Wotou Explained

Wotou
Alternate Name:Steamed corn bread, Wowotou
Country:China
Region:northern China, Beijing
Type:Bread
Main Ingredient:Corn flour (or millet flour and soybean flour)

Wotou or wowotou, also called Chinese cornbread, is a type of steamed bread made from cornmeal in Northern China.

Etymology

"Wotou" literally translates to "nest thing", since the wotou resembles a bird's nest with its hollow cone shape.

History

Wōtóu is in the shape of a hollow cone. It was a cheap food for poor people, but a legend grew on how it became a dish served in the Imperial Kitchens. The legend says that during Empress Dowager Cixi's flight to Xi'an from the Battle of Peking (1900) when the Eight-Nation Alliance invaded China in the Boxer Rebellion, Cixi received a bunch of corn buns to satiate her hunger. After her return to Beijing, she ordered the Imperial cooks to make it again for her, and the chef used more refined ingredients to create the golden colored wotou bun, which became one of the Imperial dishes.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] The full name of the bun was 宮廷小窩頭 (gōngtíng xiǎo wōtóu - the "Royal Wotou").[6] [7] It has been transformed into a popular food from its previous poor status.[8]

A cake called wowotou was cooked in the same pot as a cabbage after being "slapped on the side", and it was made out of corn-meal and served during the late Qing at Peking University.[9]

According to G. C. L. Howell in his article published in the China Journal of March 1934, The soy bean: A dietary revolution in China, wotou was made out of millet flour at a ratio of 8 to soy flour at 3 or 2 in north China.[10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16]

Wotou steamed bread would be heavy without soda, so it was lightened by adding some sodium bicarbonate according to the Chinese Economic Journal and Bulletin.[17] [18]

A "conical temple roof" is similar in appearance to the shape of the wotou.[19]

The Chinese Journal of Physiology described an experiment using mixed flour to make the hollow cone shaped wotou steamed bread, with it consisting of 2 parts millet, 2 parts red kaoliang, and 1 part soybean.[20] [21]

