| The Same Word "Jian Dui," Different Developments |
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"Lukang Township Gazetteer: Customs Chapter": Records the custom of "Jian Dui" on the Dragon Boat Festival. The text mentions that Lukang people mix glutinous rice flour or wheat flour into a batter, add leeks, bean sprouts, etc., to pan-fry and eat, and combine this action with the legend of "Nüwa Patching the Sky." The fifth lunar month coincides with Taiwan's "plum rain season," where heavy rains can cause disasters and destroy crops. The ancients believed this was because the sky was leaking and urgently needed patching. |
I.What is "Jian Dui"? ~ Only available in Lukang during the Dragon Boat Festival in all of Taiwan .
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"Zhan Tui" (饘䬾) is also "Jian Dui," which is the ancient writing for the "Jian Dui" eaten in Lukang during the Dragon Boat Festival. |
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It is said that 300 years ago in Anping, Tainan, they also did not wrap zongzi during the Dragon Boat Festival but ate "Jian Dui" (煎䭔) to commemorate Koxinga, a tradition tracing back to their hometown in Quanzhou, Fujian (Jinjiang, Nan'an areas). An old saying goes: "When it drizzles, scoop oil to fry Dui," vividly describing the scene of every household heating up oil woks to fry pancakes and patch the sky when it rains.
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However, Anping no longer has this traditional food custom of "Jian Dui" (煎䭔) today. It turns out that both Jian Dui (煎䭔) and Zhan Tui (饘䬾) are traditional snacks originating from immigrants in Quanzhou, Fujian, passed down across the Black Water Ditch (Taiwan Strait) to Taiwan. |
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II.Different Shapes ~ Lukang Jian Dui vs. Cantonese Jian Dui
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When searching for Jian Dui, the Cantonese "Jian Dui" also appears, which is very similar to the common "Sesame Balls." A Cantonese saying goes, "As Jian Dui rolls, gold and silver fill the house." It is made by deep-frying glutinous rice flour dough until it expands into a round ball, representing perfection and wealth. Although sharing the same name, in Cantonese culture, it is viewed more as a festive snack representing "getting rich" during the Chinese New Year.
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Lukang's "Jian Dui" is a "batter" made of wheat flour and glutinous rice flour, pan-fried into a round and flat shape in a pan. The texture is soft and chewy, and it can be salty or sweet. This closely matches the intuitive imagination of "patching the sky," needing to be sticky like glue and capable of covering a large area of the sky hole.
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These two types of Jian Dui, round batter pancake vs. round ball, not only have different shapes, but even their celebration times and meanings are different.
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III."Jian Dui" has different pronunciations in different places
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"Lukang people speak differently." The special Lukang accent, although its pronunciation, tones, and vocabulary originated from Quanzhou in the hometown, developed into the unique "Lukang accent" based on the Quanzhou accent after several integrations.
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We also discovered that our elderly grandpas and grandmas at home pronounce "Jian Dui" differently from how it is pronounced elsewhere.
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| Character |
General Accent (Zhangzhou/Xiamen bias) |
Lukang Accent (Quanzhou/Tainan bias) |
Note |
| 煎(Jian) |
tsiân |
tsiân |
Basically identical |
| 堆(Dui) |
tui |
te |
The Quanzhou accent's "ui" often changes to "e" |
| Combined |
Tsiân-tui |
Tsiân-te |
The Lukang accent sounds closer to "Jian Die" |
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The Lukang accent is reputed as the "living fossil" of Taiwanese Hokkien because it retains a large amount of Quanzhou entering-tone rhymes and special vowel rules.
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The grandpas and grandmas at home say "Tsiân-te." It turns out they are the real old Lukang locals, retaining a lot of Quanzhou sounds, as well as the Dragon Boat Festival worship and the custom of making soft and chewy Jian Dui.
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Thus, we can compare the differences:
| Category |
Lukang Dragon Boat Festival Jian Dui |
Hakka Tianchuan Day Sky-Patching |
Cantonese Jian Dui |
| Time |
Dragon Boat Festival (5th day of the 5th lunar month) |
Tianchuan Day (20th day of the 1st lunar month) |
Lunar New Year |
| Ingredients |
Wheat flour, glutinous rice flour batter |
Glutinous rice (Sweet rice cake/Nian Gao) |
Glutinous rice flour dough |
| Form |
Round, flat pancake (Pan-fried) |
Block or pancake shape (Deep-fried/Pan-fried) |
Round ball (Deep-fried sesame ball) |
| Meaning |
Patching the sky to pray for favorable weather |
Commemorating Nüwa, letting the earth rest |
Rolling in wealth, perfection, and prosperity |
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