Briefly, Nanjing – The Taste of Nanjing
The epicureans of the world know that there are eight great styles in Chinese cuisine. These great styles are categorized according to the geographical regions in China. Each of these eight styles differs in its cooking methods, selection of ingredients, the use of spices, and the emphases on flavors. Their respective features depend on the culture, climate and produce of the geographical region.
For example, Cantonese cuisine is mostly cooked by steaming and wok-frying. It tends to emphasize on the natural freshness of the ingredients and a preference for sweetness. Finally, seafood is a key ingredient as Canton is in the southern coast of China.
Nanjing food belongs to the Jinling family of Chinese cuisine. Even as early as the Qin Dynasty, Jinling cuisine has made its name amongst the elites. Its long history culminated in the early 20th century, when Nanjing became the capital of the Republic of China. The food of Nanjing garnered a national following then, and the famous chefs of the time came up with even more innovative varieties. In this period, Nanjing food was also known as Republican Cuisine.
Jinling Cuisine draws on simmering and pressure-cooking as its preeminent cooking methods. Presentation is a key feature of Jinling food, especially in the dark colors coming from the heavy use of soy sauce. Yellow rice wine is also a common marinate in Jinling food. River catch is a key feature in Jinling Cuisine due to Nanjing and Jiangsu Province’s extensive fresh waterways.
Particularly worthy of mention are the well-known “eight best foods of Qinhuai.” This refer to a large variety of Nanjing street food that the locals favor. To name them, there are the tea-cooked eggs, the top scholar beans, the sesame flatbread, shredded chicken noodles, spring onion pancakes, beef pan-fried dumplings, xiaolong bao (steamed dumplings), and assorted desserts, including all kinds of steamed sweet rollups.
As Cantonese, I did wonder about food in Nanjing before my trip. I did my research and found out that a major street food in Nanjing was duck blood soup noodles. As I do not eat blood products, I was worried. I thought I would have to eat tangbao (steamed dumplings that are a close relative of xiaolong bao) for every meal in my days there.
As it turned out, I had a wonderful foodie adventure in Nanjing. The planning was well worth the effort. Here comes the long-awaited food diary:
- Yin’s Dumplings (Lion Bridge Food Street)
Yin’s Dumplings is very famous for its tangbao (steamed dumplings). However, I must warn readers that the branch at the Lion Bridge Food Street was not very good. I heard that serious diners should head over to Xinjiekou’s flagship store for a real taste of good tangbao.
There is a safe way of eating these dumplings. Put the dumpling into your spoon, make an opening on the skin and suck the soup carefully. Wait a bit for it to cool down and then eat the whole dumpling. The boiling soup from the dumplings could splash and cause blisters in the mouth.
See also below a picture of the stinky tofu at the Lion Bridge Food Street. I observed that the cook fried the stinky tofu twice before pouring over a tasty warm soup with parsley to give it flavor. The soup also softened the inner texture and the temperature of the tofu. I do not know why the tofu was black. It was very yummy though.
- Liji Islamic Restaurant (No. 1 Dading Alley, Pingshi Street, close to Jianye Road)
Since Liji is an Islamic restaurant, it does not serve pork on its premises. Visitors would be drawn to the skewers stand there, but I think the traditional selection was better. The beef fried dumplings were a must. I ordered a plain noodle and one serving of beef fried dumplings that day. For one person, that was plenty. Eat the dumplings carefully as you would with the steamed dumplings, as hot soup will splash.
Beware that you must first pay for the food at the counter, get your ticket, then queue up on the very long line to get your dumplings. Other food, such as beef buns, have shorter lines.
- Qifang Ge (Confucius Temple area)
My research in Nanjing food included a book written and illustrated by a Nanjing native. The Taste of Nanjing shows readers a systematic way of appreciating local food, organized by the seasons. It is a pity that I was not able to locate many of the restaurants featured in the book. Yet Qifang Ge is still there in the Fuzimiao (Confucius Temple) area.
The high quality of the salt water duck was a pleasant surprise. At first glance, the duck did not seem appealing to me. It looked plain, almost as if it were raw. Yet when I ate it, there was not one trace of the usual gamey taste of ducks. The meat was soft, but also retained its texture. The taste was the right balance of savory and freshness. It was very flavorful. I learned from the Taste of Nanjing that the secret to good salt water duck was the soup base, which in many restaurants was a secret recipe.
- Changshu Poured Fried Noodle (60 Shuangtang Lane, Wufu Street, Qinhuai District)
The Changshu Poured Fried Noodle was the most local restaurant I visited on this trip. Everybody was there for the cheap and common eat. It offered many choices, most of which were fried poured noodles (fried noodles with a soup base), but I opted for a pork chop with soup noodles. This below shows the hearty portion.
- Nanjing Da Paidang (Lion Bridge Food Street)
I visited the Nanjing Da Paidang at the Lion Bridge Food Street on my last evening in Nanjing. I went all out and ordered every food on my wish list. They were all very tasty.
In a place like Nanjing, many foods come with wonderful stories. This following is a local dessert, the Meihua Gao (Plum Blossom Cake). When Qing emperor Qianlong came to Nanjing for a southern tour, he saw this dessert on the street. Its colors and shape reminded him of the plum blossom and so he named it the Plum Blossom Cake.
Finally, I must mention the wonderful Meiling Porridge. The story goes like this: there was one time that Soong Meiling lost her appetite for months. Her chef made her this porridge, and it restored Soong Meiling’s appetite and her mood. The recipe for this porridge slowly circulated amongst the locals and now everyone is able to get a taste of the Meiling Porridge. It has a sweet-base with a smooth and lightly gluey texture.
It seemed to me that Nanjing food was a cross between Taiwanese and Shanghainese food. While it was certainly less delicate than Shanghainese food, Nanjing food had a character of its own. Its flavors bolder, its textures fuller, its presentation slightly earthier. On the other hand, it shared the same historical roots with Taiwan as the Republic of China. The similarities are the most notable in their desserts.
Works Cited:
Ah Mei, The Taste of Nanjing (2016).