Don’t let anyone tell you the Chinese aren’t inventive. I love the way they prepare and exploit ingredients. Apart from all the meat-eating in modern China which seems to be more a symbol of prosperity than a tradition in many richer parts of China, I think that here I’ve seen some of the most inventive ways to eat than ever before.
I enjoy eating raw simple foods (in warm weather!). In seeing clearly what exactly I am eating and in being able to distinguish between flavours and ingredients. In China, you’ll find simple (one ingredient) street foods everywhere. Pineapple and melon slices on sticks, steamed sweet and purple potatoes, grilled corn on the cob.
When we visited the warm coastal city Xiamen, we visited the pretty little piano island of Gulangyu, and these were being sold everywhere as street food.
I recommend trying them as a quick light summer breakfast or snack if you like slightly (or very) sour fruits. You just need to slice the top of the passionfruit off, and pop a short straw in to enjoy it as a drink. A little note though, use straws that are wide enough for the passion fruit seeds to get through. I eat the wrinkly passion fruits this way because that are over-ripe and very sweet.
