Mizhi Oil Cake

Mizhi Oil Cake

　　Mizhi Oil Cake is one of the local specialty snacks. “In the ninth month on the ninth day, the Double Ninth Festival comes, busy with harvesting, oh so busy—fields of millet and broomcorn millet turn golden everywhere.” Mizhi is rich in broomcorn millet. Also known as millet, after removing the husk, the soft variety—commonly called “soft yellow rice”—is soaked in warm water for several hours, then scooped out, drained, ground, and sifted into flour. The way to prepare and eat it is: take one-quarter of the cake flour, knead it into a dough, steam it until cooked, then mix it with the remaining three-quarters of the flour. Place the mixture in a warm spot to ferment. Once fermented, roll it into an oval strip, let it cool, then slice it into palm-sized, thin pieces. Deep-fry these slices in boiling oil until golden brown. Serve sprinkled with white sugar—the texture is sticky, soft, and chewy, with a sweet and delicious taste that lingers long after the last bite.