Tou Hua Ci: The Tang Dynasty Rice Cake Used by Aristocrats for Ancestor Worship — and Still Eaten Today
The Extravagant Life Behind Tou Hua Ci
The story of tou hua ci is connected to Lady Guoguo, the third of the famous Yang sisters. After her cousin Yang Yuhuan became Emperor Xuanzong’s favored Consort Yang — better known as Yang Guifei — she was granted the title Lady of Guoguo and became known for her extravagant and lavish lifestyle.
She was said to have had an affair with her cousin Yang Guozhong and was known for her uninhibited way of life. Some accounts even claim that she was Emperor Xuanzong’s mistress. She was also said to have accepted bribes and accumulated enormous influence, becoming a powerful figure in the Tang court.
One day, her chef, Deng Lian, prepared tou hua ci using tribute rice from Wuxing. It was served alongside the distinctively flavored white horse beans and a dish called ling sha huo, prepared by removing the skin before cooking. Lady Guoguo then had the food offered in the Emerald Mandarin Duck Hall (Cuiyuan Hall) as part of an ancestral offering.
Ingredients
- Glutinous rice
- Red beans
How to Make It
- Soak the glutinous rice, then grind it and knead it into a dough.
- Take a small piece of the dough and cook it through, then knead it back into the remaining dough until everything is evenly combined.
- Wrap the dough around a red bean paste filling.
- Press a decorative pattern into the surface, then steam until cooked through.