It was updated on July 2, 2019.
What comes to your mind when the words of “indoor”, “animal” and “park” appear in the same line?
My Zoo, the first ever animal and pet theme park in Kunming, Yunnan province, was opened in the northeast of the city on June 29.
Visitors are allowed to get in touch with nearly 100 kinds of small and middle-sized animals and undertake a “journey” in which the ecological transformation of our earth can be vividly experienced.
The theme park provides a decent space for the public to observe and interact with these tiny creatures in a fairly close range.
Meanwhile, it is an ideal place where feeders and other staff can share their knowledge and stories in relations to animals.
Various natural settings, such as desert, forest and ocean, have been recreated in the park, so that animals from different parts of the world can verily feel at home.
Here, citizens would probably find many animals they’ve never seen before, such as meerkats, marmots, kangaroos, capybaras and raccoons.
“The indoor safari park is still a novelty in China, and its primarily goal is to impart knowledge about science and the nature to the public, especially children,” said Wangxin, the director of My Zoo.
“Before opening this park, it took us 3 years to collect information. We also visited a number of similar animal parks in the US, Germany and Japan, because we hoped to bring their ideas and managerial experience to Yunnan,” she added.
The park enables children to prepare food according to the “recipes” of animals and hand feed them. A great amount of knowledge about the earth’s ecosystem, food chain, animals and plants can also be learned through a series of multimedia devices.
“These animals will take turns to meet with visitors, according to their different living habits, and the role of our curators is to bring tourists and animals together,” said the director.
A ventilation system which refreshes the air every 5 to 6 hours has been installed in the park, in order to maintain a pleasant indoor environment for both humans and animals.
A maximum of 200 visitors are allowed to enter the park within an hour.
Source from Yunnan Gateway.
The peanut, also known as the groundnut,[2] goober, or monkey nut (UK), and taxonomically classified as Arachis hypogaea, is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, being important to both small and large commercial producers. It is classified as both a grain legume[3] and, due to its high oil content, an oil crop.[4] World annual production of shelled peanuts was 44 million tonnes in 2016, led by China with 38% of the world total. Atypically among legume crop plants, peanut pods develop underground (geocarpy) rather than aboveground. With this characteristic in mind, the botanist Linnaeus named the species hypogaea, which means “under the earth.”
As a legume, the peanut belongs to the botanical family Fabaceae; this is also known as Leguminosae, and commonly known as the bean, or pea, family.[1] Like most other legumes, peanuts harbor symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria in root nodules.[5] This capacity to fix nitrogen means peanuts require less nitrogen-containing fertilizer and also improve soil fertility, making them valuable in crop rotations.
Peanuts are similar in taste and nutritional profile to tree nuts, such as walnuts and almonds, and as a culinary nut are often served in similar ways in Western cuisines. The botanical definition of a “nut” is a fruit whose ovary wall becomes hard at maturity. Using this criterion, the peanut is not a typical nut.[6] However, for culinary purposes and in common English language usage, peanuts are usually referred to as nuts.
Mixian (simplified Chinese: 米线; traditional Chinese: 米線; pinyin: mǐxiàn) is a type of rice noodle from the Yunnan Province, China. It is made from ordinary non-glutinous rice, and it is generally sold fresh rather than dried.
Production
The processing of mixian in Yunnan is unique, involving a fermentation process. In many areas there are at least two distinct thicknesses produced, a thinner form (roughly 1.5mm diameter) and a thicker form (roughly 3.5-4mm diameter).
Serving
Mixian is served in various ways, either in broth or stir-fried.
Stir-fried
Stir-fried preparation is rapid, most common in the evening, and is popular at road-side BBQ stands throughout Yunnan. Egg, tomato, meat, spring onion and chilli are frequently utilized.
Broth
The most famous prepared dish is guoqiao mixian (過橋米線/过桥米线; literally “crossing the bridge noodles”).
More normally, when mixian is served in broth in Yunnanese restaurants, it is an extremely popular breakfast and day-time dish. Broths are generally chicken or beef, though others exist.
It is common for a range of individual condiments to be presented for the customer to add to their bowl themselves. Usually the noodles are first added to the broth (see copper pot image on the right), but sometimes the customer is presented the noodles in a separate bowl (see condiment image, below). In this latter case, condiments are generally added directly to the broth prior to adding the noodles.
Meat is generally added to the broth and may be in the form of larger, chunkier pieces (even including bone) or thin-sliced fillets.
A large serving of beef mixian noodles with available condiments, as served in a typical local restaurant in Kunming. The broth includes chrysanthemum flowers.
