The Understated Top Nut-Producing Province of China: How Many More Wild Delicacies Does It Contribute to Chinese New Year?

Never parting from the mountain's warmth and abundance

Mountain produce, wild fruits, coarse grains, poultry, and livestock

Authentic Flavors · 2023 New Year Special

Anhui, a name brimming with joy. During the Kangxi era, the merger of Anqing and Huizhou prefectures took the first characters "An" and "Hui" to form what is now Anhui Province. Anhui, a name steeped in festive spirit; Huizhou merchants packed Huangshan into Huizhou cuisine; Huizhou-style nuts and roasted seeds cracked open a unique festive vibe. Huizhou cuisine exudes the "elegance" of wild woodland charm, while roasted seeds carry the "rustic" aroma of old streets and deep alleys—together, they form the dual essence of Huizhou's New Year flavor, embodying the most authentic Chinese New Year and a nostalgia uniquely Chinese.

Anhui is divided by the Huai River and the Yangtze into "three big bowls": northern, central, and southern Anhui. This seemingly "fragmented" province supplies nearly all of China's nuts and roasted seeds. This New Year, we'll "eat our way through" Huangshan to savor the past and present of Huizhou cuisine, "crack open" the nuts of Wuhu and Hefei, and uncover the secret behind their nationwide "crunchy" appeal.

The Yangtze and Huai Rivers divide Anhui into "three distinct regions."

Huangshan, the stronghold of Huizhou's mountain delicacies—was it meant to be eaten?

"After visiting the Five Sacred Mountains, no other peaks are worth seeing; after visiting Huangshan, even the Five Sacred Mountains pale in comparison." Here, replacing "seeing" with "eating" works just as well. The Huangshan Mountains form the watershed between the Yangtze and Qiantang Rivers, connecting Tianmu Mountain to the east and Jiuhua Mountain to the north, serving as the core of southern Anhui's highlands. Huizhou cuisine, originating in the Southern Song Dynasty from the Huangshan region (ancient Huizhou, including modern Huangshan City, Jixi County in Anhui, and Wuyuan County in Jiangxi), also forms the "culinary central nervous system" of southern Anhui's flavors.

Huangshan is for viewing—and for eating.

Huizhou cuisine owes its birth to Huizhou merchants. Though ancient Huizhou had Huangshan, arable land was scarce. These "chosen migrant workers" traveled far and wide, even reaching Japan and Annam (Vietnam). Upon their triumphant return, they brought back cooking techniques from across the land, allowing Huizhou cuisine to absorb diverse influences. Yet its native character lies in sourcing ingredients directly from Huangshan.

The winter sun simmered in a "First-Class Pot"

Dried string beans stewed in pork broth, bamboo shoots stewed in chicken soup, layered with pork belly and chicken, topped with egg dumplings at the center, surrounded by meatballs and tofu puffs—all bathed in a savory, mildly spicy broth. A bite of this "First-Class Pot" during New Year in Huangshan's mountains opens every pore, turning even the chilly winter into a lively warmth.

The "First-Class Pot" in Huizhou cuisine hails from Jixi, Anhui—also the hometown of Hu Shi. When Hu Shi taught at Peking University, this dish always took center stage at his family banquets, earning it the nickname "Hu Shi's First-Class Pot." Ancient Huizhou was a hub of Confucianism, so many place and dish names were refined. The pot's original, down-to-earth name was simply "One Big Pot."

Huizhou, nestled in Huangshan's mountains, stays cold, so the pot uses an iron cauldron instead of delicate porcelain to retain heat, keeping the slow-stewed dish piping hot. Hu Shi's hometown is in northern Jixi, while the Guniujiang area of Qimen County has a similar communal dish called "Army Pot."

In Guniujiang's rural New Year celebrations, entire villages gather around a massive table with a large iron pot at its center. At the bottom: dried radish strips; above: glass noodles; then chicken pieces and dried string beans, circled by fatty pork and meatballs—a rustic, hearty feast.

The "Army Pot" was ancient Huizhou's "military stew," dating back to the Ming Dynasty's Yongle era. Only the chicken and pork were fresh; the rest were dried ingredients. This was because Ming troops stationed here needed lightweight, long-lasting provisions for campaigns.

In the distance, Huizhou villages with black-tiled roofs and white walls nestle against hills; nearby, a river mirrors the spring sky; right before you, rows of hams stand like cannons aimed at the watery landscape. Yes, you read right—this is the spring ham-drying scene in Yixian's countryside at Huangshan's foothills.

To Huizhou locals, their ham tastes the best.

In earlier times, Huizhou families slaughtered pigs only for New Year. Without modern transport, unsold pork became ham. Local tradition forbade knife use after Minor New Year (Xiaonian), so before the 24th of the twelfth lunar month, they "sharpened knives for black pigs," cured the meat, and hung it around homes or on riverside racks—creating a spectacular "ham artillery array."

