Price is right for a Chinese street food breakfast

While on the hunt for the best Chinese breakfast, I have been continuously shocked at the cheap price of the products. I thought to myself, how can a pastry and a beverage cost just 2 yuan (31 US cents)? Broadening my breakfast option has always excited me as breakfast is my favorite meal of the day.

I went to multiple street food vendors. The reason I chose local street food vendors, in particular, is because it is important for me to support local businesses and because they have the best-tasting food in my opinion. The food is always so fresh, and you can even watch them make it! I have tried a variety of Chinese breakfasts, all of which I have deeply enjoyed, except for one.

Jianbing 煎饼 (Chinese crepes)

Unfortunately, I was not a huge fan of Chinese crepes, which is called jianbing. It is one of the most popular breakfasts that you will see at street food vendors. The Chinese crepe consists of some flour, savory/spicy sauces, an egg, chopped scallions/coriander and deep-fried crackers. I found the flavors and overall smell of this dish to be a bit strong and did not like the coriander flavoring.

Congyoubing 葱油饼 (scallion pancake)

The next breakfast item I tried was congyoubing, which is referred to as scallion pancake or green onion pancake. This pastry is made from dough and gets its crispy texture from being pan-fried. The pancake gets its flavor from the oil and chopped scallions. I remember trying this pastry for the first time and enjoying the crispy outside, and chewy texture on the inside.

Youtiao 油条, doujiang 豆浆 (Chinese churro and soy milk)

In addition to the congyoubing and the jianbing, I have also tried youtiao which is known as a Chinese churro, or a fried dough stick. As soon as I tried this for the first time, I knew it would be my all-time favorite Chinese pastry. The crunchy exterior with a soft interior goes so well together. I noticed that street vendors have often sold out of this pastry before late afternoon. This is because most people eat it for breakfast rather than later in the day.

There have been a couple of times where I have gone to a street vendor and ordered a youtiao and they always seem to ask me if I would like a doujiang to go with it, which is soy-bean milk. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the Chinese churro and soy milk go together, which is why it is no surprise that this quickly became my favorite Chinese breakfast.

This process of trying different Chinese breakfasts has been a great tool for me to practice my Chinese since I need to communicate my order in Chinese. I am used to my boyfriend, James, ordering things for me, but recently I have been pushing myself to interact more with the locals, which has helped improve my Chinese-speaking capabilities and confidence.

Through this process I have noticed that there are different ways of saying certain Chinese words in English. One will be the direct translation, and the other is a more accessible way to introduce an unfamiliar item to foreigners. For example, the direct translation of youtiao is fried dough stick, however, many foreigners, including myself, refer to this pastry as a Chinese churro. Most Chinese people wouldn't call it a Chinese churro because they may not be familiar with what a churro is, whereas some foreigners do.

I am thankful for this experience, because I have now found my all-time favorite Chinese breakfast: Chinese churro and soy milk. I am looking forward to trying more Chinese breakfasts, although it will be hard to top my current favorite breakfast. However, I will be trying zhou 粥, which is known as congee, because I have heard it is a favorite among many Chinese people!