Yunnan Danshan Food Co. – Danshan Zhanshuila Seasoning

Bitter: 🟡🟡○○○

Salty: 🟡 🟡🟡🟡○

Sour/Tangy:🟡○○○○

Sweet: 🟡○○○○

Umami: 🟡🟡🟡🟡🟡

Heat: 🟡○○○○○○○○○

Quick Flavor Notes: Chile, black pepper, ginger, cedar, woodsy, salty

Recommended: Yes

Texture: Semi-Coarse dry powder

Ingredients: Chili Pepper, Monosodium Glutamate, Salt, Peppercorn, Black Pepper, Fennel Seeds, Ginger Powder, Disodum 5′-Ribonucleotides

This is a product I was turned on to by the amazing YouTube channel and Subtstack Chinese Cooking Demystified. Zhansuila (also sometimes romanized as Zanshui) is a popular seasoning blend in Yunnan Province China and has been likened to being as culturally relevant their as Cajun seasoning in Louisiana or Za’atar in the Middle East. Founded in 1991 and still made in Yunnan Province this seasoning, according to Chinese Cooking Demystified, became viral in China during the pandemic spreading far and wide from its original Yunnan roots. I’ve been using this for a couple weeks now trying to get a handle on the variety of its uses and am now excited to share my impressions of it.

Yunnan province is located in the extreme southeast of China bordering Laos, Myanmar, and Vietnam. Inside of China it borders both Sichuan province, known for the eponymous numbing peppercorns, and Guizhou province which is known as the chile capital of China. Due to an extremely mountainous terrain which kept it isolated and a large number of ethnic minority groups Yunnan province has developed a cuisine blending both Southeast Asian and Sichuan and Guizhou flavors while also adding its own unique flavors to each. Yunnan Danshan Zhanshuila leans most heavily into the Sichuan and Guizhou flavors with chiles, Sichuan peppercorns, and fennel seeds. While white pepper is more commonly used in Chinese cuisine Yunnan is one of the regions known for producing piper nigrum, the plant responsible for both black and white peppercorns (as well as the green ones) and thus black pepper does show up in Yunnanese cuisine more than in Chinese cuisine in general and is used in this blend. Interestingly, something else I learned from Chinese Cooking Demystified is that white pepper shouldn’t have the funky barnyard flavor many of us associate with it. White pepper just degrades much more quickly than black and those fecal flavor tones are the result of that decomposition. Rounded out with some ginger and a healthy dose of umami-boosters in the form of MSG and the complimentary disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate and Yunnan Danshan is quite the flavor-packed blend.

Tasting a bit of Yunnan Danshan Zhanshuila Seasoning straight you get big umami combined with ginger, the cedary earthy flavor of the Sichuan peppercorns, and a solid chile flavor combined with a hit of black pepper plus plenty of salt. The numbing sensation is also very present though not as intense as eating fresh Sichuan peppercorns. Of course you’re not meant to eat it straight. I tried this initially as a dip for barbecued meat (I took the easy route and just picked up some takeout Brazilian barbecue) and it works incredibly well – adding a ton of flavor and reminding me a lot of Chinese barbecue skewers that I had in Manila. Next I tried this dry sprinkled on some fried chicken and again it’s amazing, that chile and ginger flavor with the woodsy Sichuan peppercorns elevating and the numbing sensation making what’s normally a heavy meal feel lighter. I also tried this sprinkled on a buttered bagel and it totally wakes it up, a great way to start the morning, I only wish I’d had some lox to pair it with. The Chinese Cooking Demystified article on this suggested use with fruit so I sprinkled some on an apple and some pineapple. I have experience with Tajin seasoning on fruit but this is even better. The savory umami flavors transform the fruit into a new taste experience and black pepper and ginger pair exceptionally well. I also tried the oil-based dip recipe for this with some quickly cooked hot-pot sliced beef brisket and I found that adding oil into it carries even more of the chile and numbing flavors forward, it was like a super-simple Sichuan hotpot at home. Finally I decided to use this in a stir-fry with some peppers, more hot pot sliced beef, Chinese celery, and garlic chives. With just a bit of Tobanjan and soy sauce in addition to the Danshan the results were phenomenal with authentic Chinese flavors and again that numbing peppercorn, ginger, chile, umami-filled flavor was immensely satisfying over rice.

Not only is Yunnan Danshan Zhanshuila Seasoning super flexible it’s also absolutely delicious and cheap if bought from Weee! (seriously, $2,50 for a huge bag that’s lasted me two weeks of heavy use, vs $15 on Amazon). If you’re looking for a quick way to add a ton of flavor to various foods both Asian and Western and that can be used dry, wet, as a dip, in cooking, or just sprinkled over things this stuff is a must-try.