Dali Fried Pastry

Dali Fried Pastry

　　"Fried Pastry," or deep-fried dough flowers, has an associated legend.

　　Historically, Dali County was a place where multiple ethnic groups lived together. In addition to the ancient Dali Rong people, the Qiang, Hui, and Mongolian ethnicities have all resided here, which is why the folk art of Dali also reflects a fusion of different cultures. An old folk rhyme goes: "The men pretend to be clueless outside, while the women mess around sculpting at home!" The term "mess around" carries both admiration and playful connotation for the women shaping these dough flowers. Year after year of such creative "messing around" has helped sustain the life of this tea-time folk art—“Fried Pastry.”

　　The general production process of "Fried Pastry" includes several steps: making the dough, letting it rest, kneading and rolling it out, shaping floral designs, and deep-frying. These deep-fried dough flowers serve not only as an elegant gift but also as a refined accompaniment to tea when hosting honored guests, hence they are crafted with great care. There are numerous styles, among which representative pieces include flower offerings, pomegranates, lotus flowers, roosters, peonies, chrysanthemums, and “lotus bearing a noble son.” Smaller creations include pulled malt sugar, wheat ears, and cotton bolls. These artistic forms inherit from ancient, pre-written symbols, serving as symbolic language in folk art. They carry the imagistic characteristics of artistic origins, representing both treasures of culinary culture and some of the oldest and most simple forms of art. They hold significant value for the study of Chinese ethnic folklore.