Suining Potato Starch Sheets

Suining Potato Starch Sheets

　　Suining Potato Starch Sheets are a specialty of Shaji Town, Suining County, Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province. The main ingredients for Suining Shaji Potato Starch Sheets come from the starch of mung beans, sweet potatoes, or potatoes. Suining water starch sheets are mainly served as cold dishes, often paired with a small amount of spinach leaves, and seasoned with shredded red chili peppers, mashed garlic, vinegar, sesame oil, and other condiments, giving them a unique culinary charm. In winter, they can be stir-fried or used in soups.

　　Suining Potato Starch Sheets, also known as "Shaji Starch Sheets" or traditionally referred to as "Zhang Family Starch Sheets," are an authentic farmhouse dish. Legend has it that Suining water starch sheets originated during the Zhenghe era of the Song Dynasty. Emperor Huizong, traveling incognito, arrived at the eastern route of Huaiyang, which at the time was a desolate and sparsely populated sandy area. Feeling both hungry and thirsty, the emperor found no post stations, restaurants, taverns, or teahouses nearby. He then asked his attendants to find a simple meal at a local resident’s home. By coincidence, they visited the home of the Zhang family, who specialized in processing water starch sheets. The man of the house had already gone out to sell the prepared starch sheets, so the woman of the house quickly tidied up the leftover fragments and served them to the guests with some seasonings. After tasting them, Emperor Huizong found the dish pleasantly tangy, spicy, soft, smooth, well-seasoned, cool, and refreshing — he was thoroughly satisfied and repeatedly exclaimed, “What a delicious dish!” When he asked what it was, the hostess replied, “It’s water starch sheets.” Overjoyed, the emperor then issued an imperial decree to include water starch sheets as a regular dish in the imperial kitchen. The Zhang family continued to live in what is now Shaji Town in eastern Suining, and they have passed down their starch sheet-making craftsmanship through generations.

　　The traditional production technique of Suining Potato Starch Sheets is ancient and highly characteristic of northern Jiangsu. Transforming raw mung beans into finished starch sheets involves six steps: selecting beans → soaking → grinding into pulp → settling → mixing the batter → spinning into sheets. This traditional water starch sheet is known for its pure, translucent appearance, soft and smooth texture, and fresh, cool, and delicious taste, making it irresistible even after many servings. There are various ways to enjoy Suining water starch sheets, but they are most commonly served cold. If chili is the main seasoning, it is called spicy starch sheet; if vinegar dominates, it is called cool starch sheet. In winter, these sheets can also be stir-fried or made into various types of soups, all equally delightful.

　　Zhang Haifeng, a descendant of the traditional starch sheet-making family from Shaji Town, Suining, built upon the ancestral crafting techniques and through dedicated research, developed a series of starch sheet products: such as starch sheet cake, starch sheet balls, dried starch sheets, and fresh starch sheets, all vacuum-packed. On February 28, 2008, the trademark “Mao Yuan” was officially registered and approved by the Trademark Office of the State Administration for Industry and Commerce of the People's Republic of China. The products are not only in high demand in the domestic market but have also entered international markets such as Singapore and New York.