Shaanxi Cuisine

Formation and Characteristics of Shaanxi Cuisine

Situated on the middle reaches of the Yellow River, Shaanxi spans over the Loess Plateau in northwestern China. In Chinese history, the capitals of 11 dynasties were located in Shaanxi, which makes Shaanxi one of the earliest populated regions in the country. In the Zhou (c. 11th century-221 B.C.) and Qin (221-207 B.C.) dynasties, the culinary culture of Shaanxi flourished. Over 2,000 years ago, the Weihe River Plain was known for its agriculture. In the Han (206 B.C.-A.D.220) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, a water irrigation system was built, featuring “Chang’an encircled by eight rivers.” The advanced economy facilitated the development of the region’s culinary culture and promoted the catering trade, thus laying a solid foundation for the formation and development of Shaanxi Cuisine. In the prosperous Tang Dynasty, a large-scale catering industry came into being in Chang’an.

Shaanxi Cuisine pays particular attention to seasonings and features a pure taste, an aromatic smell, and a clear-cut difference between primary and secondary flavors. Shaanxi cuisine is well-known for its sour and spicy dishes.

Famous Dishes and Snacks of Some Cities in Shaanxi

(1). Xi’an

Xi’an is the capital of Shaanxi Province, a city of strategic importance in Northwest China, and one of the four capitals in feudal China. The restaurants in Xi’an serve all kinds of special dishes and snacks.

Special Local Dishes:

Fish in a Pot with Milky Broth—奶汤锅子鱼

Cut a carp into pieces, quick-fry them with oil, plunge the fish into a pot with milky broth, add a wide variety of seasonings to the pot, and boil the fish soup. Customers may dip the fish into condiments before eating.

Calabash-shaped Chicken—葫芦鸡

Take a locally raised chicken as the main ingredient, prepare various kinds of seasonings, boil the cleaned chicken, steam it and finally fry it. Dip the chicken meat into the mixture of salt and prickly ash peels before eating. In the shape of a calabash, this dish has a crisp skin, tender meat, and a strong aroma.

Hair-like Seaweeds in the Shape of Golden Coin—酿金钱发菜

With hair-like seaweeds, egg white and chicken chest meat as the ingredients, plus a wide variety of condiments, this meticulously prepared dish is in the shape of golden coins, soft, smooth, refreshing and nutritious.

Braised Fruits of Chinese Wolfberry and Tremella—枸杞炖银耳

With tremella and the fruits of Chinese wolfberry as the main ingredients, and crystal sugar and egg white as supplementary ingredients, this dish can help produce saliva and nurture kidney and lung.

Quick-boiled Double Crisps—汆双脆

Stewed Squid Shreds—煨鱿鱼丝

Diced Chicken and Sea Cucumber—鸡米海参

Special Local Snacks:

Zhen Cake—甄糕

With red jujubes and glutinous rice as the raw materials, the cake is steamed with an ancient earthen implement which has many small holes at the bottom. The implement is called Zhen in Chinese. The red and white Zhen Cake is soft, sticky and tasty.

Oil Cake with Bubbles—泡油糕

The glutinous rice cake with stuffing is fried after many processes. As the cake is covered with many bubbles, hence the name.

Cool Honey Zongzi—蜂蜜凉粽子

It is a pyramid-shaped dumpling made of glutinous rice and wrapped in bamboo or reed leaves. In the Tang Dynasty, it was a famous snack. Before it is served, people need to slice the zongzi with a silk thread, spread white sugar, roses, and honey on it.

Empress Dowager Cake—太后饼

An empress dowager of the Han Dynasty is very much like the wheaten baked cake, hence the name.

Saozi Noodles—臊子面

(A kind of noodles with spicy gravy)

Beef or Mutton Broth with Pancake Pieces—牛羊肉泡馍

Break the cake into pieces, put them into a bowl and pour boiling beef or mutton broth before serving it.

Baiji Baked Bun—白吉馍

Baiji Town in Shaanxi Province produces unusual baked buns, which are also known as Baiji Baked Bun.

Marinated Meat in the Baked Bun—肉夹馍

It is a famous snack in Shaanxi and can be found everywhere in China. 

Jiaozi Dumpling with Sour Soup—酸汤饺子

Jiaozi Dumpling with Beef or Mutton Stuffing—牛羊肉水饺

Crisp Pastry Baked on Hot Cobblestones—石子馍

As early as in the Tang Dynasty, Xi’an was famous for various kinds of cakes. Now the Quail Banquet and Jiaozi Banquet of Xi’an enjoy a high reputation in the country, and Beef or Mutton Broth with Pancake Pieces is deemed the “Most Delicious Snack on Earth” by many people.

(2). Hanzhong

Hanzhong, a famous historical and cultural city, known as the land of abundance in Shaanxi, boasts a number of famous dishes.

