chinese tamales

also called joong or zongzi in chinese are eaten in celebration of the chinese dragon boat festival. they are usually wrapped in a pyramid-shaped glutinous rice using bamboo leaves and come in various fillings and different shapes. during this time of the year, many families make their own chinese tamales and my friend's aunt is one of them. so yesterday my friend came by and gave me a dozen of homemade chinese tamales freshly made the night before by her aunt. they were nicely wrapped in triangular shapes and the bamboo leaves smell wonderful. i had one today and it was a deliciously made zongzi filled with chinese sausage, duck yolk, roasted chestnut, peanuts, marinated pork belly, and dried shrimps. i must say it tasted way better than the ones i ate from store-bought.