It was known as wotou 窩頭, "maize-soybean flour bread."[22] It was also known as wowotou 窩窩頭, "bean-millet bread".[23] [24] [25] [26] [27]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Steamed Corn Bread (窩頭 Wotou) - Information on Chinese Food . CHINA INFO ONLINE . 24 April 2014.
  2. Web site: Wotou - China Tour . 2006 . Beijing 2008 BEIJING INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL WEBSITE . citw2008.com, Beijing International Travel Website . 24 April 2014 . 24 October 2014 . https://archive.today/20141024073050/http://china.citw2008.com/html/2006/1014/35.shtml . dead.
  3. Web site: Steamed Bread in China, Mantou and Wotou - CITS . Mary . Bai . 20 Mar 2012 . CITS - China International Travel Service, Head Office, China Travel . 24 April 2014.
  4. Web site: Wotou . 2012 . hvMuseum.com . hvMuseum . 24 April 2014 . 24 October 2014 . https://archive.today/20141024073048/http://www.hvmuseum.com/museum/node/209 . dead.
  5. Web site: Chinese Food . 2013 . ChinaOnYourMind.com . ChinaOnYourMind.com, LLP. . 24 April 2014 . 11 November 2014 . https://archive.today/20141111224420/http://www.chinaonyourmind.com/Chinese%20culture/Chinese%20food.htm . dead.
  6. Web site: How to say Royal Wotou (Steamed Corn Bun) in Mandarin Chinese Pinyin . 2012. LearnChineseABC.com . 24 April 2014.
  7. Web site: Beijing Traditional Snacks . 2014-01-14 . www.ho-u.com . 晃游 . 24 April 2014 . 11 November 2014 . https://archive.today/20141111225028/http://www.ho-u.com/node/6127 . dead.
  8. News: yuan_zcen . 2008-10-28 . wotou . China Daily . 24 April 2014.
  9. Book: Anderson, E. N.. The Food of China. illustrated, reprint, revised. 1988. Yale University Press. 118. 0300047398. 24 April 2014.
  10. Book: History of Soymilk and Other Non-Dairy Milks (1226-2013): Including Infant Formulas, Calf Milk Replacers, Soy Creamers, Soy Shakes, Soy Smoothies, Almond Milk, Coconut Milk, Peanut Milk, Rice Milk, Sesame Milk, etc.. William. Shurtleff. William Shurtleff . Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2013. Soyinfo Center. 362. 978-1928914587. 24 April 2014.
  11. Book: History of Soybeans and Soyfoods in China and Taiwan, and in Chinese Cookbooks, Restaurants, and Chinese Work with Soyfoods Outside China (1024 BCE to 2014): Extensively Annotated Bibliography and Sourcebook, Including Manchuria, Hong Kong and Tibet. William. Shurtleff. H.T.. Huang. Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2014. Soyinfo Center. 1233. 978-1928914686. 24 April 2014.
  12. Book: History of Soybeans and Soyfoods in Japan, and in Japanese Cookbooks and Restaurants outside Japan (701 CE to 2014). William. Shurtleff. Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2014. Soyinfo Center. 1029. 978-1928914655. 24 April 2014.
  13. Book: History of Soy Flour, Grits and Flakes (510 CE to 2013): Extensively Annotated Bibliography and Sourcebook. William. Shurtleff. Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2013. Soyinfo Center. 371. 978-1928914631. 24 April 2014.
  14. Book: History of Soymilk and Other Non-Dairy Milks (1226-2013): Including Infant Formulas, Calf Milk Replacers, Soy Creamers, Soy Shakes, Soy Smoothies, Almond Milk, Coconut Milk, Peanut Milk, Rice Milk, Sesame Milk, etc. William. Shurtleff. Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2013. Soyinfo Center. 362. 978-1928914587. 24 April 2014.
  15. Book: History of Tofu and Tofu Products (965 CE to 2013). William. Shurtleff. Akiko. Aoyagi. illustrated. 2013. Soyinfo Center. 637. 978-1928914556. 24 April 2014.
  16. Book: China Journal, Volume 20. 1934. China society of science and arts. 142. 24 April 2014.
  17. Book: Chinese Economic Journal and Bulletin, Volume 1, Issue 1. 1927. Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information. 180. 24 April 2014.
  18. Book: Horvath, Arthemy A.. The Soybean as Human Food. Issue 3 of Booklet series, China Bureau of Economic Information Issue 3 of China. Government bureau of information. Booklet series. 3 of National Government of the Republic of China, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Labor, The Bureau of Industrial & Commercial Information, Booklet Series. 1927. Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information. 44. 24 April 2014.
  19. Book: Horvath, Arthemy A.. The Soybean as Human Food. Issue 3 of Booklet series, China Bureau of Economic Information Issue 3 of China. Government bureau of information. Booklet series. 3 of National Government of the Republic of China, Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Labor, The Bureau of Industrial & Commercial Information, Booklet Series. 1927. Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information. 45. 24 April 2014.
  20. Book: The Chinese Journal of Physiology, Volumes 13-14. Contributor Zhongguo sheng li xue hui. 1938. Chinese Physiological Society.. 288. 24 April 2014.
  21. Book: The Chinese Journal of Physiology (1927-1950)., Volume 13. 1938. Chinese Physiological Society.. 288. 24 April 2014.
  22. Book: Chinese Medical Journal, Volume 56. Contributors Zhonghua yi xue hui (1914?-1949), Zhonghua yi xue hui (China : 1949-). 1939. Chinese Medical Association. 103. 24 April 2014.
  23. Book: The Transactions of the Chinese Association for the Advancement of Science, Volume 4. Zhongguo ke xue she. 1926. Chinese Association for the Advancement of Science.. 26. 24 April 2014.
  24. Book: The Transactions of the Science Society of China, Volumes 1-5. Zhongguo ke xue she. 1922. Science Society of China. 26. 24 April 2014.
  25. Book: Transactions, Volumes 1-7. Zhongguo ke xue she. 1922. Science Society of China.. 26. 24 April 2014.
  26. Book: The Philippine Journal of Science, Volumes 29-30. Contributors Philippines. National Science Development Board, Philippines. Bureau of Science, Philippines. Dept. of Agriculture and Commerce, Institute of Science (Philippines), National Institute of Science and Technology (Philippines). 1926. National Science Development Board.. 291. 24 April 2014.
  27. Book: China Journal, Volume 20. 1934. China society of science and arts. 142. 24 April 2014.

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