Last weekend, myself and fellow Chengdu-dwelling foodie Reed went to Yibin, in Southeastern Sichuan. Our purpose in Yibin was to research ya cai for my next column in Chengdoo Magazine, and of course, try out some local foods. Needless to say, this being China, our goals were well and truly satisfied, and it was this snack that kicked things off.

We arrived in Yibin a little disheveled after our 3 hour plus bus journey, and once getting settled in our hotel room set off to get ourselves some nosh. On a busy shopping street barely 5 minutes walk from our hotel, we found this snack. In Chinese it is called shi yang juan, roughly translated into English as ‘ten kinds bread roll’, and you can see why.

The small bowls you see at the front of the stall - including shredded carrot, radish, tofu and fresh coriander - contain the ingredients already mixed together in the big bowl behind them, to which the vendor adds sesame paste, vinegar and other sauces when you order. Then a bread roll is generously stuffed with a portion of this dressed salad and it’s ready to eat.

After the very first bite I was lamenting that we don’t get this snack in Chengdu, because it was delicious – strongly flavored but not overwhelming, and refreshingly non-greasy. Maybe I’ll have to start up my own shi yang juan stall...I bet I’d make a killing.