Sure, regular readers of these pages are completely aware that the natural flavour of milk does not agree with the average Chinese palate. And this continues to clash with the position of dairy products in the top layer of the Chinese nutrition pyramid.

I have introduced yoghurt and ice cream with peculiar flavours that are more in line with traditional flavour patterns of the Chinese, to mask the ‘creamy’ flavour of milk. In this post, I will introduce dairy products flavoured according to entire classic Chinese dishes, as available in China at the date of this post. Most of these are not produced by the large national dairy giants like Yili or Mengniu, but by regional or local companies.

White sliced chicken

White sliced chicken, baiqieji, is a classic starter in Cantonese cuisine. It is chicken cooked in a broth with ginger and scallions, served cold to be dipped in soy sauce. Yuexiu Dairy is producing a ‘ginger scallion white sliced chicken milk’. A cool looking chicken is showing a glass of the milk alongside the original dish.

Halal milk

Xiajin Dairy is the largest dairy processor of Ningxia province. It is a region with a large Muslim population, so Xiajin is offering a range of beef and mutton flavoured milks. An salient detail: the middle product is a mutton flavoured cow milk.

Tomato

Chinese like to eat sliced tomatoes with a little sugar as a snack or starter. Jiabao from Guangdong is offering sugared tomato milk.

Dim sum

Dim sum, a table full of small plates with savoury delicacies is a favourite lunch in Guangdong province. Chenguang Dairy from Shenzhen has developed a series of milks mimicking some favourite dim sum.

Whenever I run across new exciting flavours, I will add them here. However, tasting all the above products will keep you busy for a while.

Peter Peverelli is active in and with China since 1975 and regularly travels to the remotest corners of that vast nation. He is a co-author of a major book introducing the cultural drivers behind China’s economic success