Condiments vary significantly but may typically include some subset of the following:
- chicken powder or essence
- chili pepper (diced fresh chili, plus at least one or two prepared chilli pastes, often mixed with oil)
- chrysanthemum flowers
- coriander
- mint
- garlic (often finely diced, in liquid suspension, or in thin sectioned slices)
- ginger (as above, but less commonly in slices)
- pepper (both regular pepper and powdered or whole Sichuan pepper)
- salt
- sesame oil
- Sichuan pepper oil
- soy sauce
- spring onion
- suan cai (pickled or preserved vegetable)
- tomato
- vinegar
- wood ear mushroom
- zhe’ergen (a spicy root common to southwestern China).
The creation of a rich, personal broth is a quintessential part of the mixian experience.
Geographical extent
Mixian is popular in Yunnan Province, where it can be found in many streets and villages, and is occasionally available in other mainland Chinese cities. It is generally very difficult to obtain outside of mainland China, probably since the fresh method of preparation could be seen to necessitate a certain minimum volume of consumption in order to be commercially viable. It is relatively similar to noodles consumed in neighbouring Laos (feu) and Vietnam (phở), with the key difference that the base mixian broth is usually heavily personalized by the customer in Yunnanese tradition, and the establishment’s own pre-made broth is less adulterated and more significantly appreciated/judged as a key factor of the in Vietnam (and perhaps to a lesser extent Laos). Dishes like nan gyi thohk and baik kut kyee kaik in various parts of Myanmar are similar dimension rice noodle based but different broadly in flavour profile (tending more toward flavours in Indian cuisine with ingredients such as chickpea flour) and preparatory method (far greater use of frying). It is more common in unadulterated Yunnanese form in commercial centers of Myanmar with growing Chinese populations, such as Mandalay. Dishes in Thailand such as pad thai also rely on rice noodles, though often they are flat and therefore more similar to Chinese juanfen or Yunnanese migan. A Tibetan broth-based noodle dish using wheat-flour instead of rice-flour noodles, thukpa, is thought to have originated in eastern Tibet (i.e. closer to Yunnan) is made and enjoyed throughout Bhutan, northeast India, Nepal, Sikkim, Tibet.
Lufu (Chinese: 卤腐; pinyin: lǔfǔ) is a type of fermented bean curd from Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It is colored reddish yellow, it has a soft texture, and it has a savory flavor. It is used as a condiment for kăo ĕrkuāi or made into a sauce for Yunnan-style barbecue or stinky tofu.
“Furu” (or “Lufu”) is a traditional Chinese fermented soybean curd which is highly valued for its smooth texture, high nutritive value, sweet and fragrant taste, and reasonable price. This cheese-like product, also known as “Chinese cheese,” is the product of fermentation of proteins and fats contained in raw bean curd. Proteins and fats are hydrolyzed by microorganisms during fermentation, and converted into peptides, amino acids, glycerols, and fatty acids which give the product its characteristic profile.
Granny’s Potato Dish in Yunnan(老奶洋芋) is local mashed potato style dish typically flavoured with spring onions and chilli.
Grandma’s potatoes – Laonai yangyu (老奶洋芋)
The grandmother of all Yunnan dishes, superlatives such as ‘instant classic’ hardly do justice to this simple yet delicious dish. Sure, it is basically mashed potato but it is potato mashed in a way your imagination never thought possible. It’s Yunnan name translates as ‘old lady’s potatoes’ but ‘grandma’s potatoes’ is altogether more appropriate given the dish’s comfort food pedigree.
Ingredients
2 medium potatoes
3 stalks of spring onion
1 tbsp salt
2 tbsp of chilli powder
Oil for frying
Method
Peel the potatoes, chop them into large chunks and boil in salted water for around half an hour. In the meantime wash and chop the spring onion into centimetre long lengths. When the potatoes are cooked, drain them, transfer to a board and chop roughly.
Heat around 3 tablespoons of oil in a wok on medium to high heat and add the spring onion and chilli powder. Stir fry for around one minute then add the chopped potatoes and salt, stirring thoroughly to ensure the potatoes are well coated with the chilli oil.
Flatten out the potatoes in the wok to ensure maximum contact with the cooking surface and allow to cook for a minute. You can further chop the potatoes with your spatula at this time if they are too chunky for your taste. Stir the potatoes and repeat this action a few more times before transferring to a plate to be served alongside your other dishes.
Happy Eating!
Guo’s note – there are as many variations on this dish as there are grandmas. The amount of oil and salt used and the degree of ‘mash’ inflicted on the potatoes can be varied to taste. The level and type of chilli added can be altered to suit one’s taste or for the especially wimpy the chilli can omitted altogether. Sichuan pepper (huajiao 花椒) and/or pickled vegetables (yancai 腌菜) can also be added to make for an interesting variation.
