According to old Beijing custom, the third day of the third lunar month is the day for enjoying Wandou Huang – pea flour cake. This humble snack began as a street food, but its delicious flavour soon carried it all the way to the imperial kitchens of the Qing dynasty. Small as it may be, Wandou Huang carries a cultural and historical weight far beyond its size. Its ingredients and methods may not be as complex as those of modern Western pastries, but its pure, honest sweetness lingers in the memory long after the last bite.
Eating Pea Flour Cake, Welcoming the Hope of Spring
There are two types of pea flour cake: rough (cāo) and fine (xì).
The fine version was served at places like the famous Fangshan Restaurant and Yilan Hall in Beihai Park. The rough version, on the other hand, was a common sight at temple fairs. Vendors would cook yellow peas in earthenware pots until they became a soft paste, mix in red dates, let the mixture set in a mould, and turn it out into diamond-shaped pieces. They would then load these onto handcarts and sell them at spring temple fairs. The hawkers’ calls – “Hey! Big chunks of pea cake with dates!” – became a familiar sound that signalled the arrival of spring. Their shouts didn’t just bring food; they brought the season’s first warmth and a sense of hope.
Pea flour cake is a pale golden yellow, smooth and delicately sweet, with a cool, refreshing texture that melts on the tongue – making it a perfect summer treat. The name comes from its main ingredient and colour, and the very best peas are said to come from Zhangjiakou in Hebei province.
From Street Cart to Imperial Table
Legend has it that one day, the Empress Dowager Cixi was resting in the Jingxin Studio beside Beihai Lake when she heard the clatter of a gong and the cries of street vendors from beyond the palace walls. Curious, she sent an attendant to investigate. The reply came back: it was a seller of pea flour cake and cloud bean rolls. Intrigued, Cixi ordered the vendor brought before her. The man knelt and presented his wares. One taste was enough – the Empress was delighted. She kept the man in the palace, making him her personal chef for these two snacks.
From that moment, pea flour cake and cloud bean rolls rose from the streets to the imperial table, becoming cherished palace delicacies. Not long after the fall of the Qing dynasty, former imperial chefs opened the famous Fangshan Restaurant (Fangshan meaning “imitation of the imperial kitchen”) in 1925, bringing these once-exclusive palace treats to the public. Today, Fangshan’s pea flour cake is still considered the gold standard.
Rough vs. Fine: Two Traditions, One Beloved Snack
The rough version was a springtime favourite at temple fairs. Made by stewing white peas with red dates and sugar until thick, then cooling the mixture into a firm block, it was cut into diamond-shaped pieces and garnished with small slices of golden cake. Hawkers typically sold it from handcarts covered with damp blue cloth.
The fine version was the imperial kitchen’s refinement of the rustic original. The peas were cooked until soft, then passed through a fine sieve to create a silky smooth paste. Sugar and osmanthus flowers were added for fragrance, and the mixture was set and cut into small squares, each topped with a slice of candied cake. The result was a snack of exquisite colour, aroma, and texture – delicate, pure, and meltingly smooth.
The Art of Making Pea Flour Cake
Though the ingredients are simple – peas and sugar – the process demands skill. The dried yellow peas are soaked, boiled until soft, and then stirred and cooked down with sugar. The cook must watch the heat carefully until the pea paste reaches just the right consistency. For the imperial version, the paste was passed through an extremely fine 30-mesh sieve – a process that could take up to four hours. The mixture is then poured into a mould, chilled until set, and cut into pieces.
Modern Twists on a Classic
At Huguosi Snacks – one of Beijing’s most beloved traditional snack shops, with a history dating back to 1956 – Wandou Huang remains a star attraction. On an ordinary day, the kitchen makes two or three batches; during the New Year holiday, that number jumps to seven or eight, with each batch yielding about 800 pieces. The snack is best enjoyed fresh, but it keeps well for a few days and can even be frozen.
In recent years, Huguosi has also revived the traditional practice of iced pea flour cake – a summer treat that hadn’t been seen in Beijing for over half a century. In the days before refrigerators, vendors would pack ice around the pea cake to keep it cool, much like street-side soda sellers in the 1980s and 90s. Today, the shop has perfected the temperature: pea flour cake tastes best between 5°C and 14°C, when it is cool and refreshing without being overly chilled. They’ve even created a new “iced pea fruit birthday cake” version with sweet dates and dried persimmons. And for those who crave something even more innovative, Huguosi has also introduced pea flour cake ice cream – a playful fusion that preserves the authentic flavour of old Beijing in a cool, modern form.
Where to Find It
For the most authentic Wandou Huang, head to Huguosi Snacks (护国寺小吃店 locations across Beijing, with the flagship store on Huguosi Street). You can also find excellent versions at Fangshan Restaurant(仿膳饭庄) in Beihai Park, which continues the imperial tradition. In 1997, the pea flour cake made by Beijing’s Tingliguan Restaurant (听鹂馆餐厅) was honoured as one of the first “National Famous Snacks of China” by the China Cuisine Association. And in 2016, Fangshan’s version was named a “China Gold Medal Tourist Snack”.
Whether you try it at a humble snack shop or a historic restaurant, pea flour cake offers more than just a sweet, cool bite. It carries the flavours of Beijing’s temple fairs, the legacy of the imperial court, and the warmth of a city that has been sharing this simple pleasure for generations. It’s a taste of spring, of history, and of home – all in one golden square.
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