Flavorful Origins - Season 2

First aired: 10/30/2019 10 episodes

Explore the diverse flavors of China's Yunnan province and get to know the cooks and ingredients that shape its rich culinary tradition.

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Episodes

1. Dairy Products

Aired: 10/30/2019

Yunnan is known for a variety of dairy products, including Dali rushan: thinly sliced cheese that can be fried, grilled or dipped in honey.

2. Nan Piӗ

Aired: 10/30/2019

A local wild berry features in nanpie, which refers t different types of flavorful pastes made from mashed vegetables or fish.

3. Sa Piӗ

Aired: 10/31/2019

Sa is a culinary tradition that pairs cold meat or raw vegetables with a versatile sauce that is often mixed with pig blood curd.

4. Lacquer Seed Oil

Aired: 10/31/2019

Derived from the fruits of the Chinese lacquer tree, qiyou is an oil used to cook eggs, congee, pork stew, roast chicken and even bee larvae.

5. Ham

Aired: 10/31/2019

Found in local moon cake fillings, Xuanwei cured ham can be thinly sliced, steamed, cooked with egg, stewed or served as cold cuts.

6. Pickled Vegetables

Aired: 10/31/2019

Salted and partially dried, the sow thistle can be pickled and stir-fried with pork to lend a sour, crunchy flavour, or added to white radish stew.

7. Hardy Banana

Aired: 10/30/2019

Wrapped in leaves with a sticky rice or spiced fish, the Musa basjoo – a banana found in Yunnan – can make for a sweet snack or savoury dish.

8. Sour Fruits

Aired: 10/30/2019

Besides being an appetite stimulant, tart fruits like lemon and sour papaya can be added to shredded chicken, carp or a sauce for dousing live shrimp.

9. Rice Cake

Aired: 10/30/2019

The er, a flattened rice flour cake, can be backed into a sticky snack, sliced and stir-fried with vegetables or julienned into noodle-like strands.

10. Salted Flour

Aired: 10/30/2019

Zha, an old custom, is an assortment of dried fermented vegetables or fish served as side dishes, made with ancient methods of food preservation.