Yunnan Across-The-Bridge Rice Noodles (云南过桥米线)
A very late lunch and my first meal in Lijiang, Yunnan.
One of the most recognisable and well-known Yunnan dishes.
There are a number of stories attached to its origin but the most common version goes that a scholar was studying hard for his imperial exams in a secluded quiet location on an island. His wife carried his meals across a bridge daily but the meals turn cold whenever she reached his study. (Do note that in the olden times, women had shrunked feet and would likely have walked really slowly) On one occasion, she noticed that the fats and oils seeping out of the cooked meats in a soup formed a layer above the broth and helped to keep the soup warm. On realising that, the wife combined the ingredients into the soup, poured oil over it and created a nutritious bowl of steaming noodles that remained warm after she crosses the bridge.
Yunnan Across-The-Bridge Rice Noodles (云南过桥米线)
A very late lunch and my first meal in Lijiang, Yunnan.
One of the most recognisable and well-known Yunnan dishes.
There are a number of stories attached to its origin but the most common version goes that a scholar was studying hard for his imperial exams in a secluded quiet location on an island. His wife carried his meals across a bridge daily but the meals turn cold whenever she reached his study. (Do note that in the olden times, women had shrunked feet and would likely have walked really slowly) On one occasion, she noticed that the fats and oils seeping out of the cooked meats in a soup formed a layer above the broth and helped to keep the soup warm. On realising that, the wife combined the ingredients into the soup, poured oil over it and created a nutritious bowl of steaming noodles that remained warm after she crosses the bridge.