Called juecai (蕨菜) in Chinese, fiddlehead ferns are some of the most ancient edibles on the planet. They can be found in almost every country in the northern hemisphere and come in many different shapes and colors.
Fiddleheads get their name form the curled tips of their fronds displayed while still young. Only when they are young and the tip has yet to unwind are they actually edible. The ferns must be soaked in water for two days before cooking to leach out potentially carcinogenic toxins.
Yunnan has two main varieties. The more sought after variety grows in small patches high on the hills around Kunming and only appears during the rainy season.
A more common variety of fiddlehead, located near lakes and streams, is called water fiddlehead or shui juecai (水蕨菜). These can be cooked immediately after harvesting and minority restaurants throughout Kunming serve them up in a variety of different ways.
Arguably the most popular fiddlehead dish around town is fermented bean fried fiddlehead, referred to locally as doushi chao shuijuecai (豆豉炒水蕨菜). Dai minority restaurants like Mangshi Daiwei and Yingjiang Daiweiyuan do particularly delicious fry ups.
Liangfen (simplified Chinese: 凉粉; traditional Chinese: 涼粉; pinyin: Liángfěn; literally: ‘cold powder’), also spelled liang fen, is a Chinese dish consisting of starch jelly that is usually served cold, with a savory sauce, often in the summer. It is most popular in northern China, including Beijing, Gansu, and Shaanxi, but may also be found in Sichuan and Qinghai.In Tibet it is called laping and is a common street vendor food.
Liangfen is generally white or off-white in color, translucent, and thick. It is usually made from mung bean starch, but may also be made from pea or potato starch.In western China, the jelly-like seeds of Plantago major were formerly also used. The starch is boiled with water and the resulting sheets are then cut into thick strips.
Liangfen is generally served cold. The liangfen strips are tossed with seasonings including soy sauce, vinegar, sesame paste, crushed garlic, julienned carrot, and chili oil.[11] In Lanzhou it is often served stir fried. In Sichuan, a spicy dish called Chuanbei Liangfen is particularly popular (see photo above).
Similar foods include the Korean muk made with chestnut starch and Japanese konnyaku jelly[citation needed].
Jidou liangfen, a similar dish from the Yunnan province of southwest China, is made from chick peas rather than mung beans. It is similar to Burmese tofu salad.
Adzuki Bean Dish(红豆) is very popular food in Yunnan Province. Adzuki beans have been used in Yunnan for millennia. Earliest domesticated examples are known from tombs in Japan (4,000 BCE), then China and Korea (3,000 BCE). Genetic evidence indicates that the bean later crossbred with native species in the Himalayas, and Yunnan was probably exposed to the ingredient at the time. Frequently prepared fried with kale or mint.
The adzuki bean (Vigna angularis; from azuki (Japanese: アズキ（小豆）); sometimes transliterated as azuki or aduki), or English red mung bean, is an annual vine widely cultivated throughout East Asia for its small (approximately 5 millimetres (0.20 in) long) bean. The cultivars most familiar in Northeast Asia have a uniform red color, but white, black, gray, and variously mottled varieties also are known.
The main ingredient in this dish is the nutritious and colorful azuki bean, but it is also loaded with mushrooms and fresh peppers. The mushrooms used are shiitakes, also known as Chinese black mushrooms or xianggu (香菇). These elements, along with prickly ash and chilis, give the dish a distinctively authentic Yunnan flavor.
The reddish-brown azuki bean — in Chinese called hongdou (红豆) — is grown throughout China and other Asian countries, where it is often combined with sugar to create a filling for sweet desserts and pastries. In Yunnan cuisine, however, azuki beans are often featured in savory preparations.
For this recipe you can adjust the amount of spice according to taste. This dish is delicious and simple to prepare. It can be served as the hearty centerpiece of a vegetarian meal or as a healthy option to be served alongside other dishes.
Ingredients
1 cup dried azuki beans, soaked in water overnight and drained
4 tablespoons oil
4 green onions (both white and green parts) sliced into two centimeter pieces
1 red or green bell pepper, diced into two centimeter chunks
2 fresh red or green chilis, seeded and diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece of ginger, minced
15 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in hot water, squeezed to remove excess liquid, and thinly sliced
5 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
½ teaspoon prickly ash powder (or to taste)
2 tablespoons sugar
Method
Place the pre-soaked beans in a saucepan and cover with several inches of fresh water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes. Add more water as necessary until the beans are tender and their skins start to separate. Drain the water off, and then crush some of the beans lightly with the back of a wooden spoon. Set aside.
