Kunshan cuisine: the best bites of autumn

Steamed lotus root cooked with sticky rice and drizzled with osmanthus honey or brown sugar. [Photo from Wechat account ksntv0512]

Steamed lotus root stuffed with sticky rice (Chinese: 桂花糯米藕)

Typically eaten from mid-August to early October

Autumn is the harvest season for lotus roots, a delicious and nutritious vegetable that has been consumed by people in China for thousands of years. The lotus root is known to increase the appetite and has a wide range of health benefits including replenishing the body’s water levels, providing high amounts of vitamin C, and warding off autumnal illnesses.

Although you can find lotus root on most restaurant menus – especially when in season– it’s also a fun and easy vegetable to cook at home. Simply wash the lotus root to remove dirt, cut into medium-sized slices, and layer inside your rice cooker. Then cover the holes of the lotus root with sticky rice and boil the mixture for an hour. The last step is to drizzle the lotus root with osmanthus infused honey or brown sugar.