Hui Cai (徽菜) — Anhui Cuisine: Mountain Smoke and Fermented Depth

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Hui cai (徽菜, Anhui cuisine) is one of the lesser-known of the Eight Great Cuisines outside China — associated with the historical Huizhou prefecture in southern Anhui province (the same region that produced the distinctive Huizhou architectural style of white walls and black tile roofs). Hui cai is characterised by: (1) Heavy use of preserved and cured ingredients — Jinhua-adjacent hams, dried and pickled vegetables, and fermented preparations that reflect the mountainous region's preservation traditions. (2) A notable tolerance for strong flavours including fermented and aged ingredients (the infamous chou gui yu, stinky mandarin fish, is the most extreme example). (3) Slow braising techniques that develop collagen-rich, deeply savoury preparations. (4) Wild mountain ingredients — foraged greens, bamboo shoots, and wild fungi.

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