Flavorful Origins - Yunnan Cuisine

← Back to All Seasons of Flavorful Origins
Dairy Products

1 - Dairy Products

Air Date: October 30, 2019

Yunnan is known for a variety of dairy products, including Dali rushan: thinly sliced cheese that can be fried, grilled or dipped in honey.

Nan Piӗ

2 - Nan Piӗ

Air Date: October 30, 2019

A local wild berry features in nanpie, which refers t different types of flavorful pastes made from mashed vegetables or fish.

Sa Piӗ

3 - Sa Piӗ

Air Date: October 31, 2019

Sa is a culinary tradition that pairs cold meat or raw vegetables with a versatile sauce that is often mixed with pig blood curd.

Lacquer Seed Oil

4 - Lacquer Seed Oil

Air Date: October 31, 2019

Derived from the fruits of the Chinese lacquer tree, qiyou is an oil used to cook eggs, congee, pork stew, roast chicken and even bee larvae.

Ham

5 - Ham

Air Date: October 31, 2019

Found in local moon cake fillings, Xuanwei cured ham can be thinly sliced, steamed, cooked with egg, stewed or served as cold cuts.

Pickled Vegetables

6 - Pickled Vegetables

Air Date: October 31, 2019

Salted and partially dried, the sow thistle can be pickled and stir-fried with pork to lend a sour, crunchy flavour, or added to white radish stew.

Hardy Banana

7 - Hardy Banana

Air Date: October 30, 2019

Wrapped in leaves with a sticky rice or spiced fish, the Musa basjoo – a banana found in Yunnan – can make for a sweet snack or savoury dish.

Sour Fruits

8 - Sour Fruits

Air Date: October 30, 2019

Besides being an appetite stimulant, tart fruits like lemon and sour papaya can be added to shredded chicken, carp or a sauce for dousing live shrimp.

Rice Cake

9 - Rice Cake

Air Date: October 30, 2019

The er, a flattened rice flour cake, can be backed into a sticky snack, sliced and stir-fried with vegetables or julienned into noodle-like strands.

Salted Flour

10 - Salted Flour

Air Date: October 30, 2019

Zha, an old custom, is an assortment of dried fermented vegetables or fish served as side dishes, made with ancient methods of food preservation.