Heat oil in a large wok over a medium high flame. Add the green onions, chilis, garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Toss in mushrooms and peppers, and stir-fry for two more minutes or until the mushrooms just start to reduce in volume and the peppers start to soften.
Turn heat down to low and add the beans. Stir in the tamari or soy sauce, sesame oil, ground prickly ash powder, and sugar. Cover and simmer on low for at least five minutes or until the liquid has reduced enough to make the mixture fairly dry. Transfer to a serving dish and enjoy!
Crossing-the-bridge noodles(云南过桥米线) is a rice noodle soup from Yunnan province, China. It is one of the most well-known dishes in Yunnan cuisine.
Description
Crossing-the-bridge noodles has over 100-year history and it was listed as an intangible cultural heritage of Kunming city in 2008 to promote Yunnan food culture.[1] The dish is served with a large bowl of boiling hot broth and the soup ingredients. The soup is made by chicken, pork bone and seasoning, such as Chinese star anise and ginger.[2] Also, using a layer of chicken fat to insulate the soup and therefore keep it warm for longer.[3]These ingredients are separated. The soup ingredients are served on a cutting board or plate and include raw vegetables and lightly cooked meats. Common ingredients include thin slices of turkey, chunks of chicken, chicken skin, strips of bean curd sheets, chives, sprouts and rice noodles. Once added into the broth, it cooks quickly with a layer of melted chicken fat and oil glistening on top. The soup takes a few minutes to cook, and it is then spooned out into small bowls. Jim Thurman of LA Weekly writes that “with the rice noodles and fresh chicken, it’s reminiscent of an extremely subtle version of Vietnamese pho ga [chicken pho]. Which shouldn’t surprise anyone, as Yunnan shares a border with Vietnam.”
Claims of name origin
One story that has gained traction[4] begins with a scholar who was studying hard for his imperial exams on a small island. His wife, who would bring him food, found that by the time she had crossed the bridge to the island the soup would be cold and the noodles were soggy. She then decided to load a large earthen pot with boiling broth with a layer of oil on top that would act as insulation and keep the broth warm. The noodles and other ingredients were kept in separate container, and when she arrived, she mixed the two containers together for a warm soup.
Another claim regarding the origin of the name comes from the way the ingredients are transferred between containers. The process is similar to crossing a bridge between bowls, and hence it is called “crossing-the-bridge” noodles.
There are reportedly many other variations on the origin of the name.
Varieties
The main ingredient of the noodles is rice. Rice vermicelli production differs in different regions. In Kunming, Yunnan, there are two varieties: “dry paste” or “sour paste”. The production process differs depending on individual preferences and tastes. “Sour paste”, as the name suggests, tastes a little sour, but is characterized by a relatively thick and soft rice noodle. The “dry paste” does not have the sourness of the sour paste, and the noodle is relatively thin and more rigid. Older people in Kunming think the “sour paste” noodles are more authentic.[citation needed] Most people in Yunnan think the Kunming noodle does not satisfy their taste buds, and generally believe Mengzi County and Jianshui County makes better noodles.
Now, as people’s tastes change, all kinds of noodle varieties are flooding onto the market. Kunming people now do not necessarily pick a “dry paste” or “sour paste.” At present, people prefer the more efficient, slippery “water-washed rice noodle” and “purple rice noodle”, one that is mixed with purple rice.
Status
The development of Crossing the Bridge Noodles has changed people’s eating habits over the years, especially breakfasts.[citation needed] Generally in street markets, the hot fresh rice noodle is put into a bowl of boiling water for about half a minute and then colored sauce is added to the bowl. This is known as the “hat” of the sauce. Crossing the Bridge Noodles served in markets in the morning are usually completed in one minute.[citation needed]
There are a few franchised restaurants which serve more intricate or elaborate Crossing the Bridge Noodle dishes. Normally Crossing the Bridge Noodles are ordered in a set. A set of bridge noodle will cost 10 to 50 Yuan. Ordering the Crossing the Bridge Noodles with more ingredients will command higher prices.
Ingredients
The general ingredients of guoqiao mixian include: raw quail eggs, turkey slices, chicken slices, and colored vegetables.
Crossing-the-bridge noodles are generally served first with a bowl of boiling hot soup. The attendants will then be on the other side of the bowl and put the ingredients into the bowl, generally in order from raw to cooked: meat first, then quail eggs, and then vegetables. Finally, they perform the noodle “crossing” with chopsticks and the dish is ready to be consumed. The amount of oil, chili, vinegar, and soy sauce one puts in the bowl varies according to personal taste.
