According to folklore, zongzi is eaten to commemorate the great patriotic poet Qu Yuan. In the Records of Historical Records, Qu Yuan was a minister of Chu State and was framed and demoted. When Qu Yuan was in exile, he learned that Chu was attacked by Qin, and he was heartbroken and threw himself into the river. After the death of Qu Yuan, the people of Chu were extremely sad, in order to prevent Qu Yuan's body from being eroded by fish and shrimp. People spontaneously threw rice balls into the river, and later eating zongzi became a custom.

Zongzi, or "Zongzi Zan", is commonly known as Zongzi. Its main materials are glutinous rice and stuffing, and it is wrapped with Indocalamus leaves (or Hiragi leaves) into various shapes, such as sharp corners and quadrangles. Zongzi has a long history, originally as a tribute to ancestors and gods. After being introduced to the north, it is made of millet (produced in the north), which is called "corn millet". Because of the different eating habits in different places, zongzi has formed a north-south flavor; In terms of taste, zongzi can be divided into salty zongzi and sweet zongzi.

The traditional form of zongzi is a triangle, which is generally named after the inner pulp. There are two kinds of zongzi: salty zongzi and sweet zongzi. From the filling of zongzi, salty zongzi includes meat zongzi, bacon yolk zongzi, mushroom zongzi, abalone zongzi and lotus seed zongzi, while sweet zongzi includes fruit zongzi, bean paste zongzi, jujube zongzi and taro zongzi. Besides these, people in some areas like to eat alkaline zongzi and white zongzi. Northern zongzi are mostly simple white rice, red beans and dates dipped in sugar. Zongzi in the south is rich in flavor, including fresh meat, ham, clam, egg yolk, red bean paste, ribs, candied dates and lotus seed paste.

The custom of eating zongzi on Dragon Boat Festival has been popular in China for thousands of years, and it has become one of the most influential and extensive folk food customs of the Chinese nation, and spread to North Korea, Japan and Southeast Asian countries.