Urban food life, consumption behavior, and food culture.
This is my seventh year living in the UK. Six years ago, I opened a roujiamo shop called Rogamo in a small town near Exeter. These days, the name has almost become the standard English term for roujiamo. Before Rogamo, I had already spent ten years in the…
Today, fresh-food e-commerce platforms such as Hema (Alibaba), Xiaoxiang Market (Meituan), 7Fresh (JD.com) and Pupu are growing increasingly popular. These platforms mean that with just a few taps on your smartphone from the comfort of your home, you can have a wide range of daily essentials delivered within 30…
Foodthink Says In January this year, a Beijing resident ordered fresh lilies via Hema, but mistakenly received toxic narcissus bulbs instead, leading to the hospitalisation of their 71-year-old mother and 12-year-old son after they consumed them. Addressing the mix-up, Hema explained that during the picking process, a packer had mistakenly…
I grew up as a girl who spent her childhood wandering through wet markets. In my day job, I’m an office worker tied to a cubicle, but when the Lunar New Year rolls around, I step in as the “second-in-command” at a market grocer’s stall.What sort of place is a…
On 4 April last year, Foodthink published a “collection of deleted articles”. Since then, each time a piece was taken down, the team would console themselves with an inside joke: “We’ve already got another ‘404ed 404’ for next year.” But the 404s over the past two years aren’t entirely the…
Foodthink Says As the Qingming Festival approaches, whether for travel or tomb-sweeping, many will head to the countryside for a few meals of “farmhouse food”. This year’s Spring Festival was no different for the author of this piece. This account of dining during a return to the village for the…
Foodthink Says This is the third field report from Foodthink’s visits to small-scale fishing communities in southern Thailand. The first two pieces explored how fishermen joined forces to oust commercial trawlers, form a national alliance, and actively engage in legislative and policy advocacy, and how ‘community conservation areas’ empowered locals…
Had your fill of rich meats and fish over the Spring Festival? If you’re stumped on what to cook for your next meal, give Yi Yi Farm’s versatile red sour soup a go. Whether you’re poaching fish, simmering beef, tossing noodles, stir-frying vegetables, or even whisking up a cold salad,…
After a few days of heavy meats and rich feasting, why not switch things up and try some crisp, refreshing radishes? At the Beijing Organic Farmers’ Market, radishes from different growers each carry their own distinct character. Different soils, different methods, different flavours—but they all share one thing: they taste…
What can you do with a simple block of tofu? Xiucai Doufang is stepping in to share their recipe for soybean-paste braised tofu. Ingredients: One block of Xiucai Doufang tofu Yellow soybean paste, chilli paste (optional), light soy sauce, salt, chopped spring onions Method: 1. Cube the tofu, blanch it,…
