Cold Skin Noodles — Liangpi (凉皮)

Shaanxi Province — Xi'an area; Han dynasty origin claimed

One of China's most popular summer street foods: glutinous, slightly translucent noodle sheets made by washing starch from wheat dough (the same process that creates seitan), setting the starch into thick sheets by steaming, then cooling and cutting into flat noodles. Dressed with chilli oil, sesame paste, garlic water, vinegar, and cucumbers — the Shaanxi version is the benchmark. The texture is unlike any other noodle: slippery, dense, and chewily elastic.

• Vietnamese banh trang noodles (similar rice sheet cut into noodles)
• Japanese kuzukiri (kudzu starch noodles in syrup)
• Korean tang myeon (sweet potato starch noodles — similar gelatinous texture)

The dense, chewy, slippery liangpi is the most unusual noodle texture in Chinese food; the assertive chilli-sesame-garlic-vinegar dressing makes it intensely aromatic; a refreshing but rich summer preparation