Hot Braised Noodles 热干面
The five most famous noodle dishes in China are Wuhan hot braised noodles, Shanxi knife-shaved noodles, E-Fu noodles from Guangdong and Guangxi, Sichuan noodles with pepper sauce, and noodles with mixed dressings from China’s north. Unlike cool braised noodles and noodles in soup, hot braised noodles are cooked as follows: When the noodles are close to being done, take them out to remove the oil. Before eating, they are plunged into boiling water for a few seconds, then taken out and seasoned with sesame paste, shrimp, minced scallions, diced pickled radish, sesame oil and vinegar.

Hot braised noodles appeared during the 1930’s. The story goes that a vendor named Li Bao was selling noodle soup on Changti Street in Hankou.  While closing up shop one day, he took the unsold noodles out of the pot and laid them on the table to dry.  In a hurry to get home, Li Bao accidentally knocked over his bottle of cooking oil, spilling it all over the noodles.  The next morning, hoping to re-use the previous day’s leftover goods, he threw those same noodles in a pot with some seasonings to re-boil them.  To his surprise, the noodles’ delicious scent easily caught the attention of passers-by.  They thronged around Li Bao’s cart, elbowing each other aside in their eagerness.  When one customer asked him the name of this fantastic new dish, he immediately responded, “hot braised noodles”.  From then on, hot braised noodles was the only dish that Li Bao sold, and other vendors quickly followed suit.  Currenty, there are numerous hot braised noodle restaurants and stalls around the province, and the dish has become a favorite breakfast food among Wuhan’s citizens.  Cailinji-style hot braised noodles are both the most distinctive. 

Cailinji Hot Braised Noodles Restaurant 蔡林记热干面店
Cailinji Hot Braised Noodles Restaurant used to be located in No. 854, Zhongshan Avenue in Hankou, facing the famous water tower. Now there are many chain restaurants in Hankou, Hanyang and Wuchang.
Add: 854 Zhongshan Avenue, Wuhan
Tel: 027-82835152
Bus Route: 517

Sijimei Tang Bao四季美汤包
“Sijimei” Tangbao (a steamed dumpling filled with minced meat and gravy)  appleals to Wuhan citizens and enjoying a reputation worldwide; Traditional “Sijimei” tangbao is characterized by its of thin dough wrap, adequate soup and tender juicy meat is cooked adhered to Su style. Experienced eaters will first gnaw at the skin slightly to suck out the gravy and then eat the skin and minced meat. Just eating in this way, you can authentically enjoy the exemplary flavor of such delicious food.

Early in 1922, “Sijimei” Tangbao restaurant opened its business. Boss Tian Yushan improved the skills of cooking tangbao with the advice of famous chef Xu Dakuan from Nanjing. The first step is to boil soup and cook the dough wrap, and then prepare meat filling; last step is to cook it to perfection at a constant temperature. Moreover, much attention should be paid to choice of ingredients: stuffing should be made of fresh meat, the fillings should be made of lean meat with one-finger-thick fat and tangbao stuffed with fresh Yangcheng Lake crab roe. Thanks to its endeavor in quality, “Sijimei” Tangbao attracts so many customers that it is known as “the king of tangbao” and loved by customers.

After 1949, “Sijimei” tangbao restaurant’s business was booming and became better and better. To meet the demands of different customers, they also cook tangbao stuffed with crab roe, tangbao stuffed with minced shrimp, tangbao stuffed with dried mushrooms, tangbao stuffed with minced chicken and assorted tangbao besides tangbao stuffed with meat after the restaurant moved to the juncture of Jianghan Road and Zhongshan Avenue.

Add: No.898 Zhongshan Dadao, Wuhan
Tel: 027-82822139, 82791939
Website: http://www.sjmtb.com (Chinese)

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