Taste of Old Beijing

I love Beijing. The city is always abuzz with vibrant energy and never ceased to amaze me with her sights and sounds, and in my latest trip, taste!

Strolling along the street late in the morning I stumbled upon a lot of empty porcelain jars in front of some shops and roadside stalls. I asked around, found out that those were the local yogurt. To be exact, it's called old Beijing yogurt! I'm so used to yogurt being associated with the Western food so learning about old Beijing yogurt really was such a surprise!

How does it taste? I made it my mission early the next morning scavenging the streets nearby my hotel for those little jars of yogurt. Came up yogurt-less after asking and searching in the convenient store, the fruit stall, the florist, the restaurant. Finally the noodles stall lady told me to try in the wet market. After more asking around the vegetable lady and the meat butcher, I found it!

Two little cup size porcelain jars sealed with a piece of paper tightened around the brim with a rubber band. Inside, the creamy milky goodness of yogurt, silky smooth and feather light, no lumps no curds. The taste was absolutely delightful, the zingy sourness from the milk and faint sweetness after taste of the honey, very refreshing in the morning. Oh and the light scent of the honey was almost intoxicating too. It's healthy and tasted great, definitely the breakfast for the champion!

And have I mentioned that they were dirt cheap? One yuan a jar! Three yuans if you have them taken away, two for the deposit of the jar.

Yeah, I'm taking them jars home as my souvenirs from Beijing, a lovely taste of old Beijing.