Xi Jinping and 'the taste of home'

"He was too busy to cook. So he ate with my family. He gave us all his monthly ration of 20 kg of grain. We ate together. He was never a picky eater. He ate whatever we cooked," said Zhang.

Decades later, the leader of hundreds became the leader of 1.4 billion; it gave him a taste of things to come. It was in Liangjiahe that a 15-year-old who, in his own words, "knew nothing," learnt how to live and work.

"He's such a person. He can swallow the worst food, and he always respects even the poorest people," said Zhang.

Xi's years in Liangjiahe cemented a concern for food security and nutrition. Life for the villagers was hard, often no meat would grace their tables for months.