Raisins
( 2005-09-13 )

Xinjiangis known as the "home of fruits and melons." Apricots, cantaloupe, and pomegranates all have claims on the local palate, are heaped in local bazaars next to bins of saffron tea and walnuts, and are sent to other markets throughout China as well as other parts of the world. Yet, the raisin gets lauded even against the very stiff local competition.

The raisin, a wrinkly translucent fruit, is a 2,000-year-old snack in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, a dessert in the desert. Known as the "green pearl" of West China, it is a cheap delicacy, and an everyman's staple. The dried green pearl retains its taste longer in an exposed outdoor market than do vacuum-packed moist raisins.

InTurpan, a combination of low-lying lands, long hours of sunshine, cool nights, and hot days produce a seedless white grape inordinately sugary when harvested in August. Forty days after being plucked from the trellises (wooden fences supporting the grapevines) and dried in adobe houses, the green-pearl raisin is ready for shipment to other parts of China as well as all over the world.

The chocolate raisin and the yogurt raisin are also famous kinds in Xinjiang.

The raisins are rich in natural fructose, protein, vitamin, cellulose and various microelements, with no additives and pigments. They are healthy food that can be used to help treat cancer.