'Shaobing' warrior

In the 1990s, Feng traveled almost all of China to learn new baking skills. In 2002, he even took a job as the chef of a Chinese restaurant in Africa, where he created his own version of Peking duck－impressing the local diners.

Now, Feng is the pastry consultant at Yiwanju restaurant in Beijing.

He makes his own version of nailao－a form of Chinese cheese, where rice liquor and sugar are added to fresh milk and distributed in bowls. The bowls are then heated before being left to cool and set. The sweet creamy snack attracts many foodies to the restaurant.

He started to formally take on apprentices in 2016, as he wants to pass on his skills, but he is careful to select those who really care about reviving the art of making traditional Beijing snacks.

Wang Chunqiang has studied under Feng for seven years and is used to Feng's high standards.

"Feng's shaobing will not shed a single sesame seed, which is incredible," says Wang.

Feng explains that he once heard a comic dialogue that stated shaobing always lose sesame seeds, and that sparked his imagination to find a way to ensure all the seeds stayed on the snack.

"The secret is to wipe a layer of water mixed with flour before dipping it in the sesame seeds," says Feng.

Feng plans to open his own snack studio in Beijing, at which he can bring all the traditional local snacks he knows how to make to the munching masses of the city once more－including the ones that people in their 20s and 30s may never have tried. It's not quite ready yet－like his baking, Feng wants to take his time and get it right. But we have waited this long. So, a few more months will just whet our appetites even more.