Ludagun

Ludagun (simplified Chinese: 驴打滚; traditional Chinese: 驢打滾; pinyin: lǘ dǎ gǔn), also called as "doumiangao" or "fried chop rice cake",[1] is a traditional Manchu snack in China. It has origins from Manchuria, and later became famous in Beijing. The yellow soybean flour sprinkled over the pastry makes it look like a donkey rolling on the loess, which gives its Chinese name "Lu Da Gun" (rolling donkey).[2]

Ludagun
Lyu Da Gun
Alternative namesLyu Da Gun, Lvdagun, Doumiangao
TypePastry
Place of originChina
Region or stateManchuria, Beijing
Main ingredientsSticky rice, red bean paste, soybean flour, brown sugar syrup
Ludagun
Traditional Chinese驢打滾
Simplified Chinese驴打滚
Literal meaningDonkey rolling
Doumiangao
Traditional Chinese豆麵糕
Simplified Chinese豆面糕
Literal meaningPastry in soybean flour

Origins

The origin of the ludagun comes from a folk tale. The story said that in Qing Dynasty, Empress Dowager Cixi was tired of imperial food, so she asked the royal chef to cook something new. After deliberate thought, the chef decided to make a dish using sticky rice and bean paste. When the chef finished cooking, a young eunuch, named Lu (pronounced as "lyu", the same pronunciation as donkey in Chinese), carelessly dropped the dish into soya bean flour, but there was no time to re-make the dish. The chef had to serve it to Cixi. However, Cixi praised the taste and wondered what was the name of that dish. The chef never thought about this question, but he named it as "Lu Da Gun" (rolling donkey) to credit eunuch Lu's carelessness.[1][3]

Ingredients

Modern Lüdagun

The main ingredients are sticky rice flour, red bean paste, and soybean flour. The exact recipe for making a ludagun may vary depended on regions and eras, but the general steps for making a modern Lüdagun are described as follows. The sticky rice flour is first mixed with warm water to a dough, then after being steamed, the sticky rice paste is shaped into a long strip covered with red bean paste on top, and then it is rolled up into a cylinder-shaped pastry. Finally the pastry is sprinkled with soybean flour, and it is ready to be served.[1][4]

Traditional Lüdagun

Compared to a modern Lüdagun, the filling in a traditional Lüdagun is brown sugar syrup rather than red bean paste. The recipe of making a traditional Lüdagun and the scenario of selling a Lüdagun is documented by Zhang Jiangcai (simplified Chinese: 张江裁) in "Popular Food and Goods in Yenching" (simplified Chinese:燕京民间食货史料) :[5]

Simplified

Chinese

 Traditional

Chinese

 Pinyin Translation
驴打滚，乃用黄米粘面蒸熟，裹以红糖水为馅，滚于炒豆面中，使成球形。燕市各大庙会集市时，多有售此者。兼亦有沿街叫卖，近年则少见矣。 驢打滾，乃用黃米粘面蒸熟，裹以紅糖水為餡，滾於炒豆麵中，使成球形。燕市各大廟會集市時，多有售此者。兼亦有沿街叫賣，近年則少見矣。 Lǘ dǎ gǔn, nǎi yòng huáng mǐ zhān miàn zhēng shú, guǒ yǐ hóng táng shuǐ wèi xiàn, gǔn yú chǎo dòu miàn zhōng, shǐ chéng qiú xíng. Yàn shì gè dà miào huì jí shì shí, duō yǒu shòu cǐ zhě. Jiān yì yǒu yán jiē jiào mài, jìn nián zé shǎo jiàn yǐ. Ludagun, is first made from steaming the millet flour to a dough, then filled with brown sugar syrup, and finally rolled in fried soya bean flour to a ball. People sell ludagun in temple fairs or markets. People also sell ludagun on the street, but it is less commonly seen these days.

A similar recipe is also documented in a poem called "Lüdagun" in "The Custom of Peking" (simplified Chinese:北平民俗类征):[2]

Simplified

Chinese

 Traditional

Chinese

 Pinyin Translation
红糖水馅巧安排，

黄面成团豆里埋。

何事群呼驴打滚，

称名未免近诙谐。

 紅糖水餡巧安排，

黃面成團豆裡埋。

何事群呼驢打滾，

稱名未免近詼諧。

 Hóng táng shuǐ xiàn qiǎo ān pái,

huáng miàn chéng tuán dòu lǐ mái.

Hé shì qún hū ‘lǘ dǎ gǔn’,

chēng míng wèi miǎn jìn huī xié.

 Brown sugar syrup is made as filling,

yellow dough is buried in soybean flour.

It looks like a rolling donkey,

this is rather too hilarious.

References
  1. "Fried Chop Rice Cake, Traditional Food, Beijing Culture". www.tour-beijing.com. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
  2. Li, Jiarui (1937). 北平风俗类征 [Custom of Peking] (in Chinese). Commercial Press (商务印书馆).
  3. "Fried Chop Rice Cake (Lvdagun)". Beijing Tourism. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  4. "京味儿十足的北京小吃：驴打滚" [Authentic Beijing Snacks: Lüdagun]. Sina Travel (新浪旅游) (in Chinese). 22 October 2008. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  5. Zhu, Xipeng (1994). "「驴打滚」（豆面糕）" [Lüdagun (doumiangao)]. Service (科技服务) (in Chinese) (4): 35. ISSN 1672-4399.


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