Going Back to Ancient Times: A Day in History (All 5 Volumes)

Walking through the prosperous and enlightened Tang Dynasty and the lively streets of the Song Dynasty， readers can see the people of the Yuan Dynasty who were keen on health preservation， and the city of Beijing during the Ming and Qing dynasties. From morning to night， eating， drinking， merrymaking， and customs and traditions ， every picture in this book is wonderful.

Song Hua

Song Hua is an associate research librarian， deputy secretary-general of the Cultural and Creative Committee of the China Museum Association， and chairman of the Cultural and Creative Committee of the Henan Provincial Museum Society.

Xin Yi

Xin Yi， read a few miscellaneous books， and has an educational background in law and linguistics.

Going Back to Ancient Times: A Day in History (All 5 Volumes)

Edited by Henan Museum

Written by Yang Zheng， Xin Yi， Song Hua， Yao Xing， Liu Wei

Illustrated by He Guolin

Jiuzhou Press

October 2021

168.00 (CNY)

If you could travel back to the Tang， Song， Yuan， Ming， and Qing dynasties， which era would you choose to be a “foodie” in?

From eating raw meat and drinking blood to the sophisticated flavors and appearances of Chinese cuisine， our ancestors have been exploring culinary techniques for 700，000 years， undergoing a lengthy development process.

When we indulge in these delicious dishes at a restaurant， have we ever wondered how these dishes and their complex methods came to be? The formation of modern Chinese cuisine， especially during the Tang， Song， Yuan， Ming， and Qing dynasties， holds epoch-making significance.

The Tang Dynasty was prosperous， with cuisine that emphasized color， aroma， taste， and appearance， and international exchanges brought new vitality to the culinary arts. The Song Dynasty was refined， pursuing exquisite taste and elegance in food， with tea culture complementing the cuisine. The Yuan Dynasty was robust， rich in prairie flavors， with grilled meats and dairy products becoming delicacies. The Ming and Qing dynasties saw luxurious palace cuisine， with complex cooking techniques and exquisite tableware. Each era had its unique culinary style， reflecting the vast and profound culture of Chinese cuisine.

Today， we follow “A Day in History” through a millennium， briefly presenting the diets of ancient people from these five dynasties， exploring the stories behind these delicacies， experiencing the taste inheritance of our ancestors， and savoring that unique flavor from history.

Tang Dynasty

In the summer， people of the Tang Dynasty loved to eat cold noodles cooled in water.

Huaiye Lengtao， a cold noodle dish made with a mixture of locust leaf water， was praised by the great poet Du Fu. In his poem， Du Fu wrote:

The fresh green locust leaves， harvested and sent to the kitchen. Newly bought noodles from the market， mixed with locust leaf water and residue. Boiled thoroughly in a pot， wanting to eat more but fearing it won’t be enough. The bright green color reflects off the chopsticks， the taste carrying the fragrance of herbs. As it touches the palate， it feels as cold as snow， urging everyone to try this delicacy.

Hanju or Fenguo pastries were also very delicious. These pastries were made by first kneading the dough， then wrapping various sweet and savory fillings， boiling them， and finally frying them in oil until golden and crispy. Eating one in winter， crispy and delicious， was very satisfying.

In the Tang Dynasty， all types of dough that could be shaped were uniformly called “bing” (cakes). Among these diverse cakes， Hu Bing， Steamed Bing， and Boiled Bing were particularly loved by the Tang people， becoming the star delicacies of the time.

Hu Bing， a delicacy originating from the Han Dynasty’s Western Regions， was popular during the Tang Dynasty. It was meticulously baked， with a fragrant layer of sesame on the surface， making every bite memorable. The great poet Bai Juyi praised the deliciousness of Hu Bing and the bustling shops in his poem “Sending Hu Ma Bing to Yang Wanzhou，” highlighting its popularity at the time:

Hu Ma Bing is made like in the capital， crispy and fragrant， freshly baked.

Sending it to the hungry and greedy official Yang， to taste if it is like what Fuxing makes.

Song Dynasty

Did you know? Ancient Chinese people once ate only two meals a day， but this habit was broken in the Song Dynasty， and the three-meals-a-day lifestyle gradually became popular.

Speaking of the Song Dynasty， one must mention its two gourmet capitals-- Kaifeng and Hangzhou. These cities were not only economically prosperous but also gathering places for food， making the Song Dynasty an important milestone in Chinese culinary history.

Many cooking techniques that we Chinese now consider complex and delicious originated from the Song Dynasty. Imagine favorite foods like ham， Dongpo pork， hotpot， fried dough sticks， sashimi， and so on， these were all inventions or became popular during the Song Dynasty. Even more amazing， cooking methods like braising， roasting， baking， stir-frying， quick-frying， simmering， boiling， stewing， marinating， steaming， curing， and honey-preserving， along with techniques like removing the green onion flavor， all matured during the Song Dynasty.

Various types of Shao Bing (pancakes) included thousand-layer pancakes， milk pancakes， vegetable pancakes， peony pancakes， hibiscus pancakes， chrysanthemum pancakes， plum blossom pancakes， and sugar pancakes， with the sugar pancakes including tongpi pancakes and salted pan-fried noodles.

