Pingba Beef Jerky

Pingba Beef Jerky

　　Pingba Beef Jerky is a specialty of Pingba County, Anshun City, Guizhou Province. The cattle in Pingba are of a pure breed and are entirely grass-fed, resulting in beef jerky that is rich in nutrients. It can be served as a premium dish at banquets or enjoyed as a casual snack.

　　Beef jerky is made by the Hui people during the autumn and winter seasons by selecting high-quality beef from the hindquarters and other parts of well-fed cattle. They season it with an appropriate amount of salt, Sichuan peppercorns, and other spices, then process it through kneading, pickling, sun-drying, air-drying, and frying to create this type of beef product. The Han people typically slaughter fat pigs in winter for the New Year celebrations, referring to them as “New Year pigs.” Since Islamic dietary laws prohibit the consumption of pork, the Hui people only slaughter cattle and sheep for meat. After slaughtering beef cattle in winter, the Hui people developed the tradition of curing some of the beef with salt, kneading it, and air-drying it for convenient preservation and gradual consumption—over time, this evolved into the traditional method of making beef jerky.

　　Pingba Beef Jerky is a unique gem among Chinese foods, suitable for all ages. Once fresh beef is made into jerky, it can be preserved for up to a year. In 2008, the signature dish “Golden Champion Beef Jerky” created by Runfeng Restaurant using Pingba Beef Jerky was recognized by the Guizhou Provincial Culinary and Hotel Industry Association as a “Guizhou Provincial Famous Dish.”