Smoked Pork from Luancheng is a specialty of Luancheng County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. The smoked pork from Luancheng is made from premium pork, processed meticulously and cleanly, then simmered in “Eight-Treasure Soup” over carefully controlled heat before being smoked with sawdust. The meat boasts a pure, delicious flavor and is tender and tasty. The Fan family’s smoked pork shop located south of the county government office gate (now the county government guesthouse) was a popular eatery...
Xingtai Crisp Pears are a specialty of Xingtai City, Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province. With a long history of cultivation, they are known for their “honey-like sweetness and crispness like ice,” featuring clean, bright, and attractive fruit surfaces. The well-known “Tianhua Brand” Crisp Pears are particularly famous.
Mayu Town is located 12 kilometers southeast of Jinzhou City, overseeing 25 administrative villages including Beixinzhuang Village, covering a total area of 58.11 square kilometers, with 65,535 mu of arable land and a total population of 41,923. The town’s agricultural production mainly focuses on three specialty industries: crisp pears, grapes, and high-quality commercial pigs. It is a key commodity grain base in Hebei Province…
Guokui is repeatedly kneaded with an appropriate amount of warm water to achieve the right balance of softness and firmness, ensuring the dough is elastic and pliable. The temperature of the water depends on the ambient air temperature—the colder the weather, the warmer the water, and vice versa. The preparation method is unique, following the principle of mixing leavened dough (fermented dough) with unleavened dough (raw dough) on the spot as they are being prepared. The amount of leavened dough used is determined by how long the unleavened dough has been mixed. The longer the unleavened dough has been mixed, the more leavened dough is added; conversely, less is added. Next, raw pork fat with the outer membrane removed is mixed with spices such as star anise, fennel, cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorn, ginger, refined salt, and MSG. This mixture is chopped into fine pieces, spread as a paste, and brushed onto the stretched dough. After rolling and pressing into shape, it is pan-fried and then baked in an oven until crispy.
Fried Pancake Fried pancake from Xinji is widely known for being affordable, quick to prepare, and delicious. Restaurants typically price it based on half a jin of shredded pancake with one serving of vegetable base. The vegetarian version uses bean sprouts, Chinese cabbage, garlic shoots, etc., as the base. The meat version is divided into shredded meat (fresh lean pork) or fatty meat (cooked pork slices). There are two types of yellow vegetable fried pancake: one involves mixing beaten eggs directly with the shredded pancake and stir-frying them together, and the other is to fry the eggs first and then lay them on top of the shredded pancake. The key to making good fried pancake lies in the broth—too much and the pancake becomes soggy and messy; too little and it turns dry and tough. After preparing the vegetable base, mix the right amount of broth, evenly distribute the shredded pancake, cover, and let it steam for two to three minutes. Drizzle with sesame oil, stir with chopsticks, and it’s done. Though we call it fried pancake, it’s actually steamed pancake. The fried pancake in Baoding is made by directly stir-frying the pancake shreds in oil, resulting in each strand being crispy and burnt. It’s very dry and not very tasty. Steamed pancake, on the other hand, suits all ages. In the early years after liberation, famous fried pancake makers in Xinji town included Wang Yifang and Shang Zuochen. During the cooperative movement, they joined cooperative restaurants and later became employees of state-owned restaurants. In a 1956 competition, their fried pancake skills were rated equally. At an evaluation meeting in Xinji City in 1986, the fried pancakes from “Qianbeishao” and “Hejiahuam” at Hebei Yiji scored the highest. The fried pancakes in Jiucheng are also very good.
Xiji Braised Chicken, produced by Hui Min Lu Chunlou Braised Chicken Shop in Xiji City, has a long history and is widely renowned, enjoying great prestige in major cities such as Shijiazhuang, Tianjin, and Beijing. In 1986, it was recognized as a high-quality product of Hebei Province. Xiji Braised Chicken uses premium ingredients and is meticulously prepared. Generally, chickens under two years old are selected as raw materials. First…
Junqi Chives are renowned for their long cultivation history and superior quality. They were tribute items for the imperial courts during the Ming and Qing dynasties and are especially famous in northern China. In Xinji City, Junqi Chives come in two varieties: green chives and yellow chives. With their slender and flat leaves and intense flavor, they are rich in protein, fat, sulfides, and abundant vitamins. They are used in cooking,...
Xijiao Jade Carving The Xijiao City Arts and Crafts Factory mainly produces traditional figures, flowers, birds, animals, and more. The products combine the fine craftsmanship, appropriate material selection, exquisite transparency, and lifelike detail characteristic of southern styles, while also retaining the simple elegance, robust structure, precise modeling, and refined facial expressions typical of northern traditions. In the 1980 inter-provincial and municipal industry competition involving six provinces and one municipality...
Xinzhi Goji Berries were originally introduced from Zhongwei County in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and have a history of over 40 years. The cultivation area spans 25,000 mu, with an annual production of 5 million kilograms of goji fruits, making it one of China’s major goji-producing regions. These berries are known for their large size, thick flesh, few seeds, sweet taste, soft texture, and deep blood-red color — hence the nickname "blood goji." According to...
