A Roundup of Mouthwatering Foods at Hunan's Scenic Spots
A pickle stall deep in an alley of Fenghuang Ancient Town, where an eighty-year-old vendor and her pickles have become a local sight. Earlier this month, the near-frenzied crowds at various scenic spots left a lasting impression. In fact, besides sightseeing, another goal of travelers is surely eating. Across Hunan's major attractions, which local dish leaves the deepest impression on visitors? Let...
This article has been compiled from historical materials on 'Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network' (33519.com · Specialty Foods / Cuisine / Customs section). Prices, business hours, administrative divisions, and statistical data mentioned in the text may already be outdated. Before traveling, please refer to the latest announcements from merchants, scenic areas, and local competent authorities; the parts involving folk legends and folk customs are local historical and cultural anecdotes, provided for cultural reference.
In a deep alley of Fenghuang Ancient City, a pickled vegetable stall and its eighty-year-old vendor have become a scene of the ancient city.
At the beginning of this month, the almost crazy crowds at the various scenic areas are still fresh in everyone's memory. In fact, besides enjoying the scenery, another goal of the traveling crowds is of course inseparable from eating. Traveling through Hunan's main scenic spots, which local dish leaves tourists with the deepest impression? Let us make a grand review based on tourists' feedback.
Fenghuang pickles give off the flavor of the ancient city
When Fenghuang locals introduce good food, they always recommend ginger candy, kiwi fruit, and the like. In fact, the pickles in the deep local alleys also make many tourists praise them endlessly. The sour pickles can be long beans, or local specialty red-heart radish, sword beans, cabbage, jicama, and so on. All of these can be used as pickle ingredients, each kind placed in a ceramic bowl on a rack. Whatever you want to eat, you pick it up yourself with chopsticks and put it together. After weighing, you can mix it according to your own preference with chili powder or white sugar (chili powder is also divided into mildly spicy and fiercely spicy). Sit down at the small table beside it, eat while watching the tourists hurrying past on the ancient street. That feeling is no less enjoyable than drinking coffee and enjoying the view on a street abroad.
Hongjiang Blood Cake Duck wants to be called "King of Xiangxi"
Not long ago, Hongjiang Ancient City held the first Tourism Food Culture Week. The organizers presented at the event site the fully colored, fragrant, and tasty "Hong Merchants' Private Cuisine," and Hongjiang Blood Cake Duck was rated "Xiangxi's Number One Dish" for its long history, unique ingredients, and crispy, savory taste.
In Xiangxi, stir-fried young duck should count as one of the most common signature dishes, and during festivals and New Year celebrations a large plate of it is unavoidable. Zou Xudong, president of the Huaihua City Catering Association, introduced that Xiangxi's stir-fried young duck has many flavors, among which the famous ones are Zhijiang Duck, Hongjiang Blood Cake Duck, Chenxi Blood Duck, and so on. Hongjiang Blood Cake Duck uses a unique ingredient, Hongjiang sweet sauce, which cannot be imitated elsewhere at all, and its taste is very good.
Zhangjiajie Sandixiaoguo overturns tradition
Walking through the streets and alleys of Zhangjiajie, there is hardly a restaurant that does not post advertisements for Sandixiaoguo (Three-Down Pot), and many restaurants are even named after it, like 'XX Sandixiaoguo'. As a result, tourists who have visited Zhangjiajie, even if they haven't personally tasted it, become full of curiosity about the local 'Sandixiaoguo'. Actually, it is said that the original Zhangjiajie Sandixiaoguo was made with three ingredients—cured meat, tofu, and radish—and that's how it got its name. However, after so many years of development, today's Sandixiaoguo has taken on a completely new look, becoming a pure hot pot, often paired with fiercely spicy broth. Perhaps it is precisely for this reason that tourists' impressions of Zhangjiajie Sandixiaoguo are deepened even further.
Helong Lake Hairy Crabs Are Quite in Demand
Entering October, the hairy crabs of Helong Lake in Xiangyin were simply selling like crazy. 'Cars squeeze in, crabs get snatched!' Tang Liren, a resident who went to Helong Lake on the second day of National Day, told reporters. Originally, considering that traveling elsewhere would be too crowded, he wanted to relax close to home, so he chose to take his family to Helong Lake to eat hairy crabs. Little did he know that it would be packed with people—cars parked several li away, then walking to the crab-eating street. But upon entering a restaurant, they still had to wait until others finished eating before getting a seat; when the waiter brought a plate of crabs, sometimes it was 'snatched' midway by impatient diners. No wonder—according to local authorities' statistics, during the 7-day National Day holiday, the area received nearly 300,000 tourists mainly coming to eat crabs, with daily dining revenue approaching ten million yuan! The local hairy crabs are actually prepared in just two ways: steamed and flavored crab, but they are indeed fresh and not expensive.
Ziquejie's Proudest Dish Is Fish Jelly
At any farmhouse restaurant by the terraced fields of Ziquejie in Xinhua, you can enjoy authentic mountain village delicacies. The more famous ones include Sanhetang (Three-in-One Soup), Jar-Pickled Rice Flour Pork, Loach Burrowing into Tofu, and Snowflake Meatballs. These four dishes are a must-order when in Xinhua, as they are local famous dishes. But when you get to Ziquejie, the food the locals are most proud of is fish jelly: choose a live carp raised locally in Ziquejie, use a pot of Ziquejie mountain spring water, add no oil but only a little salt, and after cooking, leave it in temperatures below 10 degrees for a period of time, and a bowl of fish jelly is ready. When served, you will find it crystal clear like jelly, and when eaten, it is smooth, fresh, and tender, melting in your mouth.