Rice

Beijing · Glutinous rice with red bean paste rolled in soybean flour, three-layer yellow-white-red

Changchun · Whole young chicken stuffed with glutinous rice, slow-cooked with Jilin ginseng and jujubes

Changsha · Deep-fried glutinous rice balls coated in sugar, crispy outside, chewy inside

Chengdu · Glutinous rice balls thrown against a brass plate, three bangs, then coated in soybean flour and brown sugar

Fuzhou · Rice batter poured along the wok's edge into a seafood broth

Guangzhou · Paper-thin rice noodle rolls drizzled with soy sauce

Guangzhou · Raw rice cooked fresh in a clay pot, cured meats' oil seeps into the bottom

Guangzhou · Flat rice noodles wok-fried with beef and bean sprouts—wok hei is the soul

Guilin · Marinade-sauced round rice noodles topped with crispy pork, beef, and pickled green beans

Guiyang · Stewed beef shank over rice noodles in a rich broth—Huaxi's claim to noodle fame

Guiyang · Pig intestine and blood curd rice noodles in spicy chili oil—bold, funky, and beloved

Guiyang · Thin rice crepe wraps stuffed with shredded veggies and peanuts, dipped in sour-spicy sauce

Haikou · Poached chicken over rice cooked in chicken fat — the dish that conquered Southeast Asia

Jinan · Millet and mung bean porridge with peanuts and dried yams, sweet and frothy

Kunming · Rice cakes grilled over charcoal, spread with sauce and wrapped around a fried dough stick

Macau · Minced beef and pork with diced potatoes, soy and molasses, served over rice — the comfort dish of Macau

Nanchang · Thick rice noodles in a spicy-savory broth — the breakfast that wakes up Jiangxi

Nanning · Old friend rice noodles with garlic, fermented black beans, pickled bamboo shoots—sour-spicy Nanning soul food

Nanning · Springy rice noodles with braised beef, pickled long beans, and fried peanuts

Shanghai · Pork ribs + rice cakes + sweet bean sauce, memories of old Shanghai lanes

Shanghai · Mugwort-infused glutinous rice wrapped around red bean paste, a Qingming must-eat

Suzhou · Lotus root stuffed with glutinous rice + osmanthus syrup, Suzhou-style sweet elegance

Suzhou · Fermented rice wine + mini glutinous rice balls + osmanthus

Taipei · Braised minced pork belly over rice, the national comfort food

Taipei · Sticky rice sausage wrapping a pork sausage, a night market must-eat

Tianjin · Deep-fried glutinous rice cake with red bean paste, crispy outside and chewy inside

Wuhan · Egg skin wrapped around glutinous rice, diced pork, and mushrooms, golden on both sides

Wuhan · Rice batter fried into rings, crispy outside, soft inside

Urumqi · Braised rice with lamb, carrots, and raisins

Xi'an · Layered glutinous rice and red dates steamed into sweet, soft bliss

Yinchuan · Steamed glutinous rice cake studded with Ningxia's famed goji berries, lightly sweet