Zhengan Sweet Potato Starch

Zhengan Sweet Potato Starch

　　　1. Quality Characteristics

　　White with a slight yellow tint; refined powder is snow-white, with strong elasticity, great softness, and excellent color and taste.

　　2. Historical Background and Geographic-Cultural Context

　　Zhengan Sweet Potato Starch is a local specialty reputed as a premium-quality starch. According to the Zhengan County Zhi (local chronicle), in 1972, Li Changming, a villager from Wodang in Fengyi Town, after multiple experiments, improved the production process and enhanced quality, making Zhengan’s sweet potato starch resistant to clouding when cooked, with unbreakable strands and a tender, delicious taste. The starch can be eaten deep-fried dry, stir-fried, served cold, blanched, added to hot pot, stewed meat, or boiled meatballs, enhancing the flavor of these dishes.

　　Its production process is as follows: Select fresh sweet potatoes, wash, peel, cut into chunks, mash, filter, remove residue, then filter again. Ordinary starch typically undergoes three filtrations, while refined starch requires several more filtrations to remove water, after which the sediment is dried to produce starch. To make starch noodles, part of the starch is mixed with water and cooked in a pot to a thickened state (the degree of cooking must be carefully controlled), then a small amount of alum is added to create a cooked starch paste. A specific proportion of cooked starch paste, dry starch, and water is then mixed and repeatedly kneaded into a dough. Small pieces of the dough are placed in a noodle mold, and by gripping and rhythmically pressing with a fist, the noodles are extruded through the mold into boiling water. The water temperature should be around 70°C. Once cooked, the noodles are scooped out, rinsed in clean water, cooled, hung up, and dried to become dry noodles. The thickness, fineness, flatness, or roundness of the noodles can be adjusted by changing the mold, while the length can be cut as needed.

　　3. Efforts by the Local Government

        Zhengan Sweet Potato Starch was successfully developed in the early 1970s based on modifying the original production process for cowpea starch, and soon became a popular dish served to guests in the area. The product, when gifted to regions in the north, was also well received. With the attention of the local government, in 1984, the Chongqing Municipality and Zunyi Region Science and Technology Association jointly organized an experience exchange meeting on sweet potato starch processing in Zhengan, attended by 50 representatives from 23 counties across 4 regions in 2 provinces. A seven-day training workshop was also held to teach the techniques. Since then, every year people have been hired to go out and teach the technology, helping to establish sweet potato starch workshops. By 1990, over 350 households in Zhengan were engaged in sweet potato starch production, producing 850,000 kilograms per household, supplying the county, neighboring counties, and areas such as Zunyi and Nanchuan.