Braised lion's head, a famous Han Chinese specialty. It is a dish often eaten at Chinese New Year's festivals, also known as four joy balls, is to take its auspicious meaning.

This is a famous Huaiyang dish, with fat and lean meat red and oily, with green vegetables cover, bright colors and pungent aroma, just look at the attraction of appetite, mellow flavor of the meat and juice, is irresistible to the top of the delicious.

To be soft and tasty, lion's head meat is best chopped by yourself, and another key point is in the container, which should be stewed slowly over a fine fire, with a casserole as the best.

The late master of Chinese painting Zhang Daqian taught his wife one of his best dishes is "braised lion's head", Mr. Daqian's method of preparation is, seven points of lean meat, three points of fat, fine chopping coarse chopping, the size of a grain of rice, can not be chopped too finely, so that the meat to keep the gap between in order to contain the juice.

About the origin of "braised lion's head".

About "lion's head", it is said that its "distant ancestor" is the North and South Dynasties, "food scripture" recorded in the "jumping pills roasted" (see "Qimin Essentials", roasted method of the eightieth).

History records, when Emperor Yang took his concubines, riding a dragon boat and a thousand ships along the Grand Canal south, "passed through the state and county, within 500 miles of the food offerings. A state to a hundred mikoshi, very land and water treasures, (Ziji Tongjian).

Yang Guang saw the Yangzhou agaric, especially on the Yangzhou Wansongshan, money pier, ivory forest, sunflower Gang four famous scenery is very fond of.

Returning to the palace, ordered the imperial chef to the above four scenes as the theme, making four dishes, the imperial chef in Yangzhou under the guidance of the chef, and finally made a lot of effort into the squirrel gui fish, money shrimp cake, ivory chicken strips and sunflower chopped meat of the four dishes, Yang Guang tasted, very happy, and then give the banquet, a time to Huaiyang cuisine overwhelmed the court. Officials and dignitaries are also proud to have these four dishes and regard them as treasures.

In the Tang Dynasty, with the economic prosperity, the officials and dignitaries also paid more attention to the diet.

On one occasion, when the Duke of Yangzhou was hosting a banquet, his famous chef, Wei Juyuan, made these four famous dishes from Yangzhou, accompanied by delicacies from the mountains and the sea, as well as other rare delicacies from land and water, which made the guests gasp in amazement.

When the "sunflower chopped meat" dish served up, only to see that the huge meat ball made of sunflower heart exquisite, like a "lion's head", the guests took the opportunity to persuade the wine said: "郇国公 half of his life on the battlefield, the great achievements, should be wearing a lion's head. The guests took the opportunity to persuade the wine and said: "Duke of Ziguo half a lifetime of military service, great achievements in battle, should wear a lion seal of honor." Duke of Jiangsu Province happy to raise the cup and drink, in honor of today's event, "sunflower chopped meat" might as well change the name of the "lion's head".

One call for a hundred promises, from now on, Yangzhou has added the "lion's head" this famous dish, braised, steamed, popular.

Then take a look at the braised lion's head cooking ......

Main Ingredients:

500 grams of pork stuffing,

50 grams of greens, 25 grams of carrots, 1 scallion, 1 small piece of ginger, cornstarch in moderation.

Seasoning:

60g cooking oil, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp cooking wine, 1 tsp pepper.

Cooking method:

1. Wash and chop green onion and ginger, wash and clean rape, wash and shred carrot.

2. Pork stuffing and onion, ginger, starch, pepper, soy sauce, mix well, and wrestle until elastic, made into the same size meatballs. Mincing meat should refer to the principle of "three parts fat, seven parts lean".

3. Heat half a pot of oil and fry the meatballs until golden brown.

4. frying pan to stay a little cooking oil, frying vegetables and carrots, and then the fried meatballs poured, and add soy sauce, water, cooking wine with the burner, simmering on medium heat for more than 10 minutes until cooked, thickening with water starch, dripping oil to plate.