Dachuan District 达川区

History

Under the Eastern Han, between 89 and 104, a county called Xuanhan (宣汉县) was carved out of the eastern part of Dangqu (宕渠县); its name meant "proclaiming the Han". In 553 the Western Wei renamed it Shicheng (石城县) and the prefecture Tongzhou (通州), and in 965 the Northern Song renamed Tongzhou as Dazhou. When Da County became Dachuan District in 2013, several of its townships passed to neighbouring Tongchuan District (通川区).

What to see

The Zhenfoshan temple group (真佛山庙群), in Fushan (福善), dates from the Qing dynasty. Its buildings include a main gate, a Jade Emperor Hall (玉皇殿), a Tianzi Hall (天子殿), Dehua Temple (德化寺) and a Mahavira Hall (大雄宝殿). It became a provincial heritage site in 1991 and was placed on the seventh list of national key heritage sites in 2013.

Food and local products

Shiti steamed fish (石梯蒸鱼), from Shiti town (石梯镇), uses catfish or silver carp from the Ba River (巴河). The fish is cut into pieces, coated in mung-bean, sesame, rice and pea flours with chilli, Sichuan pepper, ginger and oil, and steamed in bamboo baskets; the district government describes it as dark red, fragrant and spicy, served with a noodle soup made from the fish head, and lists it among Dazhou's ten local specialities.

Jiangyang sour-spicy chicken (江阳酸辣鸡) is made by villagers around Jiangyang (江阳) with free-range chicken and secret-recipe pickles, a dish the government traces back more than a century. Dafeng mutton (大风羊肉) uses free-range stock raised in the local hills and is served as a range of dishes, including sour-spicy liver and stewed mutton in clear or red broth. Daxian black plum (达县乌梅) and Daxian ramie (达县苎麻) are Chinese geographical-indication products.

Getting oriented

Dazhou Jinya Airport (达州金垭机场) lies in Dachuan where Baijie (百节镇), Shiban (石板街道) and Jinya (金垭镇) meet, about 25 km from the main urban area of Tongchuan. It opened on 19 May 2022, the day after the old Heshi airport (河市机场) closed.

Highlights

• Zhenfoshan temple group 真佛山庙群: Qing-dynasty temple group in Fushan, a national key heritage site since 2013.
• Shiti steamed fish 石梯蒸鱼: Ba River fish coated in mixed flours and spices and steamed in bamboo baskets; one of Dazhou's ten local specialities.
• Jiangyang sour-spicy chicken 江阳酸辣鸡: Free-range chicken cooked with secret-recipe pickles by villagers around Jiangyang.
• Dafeng mutton 大风羊肉: Free-range mutton from the local hills, served as a range of dishes.
• Daxian black plum 达县乌梅: Chinese geographical-indication product.