Tweaking the taste of spring

Customers line up to purchase qingtuan at Shendacheng, one of the century-old delicacy brands in Shanghai that is keen on innovating new varieties of the spring snack. Every year, from mid-March to early April, as the Qingming Festival approaches, Zhang Min's life revolves around the green glutinous rice balls known as qingtuan. The delicacy's shiny green exterior is made of glutinous rice flour mixed with freshly extracted green grass juice, and emits a delightful aroma. First made about 1,000 years ago, qingtuan originated as a sacrificial offering and has evolved into a seasonal street snack popular in southern China during the annual Qingming Festival. In recent years, driven by endorsements from key influencers on social media and the publicity generated by the new fillings introduced every year by established Shanghai food brands, the appeal of this seasonal delicacy has transcended its traditional production area in the Jiangnan, or the region south of the Yangtze River along its lower reaches, to get to nearly every corner of the country.