Can you eat dirt? This snack is actually made with earth

Chaoqi is a biscuit cooked in dirt that’s been eaten by people from China’s northwestern region for thousands of years. They say this biscuit is good for the spleen and stomach, and prevents nausea and diarrhoea.

We visited a family that’s been making chaoqi for 21 years to learn about its history and their recipe.

00:00 Cooking with dirt
00:46 A special type of soil
01:31 Is it safe to eat?
02:23 Chaoqi’s history
02:43 How it’s made
04:22 How it tastes

If you liked this video, we have more stories featuring China’s unique food cultures:

Why Do Chinese People Seem to Eat 'Everything'? - Why Chinese (E1)

How Do Century Eggs Get Black?

Producer: Lyn Yang
Videographer: Patrick Wong
Editor: Nicholas Ko
Animation: Stella Yoo
Mastering: Victor Peña

#China #dirt #mud #unusualfood #snacks

[meowmeowmw]

i guess in a sense there wont be a lot of soil stuck to the biscuit and the heat will kill the microbes that can be found on the dirt, so i honestly wouldnt mind trying these :D Since it reminded me so much of cooking with sand, i didnt find the concept very weird.

[chaobi]

To the 4 years old me who used to eat dirt in kindergarten: this one's for you

[cookbook]

Wow, I’ve never seen soil boil, that is amazing!

[Tegugur]

i forgot the name, but in Java Island in indonesia there are a dish that made out of clay... a literal clay, and they still make it and eat it till now as a traditional delicacy

[hiraeth]

This is really cool!! I've never heard of cooking with dirt in this sense, but in my culture we have hangi. We steam food over hot rocks in the ground in bags or baskets woven from flax over hours and hours, and the earth gives the food a smoky, deep taste that just hits different. I believe in Samoa, it's called umu (Pasifika people, feel free to correct me on this or contribute your traditions too!)

[anjalikashyap]

In india, i have seen people cook popcorns and roast peanuts in sand.
And it adds an authentic flavour to it.
It gives saltiness and crisps.

[bodyofhope]

Our ancestors would eat the clay-- the earth as supplements. The earth is rich in minerals. They're heating it, which makes it even more safe.
During the slave trade, ppl would use dirt clay to season food.

[blazesummer]

We try that type of cooking method also in our province in Philippines and we use sand to roast corn kernels and unopen peanuts in order to roast evenly and avoid easily burn, its like slow cooking method and create a a fragrant smell and a etc.

[rwwarOB]

This could be helpful for pregnancy cravings

[sj]

in the indian subcontinent dirt is often used to roast peanuts. the hot dirt can be assumed as a frying oil, you are actually not consuming dirt, it is just a medium to cook the biscuits

[jingyiliu]

Blow my mind 🤯🤯🤯🤯 I love this content, feeling like I’ve learned some new interesting thing about this world after watched it lol

[angelad.]

Do you guys know why they don't reuse the soil they cook in? It would become sterile and inert but maybe part of the flavor comes from the minerals the soil leaves behind. Is this why they use fresh soil each time?

[chingizzhylkybayev]

Meanwhile, here in Kazakhstan actual clay balls are sold as snacks, especially in the South.

[OmniaViridis]

I'd like to do a soil test to see what the dirt is like and why it is different from other soils

[jaymeemangang]

We do this with sand to make popcorn in India.

[animalproductworld]

I tried charcoal peanuts before ☘️ it was actually quite delicious 🐁



I think it cleans my stomach and intestines 🦨

[ZQQHellorty]

At this stage of selling, I do hope they would not run out of soil in 100 years time.

[chrisicu]

Geophagia is also something you find in the American South. Some markets I’ll sell white clay which is edible.

[danyf.]

This actually looks really simple but yummy! I am really curious about what kind of flavour this method adds to the final product. Maybe a bit like bread cooked in sand or ash?

[Nischithaaa]

Its not dirt its soil, soil is not dirt its earth . The most amazing thing