Jiangxi cuisine (Chinese: 赣菜 or 江西菜) is derived from the native cooking styles of the Jiangxi province of southern China. Like the cuisines of neighboring provinces, Jiangxi cuisine favors overtly spicy flavors; in many regions of the provinces, chili peppers are directly used as vegetable instead of as a flavoring, as in most other Chinese regional cuisines.

Another characteristic of Jiangxi cuisine is that there are rarely any cold dishes or anything served raw in contrast to other Chinese cuisines.

The reason why there are rarely any cold or raw dishes in Jiangxi cuisine is due to another characteristic of the cuisine: it is the number one Chinese cuisine that utilizes tea oil as its primary cooking oil. However, if the raw tea oil is consumed uncooked, it would cause severe stomach problems for most people. As a result, any dish that uses the oil is cooked, as in other parts of China where tea oil is used as primary cooking oil. However, Jiangxi cuisine is unique in that the other one-seventh of total Chinese populations in other parts of China use tea oil as the main cooking oil, but it is supplemented by variety of cooking oils of other types, and, in fact, tea oil is not a majority despite being the most common. In Jiangxi, on the other hand, tea oil is used almost exclusively as the only cooking oil, and the only other cooking oil used is the oil from rapeseed, but it only consists of a minor portion.

Due to its geography, fish banquet is also one of the characteristics of Jiangxi cuisine. In contrast to the Heilongjiang cuisine which is famed for anadromous fish banquets, Jiangxi cuisine is famed for freshwater fish banquets.

The last characteristic of Jiangxi cuisine is its heavy emphasis on the utilization of douchi (fermented black beans) and tofu, in comparison to other Chinese cuisines. Fried tofu is a must for everyone during the celebration of Chinese New Year.

Recommended food:

Quick-fried Lushan Fish with Egg (Shiyu Chaodan, 石鱼ç‚'蛋)

Lushan fish is a speciality of Lushan Mountain and lives in the streams and waterfalls. The fish is small, long and slightly flat. It tastes delicious, tender and full of flavour. This dish is very fresh, looking crispy and golden on the outside and soft tender on the inside.

Sautéed Preserved Pork with Artemisia Selengensis Turcz (Lihao Chao Larou, è—œè'¿ç‚'腊肉)

Artemisia Selengensis (Ligao, è—œè'¿) is a type of green vegetable which has a special fragrance. Normally, its stalk is edible and has a crunchy bite. When cooked with meat, it is extremely delicious and delightful. This dish is a famous Jiangxi local dish.

Braised Frog, Lushan Style (Lushan Shiji, 庐山石鸡)

From the Chinese name, you might get the wrong impression that the dish uses a type of home-grown chicken. However, it is not chicken but a reddish frog that lives inside caves or beneath the rocks in Lushan Mountain. The frog is reddish brown, has small front legs and strong rear legs. It rests in the cave during the day and hunts for food at night. Its shape is similar to that of ordinary frogs but bigger and having more flesh. Such frogs weigh about three or four Liang (Chinese weight unit, one Liang = 50 gram) and some are even bigger weighing about 0.5 kilograms. It is as tender and delicious as chicken which is how the dish got its name.

Stewed Chicken with Fermented Rice Wine (Sanbei Zaiji, 三杯ä»"鸡)

The dish is dark reddish brown, fresh, aromatic and full of flavour and is a good accompaniment whilst drinking beer. Spring chicken is ideal for this dish because the flesh accounts for 60% of the total weight and it is rich in protein. Thus, the meat of spring chicken has high nutritional value and is easily digested. The meat also has the function of strengthening the body and enhancing the brain. It is an excellent cure for various diseases, such as malnutrition, weak resistance to the cold, weariness, menoxenia, anaemia and impotence. Chinese medicine believes that chicken meat has multiple functions, like invigorating the body, curing deficiencies, strengthening the spleen and stomach, promoting blood circulation and enhancing the bones and muscles.

