What were jiaozi originally called in the Zhang Zhongjing origin story?

In the Zhang Zhongjing origin story, jiaozi were originally called “tender ears.”

The legend says Zhang saw people with frostbitten ears during a severe winter. He prepared a filling of lamb, black pepper, and warming medicinal ingredients, enclosed it in small dough wrappers shaped like ears, and boiled the dumplings. He then gave them to the suffering people with the hot cooking broth.

According to the story, the name “tender ears” referred both to the dumplings’ shape and to their supposed role in treating cold-damaged ears. The account is usually presented as folklore, not as proof that Zhang literally invented every later form of jiaozi. It is nevertheless one of the best-known explanations for the dish’s origin and enduring winter associations.

The tale also helps explain why jiaozi are connected with cold-weather customs, the winter solstice, and the Lunar New Year. Other explanations concern the word’s history and the dumplings’ resemblance to ancient gold or silver ingots. “Winter purses,” “silver moons,” and “gold horns” are not the standard terms in this particular legend.