A worker shaves the rice block into powder after squeezing out the water from ground rice milk. [Photo/qz96811.com]

A rice cake-making workshop in Kecheng, one of six districts and counties in Quzhou, Zhejiang province, has made a certain traditional Chinese snack for 40 years.

Rice cakes are an absolutely necessary food for Chinese people during the traditional Spring Festival because its Chinese name "Nian Gao" sounds like "getting more prosperous year by year."

Soon after the Start of Winter, the first solar term in winter, Xu Jianfei, director of the workshop, will bring together his craftsmen to start making rice cakes by a traditional method.

They wrap up the ground rice milk with gauze to squeeze out the water, then shave the rice block into powder and steam the rice powder after pouring it into a steamer layer by layer.

The experienced workers then knead the steamed rice powder into long rice balls and, for a more delicate taste, repeatedly knead them. The last step is to cut the long rice balls into shorter ones or square rice cakes.

According to Xu, at least 25,000 kilograms of rice cakes will be sold over the winter. He plans to expand the workshop in a few years.