Oatmeal pancakes — Oat flour is a specialty food from Hebei. As a type of coarse grain, oat flour has a slightly dark color. The local oatmeal pancakes are made by rolling the flour into thin sheets, then coiling them into rolls and steaming them. They are served with dipping sauce and have a sticky, smooth texture. Oat flour dumplings also have a unique flavor, especially those stuffed with pickled vegetables, which offer a distinctive taste. Oatmeal pancakes: they are...
Gaoyi wheat is a specialty of Gaoyi County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. Gaoyi is located on the western edge of the North China Plain, at the eastern foothills of the Taihang Mountains. It has a warm temperate semi-humid climate with a continental monsoon pattern and distinct four seasons. The area is abundant in wheat production. In the autumn and winter of 2012, the wheat planting area in Gaoyi County was 208,000 mu. Most of it consisted of high-quality, high-yield wheat varieties such as “Shixin…
Pingshan Ji Mushroom is a specialty of Pingshan County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. The Ji mushroom is a unique variety of oyster mushroom, belonging to the Pleurotus genus. Its scientific name is "Ji mushroom," and it is not the same as the Enokitake mushroom. It was introduced from Japan by the Hebei Academy of Microbiology and enjoys widespread sales in Japan, often served as a side dish with pasta. The Ji mushroom has strong resistance and adaptability, and can be cultivated using a wide range of materials...
Pingshan Enoki Mushrooms are a specialty of Pingshan County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. Enoki mushrooms consist of two main parts: the vegetative organ (mycelium) and the reproductive organ (fruiting body). ⑴ The mycelium develops from spores. Under artificial cultivation conditions, the mycelium is usually white and fluffy, with septa and branches. When many mycelia gather together, they form the mycelial mass...
The Pingshan White Ling Mushroom is a specialty of Pingshan County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. Also known as Wing Abalone Mushroom, Lingzhi Mushroom, Kashmir Divine Mushroom, Ferula Mushroom, Awai Pleurotus, Ferula Pleurotus, Snow Mountain Lingzhi, or Abalone Mushroom, the White Ling Mushroom boasts tender flesh and a delicious taste. It holds high edible value and is praised as the “Boletus of the grasslands” and a type of oyster mushroom...
Pingshan black fungus is a specialty of Pingshan County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. Black fungus, also known as auricularia, wood ear, or shiny fungus, is classified in mycology as belonging to the class Basidiomycetes, order Auriculariales, and family Auriculariaceae. There is also a similarly shaped white fungus. It can be found growing wild or cultivated artificially. The fruiting body is ear-shaped, leaf-shaped, or cup-shaped, thin, with wavy edges, and 3–1…
Prickly ash (scientific name: Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim.), also known as 檓, big pepper, Qin pepper, Shu pepper, Chuan pepper, Dahongpao, or mountain pepper. It is a deciduous shrub or small tree of the Rutaceae family and the Zanthoxylum genus, which can be planted alone or used as a protective thorny hedge. Its fruit peel can be used as a seasoning and can…
"Hongdigeng" black peanuts are grown in the pristine mountainous regions of Xibaipo, a scenic and sacred place. The selenium-rich black peanut variety is introduced from the Hebei Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences. These black peanuts are packed with nutrients such as calcium, potassium, copper, zinc, iron, selenium, manganese, eight types of vitamins, and 19 essential amino acids required by the human body. They also contain rich amounts of trace elements like selenium, iron, and zinc, as well as melanin. Compared to regular red peanuts, black peanuts have 5% higher crude protein content, 23.9% higher arginine, 19% higher potassium, 48% higher zinc, and 101% higher selenium. Suitable for all ages and with an excellent taste, they are a premium black food ideal for gifting to family and friends.
Shenze Red Fuji Apples are a specialty of Shenze County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. These apples have medium-sized cores, bright red and vibrant skins, crisp and refreshing flesh that is sweet, juicy, and richly aromatic. Shenze County enjoys a warm temperate monsoon continental climate, which is ideal for apple cultivation. Apple farming has been practiced here since the Ming Dynasty. Shenze apples...
Yuan County pomegranates are a specialty of Yuan County, Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province. The pomegranates produced in Yuan County feature large grains, soft seeds, abundant juice, sweet taste, and a refreshing, high-quality flavor. The “Mantianhong” (Sky Full of Red) pomegranate from Yuan County has been recognized as a famous brand product of Hebei Province. Pomegranates are a traditional fruit crop grown in the semi-mountainous western region of Yuan County, with a cultivation history of over a thousand years. Pomegranates, along with Dahongpao persimmons, thin-shelled walnuts, and red dates, are known as the “Four Treasures of Yuan County.” Yuan County pomegranates are large with soft seeds, juicy and sweet, refreshingly delicious, and of high quality—some even reach up to 0.75 kilograms in size.
In Zhengding County, there has long been a tradition of entertaining distinguished guests and rewarding outstanding workers with “eight dishes and eight bowls.” This custom of hosting guests with “eight dishes and eight bowls” during major festivals such as Spring Festival has been passed down through the ages, and gradually extended to weddings where it is also used to entertain relatives and friends. With the improvement of living standards, the “eight…”