Steamed Corn Bread (窝头 Wotou)

Wotou is a form of staple food in many northern regions of China. Made of corn flour, it is in the shape of a cone hollow from the base, rather like an inverted wo (bird's nest), hence its name.

It used to be the cheap coarse food for the poor, but a kind of miniature wotou is served by Fangshan (imitation royal kitchen) Restaurant in Beijing as a specialty of the imperial cuisine. This may seem hard to understand but it is explained by the following anecdote.

When China was invaded by the troops of the eight imperialist powers in 1900, Empress Dowager Cixi fled Beijing with Emperor Guangxu for Xi'an. On the way, Cixi was offered a piece of corn bread which, in her hunger, she ate with great relish. Back in Beijing amidst the luxuries of the palace, she told the imperial kitchen to make wotou for her which she had found so tasty. The chef dared not contradict her but used the best and most refined corn flour he could find and mixed in it chestnut butter, sugar and sweetened osmanthus flowers. With these ingredients he made dainty piece of wotou which he steamed under cover over a strong fire. The resultant wotou looded golden and tasted good. It became one of the delicacies on the imperial menu.