I recommend a quiet ancient town in the south of the Yangtze River: Lili. Maybe you've never heard of this place name before.
The ancient towns are all similar, with white walls and tiles and small bridges and flowing water. But Lili is the oldest town I have ever seen, with many local specialties.
As a foodie, I personally think it is worthwhile to go to Lili just for these delicious foods.
There are too many famous ancient towns in Jiangnan.
Suzhou Lili Ancient Town is located in Zhujiajiao, Shanghai, adjacent to Xitang, Zhejiang in the east, Nanxun and Wuzhen, Zhejiang in the west, and Wujiang Tongli, Wuzhong, Zhouzhuang and Jinxi in the north.
And Lili, like a hermit living here, is hiding in a boudoir.
Because I like it, I lived in Lili ancient town for five days and four nights, and searched for all kinds of delicious food in the ancient town. There are many special snacks in the ancient town: sleeve sausage, oil pier, spicy chicken feet, tiger beans, begonia cake ...
This article shares the most worthwhile shops in the ancient town.
When it comes to Lili food, Lili spicy chicken feet definitely rank first.
There are small shops selling spicy chicken feet everywhere in the ancient town, and many people will pack them and take them away. A kilo of 30 yuan is not expensive. In fact, every store has different flavors of Lili spicy chicken feet, each with its own merits.
Famous spicy chicken feet shops include Wang Ji spicy chicken feet and Suara spicy chicken feet. If you walk into any restaurant in Lili, you can also order a spicy chicken foot.
This is spicy chicken feet from Lichuan Private Restaurant, which I like better. Spicy chicken feet are not spicy, but they also have a lot of sour and sweet tastes.
The spicy chicken feet of Shangtangqiao Hotel in Guzhen are highly praised by the friends. It is near a bridge. Very emotional.
Lili's spicy chicken feet are hard to rank as the best, because everyone has different tastes and preferences. You won't know until you eat it yourself.
Intussusception is something that people who like to eat like, but people who don't like to eat can't eat a bite. This is the most famous intussusception shop in Lili ancient town: Laojie intussusception.
Casings are sold by the catty, 135 yuan/catty. However, most people in the ancient town eat a bowl of sausage noodles and a bowl of 28 yuan.
Intussusception in Lili old street is a real large intestine with small intestine, which has been a famous dish in Lili since the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, with a history of more than 300 years.
This is a couple's shop, and the proprietress is very simple and enthusiastic.
One large intestine is stuffed with eight small intestines, and the production process of intussusception is really heavy.
Clean the large intestine and small intestine, remove the fishy smell with onion, ginger and yellow wine, cover and cook for 2-3 hours, and it will be white and tender.
This intestine can clearly see the small intestine inside.
The sauce poured on the sleeve is secret. After a few bites, it was very chewy and indescribable. Try it yourself.
This shop sells both crab cakes and plum cakes. The boss said that the materials are the same, but the utensils made are different, one is begonia-shaped and the other is plum-shaped.
Sanyuan Begonia Cake is filled with bean paste. The most important thing is to put a piece of lard in it to have a unique flavor.
Sprinkle melon seeds and sesame seeds on the surface, seven in a pot, and the production time is about 5 minutes. Eating now is the best.
The last step is to scorch the sugar, and the heated surface of the sugar will be scorched, so that it will be fragrant.
When you come to the ancient town of Lili, you must eat one at Youdun. Five-yuan oil piers are all over the streets and alleys of Lili ancient town.
Ji Feng Oil Terminal is famous, but this Lujia Oil Terminal is a local time-honored brand. The plaque reads: Emperor Qianlong's oil wharf was rated as a century-old shop.
The 50-year-old Lu, his grandparents and grandchildren all made a living by selling dock oil. This is him and his father. Every day, two men are busy in the shop, selling small oil piers by hard work.
Boss Lu said that during holidays, 4,000-5,000 oil piers can be sold in one day, and at ordinary times, 500-600 oil piers should be sold in one day.
Secretly calculated, a day to sell 600 oil pier, a 5 yuan, a day's turnover is 3000 yuan, a year is 100! A small shop is really impressive.
The store also sells green balls, small wonton, malt cakes and so on.
The oil of the fried pier is rapeseed oil, which has a unique fragrance. The bean paste stuffing in the oil pier is all made by ourselves, and there are osmanthus flowers in it.
It's really delicious, but the oil pier is really too big and the stuffing inside is very full. Eat one and you'll be full.
In addition, in Lili ancient town, there are many old brands such as Luji fleshy wonton.
Lili ancient town is very suitable for shopping and eating. When you are tired of shopping, find a teahouse or cafe and sit for an afternoon.
To my surprise, even during the National Day holiday, there are not many tourists here during the day, in twos and threes. Suitable for leisure and relaxation, suitable for tourists who like quiet.
The history of Lili can be traced back to 2500 years ago, when it was a village, from village to city, from city to town, and it became a market town in the Southern Song Dynasty. Hongzhi has become an important town in the south of the Yangtze River with a history of nearly 900 years.
I like Lili, except for the special food, because the people who live here are local people and are not commercialized at all. Everyone nearby knows the people here, and they keep saying hello all the way. The distance between people is very close.
This is really the most civilized and quiet ancient town in Jiangnan that I have ever seen. Come to Lili for dinner sometime!