Introduction: A dish of braised spring bamboo shoots, and another of "Yan Du Xian" (fresh bamboo shoots stewed with cured pork, with some also adding fresh pork for a more refined version). No third dish is needed; the lingering fragrance of these two alone is enough to secure the spring bamboo shoot's place on the Hangzhou dining table. Even the most discerning palate would find it hard to refuse the most tender and delicious bamboo shoots of the season.
Bamboo shoots are not a seasonal dish; different varieties are available year-round. For instance, winter bamboo shoots, when in season, are a delicacy so fresh they make you smack your lips. But it is the spring bamboo shoot that is so cherished, perhaps because it is the most delicious of the year, earning it the title "King of Spring Vegetables."
When we talk about spring bamboo shoots, we are usually referring to Lei bamboo shoots. They are slender, tender, crisp, white, smooth, and look charmingly delicate. People have also used them to describe a woman's slender fingers, as in the poem "Diao Lian Zi Ling" by Li Yu of the Southern Tang Dynasty: "Resting her fragrant cheek on her slender hand, she leans on the rail, shedding tears for whom?"
Lei bamboo shoots arrive in mid-March and are at their most tender and delicious until the end of April. They can be stir-fried, pan-fried, stewed, or braised—they are versatile in any preparation. For making braised spring bamboo shoots, they are indispensable.
However, in a broader sense, spring bamboo shoots refer to all shoots that emerge in the spring. This brings us to the delicious Mao bamboo shoot.
The plump, round Mao bamboo shoots are as thick as a bowl's mouth and weigh several pounds each. Spring Mao bamboo shoots appear about half a month later than Lei shoots and have a slightly astringent taste; they must be cooked thoroughly before eating.
I didn't know this before. Once, I tried making braised bamboo shoots with Mao shoots, and they were bitter and astringent; after a few pieces, my throat felt numb. They are best stewed slowly with fatty pork, pork ribs, cured meat, and the like. After two hours, you have a dish so delicious that people from Shanghai would say you wouldn't let go of it even if you were slapped.
Another type of spring bamboo shoot is the green bamboo shoot, commonly grown in Taiwan and Fujian. It looks a bit like a water chestnut, is tender, and very juicy when bitten. It can be used in cold salads or stir-fries, but it is rarely seen in Hangzhou.
Yesterday afternoon, I took a stroll around the Pingfeng Street Agricultural Trade Market. There were no fewer than five stalls selling bamboo shoots. Lei shoots were priced by size: 2, 2.5, or 3 yuan per jin. Fewer stalls sold Mao shoots, and those that did only had three or four available, priced at 2.5 to 3 yuan per jin.
When asked about the origin of the shoots, the vendors' answers were almost unanimous: dug from Yuhang, arriving and sold on the same day.
He Junchao, the Chief Engineer of the Lin'an Forestry Bureau, gave a more professional answer: The bamboo shoots eaten in Hangzhou are all local, with the largest quantities coming from Lin'an, Yuhang, and Fuyang. Lin'an alone produces 200,000 to 250,000 tons of bamboo shoots annually, most of which end up in the stomachs of Hangzhou residents.
When buying bamboo shoots, you can also distinguish between covered and natural shoots, a distinction that applies to both Lei and Mao varieties.
Covered shoots are "incubated" like chicks, covered with about 30 cm of rice husks around November, growing without ever seeing the light. They are whiter and more tender, making them perfect for braised spring bamboo shoots. Natural shoots grow completely on their own, are slightly brownish, a bit older, and are better for stewing with cured pork to make "Yan Du Xian," as their flavor is enhanced.
Natural shoots are what you see in most markets now, and more people prefer them. Hu Guoliang, Director of the Lin'an Forestry Research Institute, says you can pinch the base: if it's tender, it's a covered shoot; if it's firmer, it's a natural one.
I don't know how ancient people ate bamboo shoots, but one thing is certain: bamboo shoots have been on the Chinese dining table for a very, very long time.
The "Book of Odes - Great Court Hymns - Han Yi" contains the lines: "What are the greens? The bamboo shoots and the cattails." This means that at a farewell banquet, the finest vegetables were fresh bamboo shoots and sweet flag. By the Jin Dynasty, Dai Kai had written a "Bamboo Shoot Monograph," introducing over 70 different types of bamboo. In the Song Dynasty, Zanning compiled another "Bamboo Shoot Monograph," detailing the traditional experience of harvesting and cooking bamboo shoots passed down through generations.
Su Dongpo was also a great lover of bamboo shoots. His fondness is revealed in a few lines of poetry: "The river winds round the city, I know the fish are fine; Good bamboo covers the hills, I smell the shoots' divine." "Without bamboo, one is vulgar; without meat, one grows lean. To be neither vulgar nor lean, have bamboo shoots with meat at every meal."
I've heard that Anji now has a "Hundred Bamboo Shoot Banquet," featuring over a hundred dishes made with spring bamboo shoots, such as candied bamboo shoots, batter-fried shoot tips, crispy bamboo shoot strips, and Buddha's hand spring shoots. If you're ever in the mood, you can go and give it a try.
Delicious Spring Bamboo Shoots: Don't Overindulge
Every year, some people suffer from gastrointestinal issues.
Every year at this time, many people suffer from gastrointestinal discomfort due to eating spring bamboo shoots. "It's a constant, every year. Out of 30 patients in the specialist clinic, at least 3 to 5 are like this," said Pan Wensheng, Chief Physician of the Gastroenterology Department at the Second Affiliated Hospital. In the past week, He Fule, Associate Chief Physician of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Department at the First City Hospital, and Chen Yongcan, Chief Physician of the Gastroenterology Department at Zhejiang Xinhua Hospital, have each seen seven or eight such cases.
