Jiangyin, referred to as Cheng, formerly known as Jiyang, is a small city located in the south of Jiangsu Province.

Although it is a small place, Jiangyin has a long history. Jiangyin’s food culture is a shining pearl in Jiangyin’s history.

Jiangyin is located at the northern end of the Taihu Plain in the Yangtze River Delta, bordering the Yangtze River to the north, Taihu Lake to the south, Zhangjiagang and Changshu to the east, and Changzhou and Wujin to the west. It is shaped like a big goldfish with its head east and tail west.

It is this unique geographical location that brings Jiangyin the famous "three delicacies of the Yangtze River" - anchovy, saury, and puffer fish.

Anchovy goes upstream from the coast and enters the river from May to June every year. It is one of the rare freshwater fishes and is listed as the first of the four famous fish in my country: anchovy, sturgeon (Chinese sturgeon), pomfret, and yellowtail.

Every year from March to April, saury appears on every household’s table in Jiangyin, and steamed saury is my favorite.

There is no need to remove the scales of the steamed saury, just add a few seasonings and a few slices of ginger. The steamed saury will have delicate meat and a delicious taste, but be careful, as the saury also has a lot of fish bones.

Unfortunately, due to changes in the ecological environment in recent years, the Yangtze saury is facing extinction.

Although pufferfish meat is delicious, pufferfish poison cannot be underestimated. Improper handling or gluttony can kill people.

When talking about Jiangyin, we have to mention Jiangyin’s Horseshoe Cake.

Horseshoe cake is a local specialty of Jiangyin in history. Jiangyin's horseshoe cake is different from other places. It is made of heavy oil, heavy sugar, red bean paste, and black sesame. Because it is shaped like a horseshoe, it is named horseshoe cake.

The water chestnut cake is fragrant and soft, has a sweet and oily taste, and melts in your mouth. It is both soft and crispy, with both color and flavor. It is said that "if you have not visited the Great Wall, you are not a hero. It would be a pity not to eat the water chestnut cake."

Horseshoe cake was created in the late Ming Dynasty and early Qing Dynasty to commemorate Jiangyin’s anti-Qing struggle, so it is shaped like a horseshoe.

After successive generations of reforms, it became the chrysanthemum shape it is today.

In the eyes of Jiangyin people, chrysanthemum-shaped horseshoe cakes are called horseshoe cakes, and other so-called horseshoe cakes are called wife cakes or butterfly cakes.

"Three delicacies of the Yangtze River" and horseshoe cake are one of Jiangyin's specialties. Another specialty of Jiangyin is black gin wine.

Black Du wine is also called Jiangyin black wine. According to legend, it was created by the "Jiu Xian" Du Kang, hence its name.

In Jiangyin, on the morning of the Spring Festival, you must eat red soup for reunion, which means reunion and prosperity.

After the reform and opening up, with the economic and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries and the mutual penetration of east-west, north-south culture, Jiangyin's catering industry has introduced more new dishes and new points with various tastes and flavors, making people feel dazzled and beautiful.