{{short description|Traditional Chinese rice dessert}} {{Sources exist|date=July 2019}}

thumb|Aiwowo: a traditional snack from Beijing thumb|Aiwowo Hongluo showing interior '''''Aiwowo''''' ({{lang-zh|c=艾窩窩|p=àiwōwo}}) is a traditional dessert from Beijing, China.

==Timeline of Aiwowo== Aiwowo became well-known as early as the reign of the Wanli Emperor during the Ming dynasty. There was a record of Aiwowo in Chapter 7 of the 17th-century novel ''JinPingMei''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=第七回 (Chapter 7) 薛媒婆说娶孟三儿 杨姑娘气骂张四舅 |url=https://www.douban.com/note/315001277/ |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=豆瓣 |language=zh-CN}}</ref> In ''ZhuoZhongZhi'', a 17th-century book that talks about different events happened in the emperor's family, the author states the existence of Aiwowo within the royal class.{{citation needed|date=October 2023}}

During the Qing dynasty, the Fragrant Concubine of the QianLong Emperor was bored with the dishes within the palace. When the Emperor heard that Concubine had a husband from XinJiang Province before she came to the palace, the Emperor commanded him to make snacks for her. He made a snack from his own hometown with Hui culture. The Concubine loved this snack so much that the Emperor commanded the chief to bring the snack every day. The snack became famous within the Forbidden City, and across the whole city of Beijing. A eunuch asked for the husband's name and he said it was “Ai Meti.” Because of the chef's family name, the emperor called this snack “Ai Wo Wo,” in which “Wo Wo” translates to bowl-shaped pastry. The word “Ai"<ref>{{Cite web |title=The definition of "Ai" in Chinese |url=http://xh.5156edu.com/html3/3617.html |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=xh.5156edu.com}}</ref> is not only a family name but also translates as an honorific for the elderly in traditional Chinese. At that time, the Emperor often said “Yu Ai Wo Wo,” which means "give me the snack." The sentence evolved to “Ai Wo Wo,” as the snack is now called.{{Citation needed|date=September 2025}}

Now, Aiwowo has traditionally been produced and sold in Hui restaurants and is available from the Lunar New Year to late summer and early autumn. When Lunar New Year comes, people often eat the snack with Niangao, which are both sticky. There is also a saying "Nian Nian Gao" that could also mean getting better every year (could be translated to "year year up").<ref>{{Cite web |title=Delicias típicas de Beijing: el Aiwowo Exclusiva |url=http://spanish.china.org.cn/culture/txt/2010-04/26/content_19907971.htm}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=寻找地道北京味：一个小小艾窝窝的传奇！(Search for Traditional Beijing Taste: A Legend of a Small Aiwowo) |url=https://mbd.baidu.com/newspage/data/landingsuper?id=1592937770609208776&third=baijiahao&baijiahao_id=1592937770609208776&wfr=&c_source=duedge&c_score=0.999100&p_tk=864541oxF9EL5eUrWJk5tYwh4iytqDF1ASOkGjhvo8I7w0vqZdzdCNRY6PRjwQIOrkJmoJlvoSPJQ8kY7xS6KjTYRxBUjIEXz5HG5VcXtJ/h/SakgSel3wmwHzeBIRbNee7N3OAmOs+KTjVMJRcDFHf6xQ==&p_timestamp=1696426849&p_sign=16f64fb7640beb90b43036010b488cf4&p_signature=c1146aa96f31c402f2c895901f22f2b1&__pc2ps_ab=864541oxF9EL5eUrWJk5tYwh4iytqDF1ASOkGjhvo8I7w0vqZdzdCNRY6PRjwQIOrkJmoJlvoSPJQ8kY7xS6KjTYRxBUjIEXz5HG5VcXtJ/h/SakgSel3wmwHzeBIRbNee7N3OAmOs+KTjVMJRcDFHf6xQ==%7C1696426849%7Cc1146aa96f31c402f2c895901f22f2b1%7C16f64fb7640beb90b43036010b488cf4 |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=mbd.baidu.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=北京小吃"艾窝窝"的来历 (The History of Beijing Snack "Aiwowo") |url=https://www.sohu.com/a/59397746_239503#google_vignette |access-date=2023-10-04 |website=www.sohu.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Youhui Editorial Department (2006-12-08) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FLYvAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT23 |title=中國麵食文化 (Chinese Grain Culture) |date=2006-12-08 |publisher=崧博右灰 |language=zh-TW}}</ref>

Aiwowo resembles snowballs in appearance. The outer skin is prepared by using glutinous rice rolling over steamed, hard flour. The filling could be any sweet materials, including sugar, sesame, apricots, plums, and yam. People often flatten it after filling. Sometimes, people also add hawthorn to the top of the snack to add a little sourness to its sweetness.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-01-26 |title=Aiwowo |url=http://food.chinesecio.com/en/article/2009-12/03/content_90383.htm |access-date=2023-10-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190126153153/http://food.chinesecio.com/en/article/2009-12/03/content_90383.htm |archive-date=2019-01-26 }}</ref>

==See also== * Beijing cuisine * List of rice dishes

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{Beijing}}

Category:Chinese desserts Category:Chinese rice dishes Category:Beijing cuisine Category:Glutinous rice desserts

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