Fried dough twist (麻花/má huā)

Mahua, or fried dough twist, has been a traditional snack for Han Chinese for thousands of years.

It is usually considered a specialty of the northern city of Tianjin, but mahua has found another home in Chongqing. Tianjin mahua is big in size, but Chongqing mahua is small and crispy.

The crunchy dough twists is a traditional food in Chongqing. It is hand made by striking the rice dough with a stick. The cooking method to create Chongqing mahua makes it much more chewier.