🍽️ Milk Fan

Milk stretched into fan shape, grilled with brown sugar.

Milk Fan is a traditional Bai dairy product of Dali, Yunnan, originating in the Dengchuan area around Erhai Lake. Fresh milk is warmed and curdled with an acidic water, then pulled into paper-thin, fan-shaped sheets and air-dried. Ivory in colour, it carries a rich, slightly tangy milk aroma. The traditional way is to soften it over charcoal or deep-fry it, then eat it sprinkled with white sugar or dipped in rose-brown-sugar syrup — crisp outside, soft inside, full of milky flavour; it is also shredded into stir-fries. Once a ceremonial food for honoured Bai guests, it is now a common street snack in Dali, and a grilled milk fan with a cup of roasted tea is a classic way to taste Bai culture.