Chaoshan cuisine: pure, clean flavor

Sweet Yam Paste with Pumpkin and Ginkgo Nuts. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The Chaoshan sweet tooth is well known, and desserts served at the end of the meal can be eye-openers.

One of the most famous is orr nee, a sweet puree made of taro or yam. Pieces of root are steamed until tender, and then mashed. The puree is then patiently stir-fried with sugar and shallot-infused oil until it turns into a smooth glistening paste, which is served garnished with stewed sweet pumpkin and ginkgo nuts.

Candied yams are another spectacularly simple sweet. Yam pieces are painstakingly wok-fried in a saturated sugar syrup until the liquid dries and forms a crust. The heat finishes the yam off to a dry fluffiness. Contrasted with the crusty sugar coating it is a great pairing of textures and flavors.

Any cuisine that stands the test of time and distance must have its merits, and Chaoshan cuisine is certainly right up there in the honor roll, despite a rather understated profile in its home country.