Anhui-The Hometown of Bean Curd
By admin on 2014-12-22

The mountains of Huang and Bagong, Huangmei Opera and, most of all, humble bean curd all naturally spring to mind when contemplating the rich cultural heritage and abiding tourist appeal of central China’s Anhui province.

The origins of bean curd, also known as tofu, can be traced back to 2000 years to Huainan, a city in the north of Anhui. Here it was the discovery of the grandson of an emperor – Liu An, a direct descendant of Liubang, the first emperor of the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD).

Liu An was then the king of Huanian. He had originally lived on the Bagong Mountain and, legend has it, spent his time pursing his dream of securing eternal life through the arcane arts of alchemy. He failed to secure life everlasting, but his name lives on through his accidental discovery of bean curd. Commemorating his culinary innovation, the first ever Chinese Bean Curd Cultural Festivals were held simultaneously in Beijing and Taipei between the 15-and 17th of September 1990. During this inaugural celebration, the organizers designated the date of 15th, September – Liu An’s birthday - as the official day of the commemorative Bean Curd Cultural Festival thereafter.

The 16th Chinese Bean-curd Cultural Festival, staged in Huainan between September the 15th and 18th this year, was the largest ever held. As has become traditional at each festival, the local governmental officials and organizers hosted a bean curd banquet to the delight of the event’s many distinguished guests and its range of confirmed tofu-lovers. This festival, steeped in ethnic traditions and displaying its host city’s rich cultural heritage, proved a huge success with representatives from the country’s cultural, business and tourism sectors. By common assent, the banquet was the centerpiece of the event, thanks to its comprehensive showcase of the art of tofu preparation and its many cultural traditions.

During the banquet, diners could sample a wealth of tofu cooking styles, including steaming, pot-roasting, frying and boiling. For many it seemed the banquet distilled a whole lifetime’s experience of enjoying bean curd in all its many incarnations. One chef particularly impressed attendees with his ability to cook a wafer-thin sheet of tofu that remained so tender that a needle could easily pass through it.

The local government in the area has now established a Bean Curd Industrial Park (BCIP) to further boost this burgeoning industry. The park’s management team has successfully attracted a raft of bean curd-related businesses, including those involved in its preparation, large scale production, packaging, logistics, distribution and retail.

The residents of Huainan are justifiably proud of it being the hometown of bean curd, according to Hu Xuefan, head of Anhui’s provincial tourism bureau. Addressing the future prospects for the soy-based delicacy, he said: “We need to consolidate all of the resources at hand to make bean curd cultural tourism a “must-have” experience during any visit to Anhui province.”