2. The raw materials for processing and pickling eight-treasure vegetables should be peeled, scraped and washed repeatedly. But because all kinds of vegetables are different, we should have our own emphasis when processing them. For example, the roots and leaves of lotus flowers should be removed and the hard skin outside should be scraped off. The head and tail of white radish should be cut off, and the hair roots and scars should be scraped off. Radishes larger than 8 cm in diameter should be cut from top to bottom. Cucumber should be picked out from the place where it is too tender and too old, with medium-term cucumber as the best, and cut into thin slices 2 cm long and 8 mm thick. Lotus root should be peeled and sliced. Water chestnut and silver bars should be cleaned of dirt and impurities attached to the floor, and their heads should be pinched off. Peel off the skin and hard skin of bamboo shoots, but don't have to cut them. Fennel white should be cut from top to bottom, so that its width does not exceed 7 cm, and the diameter less than 7 cm cannot be cut. Rinse thoroughly and put it into a bamboo sieve to drain. Peanuts should be picked out of broken grains and impurities, and green peppers can be pickled after the fruit stalks are removed. These two kinds of dishes don't need to go into the sauce jar. After washing, ginger can be pickled for 20 days, and then cut into fine powder for side dishes.
3. Pickling method Cut the processed lotus root into large pieces with a thickness of 4 cm and a weight of about 0.5 kg for pickling as soon as possible. Then put the first layer into a curing pot, and sprinkle a layer of salt on a layer of vegetables. About 150g of salt is needed per kilogram of vegetables. After curing for 24 hours, take out the vegetables, pour them into another tank, put a layer of vegetables, sprinkle some salt, and pour the used salt solution into the tank for the second time in a few days (2-3 days in spring and 4-5 days in winter). This can make all the dishes fully absorb salt and really marinate thoroughly. If the evaporation of the salt solution is reduced and the vegetables cannot be preserved, salt water can be added to soak all the vegetables in the salt solution, and a little seasoning such as pepper, star anise and spiced seasoning can also be added. Finally, put a wooden frame and press the stone clean for pickling. It takes about 7 days in summer and 10 days in winter. The specific method is: take out the lotus, cut it into 4 cm long and 3 mm thick filaments, put them into clean cloth bags, each bag is no more than 4 kg, and tie the bags tightly. Then put it into the first sauce jar and marinate it with black sauce. After 20 days, pour it into the second sauce jar and marinate it with thick sauce. Then marinate it for 20 days. Finally, pour it into the third sauce jar, add new black sauce according to the color of sauce, and marinate it again for 20 days. It can be eaten as a side dish. Pickled radishes, cucumbers, water chestnuts, silver bars, bamboo shoots and fennel cabbages are all the same as lotus flowers, but they should be pickled separately to maintain their respective smells and characteristics. Generally, green peppers and peanuts can be served in a week.
4. Variety collocation In order to maintain the unique flavor of Babao cuisine, side dishes are also very important. The above dishes can be used as side dishes after pickling. Usually the proportion of side dishes is: white radish 40%, lotus root 30%, cucumber 10%, bamboo shoot tip 5%, peanut kernel 2% and ginger powder. Other dishes are randomly matched according to local eating habits, but only a variety can reflect the delicious and unique flavor of the eight-treasure pickles. In this way, full of happy pickles will be fine.
The common side dishes in the practice of eight-treasure pickles are white radish, cucumber, green pepper and peanut kernel. These foods have high nutritional value, and the nutritional value of Babao cuisine is reflected in its side dishes. For example, peanut kernel contains protein nutrients needed by human body, and cucumber has high vitamin content, so eating cucumber can also play a role in losing weight.