Unless I'm forgetting, I think this is the first post I've done about Chinese cuisine. Which is rather strange, now that I consider this. Huge, historic country, over a billion people, and nothing so far? Anyway, today I'll be talking about Shinho's spicy peanuts, Asian Gourmet's seaweed rice crackers, and Vitasoy's "Vitasoy" soy milk and chrysanthemum tea drink. The last two are made in Hong Kong.
The Yantai Shinho Enterprise Foods Company, Limited, began in 1992. Or, as the website puts it, the firm "started its journey from a bag of soybean paste." Other products from this immense conglomerate include sauces (especially, obviously, soy sauces), soups, dumplings, cold salads, snacks, candy, cider wines, and vinegar beverages (see my February 16, 2019 post for more on that topic). As I'm getting so used to reading lately, the company is very green and responsible. They're focused on sustainable agricultural practices, and don't use chemical fertilizers, chemical pesticides, or GMOs, and use organically grown plants. Shinho's also into "holistic food education," whatever that means. It's working--their products are sold in over 100 countries around the world, or 40 million households (this seems like an odd way of calculating sales to me, but there it is). Alas, all I can tell you about the rice cracker company is its name (Asian Gourmet), and that its label reads "product of China." I also was stymied by the lack of online information about Asian Gourmet's distribution company, SC Trading Company, LLC.
Vitasoy was founded by a Dr. Lo Kwee-seong in 1940. He was reportedly inspired by hearing about how healthy soy products were, and in addition saw soy milk as a product with a potentially large customer base because many Chinese folks are lactose intolerant. The company's first incarnation was as a door to door soy milk delivery business, done by bicycle couriers. After an interruption due to World War II, the company restarted in 1945 and has flourished ever since. By the late 1960's Vitasoy (also the name of their flagship soy milk drink) was the #2 soft drink in the country, trailing only Coca-Cola. By 1979 it was sold in the U.S. Currently it's available in over 40 countries worldwide, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, mainland China, Macau, Southeast Asia, Singapore, and much of Europe. The company also makes fruit juices, coffee, teas, tofu, and other plant "milks" (See my February 16, 2018 post for more about this general topic). Like Shinho they're committed to using organic farming methods, and no GMOs. Among other health and nutrition information provided on the company website, they wanted consumers to know that soy products don't decrease fertility in men, nor do they "feminize" them.
Finally, I don't believe I've ever had chrysanthemums before. This flower has been cultivated in China for at least 3500 years. It's been consumed in teas since the Song Dynasty (960-1279 A.D.). The leaves are sometimes boiled or steamed, and eaten as salad greens, or used as aroma enhancers in soups, or garnishes for sashimi (in Japanese cuisine, of course). Along with orchids (spring), bamboo (summer), and plum blossom (winter), the chrysanthemum (autumn) is a staple of Chinese art, known collectively as the Four Nobles, or Four Gentlemen, and used to symbolize the listed seasons of the year. In contrast, this flower has a different symbolic interpretation in Europe, as they're associated with death. Chrysanthemums are recent imports to the U.S., as the first ones were brought over by Colonel John Stevens, and grown in my home state of New Jersey in 1798.
1) Shinho, Huang Fei Hong brand, spicy peanuts: These looked like peanuts with reddish-brown strips mixed in. They had a nice spice bite--it seemed medium at first, but kind of grew as I continued eating them. Tasty. Peanuts are hard to mess up, and these don't, they're more than okay.
2) Asian Gourmet rice crackers, seaweed flavor: Yellowish-white in color, round, with a diameter of about 5 cm. (2 inches), with green flecks on them. They tasted like rice crackers with a slight seaweed tinge. Alright, but not great. I would have preferred a stronger seaweed flavor, as they're a tad bland.
3) Vitasoy "Vitasoy" soy milk drink: Came in a 250 mL (8.45 ounce) cardboard container, complete with attached straw, like the "juice boxes" so common in American child lunches. Looks like off-white milk. Taste is okay, similar to the other plant-based "milks" I've had. Some sweetness. Solid.
4) Vitasoy chrysanthemum tea: Same container size and straw-equipped like the other Vitasoy. There was real chrysanthemum in this, too--it's not artificial flavors (although there is sugar added). Tastes like tea, with a little sweetness, so like a regular iced tea with a weak flavoring. Not bad, but not especially good, either. Not as good as the soy milk kind. Its color was corresponding weak, too--very pale, like slightly dirty water.
Therefore, all in all, none of these were a negative experience. And the spicy peanuts were the best of the bunch.
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