Hani food is divided into natural and cooked food. Rice being their staple food; corn and barley are also their grain. Common Hani cooking methods are pickling, braising, stir-frying, steaming, baking, grilling, pot roasting and frying  and so on.

Many Hani delicacies are equally recommendable: meat porridge, banana pickle, meat ball and bean powder soup, sour meat, bee chrysalis jam, stir fried bee chrysalis and so on. Both Hani men and women are generally smokers and heated wine and teas are their favorite drinks. Chewing areca is also popular among the Hani People.

Some typical Hani food as Steamed Rice, Sticky Rice Pie, Baiwang and Weiyan Tea will be shown with pictures below:

Steamed Rice: Called Heche in Hani language, the rice should be submerged in cold water for at least four hours and then be dried and steamed until half done in a vase. After that the rice is put in a wood basin filled with water. The rice is beaten up with a wood bat so that it can absorb the water soon and become softer.

Sticky Rice Pie: To make it softer and stickier, the sticky rice should be kept in water for at least seven to eight hours before being steamed. The cooked rice is then shattered and made into pie. Packed by banana leaves, the fragrant and delicious pie is a top gift for relatives and friends.

Baiwang: A small amount of salt is put into the blood of pig, goat or dog to help with concretion in a short time. Then the blood cakes are grilled on charcoal fire with pork, radish slice, garlic leaves, chili, pepper and some other vegetable and seasonings. Finally some peanuts are sowed upon the top of the cake. The ready cake is a mixture of many colors and tastes, a very good dish for treating guests.

Weiyan Tea: It is made by cooking the yellow baked tea with fresh water. The ready tea is bright in color and strong in fragrance, being a favorite Hani beverage.

Unique Fish Mud: The Hani people in Pengduo Village of the Yimen County have a tradition of eating a large variety of fresh meat. Deer, goat, wild birds, loach and yellow eel often appear on their menu. They have a special way to cook fish, called fish mud. It is made when the fish in hand is not enough for a meal. The cooking method is like this: the fish gill and bowels and scales shall all be removed in advance then the fish is grilled on the charcoal fire until becoming golden in color. Then add hot peppers, salts, chili oil and many other seasonings to the fish. The special fish mud is a good delicacy for drinking wine or beer.

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