The glorious stinky foods of Shaoxing
My article on the delights of rotted amaranth stalks and other Shaoxing specialities is now on the Financial Times website here – it was originally published in their international edition. It’s one of my favourite pieces, and brings back happy memories of Shaoxing and its many gastronomic surprises. (It’s a kind of sister piece to the article about the cheese-tasting in Shaoxing for which I won my James Beard Award.) The following are a few photographs of the delicacies mentioned in the piece:
Rotted amaranth stalks - yum!
The stalks on a bed of innocent white tofu
Fermented tofu skin steamed with minced pork - unbelievably scrumptious
Uncooked stinking tofu
Stinky tofu street stall
4 Responses to “The glorious stinky foods of Shaoxing”
Thanks for the article! I love the cuisine and delicacies from Shaoxing. Truly original and audacious!
I wish I could experience some of these flavours….none of which are familiar to me. I hope to one day 🙂
Hi Fuchsia. This looks fascinating, like everything you write on (I am currently reading Shark’s Fin…). Are there any restaurants in London where you can try authentic versions of these dishes? I’ve enjoyed eating at Bar Shu, Yipin, Chilli Cool and Manchurian Legends over the last few years but have never seen rotted amaranth stalks on the menu!
Hi Daniel
No, I’m afraid you won’t find them in London, to my knowledge!