The Dragon Boat Festival is a traditional Chinese Festival, which is on the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar (New Calendar: June 7, 2019).

As usual, KITSEN give love and warm care to its employees for every festival. This time KISTEN prepared special breakfast with traditional food Zongzi and seafood congee for all the employees. It was really yummy. Everyone enjoyed the breakfast with smile on their face. In the KITSEN family, every associate strives to live by the culture of care. 

KITSEN also sent greetings and shared holiday spirit with all the clients and friends all over the world. Many of our clients like Dragon Boat Festival, some had seen Dragon boat racing and got a lot of fun, some expect to eat Zongzi and enjoy the boat racing one day.

Dragon Boat Festival is a 2,000-year-old tradition celebrated nationwide in various forms to remember the ancient poet Qu Yuan, who committed suicide out of love for his country during the Warring States period (475-221 BC).

As a cadet member of the Chu royal house, Qu served in high offices. However, when the king decided to ally with the increasingly powerful state of Qin, Qu was banished for opposing the alliance and even accused of treason. During his exile, Qu Yuan wrote a great deal of poetry.

Twenty-eight years later, Qin captured Ying, the Chu's capital. In despair, Qu Yuan committed suicide by drowning himself in the Miluo River. The local people, who admired him, raced out in their boats to save him, or at least retrieve his body. This is said to have been the origin of dragon boat races. When his body could not be found, they dropped balls of sticky rice into the river so that the fish would eat them instead of Qu Yuan’s body. This is said to be the origin of zongzi.

Dragon boat racing is the most important activity during the Dragon Boat Festival. The wooden boats are shaped and decorated in the form of a Chinese dragon. The boat size varies by region. Generally it is about 20–35 meters in length and needs 30–60 people to paddle it. During the races, dragon boat teams paddle harmoniously and hurriedly, accompanied by the sound of beating drums. It is said that the winning team will have good luck and a happy life in the following year.

Zongzi is the most traditional Dragon Boat Festival food. It’s a kind of sticky rice dumpling made of glutinous rice wrapped in triangle or rectangle shapes in bamboo or reed leaves, and tied with soaked stalks or colorful silky cords. The fillings can be egg, beans, dates, fruits, sweet potato, walnuts, mushrooms, meat, or a combination of them. They are generally steamed. The flavors of zongzi are usually different from one region to another across China.