MUZIChinese Matrix
Jiangsu Cuisine · FFET10095
A traditional Huaiyang dish of Yangzhou: a big hand-chopped pork meatball stewed gently in a clay pot on greens, topped with crab.
A large pale golden meatball sits in a brown clay casserole of clear broth, orange crab roe heaped on top and greens beneath it, with the lid set beside the pot.
The regional cooking of Jiangsu, divided into the Jinling, Huai-Yang, Su-Xi and Xu-Hai style areas.
Lion's head is a Huaiyang dish of the Yangzhou area in Jiangsu and a traditional Yangzhou dish, originating in Yangzhou and Zhenjiang. In the clear-stewed style, hand-chopped fat-and-lean pork is made into a big meatball and stewed gently in a clay pot on greens; the crab version puts crab meat and roe on top. The lion's head entry in the Qingbai Leichao, usually dated 1916, though one account puts its first printing in 1917, describes a pork meatball named for its look, with optional shrimp or crab roe. The entry names no place and does not use the name clear-stewed crab-roe lion's head. The story about Emperor Yang of Sui is a legend without documentary support.
Clear-stewed crab-roe lion's head is a Huaiyang dish. Hand-chopped fat-and-lean pork is made into a very large, soft meatball and stewed gently in a clay pot on a bed of greens; the crab version puts crab meat and roe on top of the meatball. The name comes from its look, which is said to resemble a lion's head.1,2,5,8
The dated text found so far is the lion's head entry in the Qingbai Leichao (compiled by Xu Ke, usually dated 1916, though one account puts its first printing in 1917). Lion's head is named for its look: a pork meatball with optional shrimp or crab roe, stewed slowly in a yellow clay pot over cabbage or bamboo shoots. The entry describes lion's head in general; it does not use the name clear-stewed crab-roe lion's head, and it names no place. The story about Emperor Yang of Sui is a legend without documentary support.2,3,4
Lion's head is a Huaiyang dish of Jiangsu and a traditional Yangzhou dish, originating in Yangzhou and Zhenjiang. Yangzhou has the white, clear-stewed style, while red-braised lion's head is more common in Zhenjiang.1,2
The traditional method is to chop pork by hand to the size of rice grains, with the fat-to-lean ratio changing with the season, about 7 to 3 in winter and 5 to 5 in summer. Mix with scallion-ginger juice, crab meat, salt and starch until springy. Put greens and broth in a clay pot, set the meatballs on top and press crab roe onto them. Cover, bring to a boil and stew on low heat for about 2 hours. Another method uses equal fat and lean pork with egg white, stewed slowly in a clay jar.3,5,6
The name comes from the round look of the meatball. Adjusting the fat ratio with the season and then stewing on low heat keeps the meatball soft. The available sources give no special meaning for the dish.1,2,3,5
Yangzhou lion's head appears as a must-try in a June 2025 visitor food guide. It also appears in a restaurant guide entry for Cai Gen Xiang Xiao Guan in Yangzhou.9,10
Legend has it that when the Sui emperor visited Yangzhou he had the cooks make dishes themed on four local scenic spots. One was called sunflower minced pork, said to be the ancestor of lion's head.
Told in: A folk legend told in the Yangzhou and Zhenjiang area, found in Chinese Wikipedia (which calls it a legend), a food entry and a China Daily government-edition entry; English Wikipedia says the story has no evidence.
Grandma Li
This is a simplified home version, not the traditional restaurant method.
The traditional way stews lion's head for about two hours. This is the simpler way I make it at home: one small clay pot or a heavy pot with a lid is enough, I chop the pork by hand with a knife, and I buy picked crab meat and roe ready to use. The amounts and timings below are my own choices at home, drawn from a few recipes and the description in the Qingbai Leichao. When it is done, cut one meatball open; it is ready only when there is no pink inside.
Allergens: shellfish, egg, wheat