This earthy Huizhou ham boasts over a thousand years of history. It began in the Tang Dynasty, flourished in the Song, and was carried by Huizhou merchants to neighboring Jinhua, Zhejiang—hence the saying, "Jinhua ham comes from Dongyang, but Dongyang ham comes from Huizhou." If Jinhua ham is the celebrity of hams, Huizhou ham is the "hidden gem" of Huangshan's mountains.

Well-cured Huizhou ham has a translucent texture, with red and white layers resembling agate. It can be stored for up to five years, and by the fourth year, it can even be eaten raw. The savory flavor of Huizhou cuisine owes much to ham, and household dishes in the Huangshan region are inseparable from its presence.

Locals in Huizhou have a refreshing springtime dish: steaming gardenia flowers with ham. Sourced from the Huangshan mountains, ham can also be steamed with dried radish shreds or stir-fried with daylily flowers. Of course, the most beloved dish during the New Year is ham stewed with dried bamboo shoots. Huangshan’s wild mushrooms and local yellow-mud bamboo shoots are stewed with ham, garnished with scallions and garlic leaves—resulting in a heavenly combination of crisp shoots, chewy mushrooms, and savory meat.

The romantic tale of "the bookish bamboo shoot."

Wenzheng Mountain, east of Huangshan, is separated from the main peak by the Xin’an River. Behind She County’s ancient town lies a bamboo-covered hill where volcanic ash rich in trace elements settled after an ancient eruption, making the soil exceptionally fertile. The bamboo shoots grown here are tender as jade, thin as paper, and exceptionally high in water content—these are Wenzheng Mountain bamboo shoots.

A map so delicious it makes you hungry.

Wenzheng Mountain bamboo shoots, historically known as "tribute shoots," are the finest in Huizhou. Stir-fried with cured pork, they become "Wenzheng Shoots with Cured Aroma"; adding sausage and mushrooms elevates them to "Wenzheng Shoots with Double Aroma." Paired with these shoots, even dish names gain literary elegance.

"The finest bamboo shoots come from Wenzheng Mountain in Huizhou’s She County." Wenzheng Mountain is also home to the Ziyang Academy, dedicated to Confucian scholar Zhu Xi—a mountain of scholars and natural wonders. Thanks to the humid climate, tender bamboo shoots can be enjoyed year-round.

Beyond Wenzheng Mountain shoots, Huangshan’s bamboo shoots also carry a scholarly charm. "Tea shoots," harvested during tea-picking season, are sliced into shreds and stir-fried with fragrant tea tips and jade-like shrimp, adding a refined literati touch.

Qimen’s Zhonghe Soup, featuring diced bamboo shoots.

Huangshan’s thick bamboo, when dried, resembles magnolia petals—hence the name "yulan slices." Slender water bamboo, delicate as "soft reeds" in the *Book of Songs*, teases the palate with poetic grace.

The "chewy delights" of the mountains and the spirits of the rocks.

During New Year celebrations in Huangshan, kudzu starch dumplings are a must: diced bamboo shoots, mushrooms, and tofu, bound with lard, rolled in kudzu starch, and steamed halfway before repeating the process seven or eight times. The result—glossy, sticky, and round—symbolizes reunion.

Kudzu starch is extracted from kudzu roots, abundant in Huangshan. The largest roots weigh dozens of pounds. Locals wash off the mud and traditionally pound them before kneading the starch out through cloth sacks. Song poet Hong Zikui praised it: "Fine as sago, smooth as wild rice; white as a face, soft as skin," honoring the wisdom of laborers.

Dishes like "Stone Ear Chicken Stew" and "Stone Ear Duck Pot" rely on stone ear, a prized fungus from Huangshan’s "Three Stones." Resembling wood ear but much larger, its texture is velvety rather than crisp.

Stone ear clings to cliffs above 800 meters in Jixi, enduring years of sun and frost before maturing. Qing scholar Huang Yue wrote: "Stone ear grows on shadowed cliffs—a flavor unmatched in the mortal world."

Another festive dish, "Flower Mushroom with Stone Frog," pairs Huangshan’s specialty flower mushrooms with stone frog. The mushroom’s "leopard-spotted" cap adds crunch and absorbs flavors better. These spots form due to Huangshan’s temperature swings, exposing the pale flesh beneath and concentrating amino acids—like "natural MSG"—for an earthy, forest-fresh taste.

From Tianmu Mountain’s "hardcore tribute" to the New Year flavors of Wuhu and Hefei.

Tianmu Mountain, straddling Anhui and Zhejiang, has a unique microclimate and distinct vegetation zones. Between 100–1,000 meters grows an ancient relict species: Chinese hickory nuts. In Wu dialect, they’re called "mountain crabs" (*sān hǎ*), as "nut" (*hé*) sounds like "crab" (*hǎ*). Ningguo, at Tianmu’s northern foothills, produces the finest—thin-shelled, large, and crisp.

