Chapter 1153 The Real Dark Cuisine

Although the name of siu mai is the same, there will be huge differences and gaps in different places in the north and the south

In the south of the Qinling Mountains and north of Guangdong, siu mai generally refers to oily glutinous rice siu mai. It is a kind of food that uses a thin hot noodle skin to report glutinous rice stuffing mixed with lard, diced mushrooms, and some diced pork, and then steamed in a pan. What you eat is the oily fragrance of glutinous rice.

The earliest birthplace of this oily glutinous rice siu mai is the three towns of Hankou. Because this is the thoroughfare of nine provinces, and it is the busiest land and water terminal in the world. Because there are many people engaged in heavy physical work, and the surrounding area is also the largest glutinous rice producing area in China, glutinous rice accounts for a large proportion of the breakfast food in the three towns of Hankou.

For example, the most famous glutinous rice chicken in the breakfast of the three towns of Hankou has nothing to do with the glutinous rice chicken in Guangdong. The glutinous rice chicken in Guangdong is glutinous rice + chicken. The glutinous rice chicken in the Hankou area has no chicken, only fried glutinous rice.

If it is the first time for a Cantonese to come to the Three Towns of Hankou and see the signboard of Nuomi Chicken, they must order one, then they must shout: This is a scam!

For the same reason, in Guangdong area, siu mai or dry steaming is another form of food. Duck eggs and noodles are used to get yellow noodles, and pork is cut into fine grains. The key here is to cut the pork into fine pieces instead of chopping it. The cut pork pieces are finally mixed with the shredded shrimp with the back of a knife and wrapped in the duck eggs and noodles.

Four pork and shrimp siu mai topped with a little crab roe are placed in a small cage and steamed on high heat.

The steamed siu mai is fresh and tender, with the aroma of meat and fresh shrimp intertwined. Order a pot of Pu'er, and eat this dry steamed siu mai with tea, the taste is unforgettable!

If the dry steaming in the Guangdong area reflects a kind of exquisiteness in the food, then the northern siu mai, which originated in the north-central part of China, has taken a completely different path.

In Chinese diet, sheep has been respected since ancient times.

Since ancient times in China, people from the south valued business, while people from the north valued government. This is still the case even today. In coastal areas such as Guangdong and Fujian, everyone takes pride in doing business. In the north, it is proud to be in politics. In many places in the north, even if they earn tens of millions a year in business, many people think that a businessman who earns one million yuan is not as good as a civil servant who works in a government unit and earns 70,000 yuan a year. Those who have no skills go into business, and those who have skills go to civil servants to become officials.

This kind of thinking has lasted for hundreds of years. Since ancient times, high-ranking officials and dignitaries have eaten mutton. In addition, the Northland has produced a lot of mutton since ancient times. Therefore, when mentioning siu mai in the north, most of them refer to mutton siu mai.

The filling of mutton siu mai is not as exquisite as that of dry steamed siu mai. The pork can only be cut but not chopped, and the shrimp can only be patted but not chopped. The proportion should be based on how much lean pork, how much pork fat, and how much shrimp. How much, how pickled.

The degree of sophistication in this category of diet in the north is indeed a little less than that in the south. But northern mutton siu mai also has its own specialties. Since ancient times, eating sheep has been respected, and mutton is eaten by dignitaries. In order to highlight the delicacy and nobility of mutton siu mai, pastry chefs will pay special attention to the skin of siu mai.

Unlike the general southern siu mai wrapped with a small pull or an opening, the northern mutton siu mai should be like flowers blooming after being wrapped, and what is needed is a rich and long-lasting flower cluster.

One bite, the dough should be soft but not lose its strength, and the mutton should be full of soup and rich in flavor. Northern diet, what you want is a fun and bold.

Lao Zhang ordered three dishes in the capital, mutton siu mai, Qianlong cabbage, fried enema.

Fried sausages actually have nothing to do with intestines, they are just a lump of starch. In the early years, fried sausages were fried with intestine oil, so they had a smell of pig intestines, but now because of health considerations, pig intestine oil is no longer used. Use lard to fry the casual ones, and fry them casually if you don’t pay attention.

The fried enema in Duyiyi is not very particular, and the twenty-eight ones in a plate are really not very good, the key is that the price is not cheap. This thing has no taste at all, it is a dish purely for taste. If the heat is a little bit out of control, then there is really nothing to eat.

Qianlong cabbage is also not worth mentioning, the sesame sauce is too sweet and a bit watery. The Qianlong cabbage dish has no appearance at all. After all, sesame sauce is served with cabbage, and it looks like something you want to eat. After this sesame sauce, hey, it's more like it.

As for the signature mutton siu mai, the price is not cheap, fifty-eight servings. Well, the skin has been steamed for ages, and the top layer of skin tastes tough, like leather pants.

