Yunnan Cuisine

Formation and Characteristics of Yunnan Cuisine

Situated in the southern border areas of China, Yunnan enjoys a reputation of being the “Kingdom of Animals and Plants.” Yunnan boasts a wide variety of raw materials for preparing dishes and has a complicated geographical composition. Furthermore, a great number of ethnic minorities live together here in Yunnan

The representative dishes of Yunnan Cuisine are mostly found in Kunming. As Yunnan is adjacent to Sichuan and its climate is similar to that of Sichuan, Sichuan Cuisine has exerted great influence on the formation and development of the Yunnan Cuisine.

Yunnan is home to over 20 ethnic minority groups, so that, in Yunnan, one can find many ethnic minority schools of cuisine. Most of the ethnic minority groups in China have maintained their own culinary habits while adopting features of advanced culinary cultures. Hence Yunnan is a place with the most beautiful ecological environment, where many different culinary cultures converge.

Yunnan Cuisine features a wide variety of ingredients, such as edible funguses, and various kinds of wild vegetables, flowers and aquatic products. Many animals and plants that are not chosen as food by people in other areas can often be found in delicious dishes prepared by the Yunnan people.

Famous Dishes and Snacks of Some Cities in Yunnan

(1). Kunming

Kunming is the capital of Yunnan Province. In Kunming, it is like spring all year round. Therefore, Kunming is also called “Spring City.” The vast Dianchi Lake is the bright pearl of Yunnan. In Kunming, people can find that restaurants here serve all kinds of dishes from many local schools of Chinese cuisine.

Special Local Dishes:

Steamed Chicken in Earthen Pot—气锅鸡

The ingredients of the dish include a chicken and some medicinal herbs, such as pseudo-ginseng, the tuber of elevated gastrodia, and Chinese caterpillar funguses, as well as many seasonings. People usually use a special pot to steam the dish, which is delicious and nutritious.

Crisp Roast Ham—酥烤云腿

Procedure: Take Xuanwu-produced hams as the main material; thoroughly clean the ham; steam it with clear water; cover the ham with the paste made of egg white and starch; roast the ham over a charcoal fire; slice the ham before it is served.

The ham has a crisp skin, and tender and soft meat.

Steamed Golden Thread Fish in Clear Soup—清蒸金线鱼

The golden thread fish is peculiar to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. The fish is about 10 cm long, golden yellow in color, with a black thread on the back. The fish meat is delicious and tender. The steamed fish with ham shreds and yolk shreds is excellent in color, taste, and shape.

Special Local Snacks:

Crossing-bridge Rice Noodles—过桥米线

Of all the snacks in Kunming, Crossing-bridge Rice Noodles is the most famous.

Rice Noodles in Small Pot—小面米线

Eight-treasure Purple Rice—紫米八宝饭

Stewed Erkuai in Small Pot—小锅卤耳块

Erkuai refers to a rice cake, which can be steamed or boiled after being sliced or cut. Meat or vegetables may be added to the snack. Stewed erkuai in a small pot with a wide variety of seasonings is a local snack well received by customers. 

(2). The Cuisine of Some Ethnic Minority Groups

Dai Cuisine offers more than 100 kinds of famous dishes, such as:

Braised Chicken with Corianders—香茅草烧鸡

Procedure: Wrap a stripped chicken with coriander; add onions and ginger to the chicken; roast the chicken over a fire. This dish is famous for its special smell.

Braised Sour Bamboo Shoots and Chicken—酸笋焖鸡

This dish is prepared by stewing sour bamboo shoots, chicken cubes and some required seasonings over a low fire.

Fried Sour Bamboo Shoots and Beef—酸笋炒牛肉

Quick-boiled Beef in Clear Soup—清汤汆牛肉

Roast Fish—火烤鱼

Procedure: Get rid of the fish’s internal organs; add salt, peppers and other condiments to it; pick up the whole fish with two bamboo slices; bake the fish over a fire. This delicious fish is served at the Dai festivals and wedding banquet or to entertain honored guests.

Bamboo Tube Rice—竹筒饭

Glutinous Rice Cake—糯米粑粑

The Dai people are keen on wine. To welcome honored guests, Dai girls would hold silver plates and present wine to the guests. If a guest refuses to drink the wine, Dai girls may hold his head and pour wine into his mouth. The best way for a guest to avoid drinking wine is to have a sip of the wine first, then place a coin on the plate to invite a Dai girl to drink the wine for him.

