The Water Banquet () is a Chinese set of dishes comprising eight cold and 16 warm dishes cooked in various broths, gravies, and juices. It is considered one of the "Three Wonders of

Luoyang Luoyang ( zh, s=洛阳, t=洛陽, p=Luòyáng) is a city located in the confluence area of the Luo River and the Yellow River in the west of Henan province, China. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zheng ...

"—a former

Chinese capital This is a list of historical capitals of China. Four Great Ancient Capitals There are traditionally four major historical capitals of China referred to as the "Four Great Ancient Capitals of China" (). The four are Beijing, Nanjing, Luoyang and X ...

located in

Henan Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Lu ...

—along with the

peony The peony or paeony () is any flowering plant in the genus ''Paeonia'', the only genus in the family Paeoniaceae. Peonies are native to Asia, Europe, and Western North America. Scientists differ on the number of species that can be distinguish ...

and the

Longmen Grottoes The Longmen Grottoes () or Longmen Caves are some of the finest examples of Chinese Buddhist art. Housing tens of thousands of statues of Shakyamuni Buddha and his disciples, they are located south of present-day Luoyang in Henan province, ...

. It has a history going back more than 1,000 years and the residents of Luoyang often use the Water Banquet to treat important guests or for important celebrations.

History

The Water Banquet is an offshoot of

Henan cuisine Henan cuisine or Yu cuisine refers to the cooking styles of the Henan province in China. Being landlocked on all sides, the influence of localized culinary styles is plentiful in Henan cuisine, such as blending styles from Jiangsu and Beijing. ...

and has existed since the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...

. It is sometimes credited to the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

Yuan Tiangang Yuan may refer to: Currency * Yuan (currency), the basic unit of currency in historic and contemporary mainland China and Taiwan ** Renminbi, the currency of modern mainland China, whose basic unit is yuan ** New Taiwan dollar, the currency used ...

, with the story that the dishes were supposed to mimic the life of

Wu Zetian Wu Zetian (624 – 16 December 705), personal name Wu Zhao, was List of rulers of China#Tang dynasty, Empress of China from 660 to 705, ruling first through others and later in her own right. She ruled as queen consort , empress consort th ...

, who seized power to rule as the empress of the restored

Zhou dynasty The Zhou dynasty ( ) was a royal dynasty of China that existed for 789 years from until 256 BC, the longest span of any dynasty in Chinese history. During the Western Zhou period (771 BC), the royal house, surnamed Ji, had military ...

. When this story is alluded to, it is known as the "Empress Wu Banquet". It was known as the "Luoyang Banquet" during the

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

. It particularly suits the city of

, whose dry climate, mountainous terrain, and lack of fruit makes soupy meals an attractive option. There are vegetables and meat dishes, cold and warm, and all kinds of flavors. There are, in total, 24 dishes. Every dish is served in bowls rather than plates and another meaning of its name comes from the way that diners are served their dishes in sequence, like flowing water. First, eight cold dishes are served with other drinks. The next 16 are the warm dishes, served in different-sized under-glazed blue bowls. They are divided into five courses, four courses of three dishes with similar flavors and then a final course of four dishes served at the end. In the first four courses, there will be a "big dish", accompanied by two "small dishes" as side dishes. This is called "going to the imperial court with sons" (). The first course's "big dish" is made of shredded turnip, which mimics the flavor of

swallow's nest soup Edible bird's nests, also known as swallow nests ( zh, c=燕窝, p=yànwō), are bird nests created from solidified saliva by edible-nest swiftlets, Indian swiftlets and other swiftlets of the genera ''Aerodramus'', ''Hydrochous'', '' Schouted ...

and is called the "Swallow Dish". The fourth "big dish" is either sweet vegetables or soup. The four "end dishes" are all soups, including sour vegetable egg soup, the "farewell dish".

Legend of the Swallow Dish

The "Swallow Dish" of the first hot course. It is said that when

was in Luoyang, a giant

turnip The turnip or white turnip ('' Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''rapa'') is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, fleshy taproot. Small, tender varieties are grown for human consumption, while larger varieties a ...

weighing tens of kilograms grew in

Dongguan Dongguan,; pinyin: alternately romanized via Cantonese as Tungkun, is a prefecture-level city in central Guangdong Province, China. An important industrial city in the Pearl River Delta, Dongguan borders the provincial capital of Guangzhou t ...

. Farmers thought it was a miracle and dedicated it to the Empress. Wu, tired of sumptuous feasts, was curious about what dishes could be made from turnip. The imperial cooks studied it and decided to steam the shredded turnip mixed with starch, then blend it in a broth. The Empress was very impressed by the swallow's nest-like flavor and complimented it, giving it its present name. In October 1973,

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Zhou Enlai Zhou Enlai ( zh, s=周恩来, p=Zhōu Ēnlái, w=Chou1 Ên1-lai2; 5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976) was a Chinese statesman, diplomat, and revolutionary who served as the first Premier of the People's Republic of China from September 1954 unti ...

accompanied the

Prime Minister of Canada The prime minister of Canada () is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority of the elected House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons ...

to Luoyang. Chefs

Wang Changsheng Wang may refer to: Names * Wang (surname) (王), a common Chinese surname * Wāng (汪), a less common Chinese surname * Titles in Chinese nobility * A title in Korean nobility * A title in Mongolian nobility Places * Wang River in Thailand ...

and Li Daxiong made the Swallow Dish and the two leaders ordered it twice. Because there was a carved peony in the dish, Premier Zhou remarked, "Luoyang's peonies are the best in the world. It even grows in these dishes. They should be called the 'Peony Swallow Dish'." The name has since been applied.

References

{{Luoyang Chinese cuisine