Tianmu’s hickory cultivation dates to the Northern Song. Ming-era county records document its prominence. Today, Ningguo hickory nuts are a famed Anhui snack. They come in thick- and thin-shelled varieties, the latter—with over 70% oil content—being premium. Roasted, they’re irresistibly fragrant. Since the Ming Dynasty, they’ve been imperial tributes.

The "modern apocalypse" of Huizhou-style nuts.

Not only Tianmu Mountain hickory nuts, Anhui has a long historical tradition of roasted nuts and seeds. Since the Southern Tang Dynasty, southeastern Anhui gradually became a hub of commerce, attracting merchants from all over and nurturing a local economy of roasted snacks. Located at the transition zone between northern and southern China, Anhui boasts a diverse climate and varied topography—mountains, hills, and plains—creating an ideal environment for growing various nuts. Wusha peanuts, Hanshan red melon seeds, Jingde torreya nuts, Guangde chestnuts... Nature has endowed Anhui with an innate "crispy" attribute.

A table of roasted snacks reveals their origin: Anhui, Anhui, and still Anhui.

Beyond its natural advantages, Anhui also pioneered nut processing. With the opening of treaty ports in modern times, the province saw unprecedented commercial prosperity. As early as the last century, nut-roasting workshops dotted Anhui’s streets, eventually forming two major hubs in Hefei and Wuhu. Since the 1980s, brands like "Fool’s Melon Seeds," "Zhenxin," "Qiaqia," and "Three Squirrels" have emerged.

From roasting to boiling, brick-and-mortar to e-commerce, the "Anhui-style nut roasters" have ridden the trends of every era. Today, Anhui is one of the most important industrial clusters for roasted snacks. Industry leader "Qiaqia Food" holds 40-50% of the market share for melon seeds, with product penetration reaching around 70% in some mature markets.

Any random nut shop on Anhui’s streets may have a story to tell.

Tired of hearing the business success stories of national brands? The local time-honored nut shops and hidden gems in Anhui are the real way to savor the New Year spirit.

In Wuhu, Anhui, nut shops are as ubiquitous as milk tea stores in Changsha. Every few steps, you’ll encounter one—some even decades old, like "Pan Shunxiang Hao," whose sign was personally inscribed by Feng Yuxiang. Beyond these heritage shops, local "treasure" nut stores like Yingchun Melon Seeds, Hu Da Melon Seeds, and Friendship Melon Seeds evoke childhood memories for many '80s and '90s kids. Their unchanged paper packaging and nostalgic logo fonts carry the "crispy" flavors that Wuhu’s youngsters grew up with.

For Hefei’s '80s and '90s generations, one of the happiest childhood memories was visiting Chenghuang Temple with adults during the New Year and enjoying fragrant roasted snacks. The century-old "Tao Yongxiang," founded in 1912, holds the crispy memories of multiple Hefei generations—a must-have gift for New Year visits and the star of living room snack trays.

For longtime Anhui residents, Tao Yongxiang’s signature products have always been the "classic trio": peanut candy, strange-flavor beans, and spicy peanuts. Take peanut candy—when peanuts meet maltose, they transform into the sweet treat that sweetens Hefei’s New Year.

In Hefei, veteran craftsmen at "Tao Yongxiang" are cutting freshly made peanut candy.

In a large pot, bubbling malt syrup thickens as peanuts are stirred in. The mixture is spread hot onto a board, framed with wooden molds, and pressed flat with a roller until cooled. The master cuts it into small pieces, while sugar flakes float in the air like "tiny goose feathers," drifting into the nostalgic memories of old Hefei residents.

During the Spring Festival, nut shops hidden in Wuhu’s old alleys welcome their busiest season. Roasters tend their stoves from dawn to dusk, baking time itself into the festive atmosphere. Bamboo trays brimming with peanuts and melon seeds bask in the winter sun at street markets, waiting for the roasters’ attention. The stoves rumble, charcoal flames blazing, as sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and watermelon seeds—black, red, and green shells—tumble in a fragrant whirl of cream, spiced salt, and caramel.

These small, family-run shops faithfully preserve traditional handcrafted methods, never chasing trendy flavors. Within each simple, crispy bite lies the essence of time-honored dedication. Roasted snacks are seasonal, peaking only as winter and the New Year approach. Generations of roasters have endured the solitude of time, upholding ancient craftsmanship with warmth, achieving today’s glory of supplying the nation’s "crispy" cravings.

Special Content Support/Review Expert—

Zhang Jianping, Huizhou Photographer, Member of the China Photographers Association

Map Editors | Sun Lu, Shao Tianrui

Header Image | Tuchong Creative

Cover Image | Visual China

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