Made by the Bai people of Dali, northwestern Yunnan, since at least the Yuan dynasty (13th-14th century) when Mongol-era pastoralism brought dairy practice to the region. The Bai are one of the few ethnic groups in southern China with a developed dairy tradition. "Fan" (扇) refers to the shape — milk is acid-set with sour-papaya water (papaya boiled to extract its acid), then stretched and wound onto a rod into a thin sheet that dries in fan form. The name derives from the Bai word for 'milk thread' (乳线), later written 乳扇 'milk fan' for its shape.
Bai-people dairy from Dali — one of the few southern Chinese ethnic groups with a developed milk tradition, going back to Yuan-era pastoralism (13th-14th century). Acid-set, not rennet — sour whey from the previous batch around pH 4.6, a continuous culture running for centuries.
Pale yellow sheets of fresh cow-milk cheese pulled into thin fans on a bamboo rack, drying in the sun. Eaten three ways: raw with sugar (chewy, slightly sour), pan-fried until it puffs and browns (like halloumi but milkier), or grilled over coals and rolled around rose-petal jam. The texture is firm-elastic, not crumbly. Tastes mostly of milk; a faint whey tang at the finish.
Acid coagulation with sour-papaya water, not rennet: papaya is boiled to make a sour water, heated to around 70°C, and fresh cow milk is poured in; the acid plus heat coagulate the casein on the spot (in off-season or northern areas, smoked plum / 乌梅 can supply the acid instead). The stretching while warm aligns casein into long fibers; this is why milk fan stays elastic in oil instead of melting like ricotta.
Variations
Xizhou village version stays closest to the original — eaten raw with brown sugar; Dali Old Town shops grill it and roll it around rose-petal jam; Kunming cafés melt it over coffee or shave it cold over ice (a 2010s tourism invention, not traditional).
On the Palate
Where Dali Milk Fan sits in the Chinese flavor cloud
Ingredients
How it's made
5 steps · 30 min
- 115 min
Heat cow milk until it starts to simmer.
Watch outBring the milk just to a lazy simmer with a rim of tiny bubbles — a hard boil scorches it and toughens the curd before the acid can work.
- 25 min
Add sour whey to the milk to curdle it.
Watch outThe moment you add the sour whey, the milk should split into soft white flakes in seconds — if it stays smooth, the water isn't sour enough or the milk's too cool.
- 32 min
Strain the curds and shape them into thin sheets.
Watch outGather and stretch the warm curd while it's still supple so it pulls into long fibers — let it cool first and it tears instead of stretching into a sheet.
- 45 min
Dry the sheets until firm.
- 55 min
Dust with sugar before serving if desired.
Archive tool suggestions — not reviewed
These legacy suggestions have not been evidence-reviewed and are not presented as required tools.
