Fermented Amaranth Stems 霉苋菜梗

Fermented Amaranth Stems (霉苋菜梗) is a strongly scented preserved vegetable associated with Shaoxing (绍兴). Food writer Guo Yemin (郭晔旻), in a feature published by The Paper (澎湃新闻) and republished by China Youth Daily (中国青年报), describes it as a local example of the taste for pungent preserved foods.

Mature stems rather than young leaves

The account identifies red amaranth allowed to grow long stems, which become old and hard. Its historical preparation uses washed, drained stems preserved with salt in an earthenware jar; the stems soften as they develop their characteristic strong smell.

A relish with rice

Guo connects the dish with the writer Zhou Zuoren (周作人)’s memories of Shaoxing’s salty, pungent everyday accompaniments. The feature also cites the Qing-era Yueyan (越谚), which describes preserved amaranth stems as strong-smelling but pleasant-tasting and particularly suited to eating with rice.