Er Yi Lou, China.

Rice, Vegetables, Soy beans and Yams.

François Mégret

Er Yi Lou Tulou is a village structure completely based around food production. The village is set in a
single circular building, its diameter is 80 meters. The center of the building is an open air courtyard.
Tangent to the courtyard the building is divided in 22 slices of equal dimensions. Each slice is
connected with a balcony that runs around the whole perimeter. The slices are built as following.
Firstly a kitchen and stock which are one story high. Secondly behind the kitchen is set a private
courtyard ( which shows the relationship that the Tulou inhabitants had with food. The kitchen is the
connecting element in between the private and public.) Finally, the living quarters are a set of 12
rooms divided in 3 stories. The back wall is 10m thick at its base and built in rammed earth. The last
floor is devoted to stocking food. The biggest issue in stocking food in tropical climates is humidity. It
is easier for mold to grow in these conditions. In the tulou the last floor is completely open although
the wall are still pierced meaning that due to difference in pressure a constant airflow is created, this
airflow combats the humidity of the stocking space. Additional dry and hot air passed through the
stock as the kitchens are placed lower so the smoke passes through the stock. The shape of the
building is not entirely designed for food production and storing, there are some external elements
such as building techniques and defence that enter the equation, but it take high advantage of its
formal conditions. The production takes part outside the building. Close to the Tulou are the
vegetable, which are strategically place. As vegetables demand more care than big scale crops
closeness is a matter of convenience. In addition, the rammed earth of the Tulou stores heat during
the day and gives it back to its surrounding during the night which greatly helps the vegetables on
cold nights. The lower takes place production of crops which are rice and Yams. Spring is for rice,
summer is for harvesting and winter the yams are grown. It is interesting to note that all the surplus
fibber is burned on the fields to fertilize the soil in between each rotation, ducks are used to
eliminate pests. The courtyard is used to transform the harvest so it can be stored. Mainly by drying
the beans and rice. The beans are then transformed into soy sauce, Tofu or stored as such. The
vegetable which aren’t consumed directly are pickled and left in large jars. The combination of these
simple foods are all the elements needed to Hakka cuisine. The base is rice. And then in large woks
the pickled vegetables or Tofu are heated. Soy sauce is added for moisturizing. Er Yi Lou Capacity to
be completely self sufficient in its food production is not a singular sophisticated technique, but
rather a myriad of simple producing, transforming and storing techniques that are well orchestrated.