Zhaguangjiao is a distinctive dish of the Tujia ethnic group, usually made after the White Dew solar term in the lunar calendar. The method involves washing fresh red chili peppers, chopping them up, then mixing them with an appropriate amount of cornmeal and salt, along with Sichuan peppercorns and tangerine peel. The mixture is stirred evenly and placed in a pickling jar. The jar’s opening is covered with vegetable leaves or banana leaves, which are then secured with bamboo strips. The jar is inverted and placed over a stone basin (though porcelain or wooden basins may also be used), with water added to seal out air. In more recent times, after plastic wrap became available, it’s common to cover the jar’s mouth with cling film, tie it tightly, place the lid on, and add water for sealing. After about a month, it can be used—either braised, steamed, or stir-fried before eating. It has a slightly red color and a uniquely sour and spicy flavor. It is especially delicious when stir-fried with cured Tujia pork, making the dish even more refreshing and appetizing.
Huangwan lotus root is a type of lotus root produced in Huangwan Village, Wangchang Town, Qianjiang City. Unlike ordinary lotus roots, it has an odd number of holes—ranging from seven to eleven. It also differs in that its sections are not short and branched; typically, each stalk has three sections, each about a foot long, and the root is both white and tender. This lotus root is starchy and softens easily when cooked, producing rich and flavorful broth. In a 20th-century...
Twice-Cooked Eel is a dish created during the Qing Dynasty's Daoguang era by Master Liu Daojin from Huangchang, Qianjiang. Its main ingredient is finless eel. Owing to its exceptional taste, it has become a famous local dish in Qianjiang. Over the years, many overseas Chinese and compatriots from Hong Kong and Macau have visited Qianjiang and made it a point to try the “Twice-Cooked Eel.” Legend has it that one evening during the Daoguang era, at Master Liu’s restaurant…
I. The Formation of the Five-Seven Crab Market In 2002, a few scattered individual vendors selling crab dishes began appearing in the Wǔqī Drilling Front Residential Area of the Jianghan Oilfield. They quickly gained popularity among some food enthusiasts. The Wǔqī Community Center of the Jianghan Oilfield keenly sensed the commercial potential of the crab market. After more than a year of preparation, in the summer of 2004, a 4,000-square-meter Braised Crab Food City opened, propelling Five-Seven Braised Crabs to fame. The booming business not only attracted oilfield workers but also drew foodies from surrounding areas who came to savor these irresistible red crabs. Thus, the Five-Seven Crab Market was officially established.
"Snails in March, clams in April" — this is a local saying in Qianjiang, meaning that March and April are the peak seasons for snails and clams in the area. Unlike people from other regions who stir-fry them half-cooked and then suck them noisily from their shells, locals in the Jianghan Plain first "rinse" the snails in clean boiling water, then use a broken-off spindle or...
A monocotyledonous plant of the Araceae family, Banxia is a toxic herbaceous plant with small tubers underground. It has palmate compound leaves with three leaflets, and the base of the petiole features tumor-like protrusions known as bulbils. It blooms in early summer, with a yellowish-green spathe enclosing the spadix. It grows wild under trees or in dry fields and is highly adaptable. Its dried, unprocessed tubers are called "1", which are toxic. After processing, they are referred to as...
The Origin of Yellow Sprout Stalk
Shennongjia Madou is a specialty of Shennongjia in Hubei Province. The main ingredient of Madou is soybean, which is pickled in a traditional pickling jar. Seasonings include Sichuan peppercorn, ginger, garlic, and chili peppers, with Sichuan peppercorn being the primary one. The beans are steeped over time in aged pickling brine to produce a tangy and numbing Shennongjia Madou. Madou is essentially a type of pickle, often served as part of the table setup when a meal begins—though rather unassuming, it is an essential element, much like how Sichuan cuisine includes a side of pickles, Shanghai cuisine features a dish of malan greens, and Hubei cuisine offers a plate of peanuts. In the Shennongjia cuisine repertoire, there is this one distinctive dish: Madou.
Preserved pork from Shennongjia is a specialty of Shennongjia in Hubei Province. Items such as preserved pork belly, preserved beef, preserved sausages, preserved liver, preserved pork ribs, and preserved pig trotters are essential festive dishes for locals during the New Year. The process of making Shennongjia preserved pork involves salting the meat for about a week until it is well cured. Once cured, it is placed on a heated kang bed (a traditional heated brick bed) and smoked with fragrant materials such as tangerine peels and mugwort until it turns yellowish-brown...
Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative: Qianjiang Bamboo Weaving. The traditional bamboo craft of Qianjiang is a comprehensive handicraft technique used by local people to weave everyday and production tools as well as artworks from bamboo. It is an artistic crystallization of generations of local laborers transforming nature and creating life, featuring distinct regional characteristics. The traditional bamboo...
Provincial-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative: Qianjiang Woodcarving. The cultural roots of Qianjiang woodcarving can be traced back to ancient times, as evidenced by the discovery of the “Chu Zhanghuatai Palace Complex Ruins” within the region and unearthed wooden lacquerware artifacts. Qianjiang woodcarving is divided into two categories: large-wood carving and small-wood carving. Large-wood carving includes architectural decorative elements such as beams, brackets, dougong (bracket sets), and purlins…
Qianjiang crayfish are a specialty of Qianjiang City, Hubei Province. For seven consecutive years, the city has ranked first in China in terms of crayfish farming scale, processing capacity, and export earnings. In May 2010, Qianjiang was designated as the “Hometown of Chinese Crayfish.” Qianjiang crayfish have been awarded a National Geographical Indication Certification trademark. The world’s crayfish look to China, Chi…
Qianjiang snails are a specialty snack from Qianjiang City, Hubei Province. “Snails in March, clams in April” is a local saying in Qianjiang, meaning that March and April are the peak seasons for fresh snails and clams. Unlike people from other regions who stir-fry snails half-cooked and then suck them noisily out of their shells, locals in the Jianghan Plain first “rinse” the snails in boiling clean water...
The Ancient Town Village in Jiyukou Town, Qianjiang City, Hubei Province, is located on the northwestern edge of Qianjiang, bordering Jingzhou and Jingmen. It covers 4,560 mu of arable land. The village features unique topography and landforms characteristic of hilly regions, and it is also the highest-altitude village in Qianjiang. Adapting to local conditions, the residents have made the most of the area’s low-lying terrain and abundance of lakes...
Originally known as Procambarus clarkii and commonly referred to as crayfish, Qianjiang crayfish are native to North America. During World War II, they were introduced to China from Japan, and began spreading to Qianjiang in the 1950s. Starting in 2000, Qianjiang successfully pioneered the "rice-crayfish rotation" model, cultivating crayfish in rice paddies, which later evolved into the "rice-crayfish co-culture" model...
Authentic Qianjiang Huoshaoba — crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, with great texture, long shelf life, and makes an excellent snack. It originated in Zhanggang Town, Tianmen.…
Guokui is a type of baked flatbread made from wheat flour cooked on a flat griddle. There are many varieties of Qianjiang Guokui, including scallion guokui, chopped guokui, duck guokui, shoulder-pole guokui, fried guokui, and lard guokui, among others. The most famous is the lard guokui. The second most well-known is the shoulder-pole guokui, mainly produced in Zhugen Tan. It gets its name because its shape resembles the shoulder-pole used by local farmers to carry firewood, which has iron spikes at both ends...
Fu Shou Cake—This is a traditional snack from the shores of Jieliang Lake in Qianjiang City, Hubei Province. Its childhood nickname is "Aobao Tuozi," and its official name, well, you can just call it Fu Shou Cake. Why is it called Fu Shou Cake? Because the characters stamped on its surface are either “Fu” (Fortune) or “Shou” (Longevity). The way it’s made is this: take the broken grains of late-season rice that grow nourished by the waters of Jieliang Lake…
Hubei Province’s Qianjiang City-based Changxiangsi Food Co., Ltd. is a specialized enterprise dedicated to the research, development, and production of distinctive seasonings, flavored dishes, and other gourmet food products. The company evolved from the former state-owned Qianjiang Changxiangsi Seasoning Factory. In October 2003, under the guidance of the “One Core, Three Transformations” strategic policy of the Qianjiang Municipal Party Committee and Government, and…
A specialty of Tianmen, Hubei Province, this product is beloved by locals and makes an excellent gift for visiting relatives or entertaining guests. Tianmen Soy Sauce Duck is a specialty of Tianmen City, Hubei Province. Known as Tianmen Gongqin Soy Sauce Duck for short, it features a rich soy aroma, a spicy kick, tender texture, and a lingering aftertaste, and is especially known for its remarkable benefits in strengthening the spleen and stomach. Gongqin Soy...