Guan Laotai Stinky Tofu

Guan Laotai stinky tofu is a Xitang speciality of tofu steeped in a secret family brine then deep-fried golden, crisp outside and tender within, dressed with sweet bean sauce and chilli sauce, faintly pungent to the nose yet savoury on the tongue.

The snack began in 1977 when Granny Guan Huiju set up a small stall in a Xitang alley; her deft craft and distinctive flavour won locals who affectionately called her "Guan Laotai," and the name stuck, with the craft now in its third generation.

Fried to order and served in a paper bowl or on a bamboo skewer, it is dressed with sweet and chilli sauces and eaten hot, crisp and soft at once, salty and gently hot, best sampled fresh-made at the stalls that line Xitang's lanes.

The secret fermented family brine, three generations of alley-stall craft and the warm everyday name of "Granny Guan" set this stinky tofu apart.