Rongxian Stuffed Pomelo Peel 容县柚皮酿

Where it comes from

A Yulin Evening News (玉林晚报) report reprinted by the Guangxi agriculture and rural affairs department calls the Shatian pomelo a calling card of Rong County and the stuffed peel one of the county's food symbols, made from the peel left over when the fruit is eaten. According to the paper, almost every household in the county can make it. The pomelo is picked from Frost's Descent (霜降), the solar term in late October, and keeps until around Spring Festival, so anyone with a pomelo can make the dish.

A second Yulin Evening News article, on the Yulin city government portal, says stuffed dishes, niang (酿), are what Rong County is best known for in Yulin folk cooking; a local saying holds that there is no Rong County without them. The county stuffs aubergines, river snails, gourds, shiitake mushrooms, pumpkin flowers, bitter melon, chillies and taro as well, and names pomelo peel as one of its three niang treasures, alongside stuffed tofu (豆腐酿) and stuffed vegetable-leaf parcels (菜包酿).

How it is made

Chef Zhang, a Rong County cook at the Yangxin restaurant of the Doujiao Mountain (都峤山) Yangxin Academy, explained the method to the paper. The yellow outer layer of the peel is pared off, the white pith is cut into triangles, and a slit is cut into one side. The pieces are rubbed with salt and blanched in boiling water two or three times. He calls this step critical: pith that is not handled properly stays bitter and spoils the dish.

Stuffing means pushing a ready-mixed filling into each pocket. The chef says authentic Rong County peel is always stuffed with pork and Chinese chives; other places sometimes add peanuts, but locals think the simplest filling brings out the original flavour best. The sticky mince goes in easily. The stuffed pieces are then simmered with chicken fat, salt, water, soy sauce and oyster sauce until they take on the flavour. They can also be cooked in a clay pot over a layer of onion, which the chef says makes them more fragrant.

Flavour and how it is eaten

Yulin Evening News describes a meat filling carrying the fresh fragrance of pomelo, and a taste that many people from Rong County associate with home. Chef Zhang says visitors order it every year once the Shatian pomelo comes on the market.

More dishes to compare

Explore related local specialties and compare their names, preparation notes and ordering guidance.