West Lake Salted Egg

West Lake Salted Egg

　　West Lake Salted Egg, also known as Cinnabar Salted Egg, has a production history of 500 years.

Around 1920, a large quantity of salted eggs were produced in Shatou Town, Yiyang County, and were brought to Southeast Asia by a local businessman who traded there. The eggs gained a strong reputation in the region. Since Shatou Town is located west of the provincial capital, Changsha, they came to be known as "West Lake Salted Eggs."

West Lake Salted Eggs are made from fresh eggs laid by lake-area ducks. They go through nearly ten meticulous processes including ingredient mixing, rolling in ash in pools, and storage. The eggs are uniform in size with evenly coated ash; the air sacs inside are small, the egg whites are tender, and the yolks are orange-red, melting to the center with oil that appears in tiny cinnabar-like grains. They have a well-balanced saltiness, rich aroma, delicious taste, and are appetizing and refreshing.

In addition to being popular in the domestic market, West Lake Salted Eggs are also exported to Southeast Asian countries and the Hong Kong and Macau regions.