Simmered Soup Casserole (Waguan Weitang, ç"¦ç½ç…¨æ±¤)

This soup is a typical dish of Jiangxi Cuisine, with a history of more than a thousand years. The casserole cooking pot is three metres in height. Inside the pot, there are several smaller jars placed layer upon layer, which respectively hold home-grown chicken, snake, turtle, gastrodia tuber, mushrooms and other raw materials. Beneath the exterior of the crockery pot, charcoal is burnt at a constant temperature to allow the soup to simmer for as long as seven hours. Because the jars are heated by the intense vapour drawn up through the clay walls, they simmer gently avoiding direct heating which creates a thick, aromatic and restorative soup. After all the soups are cooked and served, the tinfoil covers are removed from the jars revealing a fantastic aroma. The savoury fresh soup produced in this way is extremely thick and delicious. The secret of such great flavours lies in the pots ability to absorb water, permeate air and control the temperature. The raw materials are simmered in sealed jars at a low temperature for such a long time that the nutritional elements are fully dispersed. Thus, the soups are soft, tender, delicious and fragrant whilst maintaining the original taste.

Sautéed Preserved Pork with Huangyuan Glutinous Rice Cake (Huangyuan Miguo Chao Larou, 黄元米果(黄粄)ç‚'腊肉)

This is a special food of the Hakka people who live in Ganzhou. Dahe glutinous rice uniquely grown in Jiangxi is the main raw material. The finished dish is golden, soft and tasty.

Braised Shredded Herring (Xunyang Yupian, æµ"阳鱼片)

Many Jiujiang snacks, such as Stewed Fish Fillets in Brown Sauce, have close relation with fish. This dish uses herring as its main ingredient and has the functions of replenishing vital energy and dispelling the cold, nourishing the spleen and stomach and promoting digestion. People, who are deficient in vital energy and have problems associated with the spleen or stomach or who suffer from anorexia could benefit from this dish.

culture.ni-hao.co.uk

Recommended restaurants:

Caigenxiang
Add: Dieshan Lu., Nanchang
Mock-antique restaurant with dark wooden furniture and huge frosted glass front. Authentically spicy Sichuanese cuisine but not too expensive, with mains such as strange-flavoured chicken around RMB35.

Fengwei Xiaochi Cheng
Add: Shengli Lu., Nanchang
Bustling dumpling house, one of several in the area. You order from the range of plastic cards behind the cashier, or point to whatever others are eating. Individual clay-pot casseroles, cold meats, buns and vegetables from around RMB5 a serving.

Fukuoka Japanese
Add: Zhongshan Lu., Nanchang
Relatively expensive, with most dishes RMB30 or more, but very good - the vegetable tempura or norimaki rolls are best.

Guhan Feng
Add: Western end of Zhongshan Lu., Nanchang
Another modernized “olde worlde” restaurant with reproduction Ming crockery and heavy chairs, this time specializing in local cuisine. Separate snacktearoom and proper sit-down dining area.

Jiangnan Fandian
Add: Bayi Dadao., Nanchang
The big bronze cauldron standing outside marks this down as a Jiangxi-styie soup restaurant, and you realty need about three people to cope with the generously sized pot which gets delivered to your table forthe diners to ladle out their own portions. Around RMB30 a pot.

Hao Xiang Lai
Add: Minde Lu., Nanchang
Good-value, sizzling pepper steaks for RMB25; also trolleyfuls of delicious Chinese snacks, biscuits and dumplings wheeled around dim sum-style from RMB2 a plate. One of the few places in town with an English menu.

Hunan Wangcai Guan
Add: Supu Lu., Nanchang
Popular, mid-range hotpot restaurant with front window overlooking Bayi Park.

Xiangcancun
Add: Minde Lu., Nanchang
Inexpensive three-storey canteen and restaurant where you can tuck in with the local crowds.

Tian Mu Shan Spa
Add: Tian Mu Town, Yichun, China
Good For: Romance, Local cuisine
Dining options: Reservations, Buffet

lonelychina