This meal cost a lot of money, and Zhang Tong felt that it was not as delicious as the northern restaurants opened in Huaihai. The most important thing is that the price is expensive! I feel that things are not worth the price. My monthly salary is only 1,200 yuan, although I can be reimbursed for business trips, right? But it hurts to spend the money.

Adhering to the principle of not wasting, Zhang Tong ate everything, but the feeling was very ordinary. At this price and this taste, if it weren’t for the fact that there is a century-old restaurant’s brand hanging on the outside, if a dish with this taste is still sold at such an expensive price in a new restaurant, it will collapse within three months.

This meal was not very good, although it was considered a meal, but I always felt that something was missing.

Come on, let's find out what to eat in the old capital. But Lao Zhang searched and found that all the old shops in the old capital that can be named, the taste does not seem to be particularly good.

In the end, after going around for a while, I didn’t know how I came to the edge of the Lama Temple. It’s really not to mention that Zhang Tong found the best old capital food on the edge of the Lama Temple.

"Longhegong Fried Chicken~Longhegong Fried Chicken~Fourth Master eats fried chicken that everyone agrees~Old capital traditional American fried chicken, authentic old capital flavor~Longhegong fried chicken~"

Next to the Lama Temple, the mansion where the former Qing emperor Yongzheng lived when he was Baylor, Zhang Tong finally found this cheap and delicious authentic old capital American fried chicken.

These days, you can buy three big chicken legs for fifteen yuan, and it's still in the capital. Lao Zhang wondered if the boss's fried chicken still made money?

While eating fried chicken and waiting for the bus, the phone rang. After opening it, Fu Changqing replied to the message.

"Hey, Leader Fu wants to treat you to dinner. It's not good to go empty-handed." Lao Zhang looked around and wanted to bring a gift. What is this for?

………………………

There is a Tonghui River in the old capital, which is a canal built in the Yuan Dynasty. It can be regarded as the economic lifeline of the old capital. Because the water transportation all goes from this river.

Nowadays, there are basically no boats on the Tonghui River, but living by the water is a tradition of the Chinese people. So now the Tonghui River is still very lively.

Take Line 1 to the end and you will find Sihui Station, a transportation hub in the Chaoyang area of ​​the old capital. Transfer from Sihui Station to Batong Line for two stops and you will arrive at Gaobeidian Station.

This Gaobeidian is not well-known in other places, but it is quite famous in the old capital because it is a famous mahogany furniture street in the old capital. Hundreds of furniture stores and carpentry shops line one street.

There are everything from heavy Qing-style furniture to Xinming furniture. If you don't have the furniture you want, you can also order it here. From panel furniture to traditional furniture with mortise and tenon structure, it can be processed.

During the day, Gaobeidian is quite lively, but at night, Gaobeidian is a bit dark, and there are few people walking around.

However, there are still a few small restaurants on this street.

In the Xiaodongbei restaurant next to the embroidery shop at the end of Gaobeidian Street, Fu Changqing was looking at Zhang Tong with a smile.

Zhang Tong has a big burden in one hand: "You always treat guests to dinner, and you don't know what to bring. Here are some traditional American fried chicken and biscuits in the old capital. You can try them. I bought them for 100 yuan. This is not considered bribery. "

"Hahahaha! Let it go, let it go!" Fu Changqing beckoned Zhang Tong to sit down.

Zhang Tong took a look at the small shop. The Northeast restaurant is not big, only eight tables. Now at eight o'clock in the evening, there are no customers, just my own table and the next table.

But according to Zhang Tong's observation, the table next to him should be Fu Changqing's bodyguard, who was just pretending to be a diner.

Fu Changqing looked at Zhang Tong who was looking at the restaurant, and he asked with a smile: "Are you curious why I chose such a restaurant?"

"Hey, it's true. I thought you were going to the Capital Hotel as a treat for dinner." Zhang Tong was not polite.

"Then you are really delusional. How expensive it is to go to the Capital Hotel. I treat you to dinner without reimbursement." Fu Changqing knocked on the table, and Zhang Tong wisely bought a cup of tea for the old leader.

"And I live nearby. Two streets away, the state arranged for me a large courtyard with three entrances. I like living here, it's clean. And this is the place, the restaurant on the Gaobeidian side is quiet and quiet. .Besides, it’s safer here, and I’m not too picky about what I eat. The Northeast cuisine here is quite to my liking.”

Fu Changqing is quite approachable, as can be seen from the dishes he ordered just now, he ordered a dish of butchered pigs, one with pork in a pot, and one with stir-fried vegetables, that's all three dishes.

According to the amount of Northeast dishes, Zhang Tong felt that Fu Changqing might have ordered too much.

"Let's put it on the bed first. I have a meeting today, and I'm really hungry." Fu Changqing took out a fried chicken leg and a sesame seed cake from the bag Zhang Tong brought.

