Reconstruction
Qiutang—literally “autumn soup”—is a light fish-and-greens soup associated in modern accounts with Qiufen, the Autumn Equinox, in Lingnan southern China. Reports describe residents gathering qiucai, a tender wild plant identified by the vernacular name qiubihao and generally interpreted as a wild amaranth. The greens are cleaned and cooked rapidly with sliced fresh fish, producing a green, savory broth intended for family consumption rather than formal banquet service.
Modern descriptions agree on the basic combination but do not provide a standardized recipe. The fish species, proportions, seasoning, and use of water or stock can therefore vary. A reasonable household reconstruction places washed young leaves and stems in boiling liquid, adds thin fish slices, and cooks them only until the fish is done and the greens have softened. This method matches the Chinese expression gun tang, in which ingredients are cooked briefly in actively boiling broth. Salt, ginger, or a small amount of oil may be used in contemporary kitchens, but these additions are not essential to the documented identity of the dish.
The soup’s meaning extends beyond its ingredients. A widely repeated verse says that autumn soup cleanses the viscera and intestines and wishes health and peace to young and old throughout the household. This is evidence of folk symbolism, not proof that the soup medically “cleanses” the body. Nutritionally, however, the pairing is practical: leafy amaranths can contribute carotenoids, vitamin C, vitamin K, calcium, iron, and potassium, while fish supplies concentrated protein. Exact nutritional value depends heavily on the amaranth species, fish, cooking losses, and serving proportions.
Qiutang belongs to a larger system in which the twenty-four solar terms organize observations of weather, agriculture, and seasonal conduct. UNESCO inscribed that knowledge system on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016. The inscription concerns the solar terms as shared knowledge and practice; it does not separately certify this soup or establish its antiquity.
The historical depth of Qiutang remains uncertain. Available descriptions are predominantly modern folklore and lifestyle accounts rather than dated local gazetteers or early recipes. Some accounts associate the custom particularly with communities around Kaiping in the former Siyi region, while others describe it more broadly as Lingnan practice. It is therefore safest to treat Qiutang as a documented modern expression of a possibly older regional custom. Its continuing significance lies in turning a seasonal wild green, locally available fish, and a precise calendrical moment into a shared household wish for health and stability.
Nutrition
| Nutrient | Amount | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 18 kcal | calculated |
| Protein | 3.1 g | calculated |
| Fat | 0.3 g | calculated |
| Carbohydrate | 0.8 g | calculated |
| Fibre | 0.3–0.6 g | estimated |
| Glycaemic index | Not established | insufficient evidence |
| Glycaemic load | 0–1 | estimated |
| Micronutrients | ||
| calcium | 35–60 mg | estimated |
| iron | 0.4–0.8 mg | estimated |
| potassium | 120–220 mg | estimated |
| vitamin C | 2–9 mg | estimated |
| vitamin A | 20–45 µg RAE | estimated |
Typical serving: one medium bowl of light soup, approximately 300g
Calculated model assumes a finished soup containing approximately 20% amaranth leaves by raw-equivalent weight, 10% cooked lean white fish, and 70% water or unsalted broth, with no added oil, starch, or caloric seasoning. The botanical species of qiucai and traditional fish species are unspecified, so the figures are illustrative rather than measurements of a standardized dish.
Historical context
At this time, the twenty-four solar terms remained visible in Chinese calendars, media, agricultural guidance, schools, and seasonal food promotion even as most Lingnan residents lived in a highly urbanized economy. A national newspaper documented autumn soup in 2015, and UNESCO inscribed the wider solar-term knowledge system in 2016. For China Standard Time, the 2026 Autumn Equinox falls on September 23; the astronomical event occurs at approximately 00:05 UTC, or 08:05 in China. Modern circulation through newspapers and online heritage programming has broadened awareness of a custom whose earlier chronology and precise local distribution remain poorly documented.
Evidence
Written sources
ModerateModern newspaper, institutional, and weather-service accounts consistently describe a Lingnan Autumn Equinox custom involving wild amaranth, sliced fish, and the name autumn soup. They are not early historical records.
Recipe evidence
ModerateSources agree that gathered greens and fish slices are cooked together as a rapidly boiled soup, but they provide no stable ingredient quantities, fish species, or canonical seasoning formula.
Food identification
ProbableQiucai or qiubihao is repeatedly glossed as wild amaranth, but the available customary accounts do not establish a botanical species through a specimen or taxonomic description.
Dating
LimitedThe practice is documented in twenty-first-century accounts, including a 2015 newspaper feature, but no verified evidence presently establishes when it originated.
Preparation method
ModerateBriefly boiling greens with sliced fish is directly reported. Details such as stock, ginger, oil, starch, and blanching remain variable or reconstructed from comparable household cooking.
Geographic attribution
ModerateThe broad Lingnan attribution is consistent across modern accounts. Some reporting narrows the practice to communities around Cangcheng in Kaiping and the former Siyi area, so Guangzhou should be treated as a regional reference point rather than a demonstrated place of origin.
Historical interpretation
InterpretiveThe connection between seasonal gathering, household well-being, and agricultural calendrical knowledge is well supported as an interpretation of the custom, but claims of bodily cleansing belong to folk symbolism rather than demonstrated medical action.
Sources
- 1.UNESCO (2016). The Twenty-Four Solar Terms, knowledge in China of time and practices developed through observation of the sun’s annual motion. Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. ich.unesco.org/en/RL/the-twenty-four-solar-termsModern synthesis
- 2.熊慕东 (2015). 秋分：东西南北把月拜 粘雀嘴来吃秋菜. 人民日报海外版. paper.people.com.cn/rmrbhwb/page/2015-09/22/07/rModern synthesis
- 3.江漪 (2025). 秋分这样过：吃秋菜送秋牛 应对秋凉庆丰收. 中国天气网. e.weather.com.cn/mtqsh/2025/09/4340988.shtmlModern synthesis
- 4.上海市中医医院 (2021). 【市中医｜节令话养生13】秋风吹不尽，总是玉关情. 澎湃新闻·澎湃号·政务. www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_14635188Modern synthesis
- 5.Hong Kong Observatory (2026). Hong Kong Observatory Almanac 2026. Hong Kong Observatory. www.hko.gov.hk/en/gts/astron2026/files/HKO_almanModern synthesis
- 6.Umakanta Sarker, Ya-Ping Lin, Shinya Oba, et al. (2022). Prospects and potentials of underutilized leafy Amaranths as vegetable use for health-promotion. Plant Physiology and Biochemistry. doi:10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.04.011Scientific literature
- 7.U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center (2026). FoodData Central. U.S. Department of Agriculture. fdc.nal.usda.gov/Modern synthesis
Limitations
- moderatedate start
The year 2015 marks verified modern documentation, not the origin of the custom. No reliable evidence located establishes when Qiutang first emerged.
- moderatecoordinates
The Guangzhou coordinates are a reasonable Lingnan regional reference, but modern accounts that give a specific locality associate the custom with Cangcheng in Kaiping and the former Siyi area rather than identifying Guangzhou as its origin.
- minorfood identification
Modern sources call qiucai a wild amaranth or qiubihao, but they do not establish its exact Amaranthus species botanically.
- minordescription
The statement that the 2026 equinox is one day after the “target date” uses an undefined reference date. The independently supported fact is that the equinox falls on September 23, 2026, in China Standard Time.
