Guizhou, China
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
Guizhou is well off the beaten track, and has few visitors from the outside. There is an old saying in Chinese about Guizhou, saying that there are three things you will never see there: Three ounces of gold, three sunny days, or three acres of flat land. This saying is not far from the truth. It is the poorest province in China,however the people are very friendly and hospitable, often treating guests to several meals in a row and not letting them pay for anything. (Speaking about meals, the food there is excellent. Lots of chilli peppers and lots of course rice comes with it).
The weather in Guizhou seems to be very gloomy most of the time, with a kind of misty drizzle coming down more often than not, which makes all the paths muddy. It is also fairly cold in winter, hovering around zero. 87% of the land is mountainous, making neccessary for survival the picturesque step-like fields of rice paddies going up the sides of mountains that are so common for this part of China. Guizhou is only a province away from Tibet, which explains its moutainous terrain, and right next door to Sichuan, from which it gets the spicy food. A large proportion of the population belongs to several of China's 55 minority groups, specifically Miao and Gejia, Buyi, Dong, Tujia, Yi, Gelao, Shui, Hui, and Bai
Recipie
one third cup of lard
cup and a half of hot peppers
one half to one whole chicken (or the same amount of pork)
one tablespoon salt
put the lard and peppers in a wok over a coal stove. Stir until the lard melts. Add the meat, chopped into bite-sized
pieces. Let cook until done. Sprinkle salt on top. Stir in. Eat straight from the wok. Serves 4-6.
