in guangzhou I was on familiar culinary territory, and everything looked amazingly appetizing. these are just a small subset of the photos I took there, and I think it serves to illustrate a little how guangzhou is a mishmash of both traditional and modern things.
there were lots of dried goods along alleyways, stores serving takoyaki, traditional cheung fun, century-old waxed meat stores and peddlars on the street with fruit and and dried goods.
we ate so well here.
chengdu is an amazing gastronomic city. the heart of szechuan, and you get the chillies you associate with the province, as well as a plethora of street food. this was the sort of scene I envisioned when I thought about chinese hawkers.
sugar sculptures, dried prunes of all sorts, spicy peanuts, soya bean and peanut powder beard – so called due to the pulled wispy strands the sugar becomes – candy, spicy beancurd, grilled/steamed corn/maize (do try the maize, it’s lovely with its glutinous texture – you recognize it from its muted yellow colour, unlike the bright colour you get from sweetcorn), sweet potato noodles, fried treats and more.
we ate very well here – I’d very much be happy to return.
the first city on my 2-week chinese tour. food here is hearty and heavier, usually attributed to the colder weather. I found lots of muslim influence here – especially in the use of lamb and spices that aren’t ordinarily found in chinese food.
xi’an is known for its persimmons and pomegranates, both of which I tried and enjoyed in abundance. generally though I found the food in xi’an not much to my cantonese palate – minimal spice and cleaner flavors – though they contributed to the conviction that china is a one amazing gastronomic paradise.
many of these photos were taken in the muslim quarter, so make a trip down there if you’re in the city!
andmorefood 