Chicken-Pea Jelly

Chicken-pea jelly is made from Lijiang's native "chicken-pea"—a small flat round bean resembling a chicken's eye, called "aicizi" in Naxi—ground, boiled and set into a dark jelly with a resilient, slick bite, served cold or pan-fried, one of the most common foods on the everyday Naxi table.

Chicken-pea jelly is a product of Naxi farming life, recorded in Qing-dynasty documents. It grew up around Baisha, the ancient capital of the Naxi, and though it looks plain it carries centuries of thrifty Naxi home cooking, the most down-to-earth snack in Lijiang's streets.

In summer and autumn it is mostly served cold, cut into pieces and dressed with chilli oil, garlic water, vinegar, Sichuan pepper and coriander for a refreshing appetiser; in winter and spring it is sliced and pan-fried golden on both sides, crisp outside and tender within, dipped in chilli sauce for a warming, hearty bite.

Its glossy black colour from the chicken-pea's melanin, and the dual way of eating it cold or fried, are what set this jelly apart from all others.