Miao Ethnic Acidic Fish Soup from Southeastern Guizhou

Miao Ethnic Acidic Fish Soup from Southeastern Guizhou

　　Life is full of flavors—sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy—but sour takes the lead. Southeastern Guizhou is the homeland of "acidic" cuisine. Whether in everyday family meals, banquets, or celebrations for weddings and funerals, acidic dishes are everywhere. People of all ages share a love for the sour taste. No wonder a local proverb goes, “Three days without acid, and you’ll stumble while walking” (referring to an unsteady gait), which highlights the unique benefits and style of the acidic food culture in southeastern Guizhou.

　　In the world, “China is the place to eat.” Within China, there’s a saying that the north favors saltiness, the southeast sweetness, and the west spiciness. In dry climates, people eat salty foods; in humid and hot areas, they prefer sweet; in damp regions, spicy is the choice. Even within the love for spice, Hunan, Guizhou, and Sichuan each bring their own twist, giving rise to sayings like “not afraid of spice,” “afraid it’s not spicy enough,” and “spice doesn’t scare me.” Specifically, Guizhou cuisine is known for being sour and spicy, Sichuan for numbing-spicy, and Hunan for fried-spicy. Southeastern Guizhou differs from other parts of Guizhou, emphasizing and highlighting the first character—“sour”—while other regions focus on the first character “spicy.” As the saying goes, “Apart from oil and salt, there are no luxurious flavors.” Historically, southeastern Guizhou suffered from a severe salt shortage, so people turned to acid and spice to season their food. This shows that the tradition of eating acidic dishes is no accident—it’s the result of a combination of geographical environment, climatic conditions, available resources, and human physiological needs. The climate in central southeastern Guizhou is damp, with heavy miasma, and diseases like diarrhea and dysentery are common. A preference for acid not only stimulates the appetite but also aids digestion and helps stop diarrhea. As a result, almost every household keeps several types of pickling jars: sour water jars, vinegar water jars, preserved vegetable jars, fish pickling jars, and meat pickling jars. There are also sayings about the pickling seasons and preservation methods, such as “pickle vegetables in March, fish in August, and meat in January,” and “if the jar isn’t sealed, the food will rot.” Due to historical and geographical factors, the Miao and Dong peoples of southeastern Guizhou have, through long-term production and daily life practices, developed their own unique style and preparation techniques for consuming acid, distinct from other regions and ethnicities. This has given rise to a distinctive “acidic food culture” with a strong personality. There are nearly 10 different methods just for making acidic dishes.

　　Acidic foods truly contribute to human longevity: they have medicinal properties that prevent illness and aid digestion, refresh the mind, and help preserve food. The results of China’s fourth national census in 1990 showed that the ratio of centenarians to the total population in the Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture of southeastern Guizhou was higher than that in Guangdong Province, a traditionally recognized long-life region, placing it among the top in the nation. Longevity is influenced by many factors, and “eating acid” is likely one of them. In 1988, in Vancouver, Canada, a group of journalists interviewed Li Fapin, a senior athlete from southeastern Guizhou and world champion in elderly long-distance running. When asked about the secret to setting a world record, the elderly Li replied, “If I could eat my hometown’s pickled vegetables, I’d run even faster.” A remarkably witty remark. In the latter part of the 20th century, this traditional and distinctive acidic food custom of southeastern Guizhou gained increasing popularity. Dishes like sour soup fish, pickled fish, pickled meat, sour soup chicken, sour soup pig trotters, three-in-one sour soup, and four-in-one sour soup... some made their way to Beijing, others were served at state banquets, some crossed oceans, and many more were adopted by hotels and restaurants. Every Chinese and international tourist who visits Guizhou specifically asks to try the authentic Kaili sour soup fish.