A FOOD TRADITION
Anhui cuisine
Anhui cuisine is associated with the mountainous Huangshan and southern Anhui areas, as well as the Huai River region, and is known for rustic, deeply flavored cooking shaped by local forests, rivers, and preserved foods. Common ingredients include bamboo shoots, mushrooms, freshwater fish, pork, tofu, and wild greens. Stewing, braising, smoking, and slow simmering are characteristic, with careful use of stock and relatively restrained seasoning. Recognizable examples include stinky mandarin fish, hairy tofu, and li hongzhang hotchpotch. The tradition overlaps with neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang cooking, but its emphasis on mountain produce and robust braises gives it a distinct identity.
Dishes linked to this cuisine
1–5 of 5
Anhui bamboo shoots with sausage and dried mushrooms
Young bamboo shoots cooked with sausage and dried mushrooms, reflecting Anhui cuisine's use of mountain produce and preserved foods.
Anhui steamed stone frog
An Anhui mountain dish in which stone-frog meat is steamed with restrained aromatics.
Anhui stewed fish belly in brown sauce
Fish belly braised in a dark, savoury Anhui-style sauce.
Anhui stewed soft-shelled turtle with ham
Anhui soft-shelled turtle slowly stewed with cured ham in a rich stock.
Huangshan braised pigeon
A classic Anhui preparation of pigeon braised slowly to concentrate the bird and stock flavours.
Catalogue preview Cuisine connections may be unreviewed. Regional comparisons include their food references and do not establish the ingredients of a particular meal.