Taishan Tofu Banquet Making Technique

The Taishan tofu banquet craft grew from the vegetarian imperial fare served during the Han-era Mount Tai rites, flourishing under the Song and peaking in the Ming and Qing. Since the rites demanded a pure, vegetarian heart, tofu became indispensable, and generations of chefs gathered and refined it into a banquet centred on tofu and steeped in the regional character of Mount Tai. The craft entered the Tai'an municipal intangible heritage list in 2012.

Its making takes fine Taishan soybean and Taishan spring water to set the tofu, drawing on old methods to lay out many tofu courses, with attention to knife work, heat and the cleanness of the broth, bringing the "three beauties" of cabbage, tofu and water together at one table.

The Taishan tofu banquet carries the culture of the Mount Tai rites and the character of Tai'an's produce, a Shandong banquet uniquely rich in regional meaning, and an important window onto the food culture of Mount Tai and the customs of the imperial ceremonies.