Fried Hanjiang River Carp in Chilli Sauce—干烧汉江鲤

Braised Quails—烧鹌鹑

Braised Fruits of Chinese Wolfberry and Tremella—枸杞银耳

Chicken and the Tuber of Elevated Gastrodia—天麻鸡

(A chicken dish braised with the tuber of elevated gastrodia and various kinds of condiments)

Shredded Squids and Tenderloin—鱿鱼里脊丝

Minced Chicken Cake in the Shape of a Lotus Flower—荷花鸡茸饼

With minced chicken as the main material, and lotus root starch as the supplementary material, people will first steam the cake in the shape of seedpod of the lotus. Then the cake is placed on a plate together with tomatoes and seedpods of the lotus. Beautiful in shape, the dish is also very delicious and nutritious.

(3). North Shaanxi

North Shaanxi’s dishes are unique and have a distinctive flavor. Representative dishes include:

Mutton Eaten with Fingers—手抓羊肉

(Braised large pieces of mutton eaten barehanded)

Mutton and Frozen Bean Curd—羊肉炖豆腐

(Mutton cooked with frozen bean curd)

Stewed Mutton in Clear Soup—清炖羊肉

Yulin Tofu Banquet—榆林豆腐宴

(Several dishes prepared with bean curd and various ingredients that are served at banquets)

(4). Vegetable Dishes

Vegetable dishes of Shaanxi are very distinctive, including folk vegetable dishes and Buddhist vegetarian food. For instance, the vegetarian food provided by the Famen Temple includes over 80 varieties of dishes. While visiting the temple, tourists can pay homage to the relics left after the cremation of Sakyamuni, appreciate rare treasures, taste tea and eat vegetarian food, fully enjoying the ancient charm of the Tang culture.

Interesting Stories of Some Shaanxi Dishes and Snacks

Qianzhou Hard Wheat Cake—乾州锅盔

“乾州锅盔,” which is soft, crisp and fragrant, has been well received by the people in Shaanxi. Its history dated back to over 1,000 years ago. Legend has it that, back in the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Gaozong Li Zhi and Empress Wu Zetian decided to build their mausoleum in Liangshan Mountain north of the county town of Fengtian. It was a big project, requiring thousands upon thousands of laborers and soldiers. Preparing enough meals for them was a big problem. A cook thought out a clever solution. He used a large pan to bake large cakes. As the cake looked like both the pan and the helmet, it was called Guokui (Pot-shaped Helmet). Crisp and tasty, the hard wheat cake can satisfy the appetites of many people and be easily stored. The cooking method was spread to many construction sites very quickly and was later introduced to ordinary folks.

Calabash Head—葫芦头

“葫芦头” is a famous snack of Xi’an. The legend goes that this snack became famous because of the instructions by Sun Simiao, King of Medicine of the Tang Dynasty. One day, Doctor Sun came to Chang’an to practice medicine. He entered a small eatery at noon and asked for a plate of glutinous rice cakes. When finding the cakes had the foul smell of the oil from a pig’s intestines, he told the owner how to get rid of the smell in the pig’s intestines and tripe, and how to add Chinese prickly ashes, aniseeds, and cassias to make them aromatic. Before leaving, he gave a calabash containing various kinds of condiments to the owner. The eatery’s owner prepared the cakes according to Sun Shimiao’s instructions. As a result, the glutinous rice cakes had a tempting smell and a delicious taste. His business got better and better with each passing day. To solicit customers, the owner hung the calabash on the door, so the local people called the glutinous rice cake “Calabash Head.”

Bony Pork Shoulder—带把肘子

“带把肘子,” which originated from Dali (called Tongzhou in ancient China), is a famous dish of Shaanxi. The legend goes that in the Hongzhi reign (1488-1505) of the Ming Dynasty, Li Yushan, a famous chef, lived in Tongzhou City. In August one year, Li was invited to prepare a banquet on the birthday of the county magistrate. The upright chef declined the invitation as the county magistrate was a corrupt official. Soon afterward, Zheng Shi, governor of Shaanxi, came to Tongzhou to make an inspection. The county magistrate ordered Chef Li to serve as the main cook, trying to take this opportunity to give Li a lesson. When Master Li was about to refuse the invitation, Wei Neng stopped him. Wei was once an imperial minister. He retired and returned to his native place because he was disgusted with the bureaucracy in the imperial court. He whispered to Master Li: “As far as I have known, Governor Zheng is an upright man. You should only....” According to Wei’s instruction, Master Li went to see the county magistrate.

The vicious county magistrate gave Master Li some pork bones and asked him to make a dish. The first course served at the welcoming banquet for Governor Zheng was a few pork bones with little meat. Governor Zheng was very surprised, asking: ‘‘What’s the name of this dish?” The county magistrate asked Master Li to give an answer. Li went to Governor Zheng and replied calmly: “It is named Bony Pork Shoulder. Governor Zheng, maybe you don’t know that our county magistrate eats meat as well as bones!” Governor Zheng got the information right away. Before the county magistrate began to blame Li, Governor Zheng gave ten taels of silver to Master Li as a reward and let him retreat. On the following day, the governor paid a secret visit to Li Yushan. Later he made a thorough investigation of the corrupt official and presented a petition to the emperor. Consequently, the county magistrate was dismissed from the office. Since then, the dish Bony Pork Shoulder was widespread among the people and became famous.

