Yihe Cheng, an ICH in Xiajin: Preserving centuries-old traditional flavors

Yihe Cheng pastry-making techniques. [Video by Deng Meiping provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

In the production area of Xiajin Yihe Cheng Food, a huge cutting board is surrounded by pastry chefs kneading and rolling three different sizes of colored dough into strips, then adding fillings and shaping them into small balls. 

Pastries have strict requirements for the dough recipe and the ratio of sugar, flour, and water. Yihe Cheng Food uses maltose, which has less sugar content and is considered healthier than white sugar. 

A successful pastry must undergo a series of processes, including shaping and deep-frying. During the deep-frying process, it needs to be fried at both low and high temperatures to ensure the proper form and texture for each pastry.

Yihe Cheng's pastry in Xiajin County is a municipal-level intangible cultural heritage (ICH) item of Dezhou. Founded by pastry expert Li Sen during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in 1892, it has a history of nearly 130 years. 

The Yihe Cheng pastry has traditional northern characteristics, as it is fragrant, sweet, and crispy. There are over a dozen varieties, with the most famous being honey mito, horseshoe pastry, and honeycomb cake. (Edited by Huang Junyao)