The swan egg, scientifically known as the Purple Sunray Venus, is a type of marine bivalve mollusk and one of the prized seafood products along the coast of Yantai. It typically inhabits areas with brisk water flow and coarse sandy or gravelly seabeds. It is found in a narrow stretch of water between the "Little Elephant Island" in the back sea of Yangma Island and Yangma Island itself, covering an area of about 100 acres. This species is a cold-water bivalve...
Quick-Boiled Oysters is a dish that wins with its clarity, freshness, and tenderness. As noted in ＜Seafood Delicacies＞: “Break open the shell, catch the juice in a vessel—the meat is edible, and the broth makes an especially delicious soup.” To prepare, rinse the oyster meat to remove impurities, clarify the oyster juice, then bring it to a boil in a pan. Add the oyster meat for a quick blanch, then toss in chopped scallions, cilantro, sesame oil, and an appropriate amount of salt, and it’s ready…
Sweet Bean Sauce – Meticulously crafted by Wang Xiyin of Fengcheng. The production method involves washing newly harvested wheat in summer and autumn, soaking and steaming it until fully cooked, then allowing it to cool. A suitable amount of starter culture is mixed in evenly before piling the mixture in a non-ventilated room. It is then covered with sauce mugwort for fermentation. When the clumped grains, stuck together, show a white surface and can be pulled apart to form silky strands with a fragrant starter aroma, they are ready. The fermented wheat grains are then…
Caramelized apples is one of the classic dishes in Shandong cuisine, primarily made with apples. The key cooking technique used is sugar pulling, and the flavor profile is sweet. Sugar-pulled dishes are a type of dessert requiring relatively advanced cooking skills. The method involves deep-frying the main ingredient, then tossing it in a thickened sugar syrup—made with either water or oil—until evenly coated, and finally pulling the dish out while hot to create long, silky strands of caramelized sugar…
Haiyang White Jade Cucumber, commonly known as white cucumber, is also called "Liyuan White." It is a heat-resistant and disease-resistant variety meticulously bred over the years from local cultivars by the Haiyang Seed Station. Having passed evaluation organized by the Haiyang Science and Technology Commission, it is a true specialty of Haiyang. This variety is of excellent quality and highly favored by consumers...
Yantai is China’s largest grape and wine production base, as well as the birthplace of industrialized wine brewing in the country. In 1892, Mr. Zhang Bishi established the Changyu Grape Winery in Yantai, ushering in a new era of industrial wine production in China. For a long time, our city has consistently nurtured the wine industry as a pillar of economic development...
Vermouth is a type of sweet fortified wine originating from ancient Greece. Early on, the Greeks enjoyed adding traditional Chinese medicinal herbs to wine as flavoring agents to enhance its taste. By the Roman era, the Romans refined the recipe and called it "aromatized wine." In the 17th century, a Piedmontese was the first to introduce wormwood to the southern...
Yantai Honey Peach is produced in Yantai, Shandong Province, China. Its place of origin is Qucun Village, Laishan District, Yantai City, Shandong Province, hence it is locally referred to as Laishan Honey Peach. Historically, it originated from a naturally occurring mutation discovered in Qucun Village, Laishan District, Yantai City, Shandong Province, and was identified and named by fruit tree experts in Yantai in 1995. The fruit is nearly round, large in size, with a bright red color on the sun-exposed side...
