Chess-piece-flat pork medallions from the Zhili Governor's official table — flattened specifically to sidestep a naming taboo in Yuan Shikai's era, then pan-fried golden and braised in a soy-fermented glaze until each coin of meat gleams with savory depth.
Southern pan-frying (南煎) originated as a culinary technique from South China, entering Baoding kitchens via the interchange of regional cooking traditions at the Zhili Governor's table. The dish is said to trace to Nanqi Village (南奇村) in Baoding Prefecture. According to accounts preserved in local culinary records, when Yuan Shikai served as Zhili Governor (1901–1907), the round meatballs already on the kitchen's menu posed a homophonic problem — the character for 'round' (圆, yuán) sounds like his surname (袁, Yuán). Kitchen staff reportedly resolved the delicacy by flattening each ball into a chess-piece disc, preserving the flavor while sidestepping the taboo. The dish in this flattened form became a fixture of official banquets. Zhili Official Cuisine was inscribed on China's National Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2011.
The golden disc yields a brief crunch before giving way to a juicy, tightly packed pork center. Yellow bean paste and soy sauce build a savory-sweet depth; the glaze clings evenly to every flat surface, leaving a lingering, rounded finish.
Southern pan-frying delivers its characteristic contrast in two stages. The first pan-fry at around 180 °C triggers Maillard browning on the flattened surface — the large flat face area of the disc shape maximizes this browning relative to a sphere. The seared crust seals in juices while the interior pork proteins (myosin, actin) set at 65–70 °C, keeping the center moist. The second stage — braising in a yellow bean paste and soy sauce mixture — allows the Maillard-generated aromatics in the crust to fuse with the fermented umami compounds of the paste, creating the layered 汪油亮芡 (oil-sheen glaze) characteristic of Zhili Official Cuisine.
Variations
Some versions fold minced water chestnut or lotus root into the meat mixture for added crunch and to keep the pork from compacting too densely. A leaner lamb or beef version exists in Muslim Hebei households. The sauce may be enriched with fermented tofu (腐乳) for a funkier, more complex glaze.
On the Palate
Where Pan-Fried Meatballs sits in the Chinese flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
7 steps · 30 min
- 110 min
Mince scallion and ginger; soak in 3 tbsp cold water for 10 minutes, then discard the solids to make scallion-ginger water. This avoids dark specks on the surface during frying.
Watch outSoak the scallion and ginger in water, then discard the solids and use only the water — this keeps dark specks off the surface as the discs fry.
- 210 min
Combine ground pork with egg, cornstarch, soy sauce, yellow bean paste, sugar, sesame oil, and the scallion-ginger water. Stir vigorously in one direction until the mixture tightens and becomes slightly sticky.
Watch outStir the pork one direction until it tightens and turns slightly sticky — under-worked mince falls apart and won't hold the disc shape.
- 310 min
With moistened hands, roll the mixture into balls about 3 cm in diameter, then press each gently between palms to flatten into a disc roughly 1 cm thick.
- 48 min
Heat vegetable oil in a flat-bottomed pan or wok over medium-high heat. Arrange the discs in a single layer and pan-fry undisturbed for 3 minutes until the bottom is deep golden. Flip once and fry the other side for 2–3 minutes.
Watch outFry the discs undisturbed three minutes until the bottom's deep golden before flipping — moving them early tears the seared crust.
- 53 min
Remove the browned meatball discs and set aside. In the same pan, add a little fresh oil and stir-fry a pinch of minced ginger until fragrant.
- 612 min
Add soy sauce, a touch of sugar, Shaoxing wine, and enough stock or water to just cover the base of the pan. Return the meatball discs, cover, and braise over low heat for 10–12 minutes.
- 77 min
Uncover; increase heat to high to reduce the sauce to a thick, glossy glaze that coats each disc. Transfer to a serving plate and serve immediately.
