Jiandui - Fried Cake 煎堆

Jiandui is a kind of fried round cake made of wheat and rice flour and something to sweeten them. In East China's Fujian province, every family eats jiandui on Dragon Boat Festival. A legend explains this custom. It is said that the area enters its rainy season during Dragon Boat Festival. People believed there were holes in the sky which, if not filled, would allow the rain to continue indefinitely. Eating jiandui is said to help mend the sky and fill the holes.

福建晉江一帶，端午節家家戶戶要吃煎堆。煎堆用面粉、米粉或番薯粉和其他配料調成濃糊狀煎成。相傳古時閩南一帶在端午節之前是雨季，陰雨連綿不止，民間說天公穿了洞，要“補天”。端午節吃了“煎堆”后雨便止了，人們說把天補好了。這種食俗由此而來。