The Qing Dynasty writer Yuan Mei wrote in his book "Suiyuan Shidan" (Recipes from the Suiyuan Garden): “Zao You comes from Taicang, and the older it gets, the better.” The "Taicang Prefecture Annals" stated: “Its color and taste are superior, unmatched by any other place.”
Lard puffed rice candy is a specialty of Shaxi Town, Taicang City, Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. This traditional local product from Shaxi, Taicang lard puffed rice candy, is gaining increasing popularity among tourists. During the Guangxu period (1900), Shen Huanzhi opened the “Dingshengxiang” confectionery shop in Shaxi. The shop’s main products included peach slices, hemp cakes, fermented rice cakes, and meat dumplings. The following year...
Shuangfeng Lamb Noodles (also known as: Shuangfeng Fat Lamb Big Noodles) is one of the distinctive culinary offerings in Taicang’s food culture, renowned for being crispy, rich, aromatic, and hearty. Legend has it that over a hundred years ago, a master surnamed Meng opened a noodle shop at the western end of the ancient town of Shuangfeng, which boasts a history of more than 1,600 years. Thanks to his expertise in cooking meat, brewing broth, and crafting noodles, …
Taicang Hairy Board Green Fava Beans are a famous agricultural specialty product of Jiangsu Province and are considered top-quality among fava bean varieties. They are produced within a ten-mile radius around Maojiashi (now Xinqiao Township) in Taicang City, locally known as "Xuangong Beans." As Maojiashi prospered over time, merchants from other regions came specifically to Maojiashi to purchase them, and they thus became widely known as "Mao Board Green." The five-spice beans at Shanghai’s Old City God Temple are made using...
Channel catfish is one of the Four Delicacies of the Yangtze River. As a scaleless fish species, it has long been regarded as a precious variety among the river’s fish resources. Its flesh is delicate, flavorful, tender, and not fishy, with no intermuscular bones. It combines the taste of the reeves shad with the freshness of pufferfish, making it unparalleled among other common scaleless fish in the Yangtze. The channel catfish has a thick, elongated body, a swollen belly, and a laterally flattened tail. When freshly caught, the channel catfish…
Anciently known as "kuican yu" (sliced leftover fish). This fish is slender in shape, transparent in body, smooth-skinned, and about the length of a finger. It prefers to inhabit the estuary of the Yangtze River near the sea. Its formal name is *Hemisalanx prognathus*, but it is commonly called "mianzhang yu" (noodle stick fish) by locals. Because this fish has fine bones, no scales, a bright silvery color, and an extremely delicious taste, it is highly favored by diners. It usually lives in the main and tributary streams of the Yangtze River. Feeding on...
Ingredients: 2.5 kg refined flour (for 50 pieces), filling ingredients: 300 g diced ham, 500 g each of red bean paste, white sugar, and fresh pork, 30 g each of refined salt and chopped scallions, 20 g soy sauce, 1.6 kg cooked lard (100 g used in cooking). Cooking steps: 1. Knead the dough: First mix 1 kg of flour...
A Han Chinese–style dish. The chicken is coated with maltose syrup, deep-fried, then simmered in a spiced brine. It boasts a rich aroma and delicious flavor.…
Distinctive Quality Zhenhu, anciently known as Xihua, is located by the West Taihu Lake and borders Guangfu. Blessed with picturesque scenery and a culturally refined spirit, it is one of the main birthplaces of Suzhou embroidery. For centuries, Zhenhu embroidery has stood out for its unique qualities of refinement, delicacy, elegance, purity, and ingenuity. The saying “Every household has an embroidery frame, every home has an embroiderer” perfectly captures the essence of Zhenhu...
The Double Phoenix Braised Chicken from Taicang is a well-known local traditional dish. This famous delicacy originates from Shuangfeng, a historic and cultural town with a history of 1,600 years. Historical records indicate that the name “Shuangfeng” comes from a legend dating back to the sixth year of the Xianning reign during the Jin Dynasty (331 AD), when a monk named Zhi Daolin was digging the foundation for a temple. He unearthed two stone turtles, which then transformed into two phoenixes and flew away gracefully, hence the name “Shuangfeng” (Double Phoenix)...
