STORY: French chef's foodie tour in east China
SHOOTING TIME: April 10-12, 2024
DATELINE: May 15, 2024
LENGTH: 00:02:11
LOCATION: HANGZHOU, China
CATEGORY: CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China
2. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): SHEN JIANGRONG, Party Secretary of Xiantan Village
3. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China
4. SOUNDBITE 4 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China

STORYLINE:

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China
"Hello, I'm Corentin Delcroix. Guess where I am? Xiantan Village in Mogan Mountain, Deqing County. In the morning, let's try the special breakfast in Xiantan Village. This is the sticky rice tea cake. Another must-try breakfast here is duck feet noodles. A bowl of duck feet soup with a bowl of mixed noodles. The duck feet are incredibly tender and juicy. It feels like they've been stewed for a long time. Spring is the season for harvesting fresh tea in Xiantan Village. I'm not good at it. The tea leaves I picked today are called Mogan Mountain Yellow Buds. That's a type of locally grown green tea."

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): SHEN JIANGRONG, Party Secretary of Xiantan Village
"I'll take you to try the delicious food in our village."

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China
"Shen Jiangrong, Party Secretary of the village recommends I try the special three-course tea here. The first course is sweet tea. This is great. The fragrance of honey and osmanthus blends harmoniously together. The second course is salty tea, also known as roasted bean tea."

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): SHEN JIANGRONG, Party Secretary of Xiantan Village
"This is the third course. It's Mogan Mountain Yellow Buds."

SOUNDBITE 4 (Chinese): CORENTIN DELCROIX, French chef in China
"It turns out to be the tea leaves I picked in the morning. The fragrance is very fresh. The bamboo forest chickens in Mogan Mountain are raised by local farmers. The meat is firm and delicious. I want to catch one. While catching the chicken, I find many bamboo shoots here. Look up, it's incredible. We're all geared up now. Let's go dig some bamboo shoots. It's only when I began digging that I realized how exhausting this can be. The shoots grow deep in the soil, but to taste this delicious food, I'm trying my best. Wow, it's beautiful. It's my first time digging the bamboo shoots. I'm carrying a full load home. Heading to make lunch now. The sauce should be slightly thick. Ready to serve. As for the first dish, we have free-range chicken, boiled fresh shrimp, Mogan Mountain blackfish, and stir-fried wild celery with the bamboo shoots I just dug. Mealtime. Let's taste the local cuisine. The chicken itself tastes really good. It feels like the kind of freshness you can't get in the city. So different. Enjoying farm dishes amidst this cozy environment feels so relaxing. This journey in Xiantan Village leaves a deep impression on me. The warm and blooming spring is a good time to visit here, to experience the vibrant rural life and unique romance of China."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Hangzhou, China.
(XHTV)