A few days ago, Auntie Yang stir-fried some pickled mustard greens with spring bamboo shoots and ate them with her husband. The shoots were so delicious that the couple finished the entire plate without realizing it.
The next morning, Auntie Yang woke up to a severe stomachache. Was her old condition acting up again? She had suffered from a duodenal ulcer for many years, which flared up from time to time. She planned to take some stomach medicine to relieve it, but this pain was much worse than before, and she was also passing blood. What was more worrying was that her husband, who usually had a strong stomach, suddenly also experienced stomach pain and bloating, with coffee-colored streaks in his vomit. The elderly couple rushed to the hospital.
P>"When they arrived, their faces were pale, they were bent over, and clutching their stomachs. Considering the bleeding, we performed an endoscopy on them. In their stomachs and intestines, we each found a foreign object about 3-4 cm long and 1.5 cm wide," said Chief Physician Pan Wensheng. When it was removed, it turned out to be a piece of spring bamboo shoot.Under the endoscope, Auntie Yang's bamboo shoot was lodged on a scarred ulcer in her duodenum, while her husband's was hanging like a branch near his intestine, nearly causing a perforation.
P>"These two pieces of bamboo shoot were quite old. I estimate they were swallowed without being chewed thoroughly," said Director Pan. Spring bamboo shoots are high in coarse fiber and have a hard texture, making them relatively difficult to digest. Once they cannot be digested and absorbed, they irritate the gastrointestinal tract, leading to stomach bleeding.【Four Suggestions for Healthy Consumption of Spring Bamboo Shoots】
Blanch the bamboo shoots before cooking.
P>"It's best to blanch the bamboo shoots in boiling water before cooking them, for about 1-2 minutes, or even longer, to soften the coarse fiber and aid digestion," said Physician He Fule. This not only removes the astringent taste, making them more palatable, but also allows 70% of the oxalic acid to be leached out. Oxalic acid can easily combine with calcium in the body to form calcium oxalate, which can deposit and cause stones, worsening the condition of patients with stones.Five or six pieces at a time.
P>"In Traditional Chinese Medicine, spring bamboo shoots are considered sweet in nature and cold, and are classified as a 'trigger food.' A trigger food is one that is rich in nutrients or is irritating, and can easily induce certain diseases (especially relapses) or aggravate existing conditions. Therefore, you must control the amount when eating them. You can't eat them every day, let alone with every meal," said Director Physician Tang Jun, Head of the Health Preservation and Wellness Department at the Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. She is also a big fan of bamboo shoots, especially braised ones, but she is careful to control her portions, eating only five or six pieces at a time. P>Director Pan Wensheng said that spring bamboo shoots are rich in coarse fiber and can help with food digestion. However, their fibers are harder than those in other vegetables like celery, making them relatively difficult to digest. Eating too much stimulates the gastrointestinal tract, causing its movements to speed up, leading to discomfort. When gastrointestinal motility is abnormal, symptoms like stomach pain, bloating, and even stomach bleeding can occur. Most cases of problems from eating spring bamboo shoots are due to eating too much at once.Don't mix with raw or cold foods.
P>Don't eat spring bamboo shoots on an empty stomach. Before eating, you can drink some soup or congee, or have a few bites of rice to reduce the stimulation to the gastrointestinal mucosa. After eating spring bamboo shoots, try to avoid raw or cold foods like ice cream, ice beer, and raw seafood. P>"Spring bamboo shoots are already difficult to digest, and raw or cold foods are also hard on the digestive system. Together, they create a double stimulus to the intestines, accelerating gastrointestinal dysfunction and easily inducing discomfort," said Director Pan Wensheng.Five groups of people should eat them in moderation: children under 4, etc.
P>Those with gastrointestinal disorders like stomach ulcers—people who normally experience diarrhea, stomach pain, or abdominal cramps after eating raw, cold, or greasy food should eat them sparingly, just for a taste. P>Patients with liver cirrhosis, especially those with esophageal varices—the large amount of coarse fiber in spring bamboo shoots can easily scratch the abdominal wall or digestive tract, causing severe bleeding. P>People recovering from a serious illness—these individuals have weaker digestive function. Yesterday morning, Associate Chief Physician He Fule at the First City Hospital saw a patient who had just recovered from a liver abscess and experienced stomach pain, bloating, and diarrhea after eating spring bamboo shoots. P>People with allergies—such as those with allergic rhinitis, asthma, or urticaria, should not eat too many. Director Physician Tang Jun's clinic saw an elderly asthma patient whose condition had stabilized through treatment. However, after eating one spring bamboo shoot, their old condition relapsed, with symptoms of shortness of breath and coughing. Spring bamboo shoots are a trigger food and are taboo for people with allergies. If you have a reaction, you should stop immediately. But if you don't, you can eat a small amount in moderation. P>Children under 4 years old, new mothers, and the elderly—their gastrointestinal functions are relatively weaker. "Children under 4 should probably not eat them at all. Their digestive and chewing abilities are weak, and they might swallow them whole," said Professor Huang Jincheng, a renowned physician of traditional Chinese medicine and Director of the Pediatric Department at the City Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine. "Children over 4 can have some, but less than adults." P>Patients with stones—the oxalic acid in spring bamboo shoots can easily combine with calcium in the body to form calcium oxalate, worsening the condition of stone patients.