Bagao (扒糕) is a traditional Beijing snack made primarily from buckwheat flour. It is especially associated with summer and was traditionally served chilled, making it a refreshing and appetizing food during hot weather.

Bagao is usually made into a small, round cake. After cooking, it is allowed to cool and is then cut into small pieces or thin slices. The pieces are traditionally served with a flavorful mixture of sesame paste, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, mustard, and chili oil, often accompanied by shredded pickled carrots.

How Bagao Is Made

Traditional Bagao is made by adding buckwheat flour to boiling water and stirring it rapidly until the flour is thoroughly cooked and forms a cohesive dough. The dough is then shaped into a round cake and allowed to cool.

Once cooled, the cake is cut into small pieces. In traditional Beijing-style preparation, the pieces may be shaved with a small knife into thin strips that are thinner at both ends and thicker in the middle. They are then placed in a bowl and topped with various seasonings.

A typical sauce consists of sesame paste, soy sauce, and vinegar, with garlic, mustard, or chili oil added according to taste. Shredded pickled carrots are also a traditional accompaniment.

A Traditional Summer Snack

Bagao was particularly popular in old Beijing during the summer. Vendors often sold it together with Liangfen (cold mung-bean or starch jelly) and other chilled snacks. The Bagao was kept cool in water or on ice and served with seasonings only after customers placed their orders.

There was also a winter preparation known as hot-fried Bagao, in which the cake was heated with oil on a griddle. Thus, although Bagao is best known as a refreshing summer snack, it could also be enjoyed warm during colder months.

Flavor and Texture

Bagao has a distinctive firm, chewy, and slightly grainy texture from the buckwheat. Its flavor is relatively mild on its own, but the combination of sesame paste, vinegar, garlic, mustard, chili oil, and pickled carrots gives it a rich mixture of savory, sour, spicy, and nutty flavors.

The simple ingredients and bold seasonings make Bagao a distinctive example of traditional Old Beijing street food culture.

Chinese name: 扒糕
Pinyin: Bāgāo
English name: Bagao / Beijing Buckwheat Snack
Main ingredient: Buckwheat flour
Cooking method: Boiling, steaming, or pan-frying
Texture: Firm and chewy
Flavor: Savory, tangy, spicy, and nutty
Traditionally associated with: Summer in Beijing