Taro (yù nǎi), commonly referred to as "yu," is known in everyday language as "taro." It is a monocotyledonous plant belonging to the Araceae family and is a perennial herb. Its leaves are ovate, with long, thick petioles. The flowers are yellowish-green. Underground, it has a fleshy corm rich in starch, which is edible. Taro is widely cultivated in southern China. It is highly nutritious, with its corms containing...
The Xinglong eggplant from Taicang is a high-quality local variety developed over the years through seed retention, self-propagation, and systematic breeding by farmers in Yuewang Town, Taicang City. With an attractive appearance, excellent taste, and superior marketability, it enjoys high recognition in the Shanghai market. This variety is cultivated across various towns in Taicang, with Yuewang Town having established large-scale cultivation of “Xinglong eggplants”...
Taicang Scallions are an improved local variety, possessing unique and superior traits, and are a well-known regional specialty. With their slender green stalks and distinctive, rich aroma, Taicang Scallions are an excellent choice for seasoning and health benefits. Primarily grown in the suburbs of the city, over 6,000 mu are cultivated annually, yielding more than 20,000 tons of fresh scallions. &n…
[Ingredients] 250g gorgon fruit, 350g white sugar, 1.5g osmanthus sugar [Cooking Method] Wash the gorgon fruit and rinse clean, then place it in a clay pot (avoid using an iron pot). Pour in 750g of water, bring to a boil over high heat, skim off any foam, then reduce to medium heat. Add sugar and cook until soft and tender. Pour the mixture while hot into a serving bowl with osmanthus sugar...
Taicang meat floss has a production history of over 100 years. In 1915, it even won an award at the Panama International Exposition. It is made from fresh lean pork from the hind legs of pigs, combined with seasonings such as soy sauce, rock sugar, fresh ginger, star anise, and yellow rice wine. The resulting product features long, delicate fibers and a delicious taste, making it especially suitable for mothers, young children, and patients...
Shaoxing Wine Steamed Shad is a local delicacy from Zhangjiagang, beloved by many. The dish is made by removing the internal organs of a fresh shad (while leaving the scales on), cleaning it, and then adding an appropriate amount of Shaoxing wine lees and cooked lard. It is further seasoned with scallions, ginger, sliced ham, and other spices, then steamed in a basket for about 15 minutes.
Shad is a delicacy among southern aquatic products. It migrates upstream to spawn in late spring and early summer, with peak season between the “Grain Full” (Xiaoman) and “Grain in Ear” (Mangzhong) solar terms. As recorded in the *Compendium of Materia Medica*, shad “appears in early summer and is absent in other months, hence its name.” The fish has a flat, elongated body that is silvery-white in color, rich in fat beneath its scales, and typically weighs around 1 kilogram. Its scales are edible and the flesh is tender, succulent, and delicious...
The pufferfish was anciently known as "tai" and, together with the shad and the long-snout catfish, is hailed as one of the "Three Delicacies of the Yangtze." The pufferfish has an oval body, a round head, and a small mouth. Its back is typically dark brown with patterns, while its belly is white with fleshy spines. It has no scales or gallbladder but possesses an air bladder that allows it to inflate by inhaling air. It inhabits waters where saltwater meets freshwater and migrates upstream along the river each spring to spawn.…
Phoenix Honey Peaches have nearly 70 years of cultivation history. Renowned both in China and abroad for their beautiful shape, bright color, delicious taste, fine flesh, tough yet easy-to-peel skin, juicy and sweet flavor, rich aroma, and melt-in-your-mouth texture. There are many varieties of honey peaches, with seven being particularly outstanding. Among them, the early-ripening “Yuhualu,” mid-ripening “Bai Feng,” and late-ripening…
The hairtail, scientifically known as Coilia ectenes, is a migratory fish. Every spring, hairtails swim upstream in schools, creating a seasonal fishing boom. As the farming proverb goes, “Amid spring tides and mist, the hairtail emerges,” making it one of the earliest fresh delicacies of the season. The fish has a long, slender, and thin body resembling a sharp knife, with a silvery-white color. Its flesh is tender, though it contains many fine, hair-like bones. The meat is delicious, rich but not greasy, and has a subtle aroma.