Yunnan food, explained — Impression of Yunnan Table

First, some geography

Yunnan. South of the clouds.

Yunnan is China's far south-west: a province of high mountains and deep river valleys where China meets Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. The capital, Kunming, sits at 1,900 metres and stays mild all year. A few hours south, Xishuangbanna is tropical jungle on the Mekong.

Twenty-five ethnic groups live here, each with its own kitchen. That is why almost nothing on this menu tastes like the Chinese food most of Sydney already knows.

1,900 mKunming's altitude

25ethnic groups

3borders: Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam

8,300 kmnorth-west of Sydney

Boundary: Natural Earth. Dotted line: the Mekong (Lancang) river, approximate.

KunmingSmall-pot rice noodles, Mushroom braised rice
DaliPork with pickled greens, Mashed potato
LijiangCrispy beef jerky, Crispy fried pork
Shangri-LaVelvet shank mushrooms, Beef with king oyster mushrooms
XishuangbannaDai cold rice noodles, Passion fruit fish, Pork ribs with mint

Then, the flavours

What Yunnan tastes like

菌Wild mushrooms

Mushrooms from the mountains

More edible wild mushrooms come from Yunnan than anywhere else in China. In season, whole markets sell nothing else. Here: mushroom braised rice, velvet shank with green chili, termite-mushroom noodles.

酸Sour and herbal

Lime, mint and lemongrass, Dai style

The Dai are the people of Yunnan's tropical south, cousins of the Thai and Lao. Their cooking is sour, fresh and herbal: lemongrass, mint, lime, a little chili. Here: Dai-style hand-shredded chicken, passion fruit fish.

腊Cured and smoked

Meat that keeps

Mountain winters mean air-dried beef and crisp fried pork, sliced thin and thrown in a hot wok. Here: crispy beef jerky (ganba), Yunnan crispy fried pork.

芋Potatoes

A staple, not a side

Yunnan treats the potato with respect: mashed with chili and herbs until it is a main course, not a side. Here: old-grandma mashed potato.

腌Pickled greens

A jar of sour mustard greens in every kitchen

Yunnan pickled mustard greens are sour, salty and a little funky, and they go into everything: fried with pork, with crispy red beans, or into a bowl of noodles. Here: pork with pickled mustard greens, pickled greens with crispy red beans, small-pot rice noodles.

米Rice and sweet things

Pot rice and Paoluda

Rice cooked in the pot until the bottom crisps, and Paoluda, a coconut-and-sago dessert drink that crossed the border from Myanmar. Here: mushroom braised rice, Paoluda.

Now, this house

A small shop on Mary Ann Street

A heritage shopfront in Ultimo, a few minutes' walk from UTS and Central. Home-style cooking rather than banquet food: 49 dishes, most of them under twenty-five dollars, made to share. If you do not know what a Paoluda is, ask. The owners like explaining.

Passion fruit fishsweet and tangy, for one or two
Mushroom braised ricethe dish the reviews keep naming
Mint fried pork ribscrisp, tossed with fresh mint
Paoludathe coconut dessert drink to finish

See the full menu

“Several dishes have no counterparts that you'll find elsewhere in Sydney.”Paul N. · Google review