The morning market offered popular snacks like ice cream in summer-- shatang ice snow cold yuanzi.

For lunch， you could visit a restaurant. If you wanted noodles， you’d go to a northern cuisine restaurant. For foreign food， you’d go to a Hu (western) cuisine restaurant. There were also southern cuisine restaurants for southern flavors and Sichuan cuisine restaurants for Sichuan flavors.

You could also queue up at Zheng’s Fried Pancake Shop to buy fried pancakes. This shop had more than twenty stoves just for making fried pancakes!

Tea houses were everywhere. The tea was not brewed directly with hot water but ground into powder， sieved， and then water was added while quickly whisking until a large amount of white tea foam appeared. This method of drinking tea was called “diancha.”

Yuan Dynasty

In the Yuan Dynasty， Han people living in the capital， Dadu， would start their day with “water rice，” which is porridge， accompanied by pickled cucumbers and other preserved vegetables， making for a delicious and satisfying meal.

When eating out， there were options like stuffed buns， steamed buns， milk biscuits， sesame pancakes， and yellow biscuits....

Mongolians loved dairy products. The Hui people enjoyed rolled pancakes and a type of noodle called “tutu mashi，” along with “sour soup” made with pine nuts and walnuts， and pastries with honey and dried fruits.

Lunch was simple， often consisting of pancakes， steamed buns， and pickled vegetables. Restaurants offered various steamed buns， flower-cut buns， and noodles.

At the famous Zhisun feast of the Mongols， one could taste grapes from the Western Regions， lychees from the South， and dried scallops from the coastal areas.

After meals， Yuan Dynasty people loved to have a bowl of “soup.” This soup， made with cardamom， dried ginger， galangal， cloves， and other medicinal herbs and spices， had a spicy aroma and was believed to aid digestion and promote health!

Ming Dynasty

In Beijing， children would have breakfast after washing up， enjoying pickled radish， pickled cucumber， water-dipped noodles， double-layered pancakes， and their favorite sweet rice porridge filled with dried fruits.

There were also pancakes made with white flour and sesame oil called qimiao.

Teahouses served fragrant teas brewed with plum soup， walnuts， and pine nuts!

Many candy shops offered treats like amber candy， silk candy， and rose-flavored candies， just their names made them sound sweet!

In summer， friends would bring plum soup to cool off， along with candies and honey-preserved fruits for everyone to enjoy. You could also bite into a refreshing watermelon， a feeling of summer instantly arriving! (Watermelons， introduced from abroad， were already widely cultivated in the Ming Dynasty. With improved ice storage technology and ice cellars， fresh fruits from the South could also be transported to the North.)

During the Ming Dynasty， with the discovery of new sea routes， the world gradually became smaller. China’s doors opened wide， and under the tribute trade， foreign visitors brought various novel food ingredients. The Chinese people were in for a treat， with ingredients like tomatoes and pumpkins， previously unheard of， entering everyday kitchens.

Imagine how lively the dining table must have been back then? Especially the bright red tomatoes， which quickly became a star ingredient.

Did you know? The famous dish， tomato and egg soup， entered Chinese culinary history during the Ming Dynasty and was immediately popular. Its sweet and sour taste combined with the tender texture of eggs made it irresistibly delicious!

One of the most influential ingredients on modern Chinese cuisine， chili peppers， was introduced to China during the Ming Dynasty. Initially used as an ornamental plant， it was later discovered by doctors to have moisture-dispelling properties and was used as a medicinal herb. It wasn’t until many years later， when people in Guizhou， lacking salt， used chili peppers to enhance their dishes， that chili peppers gradually spread as a food ingredient in China.

Qing Dynasty

Before breakfast， people would drink a cup of hot tea.

Street vendors offered wontons and horseshoe pancakes. Horseshoe pancakes， baked in a hanging oven， were thin on one side， thick on the other， hollow in the middle， and filled with various delicious fillings that made children drool.

Qing Dynasty pastries were incredibly diverse， including “eight big pieces，” “eight small pieces，” “five poison cakes” (cakes decorated with scorpion， toad， spider， centipede， and snake motifs)， and Sachima (a Manchu pastry).

Emperor Qianlong， a travel enthusiast， enjoyed trying local delicacies during his excursions， often bringing along palace chefs and tasting the best dishes from local chefs.

Qing Dynasty cuisine， influenced by Manchu rule， combined Manchu and Han culinary traditions to form a unique culinary culture. The renowned Manchu-Han Imperial Feast is a famous example! Historical records show that the feast included 196 cold and hot dishes and 124 types of tea pastries， totaling 320 exquisite dishes! It featured a variety of rare ingredients and endless cooking methods.

Although the Manchu-Han Imperial Feast was delicious， it came with significant costs. Each feast exacerbated the Qing government’s growing economic crisis. Nevertheless， this culinary tradition enriched Chinese food culture， allowing future generations to experience the prosperity and flavors of that era.