Leiyang Salt Shallots

Leiyang Salt Shallots

　　Leiyang Salt Shallots are a specialty of Leiyang City, Hengyang, Hunan Province. These shallots are white and semi-transparent with delicate flesh and a crisp, tender texture, making them a great accompaniment to rice or congee.

　　Leiyang is abundant in shallot production. The shallot is an annual herbaceous plant, growing 50–90 cm tall. It has an upright, branching stem that is green or greenish with fine stripes. The leaves are alternate; they have long petioles; the stipular sheaths are thin and membranous, yellowish-brown; the leaf blades are broadly triangular, measuring 2–7 cm in length and 2.5–8 cm in width, with an acute apex, cordate base, entire margins. The inflorescence is a raceme; the flower stalks are slender; flowers are sparsely arranged, white or pale red; the perianth is deeply 5-lobed, with elliptic lobes about 2 mm long; there are 8 stamens, shorter than the perianth; the style has 3 short branches with capitate stigmas. The fruit is a cone-shaped ovate achene with three edges — the upper edges are sharp while the lower edges are rounded and blunt. The color is dark brown with three deep grooves. Flowering and fruiting occur from June to September. Medicinal effects: aids digestion, regulates qi, expels wind, and removes phlegm. Used to treat rabid dog bites; externally for treating boils, insect and mosquito bites, eliminating dampness, relieving pain, detoxifying, reducing swelling, and aiding digestion. Also used for injuries from falls, lumbar - leg pain, abscesses and swelling, indigestion.

　　Using high-quality fresh Leiyang shallots as the main ingredient, the salt shallots are made through processes including cleaning, canning, pickling, and fermentation. The resulting salt shallots are white and semi-transparent with delicate flesh and a crisp, tender texture, making them a great accompaniment to rice or congee. Leiyang Salt Shallots have an annual production capacity of over 1,000 tons and are exported to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and other regions, where the products are in high demand.