Lunar Year of the Rabbit Rice Balls
The Lantern Festival is approaching, new flavors, new shapes and traditional flavors compete on the same stage, adding fire to the festival economy
■Cantonese style glutinous rice balls
The online platform sells glutinous rice balls in the shape of cartoon rabbits.
Xiamen Evening News（Text/Photo reporter Xu Nafang) As the saying goes, “the moon in the sky, the glutinous rice balls in the bowl”. On the day of the Lantern Festival, eating glutinous rice balls and admiring lanterns are traditional ways to celebrate the festival. As the festival is approaching, the sales of glutinous rice balls are starting to sell well. New flavors and new shapes compete with traditional flavors, adding fire to the “Lantern Festival Economy”.
Fight the taste, the special flavor is tantalizing, and there are new products that sell more than 100 boxes a day
In the Xiamen branch of RT-Mart, the freezer is filled with all kinds of glutinous rice balls, with a variety of flavors. In addition to traditional flavors such as peanut, bean paste, and black sesame, there are also new flavors such as passion fruit, rose, egg yolk quicksand, strawberry hazelnut, and chocolate. .
A supermarket worker said that glutinous rice balls have recently entered a hot sale period, and most citizens prefer traditional flavors, while fruit and nut flavors are favored by young consumers.
The reporter found that the glutinous rice balls with the words “Ningbo Flavor” and “Old Canton Flavor” printed on the outer packaging attracted the curiosity of citizens because of their rich regional characteristics. “What is the taste of Ningbo food? Is it sweet or salty? Judging from the fillings, they are all classic ingredients such as black sesame and peanuts. The taste should not be bad. I haven’t eaten it before. Buy it and try it.” Ms. Liu, a citizen, prepares early adopters.
Wal-Mart Supermarket SM City Plaza opened a special sales area, and dozens of glutinous rice balls were put on the shelves, making the public confused. “After looking in several freezers, I finally found one with meat filling, so I was greedy for it.” Aunt Huang, a citizen, picked up a pork-filled glutinous rice ball and said that in her hometown of Fuzhou, sweet fillings such as sesame and peanuts are called “tangyuan.” “, the stuffed meat is called “Yuanxiao”. “‘Yuanxiao’ looks similar to fish balls, but the filling is not as oily as fish balls, fresh but not greasy, very delicious.”
“In less than a day after the sale, more than 100 boxes have been sold.” In the past two days, Wangwangma Cake Shop near Hubin North Road has put a southern Fujian-style glutinous rice ball on the shelf. According to the owner, this product is from Quanzhou. The well-known sweets brand “Haisi Jinfeng”. Different from the glutinous rice balls sold in supermarkets, its sandwich is made of a mixture of peanuts and sesame seeds. The particles are relatively large. You can taste the aroma of crushed peanuts when you bite into it, which has a special flavor.
Spell value
The combined glutinous rice balls are rich and varied, and the cartoon rabbit glutinous rice balls are eye-catching.
On online platforms such as Meituan and Taobao, many merchants have launched cartoon glutinous rice balls for the Year of the Rabbit, which are cute and eye-catching, and are sought after by consumers. The monthly sales of a single product in some stores have exceeded 10,000 copies. There are also offline bakeries working hard on the appearance of glutinous rice balls. The Yuesha DIY personalized cake shop near Huli Wanda Plaza has launched rabbit-shaped glutinous rice balls with durian filling for 118 yuan per box and sesame filling and other fillings for 98 yuan per box. The store staff said that there are 4 glutinous rice balls per box, each about 30 grams, consumers can buy them directly, or go to the store to make them by themselves.
This year, there are many more combination packs of glutinous rice balls on the market. The mix and match of glutinous rice balls of different flavors and colors not only meets the taste preferences of different family members, but also enriches the colors after cooking and greatly improves the appearance. Missing’s Colorful and Fun Xiaoyu Xiaoyu glutinous rice balls contain 4 flavors including black sesame, peanut, purple sweet potato, and chestnut; Sanquan’s colorful glutinous rice balls contain 3 flavors including black sesame, peanut, and orange.
“The combination package is more convenient, and the tastes of adults and children can be catered for, so you don’t have to worry about getting tired of eating.” Ms. Han, a citizen, bought two bags of combination packs of glutinous rice balls. “The fruit-flavored crystal glutinous rice balls look very appetizing, and children love them.” eat, but grandparents prefer black sesame glutinous rice balls, and a combination pack of glutinous rice balls can just solve this problem.”
The reporter learned that the price of Tangyuan in major supermarkets this year is basically the same as in previous years, and each bag of Tangyuan ranges from 5.9 yuan to 30 yuan. Among them, the traditional taste of peanut and black sesame glutinous rice balls is priced at about 10 yuan per bag (500 grams), while the price of glutinous rice balls with novel flavors and unique shapes is slightly higher. For example, Sanquan’s colorful glutinous rice balls cost about 25 yuan per bag (260 grams). At present, some supermarkets also carry out promotional activities such as direct drop, full discount, and free purchases to attract consumers to buy.
【Tips】
3 glutinous rice balls calories
equivalent to a bowl of rice
Lin Liqun, an attending physician at the Nutrition Department of Zhongshan Hospital Affiliated to Xiamen University, said that glutinous rice balls are mainly made of glutinous rice, sesame seeds, peanuts, etc., and have certain nutritional value. Its nutritional sources are mainly carbohydrates (sugars) and fats, which provide energy and a small amount of other nutrients. The calories of 3 regular glutinous rice balls are basically equivalent to a bowl of rice.
Tangyuan is stuffed with glutinous rice flour. Glutinous rice starch has a high response to blood sugar in the human body. Even if you eat sugar-free glutinous rice balls, it is not conducive to blood sugar control. Therefore, diabetics should control the intake of glutinous rice balls.
“Of course, glutinous rice balls are occasionally eaten in small quantities as a festive food. The mental burden does not need to be too heavy, and the body’s strong self-regulation ability can handle it.” Lin Liqun said that eating glutinous rice balls as a staple food should also consume high-quality vegetables, meat, eggs, milk and soy. protein to ensure balanced nutrition. (Reporter Kuang Wei)