On Local Flavor of Sichuan Cuisine by Yuan Tingdong

Yuan Tingdong

Sichuan Literature amp; Art Publishing House

June 2021

68.00 （CNY） （6 volumes）

Yuan Tingdong

Yuan Tingdong is a well-known scholar of Bashu culture （also known as Chongqing-Sichuan culture） who has written for Sichuan People’s Publishing House and contributed to the establishment of Bashu Publishing House. His works include On Zhang Xianzhong， War in Ancient China， Officials in Ancient China， and Bashu Culture.

Douchi， or fermented Chinese soybeans， have always been essential in my household. My mom had been making them almost every year for as long as I could remember， up until she became too old to do so. These fermented soybeans not only pair very well with rice but are also commonly used as a type of seasoning， which is why you will always be able to find them in my house on any day of the year.

There are two main types of douchi in Sichuan， known as red and black douchi， both of which are made using soybeans. The preparations involve washing the soybeans thoroughly， soaking them in water until they swell up， boiling them until they are just cooked through， and then draining them. From here， two different methods are used to make the two types of douchi.

The first involves placing the soybeans which are just cooked through into a muslin bag before tightening the bag and allowing bacteria in the air （mainly Bacillus subtilis， which I found out later） to ferment it. This process is known as fermenting soya beans in Sichuan. After leaving the beans to ferment for about a week， they should be giving off a noticeable sour and rotten smell and should be quite sticky to the touch. At this point， add in the prepared spices， mix， and leave them to ferment in a clay pot. After about half a month， these red douchi are ready to be used. It is important to season when cooking with these in order to bring out its flavor， with the most commonly used ingredients I can think of being salt， chili and Sichuan pepper powder， diced ginger， fermented rice wine， and brown sugar. Lots of ginger is always used as it is able to bring out the flavor of the douchi most effectively， which is why red douchi are also known as ginger douchi. People from Mianzhu and Chengdu， where I’m from， also know them as water douchi， due to how wet they are， which has also resulted in me calling them that my entire life. Adding boiled and crushed sweet potatoes to the red douchi before shaping them into little balls or pancake-like shapes and letting them dry in the sun will turn them into dried douchi， which are also known as douchi with sweet potatoes. There are two reasons why sweet potatoes are added： their stickiness and their sweetness.

Next， the second method involves drying the soybeans thoroughly before placing them in a winnowing pan and leaving them under the sun. Doing this will both gradually dry the soybeans and allow bacteria in the air to begin fermenting the beans as well. This process is also known as fermenting the soybeans in Sichuan. Fermenting the soybeans this way will cause them to turn darker in color and give off a rotten smell. White threads formed due to the bacteria should also be observable on the surface of the beans. At this point， add in the prepared spices， transfer everything into a clay pot， and seal up the pot. After about half a month， these black douchi， also known as wind douchi， would be ready for use. The spices used to make this type of douchi vary according to circumstance. Making douchi used exclusively as a type of seasoning in cooking， the type that can commonly be found in shops， would use only salt. On the other hand， douchi made in homes would include other spices as these douchi are also eaten directly with rice as a dish， in addition to being a type of seasoning. Most families go down the simpler route and add only salt and ginger slices， with my family being one such example. However， various other spices are also added， such as fennel， star anise， cinnamon， etc.

Due to the fermentation of the bacteria adding a unique pungent fragrance to the soybean， I （and probably everyone else） cannot accurately put this natural flavor to words. This flavor cannot be artificially created as well. This， along with the fact that our forefathers have spent generations refining the methods of production， has resulted in douchi becoming a rare delicacy. It is one of the main dishes and ingredients that makes me yearn for the cuisine of my hometown.

Even though there are many different types of beans in China， douchi is only made with soybeans no matter where one goes. I believe this to be the best choice made by our forefathers after experimenting countless times. On this， I have a story to share. During summer break in either 1963 or 1964， I returned back to my hometown， which is in Guangji Town， Mianzhu City， Sichuan Province. People living in this area， which is located in the west of Sichuan， typically own smaller plots of land due to the larger population. As such， everyone would make use of every last bit of land they had to grow produce， with the common ones being soy， winter melon， pumpkin， and various other creeper vegetables， which would be allowed to climb and grow on trees. Thus， if one were to visit the countryside during the summer months， they would be able to see sponge gourds， cucumbers， hyacinth beans， etc. growing on trees. That year， my mom decided to plant some hyacinth beans under some trees at our house. They grew well and produced quite a lot of beans， but as my parents were getting old， they were only able to harvest the lower-hanging ones and could only watch as the ones growing further up matured and turned from green to black. Thus， when they pulled down the vines of the bean come the end of autumn， they were left with lots of old and dry hyacinth beans. Not wanting to let them go to waste， my mom decided to use them to make douchi that year， instead of the usual soybeans. Using the exact same methods as usual， she made both red and black douchi with those hyacinth beans. However， neither tasted good. In the end， we figured that we had used the wrong raw ingredient and from then on， we never used anything other than soybeans to make douchi.