Erkuai (Chinese: 饵块; pinyin: ĕrkuāi, literally: ear piece) is a type of rice cake particular to the Yunnan Province of southwest China.[1]
The name literally means “ear piece,” a reference to the shape of one of its common forms. It is often served stir-fried with vegetables, and málà (麻辣) sauce, which is a mixture of dried red chilis, Sichuan pepper, and salt.
It is also sold as the popular street food kăo ĕrkuāi (烤饵块) or shāo ěrkuāi grilled and rolled around a yóutiáo (strip of fried dough), with sweet or savory condiments added, making a rolled-up snack resembling a Mexican burrito.[2] The sweet type contains a sweet brown sauce and peanuts, while the savory type is spread with lǔfǔ and bean sprouts, and various other toppings. Kăo ĕrkuāi is particularly popular in the tourist area of Dali.
Its peculiar name has led to it being called one of the Eighteen Oddities in Yunnan.
Baba (Chinese: 粑粑) is a type of thick, round, heavy bread that is prepared either plain or with various fillings by the Naxi people of north-western Yunnan, China. It can be sweet or savory.
Sometimes marketed to tourists as “Chinese pizza”, it is said to have been invented during the Qing Dynasty and can vary greatly from one part of Yunnan to another. Because of its versatility, baba can be eaten plain, cut into pieces and turned into a spicy snack or as a popular street food, particularly for breakfast.
Leek Flower
Leek flower can be used to make many kinds of dishes. It can be accompanied by mutton hotpot to eat, fried with shredded meat and scrambled eggs and so on. Of course,the most delicious is Qujing Yunnan pickled leek flower which is a famous dish sold all over the world.
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Indoor safari park debuts in Kunming
It was updated on July 2, 2019. What comes to your mind when the words of “indoor”, “animal” and “park” appear in the same line? My Zoo, the first...
Peanut Dish in Yunnan
The peanut, also known as the groundnut, goober, or monkey nut (UK), and taxonomically classified as Arachis hypogaea, is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, being important ...
Mixian (Rice Noodle) in Yunnan
Mixian (simplified Chinese: 米线; traditional Chinese: 米線; pinyin: mǐxiàn) is a type of rice noodle from the Yunnan Province, China. It is made from ordinary non-glutinous rice, and it is generally sold fresh rather than dried. Production The ...
Lufu in Yunnan
Lufu (Chinese: 卤腐; pinyin: lǔfǔ) is a type of fermented bean curd from Yunnan Province in Southwest China. It is colored reddish yellow, it has a soft texture, and it has a savory flavor. It is used as a condiment for kăo ĕrkuāi or made...
Granny’s Potato Dish in Yunnan
Granny’s Potato Dish in Yunnan(老奶洋芋) is local mashed potato style dish typically flavoured with spring onions and chilli. Grandma’s potatoes – Laonai yangyu (老奶洋芋) The grandmother of all Yunnan dishes, superlatives such as ...
Juecai Fern Dish in Yunnan
Called juecai (蕨菜) in Chinese, fiddlehead ferns are some of the most ancient edibles on the planet. They can be found in almost every country in the northern hemisphere and come in many...
Liangfen Jelly Cold Dish in Yunnan
Liangfen (simplified Chinese: 凉粉; traditional Chinese: 涼粉; pinyin: Liángfěn; literally: ‘cold powder’), also spelled liang fen, is a Chinese dish consisting of starch jelly that is usually served cold, with a savory sauce, often ...
Adzuki Bean Dish in Yunnan
Adzuki Bean Dish(红豆) is very popular food in Yunnan Province. Adzuki beans have been used in Yunnan for millennia. Earliest domesticated examples are known from tombs in Japan (4,000 BCE),...
Crossing the bridge noodles in Yunnan
Crossing-the-bridge noodles(云南过桥米线) is a rice noodle soup from Yunnan province, China. It is one of the most well-known dishes in Yunnan cuisine. Description Crossing-the-bridge noodles has over 100-year history and it was listed...
Erkuai in Yunnan
Erkuai (Chinese: 饵块; pinyin: ĕrkuāi, literally: ear piece) is a type of rice cake particular to the Yunnan Province of southwest China. The name literally means “ear piece,” a reference to the shape of one of its common...
Baba Pancake in Yunnan
Baba (Chinese: 粑粑) is a type of thick, round, heavy bread that is prepared either plain or with various fillings by the Naxi people of north-western Yunnan, China. It can be sweet or savory. Sometimes marketed to...
Leek Flower Dish in Yunnan
Leek Flower Leek flower can be used to make many kinds of dishes. It can be accompanied by mutton hotpot to eat, fried with shredded meat and scrambled eggs and so on. Of...
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