Bai Cuisine boasts a wide variety of dishes, of which those prepared with Milk Fans—乳扇 are the most representative. Made of fresh milk, the milk fan is as thin as a paper fan, hence the name. With milk fans as the main ingredients, many kinds of delicious and nutritious dishes can be prepared through frying, stir-frying, braising and boiling, such as:

Braised Three-delicacy Fan Shreds—烩三鲜乳扇丝

The main ingredients of the dish include milk fan shreds, ham shreds, chicken meat shreds, winter mushroom shreds, and pea sprouts. Red, green and white in color, the dish is refreshing, delicious and nutritious.

Schizothorax (Racoma) taliensis from Erhai Lake, which is celebrated among a wide variety of fish, can be used to make many delicious fish dishes. The Bai ethnic group’s representative dishes made with this fish include:

Milk Fan Roll Stuffed with Minced Fish Meat—鱼茸乳扇卷

Procedure: Prepare minced Schizothorax (Racoma) taliensis; add seasonings to it; wrap the minced fish meat with milk fans; steam the rolls. This snack is extremely delicious and of high nutrition.

Boiled Milk with Schizothorax (Racoma) taliensis—牛奶煮弓鱼

Boiled Live Fish with the Water from Erhai Lake—洱海水煮活鱼

Naxi Cuisine is an unusual cuisine. Most of the Naxi people live in the areas near Lijiang. The old town of Lijiang is a famous pearl in the border areas of China, known for its picturesque scenery. The special local dishes there include:

Chicken and the Tuber of Elevated Gastrodia—天麻扣鸡

This dish is prepared with a chicken, the tubers of elevated gastrodia and some required condiments.

Chicken and the Bulb of Fritillary—贝母鸡

It is prepared with a chicken, the bulbs of fritillary and some seasonings.

Lijiang Wheaten Cake—丽江粑粑

The round cake is made of flour, dregs of fat, walnut oil, spice, sugar, and other ingredients. The Naxi people prepare many kinds of snacks, of which Lijiang Wheaten Cake is the most famous.

Stewed Pine Mushrooms and Chicken—松茸炖鸡

These dishes cooked with pine mushrooms are known to be the best dish prepared with this ingredient. The dishes prepared with pine mushrooms in Lijiang are especially delicious. Pine mushrooms are the best edible funguses.

Haxi Cuisine has its own unique characteristics. The representative dishes of Hani Cuisine include:

Chicken in Bamboo Tube—竹筒鸡

Procedure: Use a bamboo tube as the container; add various seasonings to chicken meat; steam the chicken meat in the bamboo tube.

Stewed Eggs—炖蛋

This dish is prepared with clams, eggs and a wide variety of seasonings. 

Spiced Palm Flowers—五香芭蕉花

Prepared with fresh palm flowers and other four kinds of edible plants, this dish has a bright color, light smell, and rich nutrition.

Interesting Story of a Yunnan Snack

Crossing-bridge Rice Noodles—过桥米线



Crossing-bridge Rice Noodles is one of the most famous snacks in Yunnan, though it only has a history of over 100 years. It originated from Mengzi County. In the late Qing Dynasty, Nanhu Lake was located out of the county town of Mengzi. In the middle of the lake, there was an islet, and a bridge linked the islet with the shore. The islet was known for its picturesque scenery so that lots of scholars of the county town came to the islet to read books.

A young scholar once came to the islet every day to read books and had his lunch on the islet. He studied hard, aiming to pass the imperial examination and get an official rank. His wife crossed the small bridge every day to send lunch to him. However, the young scholar was a bookworm. More often than not, he concentrated on the books and forgot to eat his lunch. When he thought of his lunch, he found the meal had already gone cool. With the passage of time, he lost his appetite and became weak. He was unable to concentrate on his studies. His wife was very worried about him.

One day, she stewed a hen over a low fire, placed the chicken in an earthen jar and sent it to her husband. About one hour later, when she went to collect the bowls and chopsticks for his husband, she found her husband had forgotten to take his lunch again. When she was about to take the chicken back home to heat it again, she found the chicken in the jar was still warm enough. She opened the jar, finding that there was a layer of oil over the chicken broth. It was the oil that kept the chicken broth warm. After that, the wife often stewed oily hot broth, and let her husband pour the hot broth into rice noodles and vegetables before eating his lunch. The broth was very nutritious. The young scholar gradually recovered his health and became strong. Finally, he successfully passed the imperial examinations at the provincial level. Later this story was spread far and wide. Many people learned to prepare such rice noodles and called it “Crossing-bridge Rice Noodles.”