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As Wuhan comes out of lockdown many are asking: where is Auntie Xiong and her delicious street food?
- Fifth in a series exploring the different experiences of Covid-19 survivors from around the world
- She may not have been famous but this cook will be missed by devoted customers
Reading Time:4 minutes
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As traffic jams and other trappings of urban life return to the streets of Wuhan, something in the city’s old town feels off. Where is Auntie Xiong?
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Before the coronavirus outbreak forced the city into a months-long lockdown that was lifted on Wednesday, Xiong could be seen daily at her breakfast stall at a bustling corner on Shenyang Road, standing behind a wok of sizzling oil and frying one of Wuhan’s best-known snacks.
The snack, called mianwo, is a savoury, doughnut-shaped nest that pairs with Wuhan-style rice wine or the famous breakfast staple, hot-and-dry noodles.
Xiong, in her fifties, had been at it for more than a decade. The business allowed her family, originally from a northern suburb of Wuhan, to raise three children in the city centre. In the process, she built a loyal base of hungry Wuhanese who craved the fried dough every morning before they went off to work.
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“It was the best mianwo I’ve ever had,” Zeng, a 50-year-old Wuhan resident, said. His family of three are all fans of Auntie Xiong’s snacks.
“The ratio of rice flour and soy was just right. The outer ring was soft and meaty, and the inner side was brown and crispy.”
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