【Seven-Star Crabs】A Jinan dish. Seven live crabs are cleaned, steamed in a steamer over high heat for 30 minutes, then removed. The crab shells are opened, and the meat is extracted. The crab meat is mixed with salt, cooking wine, and MSG, then evenly distributed back into the shells. Meanwhile, egg whites, clear soup, cooking wine, MSG, and salt are also mixed together and equally poured into each shell. The filled shells are arranged on a plate...
【Cloves of Shrimp】A famous dish from Jinan. It is made by cutting pig kidney into a crosshatch pattern, then blanching it in hot water so that it curls into a “clove” shape, which gives the dish its name. The cloves are then stir-fried together with shrimp. Once cooked, the cloves turn a deep reddish color while the shrimp remain white, creating a very harmonious contrast between the two ingredients. The kidney is crispy and tender, and the shrimp are fresh and fragrant—making it an excellent hot stir-fry dish to enjoy with alcohol…
【Dry-Fried Shrimp】A dish from Jinan cuisine. "Dry-fried" is a type of cooking method under the broader category of "stir-frying." Ingredients are usually first deep-fried, then quickly stir-fried with a small amount of seasoning sauce. The resulting dish is typically oil-free and sauce-free, with a crispy exterior and tender interior. It is commonly served at renowned restaurants in Jinan. To prepare, first mix the shrimp with egg white, wet starch, and fine salt. Separately, combine light soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, and minced scallions...
【Tricolor Prawns】A famous dish from Jinan. Prawns refer to marine prawns, also known as king prawns. Take four large prawns, remove the heads and shells but leave the tail shell intact. Slice them along the back with a knife, keeping the belly connected to form one large piece. Then make crisscross cuts on the flesh side, season evenly with salt, cooking wine, and MSG. Cut the bread into long slices that are wider at the top and narrower at the bottom, spread with egg yolk...
Four-Shredded Dried Scallops is a traditional and famous seafood dish from Shandong. This dish is made with dried scallops, sea cucumber, winter bamboo shoots, and chicken breast as the main ingredients. The dried scallops are torn into four parts, while the other ingredients are all finely shredded before being cooked together. It is a signature dish passed down by Cheng Xuexiang, a former top-tier chef at Jinan’s Jufengde Restaurant. The finished dish has a bright red color and a rich, deliciously fresh flavor. …
Sweet and Sour Carp is one of the famous dishes of Jinan. The chef catches a live fish, cleans it on the spot, fries it until cooked, and places it on a plate. While hot, a prepared sweet and sour sauce is poured over the fish. The entire fish takes on an amber hue, with a crispy exterior and tender interior, offering a savory, sweet, and tangy flavor that is quite refined. Nowadays, most major restaurants in Jinan serve this dish. However, the "Jin San Bei" restaurant, which has been awarded the title of National Special-Class Restaurant…
Embroidery is a traditional Chinese craft with a long and rich history. In addition to the four major renowned embroidery styles—Su embroidery from Jiangsu, Xiang embroidery from Hunan, Yue embroidery from Guangdong, and Shu embroidery from Sichuan—Shandong Embroidery, as part of the cultural heritage of the Qi and Lu regions, has also gained widespread fame both domestically and internationally. With a wide variety of products, Shandong Embroidery...
Fried Screw Cake is a traditional local snack from Jinan, known for its crispy exterior and tender interior, with a rich scallion flavor. Legend has it that this screw cake was brought to Jinan over a hundred years ago by three brothers surnamed Xu from Nanjing. To suit the local taste preferences, the ingredients were modified from the original “sweet and fragrant” version to the current “savory and aromatic.” At the time...
