ja choi'', ''ja ch ...
'' (pickled vegetable), ''
rousong
''Rousong'' or ''yuk sung or bak hu'' ( ; ), also known as meat floss, is a dried meat product with a light and fluffy texture similar to coarse cotton, originating from China. ''Rousong'' is used as a topping for many foods, such as congee, to ...
'' (pork floss) and small pieces of ''youtiao'' being wrapped in the rice ball, the "sweet" variety adds sugar and sometimes
sesame
Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cu ...
to the filling. There are many modern variations of the food which are made from purple rice and include fillings such as tuna, kimchi, or cheese.
The cifantuan is a major breakfast food item in Shanghai.
The cifantuan is also popular in
Hubei
Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The prov ...
,
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
and
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
.
See also
*
List of rice dishes
*
Jumeok-bap
''Jumeok-bap'' (), sometimes jumeokbap, is a Korean rice dish made from a lump of cooked rice made into a round loaf the shape of a fist. Rice balls are a common item in ''dosirak'' (a packed meal) and often eaten as a light meal, between-meal ...
, the Korean dish of Japanese onigiri-styled rice balls, with various fillings
*
Lo mai gai
Lo mai gai (), literally "glutinous rice chicken", is a classic dim sum dish served during yum cha.Hsiung, Deh-Ta. Simonds, Nina. Lowe, Jason. 005(2005). The food of China: a journey for food lovers. Bay Books. . p27. The portion size of ''lo mai ...
*
Onigiri
, also known as , , or rice ball, is a Japanese food made from white rice formed into triangular or cylindrical shapes and often wrapped in ''nori''. Traditionally, an onigiri is filled with pickled ume (''umeboshi''), salted salmon, katsuobu ...
, Japanese glutinous rice dish formed into triangular or cylindrical shapes and often wrapped in ''
nori
Nori is a dried edible seaweed used in Japanese cuisine, made from species of the red algae genus ''Pyropia'', including ''P. yezonesis'' and '' P. tenera''. It has a strong and distinctive flavor, and is often used to wrap rolls of sushi or '' ...
''
*
Zhaliang
''Zhaliang'' (), literally "fried two", is a Cantonese dim sum. It is made by tightly wrapping rice noodle roll around ''youtiao'' (fried dough). It can be found in Chinese restaurants in Malaysia.
It is often served doused in soy sauce, hoisi ...
*
Zongzi
''Zongzi'' (; ), ''rouzong'' () or simply ''zong'' (Cantonese Jyutping: ''zung2'') is a traditional Chinese rice dish made of glutinous rice stuffed with different fillings and wrapped in bamboo leaves (generally of the species ''Indocalamus t ...
, Chinese glutinous rice dish served with various fillings wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves.
References
External links
What is Fan Tuan?
Chinese rice dishes
Dim sum
Glutinous rice dishes
Shanghai cuisine
{{China-cuisine-stub