Zhonghe Soup

Zhonghe Soup

　　Zhonghe Soup

　　Zhonghe Soup is an authentic signature dish of Qimen. Whenever locals host banquets, Zhonghe Soup is always included—and it’s usually the first dish served.

　　Originally called “Zhonghe.” The Middle River is a river that originates in Qimen and flows into Poyang County in Jiangxi Province. To its east, another river flows in from Wuyuan, and to its west, one flows in from Zhide. These three rivers—the East River, West River, and Middle River—converge upstream of Poyang Lake and flow together into the lake. The waters of the East and West Rivers are murky, but the Middle River is crystal clear and teems with small shrimp that have a particularly delicious flavor.

　　Legend has it that during the Southern Song Dynasty, the renowned Qimen-born poet Fang Yue, while serving as an official in Poyang, had his yamen located by Poyang Lake. He admired the scenic beauty of the Middle River, which also originated from his hometown, and often went boating on it in his spare time. Fang Yue was particularly fond of tofu. Once, while cooking tofu cubes on his boat, he found himself without any seasonings. Noticing the abundance of small shrimp in the river, he scooped some up and cooked them together with the tofu. To his delight, the result was wonderfully flavorful. From then on, every time he cooked tofu, he would go to the Middle River to gather shrimp as seasoning. He even named the dish “Middle River” and brought the recipe back to his hometown. Gradually, word spread from one person to ten, and from ten to a hundred, until the Middle River dish became widely known across Qimen and an indispensable delicacy at banquets. Its ingredients grew more varied, and its taste became even more delicious. Because the character “river” (河)

　　and the character “harmony” (和) are homophones, “Middle River Soup” was slowly renamed “Zhonghe Soup,” symbolizing the harmony of multiple flavors. It was also added to the Huizhou cuisine repertoire and became a highly popular Huizhou dish among diners.

　　Today, Zhonghe Soup is meticulously prepared with carefully selected ingredients. First, high-quality white tofu is finely diced into rice-grain-sized cubes, briefly boiled in water, and then drained to remove the beany taste. Then, an appropriate amount of winter bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms, lean meat, and other ingredients are also cut into small pieces and added to the tofu. Water is poured in, brought to a boil over high heat, and seasoned generously with lard, scallions, garlic, pepper, salt, monosodium glutamate, and other condiments. The resulting soup is extraordinarily delicious and truly irresistible.

　　From the Southern Song Dynasty to the present,

　　Zhonghe Soup has a history of over 700 years and has remained beloved by the people of Qimen. During the Republican era, there was a Qimen restaurant that was the oldest and most famous—it was named “Zhonghe Lou” (Zhonghe Tower). This name has since been adopted and continued by other restaurants to this day.