Zixing Bamboo Shoots

Zixing Bamboo Shoots

　　Zixing Specialty – Bamboo Shoots

　　Bamboo is a specialty of Zixing. A farmer in Yanping cultivated a particularly large moso bamboo with a diameter of 59.3 cm at breast height, which can be called the "Bamboo King." Zixing’s bamboo handicrafts are famous both within and outside the province, while its bamboo shoots offer local residents a delicious treat. Winter bamboo shoots are highly popular, and when spring arrives after the rain, bamboo shoots sprout eagerly from the ground. Spring bamboo shoots then make their way onto the dining tables of every household. Any leftovers are dried. There is a type of bamboo shoot that is cooked and then dried, taking on the shape of a sheep’s tail — known as “sheep-tail dried bamboo shoots.” They are crispy, tender, and incredibly delicious. When preserved mustard greens are combined with bamboo shoots to make dried vegetable bamboo shoots, the flavor of the bamboo is even enhanced. Dried bamboo shoots have a fragrant aroma and can be used in soups or stir-fried with meat.