Shrimp in egg white, scrambled eggs in scallion oil, shredded chicken, raisins, and rice stir-fried together. The dish is vibrant in color, with glossy and tender rice, and the shrimp and shredded chicken are delicate and smooth.…
The shrimp filling is wrapped in egg crepes shaped like shumai, steamed until cooked, then coated with a snowy egg batter, garnished, and lightly steamed again. They are beautifully shaped and delicious.…
White as jade, smooth on the palate, leaves no residue on the bowl after drinking, and is highly nutritious. Often served with fine deep-fried dough twists.…
The Great Shun Banquet is one of the distinctive banquets designed and developed by Jinan Shungeng Mountain Villa based on the historical legend of “Shun farming at Mount Li,” incorporating local specialties and using the cooking techniques of Shandong cuisine. Its menu consists of four parts: fruits, cold dishes, hot dishes, and dim sum. The fruit selection primarily features varieties that existed in ancient China; the cold dishes include a phoenix platter and eight small platters of auspicious birds...
Braised Intestines in Nine Turns was first created in the early years of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty by the owner of Jiuhualin Restaurant in Jinan. Initially named "Red-Braised Intestines," it underwent multiple refinements that further enhanced its flavor. Many notable figures would include this dish when hosting banquets at the restaurant. After tasting it, some scholars and literati remarked that the dish was truly unique...
Sweet Porridge is a traditional and popular porridge dish in Jinan, made primarily from millet flour and seasoned as a savory porridge. Locals commonly refer to it as “Five-Spice Sweet Porridge.” Among the many snacks in Jinan, Sweet Porridge is the most affordable and high-quality iconic delicacy. Legend has it that during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, due to natural disasters and wars, a large number of refugees flocked to Jinan. There was a…
A traditional and delicate snack from Jinan. As early as the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty, oil-swirl pastries were sold in the city. With their rich scallion aroma, crispy exterior, and tender interior, they quickly became popular and have been enjoyed ever since. The oil-swirl is a spiral-shaped small flatbread brushed with scallion-infused oil. Fresh out of the oven, it boasts a golden hue, soft inside and crispy outside, with an inviting scallion fragrance. The oil-swirl first appeared in Jinan during the Qing Dynasty. It is said that...
A famous dish from Jinan. It is commonly served at celebratory banquets such as birthdays of the elderly, weddings, the first full moon of a baby, and family reunions. This dish is prepared with clear soup, hence the name "Clear Soup Family Feast." Shandong cuisine has unique expertise in making clear soup, which has enjoyed a high reputation for thousands of years. The clear soup is made using pork knuckle, hen, and fat duck as ingredients, first boiled over high heat and then simmered...
Creamed Cattail Shoots is one of Jinan’s traditional flavorful soup dishes. With its milky-white and elegant color, crisp and tender texture, and richly aromatic broth, it is considered an upscale soup dish for high-end banquets. The cattail shoots used in this dish, also known as “cattail sprouts,” are perennial aquatic herbaceous plants. They are produced throughout China, mostly growing wild. The tender roots harvested in late spring, after being peeled...
Jufengde Roast Duck features crispy skin, a vibrant red hue, tender meat, rich flavor, and is juicy without being greasy—offering a truly distinctive taste. Yujì Braised Chicken is known for its bright color, aromatic deliciousness, tender texture without greasiness, and boneless qualities (Jinan)…
Lotus root from Ming Lake, also known as white lotus root, features large, thick roots with tender and crisp flesh that has a slightly sweet taste. It can be eaten raw, served in salads, or used in desserts, making it a fine dish for banquets. Ming Shui fragrant rice is a unique variety of rice. Its grains are slightly yellow, semi-transparent, smooth and glossy, and have a fragrant, refreshing taste when chewed—this renowned rice is famous throughout China (Jinan)...
Roast Whole Lamb at Mingshiduo, No. 26, Jingsan Weijiu Road, Jinan, 87931027. One of the “Top Ten Famous Dishes in Spring City,” it gained fame as early as the late Qing Dynasty. Selected one-year-old green mountain goats from Liangshan are roasted using a secret ancestral recipe to preserve their original flavor, offering excellent color, aroma, and taste.…