Sichuan, China
Sichuan Pickled Vegetables
泡菜
Vegetables — radish, long beans, cabbage, ginger, chillies — brined in a salt-and-baijiu mother liquid in a water-sealed clay jar, sour rather than sweet.
eastern-asia
China
Explore 248 foods connected to China, from everyday staples to rare local specialties.
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Traditional foods from China.
248 foods in this view. Filter by category, type, rarity, or search every recorded name.
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Chengdu, China
Skewer Hotpot
串串香
Hotpot sold by the skewer: everything from beef slices to quail eggs comes pre-threaded on bamboo, cooked in a shared spiced broth and billed by the stick count.
Sichuan, China
Sliced Beef and Offal in Chilli Oil
夫妻肺片
Cold sliced beef shin, tripe, tongue and heart, spiced and pressed, then dressed in chilli oil, sesame, celery and toasted peanuts.
China
Smashed Cucumber Salad
拍黄瓜
Cucumbers smashed with the flat of a cleaver so they crack into rough pieces, then dressed with garlic, vinegar, sesame oil and chilli.
China
Snow Beer
雪花啤酒
A very light pale lager, low in alcohol and served ice cold, and by volume the most-drunk beer in the world.
China
Snow Fungus Soup
银耳汤
Yin er tang, the cooling snow-fungus and rock-sugar soup, is a named Chinese tong sui with a fixed identity.
China
Soon Kueh
笋粿
Translucent steamed dumpling of wheat-starch skin filled with shredded bamboo shoot, turnip, dried shrimp and mushroom, eaten with dark soy and chilli.
Shanghai, China
Soup Dumplings
小笼包
Pleated dumplings holding pork and a set aspic that melts into hot soup during steaming, eaten from a small bamboo basket.
China
Sour Plum Drink
酸梅汤
Smoked dark plums simmered with hawthorn, osmanthus and liquorice root, sweetened and served ice cold in summer.
China
Soy Egg
卤蛋
A hard-boiled egg marinated in a sweet soy sauce broth with star anise and spices, giving it a dark, savoury, slightly sweet flavour throughout.
Sichuan, China
Spiced Rabbit Head
兔头
Rabbit heads braised in mala spice oil and eaten by hand as a Chengdu bar snack; rabbit is farmed livestock.
Hunan, China
Spicy Crayfish (Kouwei Xia)
口味虾
Kouwei xia, the tub of chilli-braised crayfish eaten by hand at summer night markets, is a named Chinese seasonal phenomenon with its own street culture.
Jiangsu, China
Squirrel-Shaped Mandarin Fish
松鼠鳜鱼
A mandarin fish boned, scored into a diamond lattice, deep-fried so the flesh curls into spines, and coated in a bright sweet-and-sour sauce.
Yunnan, China
Steam Pot Chicken
汽锅鸡
Chicken steamed for hours in a lidded clay pot with a central chimney, so the soup is condensed steam rather than added water.
China
Steamed Bread
馒头
Plain unfilled steamed wheat buns, the everyday bread of northern China, eaten with dishes or fried and dipped in condensed milk.
Guangdong, China
Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallion
清蒸鱼
A whole fish steamed briefly, drained, strewn with ginger and spring onion, then hit with smoking oil and light soy.
Fujian, China
Steamed Pork Belly Bun
割包
A folded steamed bun holding braised pork belly, pickled mustard greens, coriander and ground peanut sugar.
China
Sticky Rice in Bamboo Leaves
粽子
A pyramid of glutinous rice wrapped in bamboo leaves and boiled, filled with pork belly and egg yolk in the south or eaten plain with sugar in the north.
China
Stinky Mandarin Fish
臭鳜鱼
An Anhui dish of mandarin fish fermented in salt until pungent, then braised with garlic, ginger and chilli into a rich, savoury, surprisingly delicious stew.
China
Stinky Tofu
臭豆腐
Tofu fermented in a brine of vegetables, shrimp and milk for days, then deep-fried and served with pickled cabbage and chilli sauce.
Guangdong, China
Sweet and Sour Pork
咕噜肉
Battered pork cubes fried twice and tossed in a sauce of vinegar, sugar and preserved plum with pineapple and bell pepper.
China
Sweet and Sour Spare Ribs
糖醋排骨
Short rib pieces braised and then reduced in sugar, black vinegar and soy until the sauce lacquers each one.
China
Sweet Fermented Rice
酒酿
Glutinous rice fermented briefly with a yeast starter into a sweet, faintly alcoholic mash, eaten warm with egg drop or small rice balls.
China
Sweet Rice Balls in Syrup
汤圆
Glutinous rice flour balls filled with black sesame, peanut or red bean paste, floated in a thin ginger or fermented rice syrup.
Jiangsu, China
Tangbao (Soup buns)
汤包
Soup dumplings: thin-skinned buns holding a spoonful of hot broth and pork filling.
China
Tau Suan
豆爽
Split mung beans steamed until they hold their shape, suspended in a thin pandan-scented starch syrup and eaten hot with fried dough sticks broken in.
China
Tea Egg
茶叶蛋
A Chinese snack of hard-boiled eggs cracked and simmered in tea, soy sauce, star anise and spices, giving the white a marbled, brown pattern.
Sichuan, China
Tea-Smoked Chicken
茶熏鸡
Chicken smoked over tea leaves and camphor sugar until the skin turns amber — the poultry counterpart to Sichuan tea-smoked duck.
Sichuan, China
Tea-Smoked Duck
樟茶鸭
Duck marinated in Sichuan pepper, smoked over camphor leaves and jasmine tea leaves, steamed, then deep-fried so the skin shatters.
Guangdong, China
Teochew Beef Hot Pot
潮汕牛肉火锅
Teochew beef hot pot uses precisely cut fresh beef dipped briefly in a clear broth, with noodles, vegetables, and herbs at the table.
Guangdong, China
Teochew Cold Crab
潮州冻蟹
Teochew cold crab, steamed then chilled and served with vinegar, is a named Chaoshan restaurant dish.
China
Teochew Porridge
潮州糜
Loose rice congee eaten as the plain centre of a spread of small salty dishes: braised pork, salted egg, preserved vegetable, fried fish, steamed minced pork.
Tibet, China
Thukpa
थुक्पा
Tibetan-style wheat noodles are simmered in a savory broth with vegetables and meat, a Himalayan soup carried into Nepal and Bhutan.
China
Tibetan Momo Dumplings
མོག་མོག
Tibetan steamed dumplings filled with meat or vegetables, served with a spicy dip.
China
Tieguanyin Oolong
铁观音
A partly oxidised oolong from Anxi rolled into tight pellets that unfurl over many infusions, floral when light-roasted and toasty when dark.
China
Tofu
豆腐
Soy milk set with a coagulant and pressed to varying firmness, from silken custard to dense blocks for frying and smoking.