Jiaozi Ba (Rice-Skin Dumplings)

Jiaozi ba is a traditional Han rice snack of Jingdezhen. It looks much like a dumpling, but differs from the northern wheat dumpling in a key way: the skin is made not from wheat flour but from ground rice, giving it a soft, chewy texture.

Jiaozi ba is a specialty of rice-staple northeastern Jiangxi, marrying the local tradition of rice-paste skins with the dumpling shape, a regional variant born of the north-wheat / south-rice divide, long eaten as breakfast and a snack for guests.

Rice dough is rolled into wrappers, filled, folded into half-moons and steamed. The fillings are mostly savory—chives, shredded radish, tofu, pickled mustard greens or minced meat are common—and it is eaten hot, often with chili sauce.

A translucent, chewy rice skin wraps a savory filling; in one bite the rice fragrance meets the filling, light and steamed rather than greasy. It is among the most everyday rice snacks on Jingdezhen's streets.