Local culture: Yi people's diet culture

Most Yi people are used to eating three meals during a solar eclipse, and their staple foods are miscellaneous grains, noodles and rice. Yi people in Shousha River, Anning River and Dadu River basins often eat a lump of rice for breakfast. Lunch is mainly Baba, and all tables are available. Among all Baba, Baba made of buckwheat noodles is the most distinctive. It is said that buckwheat Baba has the effects of promoting digestion, relieving sweating and diminishing inflammation, and can be preserved for a long time without deterioration.

Meat is mainly pigs, sheep and beef. Mainly made into "tuotuo meat", beef soup pot, sheep soup pot, or roasted sheep and piglets. Deer, bears, rock sheep and wild boar obtained by hunting are also supplements to daily meat.

The mountainous area is also rich in mushrooms, fungus and walnuts, and the vegetables produced in the garden make the sources of vegetables very extensive. In addition to fresh, most of them should be made into sauerkraut, which can be divided into dried sauerkraut and pickled sauerkraut. Another famous dish "Swordfish" is also the most common dish among the people.

In most Yi areas, corn, buckwheat, oats and potatoes are the main grains. The quantity of rice is very small. In some Yi areas, ethnic tableware is very distinctive, including wood and leather. Pots, plates, bowls and cups painted in wood are painted with black, red and Huang San colors inside and outside, and clouds and thunder, water waves, bull's eyes and horse teeth are painted. The wooden spoon is called the "horse spoon" and looks like the "dagger" used for eating and scooping soup in ancient times (the handle is on the side of the spoon). Another kind of tall wooden bowl, like the ancient "bean". The wine glasses are mostly horns and white hooves.

Yi people's daily drinks include wine and tea, and wine is used to entertain guests. There is a folk saying that "Han people value tea, Yi people value wine". The habit of drinking tea is more common among the elderly, mainly baking tea. Yi people only pour half a cup of tea at a time and drink it slowly. When Yi people drink alcohol, they often have a feast when they have wine, and they also have the habit of drinking without food. When drinking, there is no distinction between occasions and places, nor between strangers and acquaintances. Sitting on the floor, forming a circle, holding a glass of wine and passing it in turn, so the Yi people are also called "drinking".

Typical foods that Yi people often eat are: buckwheat cake, a staple food with Yi flavor; Sauerkraut paste, Yi farmers' home cooking.