The Cha Zi Huo Shi features a golden color, crispy texture, and delicious taste, with up to 15–16 layers. It is a traditional snack from Yantai in Shandong Province. …
Haiyang Ginkgo is a specialty of Haiyang City, Yantai, Shandong Province. The production of Haiyang Ginkgo has a long history. The main varieties include “Da Foshou,” “Tancheng No. 5,” “Tancheng No. 9,” “Tancheng No. 13,” and “Tancheng No. 16.” The ginkgo tree is also known as the white fruit tree or the grandfather-grandson tree. Ginkgo is a unique and precious species in China, valued for landscaping, ornamental purposes, and…
Haiyang Big Cherries are a specialty of Haiyang City, Yantai, Shandong Province. They are known for their large size, delicious taste, suitability for fresh consumption, and adaptability to processing. Big cherries are often referred to as the "first fruit of spring." There are 32 varieties of Haiyang Big Cherries. Due to the unique microclimate and soil conditions in northern Haiyang, the cherries produced there are plump, brightly colored,…
Haiyang chestnuts are a specialty of Haiyang City, Yantai, Shandong Province. The main varieties of Haiyang chestnuts include “Shifeng Chestnut,” “Qingfeng Chestnut,” “Haifeng Chestnut,” “Yanquan Chestnut,” “Yanqing Chestnut,” and “Chushu Red.” Chestnuts are also grown in other areas of Yantai such as Qixia, Laiyang, Longkou, and Zhaoyuan, but Haiyang has the longest production history. According to…
Haiyang apples are a specialty of Haiyang City, Yantai, Shandong Province. Haiyang apples can be found almost everywhere in the hills, especially in the towns of the northern mountainous area, where they are more abundant and of better quality. The “Royal” brand Fuji apples from Haiyang, known for their large and uniform size, excellent quality, and attractive coloration, even won the first place in the national Fuji apple competition. Guocheng Town is the largest...
The Haiyang Red Giant Peach is notably large, with individual fruits weighing between 600–900 grams. The flesh is dense, crisp, and tender, with abundant juice, an exceptionally sweet and slightly acidic flavor, and an outstanding taste. The skin is highly resistant to abrasion, featuring fine and shallow lines, giving it a bright and attractive appearance. It is widely renowned. With a storage life of over 30 days, the yield can reach 1,000 kilograms in the second year after planting, and up to...
Sangdao Sea Cucumber refers to a type of "prickly sea cucumber" that grows in the Bohai Sea waters around Sangdao Island near Longkou City, Shandong Province. Sangdao is a national-level geological and geomorphological reserve, boasting crystal-clear seawater rich in diverse microorganisms and marine life. The sea cucumbers produced here are of exceptionally high edible value, with one jin (approximately 500 grams) of prickly sea cucumber selling for over 3,000 yuan. Sangdao Sea Cucumber is a precious and high-…
In the late Qing Dynasty, strawberries were brought to Longkou by local merchants engaged in overseas trade and were then called "foreign berries" or "Korean berries." Large-scale cultivation began in the 1960s after the founding of the People’s Republic of China. In recent years, numerous high-quality varieties from both domestic and international sources have been introduced, along with a series of...
The waters off Longkou are an important area for prawn fishing. Longkou prawns are large, meaty, and delicious, making them one of the premium dishes served at banquets. During the prawn fishing season, the harbor of Longkou is bustling with sailboats and the constant roar of machinery, operating day and night. Prawns have become one of Longkou’s key export products. (Longkou)…
Shandong Pears (Huangxian Long-Stemmed Pears) Also known as Huangxian Long-Stemmed Pears because they originated in Huang County (now Longkou City), these pears are referred to as "Shandong Pears" in export markets due to their prominent position in China’s large pear exports. The Shandong Pear (Long-Stemmed Pear) originally grew in Cuijia Village, Dongjiang Town. Cultivation began during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty...
Most of the Longkou grapes are grown on sandy tidal flats. Thanks to the loose soil, moderate moisture, large diurnal temperature variations, long hours of sunlight, and humid air, the grapes are high in sugar content, large in size, and have a uniquely delicious flavor. They are not only premium grapes for winemaking but also a delightful treat on fruit platters. Currently, the area planted with wine grape varieties in Longkou has developed to…
Longkou Vermicelli is made from high-quality starch extracted from mung beans, peas, and broad beans, combined with the sweet water of Longquan, using optimal scientific and traditional techniques. In addition to mung bean-based vermicelli, there are also varieties made from mixed grains such as sweet potatoes, corn, sorghum, peas, broad beans, and potatoes, with sweet potato vermicelli being the most common. The strands are fine, uniform, glossy, and transparent...