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We know that the culinary customs in Asian countries often differ greatly from Spanish tastes. And it is clearly exemplified in the dish we show you below. You have probably never considered eating stones, unless you have lithophagia (tendency to ingest stones), but if you have walked through the streets of the Chinese province of Hubei, you may have seen a dish that is cooked by sautéing stones. It’s called Suodiu, which is Chinese for “suck and throw.”
In Suodiu, river stones are combined with spices, vegetables and a lot of spice that results in a dish with a lot of flavor, thanks to the chili oil, garlic sauce and chopped peppers. This typical Chinese recipe has become very viral on the social network Xiaohongshu, which would be the equivalent of Instagram or TikTok.
How to prepare and eat the Suodiu
For its preparation, experts recommend using stones that come directly from the river. Then, they should be fried in lard or any other animal (or vegetable) fat, so that the flavor of the rocks is perfectly combined with the oil. Then you add some garlic, chilies, ginger, onions, carrots, cabbage, peppers and more vegetables to turn it into a kind of soup. The finishing touch is a little ground pepper.
The way to eat this street dish is very simple: the stones are sucked to get the maximum flavor out of them and then thrown off the plate. When the rest of the edible ingredients are left on the plate, everything is eaten as a “normal” recipe. The price of each portion is usually less than 2.5 €.