Calabash-shaped Chicken—葫芦鸡

“葫芦鸡” is a famous traditional dish of Xi’an, known as “ the No. 1 dish of the ancient capital Chang’an.” According to legend, “葫芦鸡” was created by a cook working at the family kitchen of Minister Wei Zhi of Rituals. Wei lived in luxury and was particular about food. One day, he ordered a chef to cook a whole chicken. The cook boiled a chicken and then fried it. Wei was not satisfied, complaining that the meat was not tender. He then had the chef beaten up. The second chef prepared a chicken by boiling, steaming and frying. Consequently, the chicken had crisp and tender meat, but it was not in good shape. The second chef was punished too. The third chief learned lessons from his two colleagues. He tied the chicken up before cooking it. Finally, the chicken was in the shape of calabash, with crisp and tender meat. Minister Wei was satisfied. Since then Calabash-shaped Chicken has been handed down from generation to generation.

Eight-treasure Sweet Rice—八宝甜饭

“八宝甜饭” is a dessert served at the urban and rural banquets in Shaanxi, having excellent color, smell, taste, and shape. The dessert originated from a literary quotation: To overthrow the Shang Dynasty, King Wen of the Zhou Dynasty solicited people of talents from all over the country, and appointed eight talents to important positions, including Boda and Boshi, who were known as “eight celebrities.” In 1027 B.C., King Wu of the Zhou Dynasty carried forward King Wen’s cause and defeated King Zhou of the Shang Dynasty. A celebration was held in Fenggao, the capital of the country. To celebrate the victory, an imperial chef prepared a dish with eight kinds of ingredients, and poured red haw juice over it before it was served, symbolizing the “eight celebrities of the Zhou Dynasty cremated King Zhou of the Shang.” Since then the Eight-treasure Sweet Rice has been handed down until today. At present, people pour melted red sugar instead of red haw juice on the dessert.

Golden Threads and Oil Pagoda—金线油塔

“金线油塔” is a famous traditional snack of Shaanxi. When one holds up the snack, it looks like golden threads; and when it is put down, it resembles a pinecone, hence the name. Legend accounts that it was created by an old woman servant who worked for the family of Prime Minister Duan Wenchang in the Tang Dynasty. The old woman was good at cooking and taught more than 100 female servants how to prepare Golden Threads and Oil Pagoda. Only a few of them could make a snack. With the passage of time, this snack was introduced to ordinary folks. One day, Zhang Heng, an official, came to a street on horseback. Attracted by a tempting smell, he dismounted the horse and walked over, following the smell of Oil Pagoda. He immediately bought some to eat. He could not help shouting: “Bravo!” The story of “dismounting the horse with the smell” made the snack famous far and wide.

Wowo Noodles—窝窝面

“窝窝面” is a famous traditional snack in Yaozhou and Ankang. A common saying in Guanzhong Area goes: “Of all the delicacies on earth, Wowo Noodles of Yaozhou is the best.” The snack was created in the Daoguang reign period (1821-1850) of the Qing Dynasty. Made of eggs and flour, the noodles are in the shape of corn buns. After the noodles are boiled, plunge them into a soup containing squids, dried shrimps, Mongolian mushrooms and other precious materials. Beautiful in color, Wowo Noodles is delicious and nutritious too. Yaozhou is the hometown of Sun Simiao, King of Medicine, as well as a hub of communications. At the Pure Brightness Festival every year, which falls on April 4, 5 or 6, people from all walks of life go to pay homage to the Yellow Emperor Mausoleum must pass Yaozhou. In addition, the Yaowang Mountain Temple Fair held once a year attracts a large number of business people and tourists from all over the country. Therefore, the catering trade of Yaozhou thrived. At the beginning, Wowo Noodles was only supplied to the celebrities who came here to worship the Yellow Emperor Mausoleum. As it has been well received by customers, Wowo Noodles is served at a banquet now.

Steamed Bun with Bean Curd Stuffing—豆腐包子

“豆腐包子” is a famous traditional snack of Baoji City. A story goes like this, “In the 42nd year of the Kangxi reign period (1703) of the Qing Dynasty when Emperor Kangxi inspected Xinjiang and Gansu, he passed Baoji in Shaanxi. Dang Chongya, a retired high-ranking official, presented steamed buns with bean curd stuffing prepared by the Duan family to the emperor.” In the shape of a lantern, the steamed bun is stuffed with diced bean curd, plus various kinds of seasonings. After it is steamed, customers may hold the top with the fingers to create an opening and add pepper oil and other seasonings to it. Beautiful in shape, such steamed stuffed bun is delicious and refreshing. Emperor Kangxi who had eaten all the delicacies from land and sea was very glad to taste the special snack so that he gave the Duan family a triangle flag right away. From that time on, the steamed buns with bean curd stuffing enjoyed a high reputation in Baoji, and the Duan family’s business flourished.