As soon as he took it out to eat, the diners at the table next to him seemed impatient. Just as he was about to stand up, Fu Changqing stared back.

"I can't die if I eat a fried chicken biscuit. It's the traditional American fried chicken flavor in the old capital, so why don't I try it?"

The diners at the next table were helpless and could only stare at Zhang Tong who brought the thing with murderous eyes.

Zhang Tong pretended not to see it.

Kaz~

"Yeah, it's really crispy. The meat is quite flavorful and juicy. This fried chicken leg is delicious." Fu Changqing took a bite of the fried chicken leg, and praised it without hesitation.

"How much is this fried chicken leg?"

"Three for fifteen yuan." Zhang Tong answered truthfully.

"Fifteen yuan and three, it's really cheap." Fu Changqing smiled: "In the past, you could only eat such big meat during the Chinese New Year. But fried chicken legs are impossible, and it takes too much oil. One person It takes two taels of oil for a month."

"I joined the army early. When I was 14 years old, I caught up with the battle of crossing the river. I joined the army as soon as I knew how to maneuver a boat." Fu Changqing ate chicken legs and told stories about the past.

"I still remember the first meal when I joined the army. There was a big pot of boiled rotten noodles. The noodles were not shaped and boiled for too long and they were rotten in the noodle soup. But I still ate it with relish at that time. After all, that It's white noodles, and I can't eat a few meals a year."

"After the domestic war was over, we started to fight foreign wars. When I entered Korea, I was a company commander, and the Korean War was fierce. There was not enough supplies, and all we ate were fried noodles. Fried noodles are not fried noodles, but fried flour. .It is to put the flour into the pot and stir-fry it until it is cooked. When you are hungry, grab a handful and stuff it in your mouth. Take a bite, and the water in your mouth will disappear. Many soldiers suffer from constipation.”

Fu Changqing smiled when he said this: "Supplies are difficult, but sometimes there are surprises. Once I led soldiers to ambush the opposite supply convoy. Three trucks of supplies were seized."

"There's a truck full of cans and bread."

Zhang Tong said jokingly, "Is that a joke?"

"That's right. Our cooking squad leader opened the whole can of luncheon meat, chopped it up and threw it into the pot to cook with Chinese cabbage."

"Huh? Then it won't be cooked?!"

"Hahaha, yes, it was all turned into mud. There was no meat in the can, and it was finished as soon as it was boiled. As a result, the soldiers of the whole company ate lunch with meaty cabbage soup and captured bread. It was called a delicious meal." Ah, not even a scum left."

"The foreign war was temporarily over, and our troops were transferred to the south. One time, supplies came from the regiment, but most of the cooks in the regiment were from the north, and they didn't know the bananas from the south. So a group of cooking squad leaders held a meeting Discussing how to eat this thing? Some cooking monitors suggested that it is safest to fry it with chili.”

"So they washed the bananas and cut them into slices without peeling the skin. After frying the bananas with vitex and bean paste until fragrant, they immediately put the banana slices on. At that time, the soldiers of the whole regiment had fried bananas with chili peppers for lunch. Hahahaha!" Fu Changqing was about to burst into tears and laugh.

But Zhang Tong sighed: "It turns out that the army is the real source of dark cooking."

"No way, because of the lack of supplies. If you put this matter aside today, who wouldn't know bananas? Even if you don't know bananas, you'll know if you take one and taste it yourself. But it wasn't possible back then. Bananas were plentiful. Yes, whoever wants to eat more will have to eat less. Soldiers in the cooking squad don’t dare to steal it. If every cooking squad eats a few more bites, the regiment will be short of meals for several squads. It's gone." Fu Changqing said here and put down the fried chicken that had eaten a third, and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes with a paper towel on the table.

"They are all good comrades. They don't complain about suffering or tiredness. For lunch, they can eat meat and boiled Chinese cabbage with frozen hard bread. Until the time when I took the troops to fight the Indochina Peninsula, our cooking Only members can really learn how to cook. Because the country is getting stronger and stronger, and there are more supplies.”

"A good cook is the same as a good sharpshooter. A sharpshooter is fed with bullets, and a good cook is piled up with materials. There is no material for the cooking class to do experiments and practice, and they can't cook anything. Here comes the good food."

"It's like the fried chicken drumsticks you bought. The boss tried frying chicken drumsticks for a long time before he found this recipe and made it taste like this."

Fu Changqing stared into Zhang Tong's eyes and said meaningfully: "Life is better now. In the past, it was only for the Chinese New Year. No, you can buy fried chicken legs that you can't even eat during the Chinese New Year. And it's good for us. For the vast majority of people in the country, the price of fifteen yuan and three drumsticks is nothing to worry about. You say such a good life, why are there still people looking for trouble?"

ps: Third watch, please ask for tickets!