A famous culinary dish, made with bamboo shoots, is served in Jingning county. [Photo/WeChat account: jnxlyj]

Jingning She autonomous county – under the jurisdiction of Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province – is home to hundreds of hectares of bamboos and as a result seasonal bamboo shoots have become a common gastronomic delicacy at the dinner table there during spring.

In late April each year, local farmers head up into the mountains to find the finest bamboo shoots with white and tender meat.

One of the famous dishes with bamboo shoots in Jingning is to stew the chopped shoots with rice wine, soy sauce, sugar and other seasonings. The stewing process may take about 180-220 minutes, but it is well worth the wait. 

According to locals, the final simmering is the highlight, under a warm flame that makes the dish tender and delicious.

The secret to making the bamboo shoots dish is the long stewing. [Photo/WeChat account: jnxlyj]