Liangpi

Liangpi
Liangpi
Chinese	凉皮
Transcriptions Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Liáng pí

Liangpi (Chinese: 凉皮; pinyin: Liángpí; literally "cold skin") is a noodle-like Chinese dish made from wheat or rice flour. It is a specialty dish originating from the Chinese province of Shaanxi,^[1] but has now spread to many other places in China, in particular the northern and central regions. Although liangpi is served cold, they are served in every season, including winter.

New York Times' Julia Moskin describes liangpi as served at Xi'an Famous Foods as "a dish of cold noodles in a sauce that hits every possible flavor category (sweet, tangy, savory, herbal, nutty and dozens of others)."^[2]

Preparation

Liangpi literally means cold skin, although it has no animal products in it at all. There are several ways of making liangpi:

First, wheat or rice flour is turned into a soft dough by adding water and a little bit of salt. Then, the dough is put in a bowl, water is added and the dough has to be "rinsed" until the water is saturated with starch from the dough, turning into a muddy white color. The remainder of the dough is now removed, and the bowl is left to rest overnight at a cool place to allow the dissolved starch to precipitate.

The following day, there will be a kind of starch-paste on the bottom of the bowl, with a more or less clear liquid on top, which has to be discarded. Once the liquid has been removed, a small amount of the paste can then be poured into a flat plate or tray, and spread evenly in a thin layer. The whole plate is placed into a large pot full of boiling water, where it is steamed for a couple of minutes, and the resulting "pancake" cut into long pieces vaguely resembling noodles.^[3]

Types

Hanzhong Mian pi

Hanzhong Liangpi (汉中凉皮)

Hanzhong Liangpi (汉中凉皮) or Hanzhong Mianpi (汉中面皮), named for the city of Hanzhong in southwestern Shaanxi, are steamed liangpi with garlic and hot chili oil.^[4]

Majiang Liangpi (麻酱凉皮)

Majiang Liangpi (麻酱凉皮) are liangpi garnished with julienned cucumber and a sauce made of salt, vinegar, hot chili oil and especially black sesame paste, for which it is named (Majiang (麻酱) is the Chinese name for sesame paste).^[5]

Shan Xin Gan Mianpi

Shan Xin Gan Mianpi is another type of Liangpi, which tastes a bit firmer and looks darker in color compared other to other Liangpi. It is always served with Mianjin, vinegar, chilli oil, salt, mashed garlic in water and bean sprout.

See also

• Chinese noodles
• Rice noodles

References

External links

• New York Times - Let the Meals Begin: Finding Beijing in Flushing