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Street Food on Old Kunming Street 老昆明街

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Old Kunming Street 老昆明街

At night, we went to Old Kunming Street 老昆明街 to walk around. There are TONS of fun things to try here. We had already enjoyed a lovely dinner at 福照楼汽锅鸡·云南菜 Fuzhao Lou Steam Pot Chicken, so we didn't have room to each as much as we would have liked.

Still, we prioritized coming to a few of our friends' favorite spots in the old city.

Handmade Rice Balls 陈嬢嬢大馅汤圆

Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
Glutinous rice balls can be found all over China, but the ones at this Yunnan shop right in the center of Old Kunming Street makes them to order (by hand!) and fills them with very local ingredients.
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
If you’re up for a surprise, the best one to order is the “Surprise”, 普洱茶四喜汤圆 where you get a tasting of their four signature rice balls (one of each) with local Pu’er tea as the base broth.
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
The “surprise” 四喜 （literally, “four joys”) is that they all look the same from the outside, so you can’t tell which one you’re eating until you bite into it. Aside from black sesame, which is a popular flavor everywhere in China, the other flavors are Yunnan ham, walnut, and rose.
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
Black Sesame
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
Frankly speaking, my favorite was the Yunnan jam (shown above), which had an unusual combination of sweet + salty. The others were also pretty tasty. It’s certainly a fun thing to do, though glutinous rice balls can quickly fill you up!

Huize Fried Potatoes 会泽炸洋芋

Another way to enjoy potatoes is on the street, as fries tossed in the spice blend of your choice. 会泽 Huize is a town in Yunnan which is famous for potatoes.

Old Kunming Street 老昆明街
The term 洋芋(Yang Yu) literally means “Foreign Taro”. I guess when Chinese people first encountered the waxy potato, the closest thing they could associate it with was the taro. Here, special fries made with Huize potatoes are doubled fried. The woman tossed our choice of spice/sauce with a bowl of (once-fried) potatoes and fried it a second time before our eyes.
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街

Eat with skewers, and just enjoy the beautiful flavors of this waxy potato.
Old Kunming Street 老昆明街

Yogurt Drink with Purple Rice

And then, finally, my friend told me about the yogurt drink with purple rice (his daughter's favorite!). This light yogurt drink is refreshingly not too sweet (nor too sour). The added purple glutinous rice adds a nice chew, similar to boba. I loved it, even though I was SOOOO full already. I drank half, kept it in the fridge overnight, and still very much enjoyed the leftovers the next morning. Despite the rice having softened a bit, it was still delicious.

Sorry, I forgot to take a photo! But it looks a lot like a boba drink except it's filled with deep purple rice.

Related Posts in this Kunming Series
An exploration of Yunnan specialties from a number of great, casual sit-down restaurants
Our visit to a local Yi Village and the farm-to-table meal we enjoyed
Local Street Food on Old Kunming Street
Crossing the Bridge Noodle at a delightful local shop with a really passionate owner

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