永新肥肠 Yǒngxīn féicháng, the Yongxin braised intestines, come from 永新镇 Yǒngxīn Zhèn Yongxin Town in Qijiang, and they are the dish locals seek out rather than the one put on a postcard. Pig intestines are slow-simmered over a low flame (文火焖煮 wénhuǒ mènzhǔ) until they turn soft and springy (软糯弹牙 ruǎnnuò dàntá), golden in colour, oily in look but not greasy in the mouth, a texture that reads as comfort to anyone raised on the dish. It is honest food, the kind a town is quietly proud of, and the sort a visitor either loves at first bite or learns to love after one careful try. For a traveller this is the less-famous Qijiang, the working dish behind the famous fish, and a good window into how the district eats when no one is performing for guests.
The craft is almost all in the heat and the time. 文火焖煮 wénhuǒ mènzhǔ, the low-flame slow simmer, keeps the intestine from turning tough or blowing apart, so it arrives soft yet with a bite, the 软糯弹牙 ruǎnnuò dàntá spring that regulars name first. The colour comes from the braise rather than from heavy dye, a deep gold that signals the stock did its work, and the oil that sits on top is flavour, not a film to apologise for, because a well-made batch tastes rich without coating the tongue. Yongxin Town is the dish’s home, a place without the ancient-town draw of Dongxi, which is part of why the intestines stay a local secret rather than a marketed one. The cook’s skill shows in cleaning as much as in cooking: the intestine must be fresh and washed so the bowl tastes of stock and spice, never of anything off.
The traditional partner is crisp tender bamboo shoots (竹笋 zhúsǔn), and the pairing is the point. The shoots cut the richness with a clean snap, so the bowl balances instead of weighing down, and a plate of Yongxin intestines without its bamboo shoots feels half dressed to a local. Eaten this way the dish is a small lesson in Qijiang home cooking: take a humble cut, give it time and a low fire, and let a seasonal vegetable do the lifting. It sits apart from the district’s showpieces, the Beidu fish and the Anwen lamb, as the everyday indulgence a townsperson drives out for, the one you order by habit rather than by recommendation. For a visitor willing to try the less-famous bite, it is among the most satisfying things the district serves.
Order the intestines with the bamboo shoots and ask for a little of the braising sauce on rice. A good batch should be springy, not rubbery or mushy, and the oil should taste of stock rather than of grease, which is the plain sign the low flame did its job.
Words and Names
永新肥肠 Yǒngxīn féicháng are the Yongxin braised intestines, from 永新镇 Yǒngxīn Zhèn Yongxin Town in Qijiang. 文火焖煮 wénhuǒ mènzhǔ is the low-flame slow simmer that makes them soft and springy, described as 软糯弹牙 ruǎnnuò dàntá. 竹笋 zhúsǔn are the crisp tender bamboo shoots traditionally paired with the dish. 綦江区 Qìjiāng Qū is Qijiang District in southern Chongqing.
What the Locals Know
The dish is eaten year round with no fixed season, though locals favour it with fresh bamboo shoots in the shoots’ season for the best pairing. Judge it by texture above all: the intestine should be springy and clean, never rubbery or mushy, and the surface oil should taste of stock, not grease. It tastes most itself in Yongxin Town, where the dish is a local habit rather than a tourist draw, and at the district’s homely braise houses that cook it low and slow. One honest caveat: intestines are a love-it-or-learn-it cut, and quality rests entirely on cleaning and timing, so a careless kitchen can spoil the impression; no specific shop, address, price or founding family is stated here. Try it with the bamboo shoots the first time so the richness is balanced.
flowcloud would say that Yongxin braised intestines are pig intestines from Yongxin Town in Qijiang, slow-simmered over a low flame until soft, springy and golden, oily but not greasy, traditionally paired with crisp bamboo shoots, a humble local dish locals seek out. All checked October 2026.
Where to find it: 永新肥肠 Yǒngxīn féicháng is found in 永新镇 Yǒngxīn Zhèn Yongxin Town and across 綦江区 Qìjiāng Qū Qijiang District, Chongqing, at local braise houses and homely eateries that cook the intestines low and slow, often served with 竹笋 zhúsǔn bamboo shoots. No specific shop, address or price is invented here; the dish is a town-and-district specialty that locals seek out rather than a single named restaurant’s product. All checked October 2026.