1. Making brine
1? Formula
star anise 25g cinnamon 15g fennel 15 ~ 25g licorice 11g rhizoma anemarrhenae 11g fermented grains 3 ~ 5g pepper 21g Amomum villosum 11g Amomum Tsaoko 15g clove 5 ~ 15g ginger 111g scallion 151g Shaoxing wine 111g rock sugar 351 ~ 511g monosodium glutamate 15g refined salt 351 ~ 511g fresh soup 5111. Modulation
1? Divide star anise, cinnamon bark, fennel, licorice, rhizoma Kaempferiae, fermented grains, pepper, Amomum villosum, Amomum villosum, Amomum tsaoko, clove, etc. into two parts, respectively put them into loose gauze bags and tie the bag mouth tightly with string; Ginger is washed and broken; The onion must be washed and tied with roots.
2? Bake large pieces of rock sugar on the fire first, then put it on the cutting board and break it gently, then put it into the pot with refined oil, stir-fry it with low fire until it is dark red, and then mix it with 511 grams of boiling water and stir it evenly, that is, it becomes sugar color.
3? Put the pot on fire, add 5111 grams of fresh soup, add ginger onion, add refined salt, monosodium glutamate and sugar color, then add spice bag, boil it and slowly boil it with low fire until the fragrance overflows, which is the fresh brine.
three? Issues needing attention
1? When frying the sugar color, you must fry it slowly with a small fire, and the sugar color should be slightly tender, otherwise the fried sugar color will be bitter.
2? Generally, monosodium glutamate is not added to the brine prepared by traditional methods. However, due to the lack of umami flavor in most fresh brines and the increasing demand for umami flavor in recent years, monosodium glutamate can also be added in the process of preparation. It should be noted that adding monosodium glutamate to brine will not cause side effects, because monosodium glutamate will produce sodium pyroglutamate at a temperature above 161℃, thus losing its umami flavor, while the boiling temperature of brine will generally not exceed 115℃.
3? Generally, tender sugar color should be added to the brine, so that the brine will have a sweet taste. After adding the tender sugar color, licorice can no longer be added. However, from the point of view of drug performance, Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch has the function of harmonizing various flavors and refreshing. Therefore, after adding sugar color, a little licorice can still be considered in brine.
4? Clove contains eugenol, which has a strong taste, so the dosage can be adjusted according to the specific situation. Generally speaking, the amount of clove in 5111 grams of fresh soup should be controlled between 5 and 15 grams.
5? Green onions used to make brine should keep their roots, which can make the brine taste more fragrant. This is the experience taught to the author by an old master who has been making brine for many years.
6? The above bittern formula is brown-red with sugar color, which is called red bittern. If the sugar color in the formula is removed, it becomes white bittern. In addition, some people like to add dried peppers to brine, which will become spicy brine.
II. Use and storage methods of brine
I? Use of brine
1? All animal raw materials need to be treated with water before marinating, otherwise the raw materials will be directly put into the pot, which will lead to a sharp decrease in brine, thus causing the dishes to taste too salty.
2? A pot of good brine should always be marinated with animal raw materials with strong flavor, so as to increase the fresh flavor of brine. There is a jargon called "the older the brine, the better", which is the reason.
3? Pork, chicken, duck, goose and rabbit, which are fresh and fragrant, should be "in the water" with cattle, mutton and various animals with strong odor? Such as fat intestines? Use brine separately as raw materials to ensure the quality of brine and marinated dishes.
4? In the process of use, we should always check the color, fragrance, salinity of brine and whether the soup is sufficient. Once we find that some aspects are reduced, we should make up for them in time, which is what we often say.
two? Preservation of brine
1? After a period of use, brine will leave a few residues of raw materials or spices, so it needs to be filtered to ensure the quality of brine.
2? After repeated use of brine, the soup will become thicker. Although it is filtered, it still needs to be "cleaned", that is, clean animal blood is mixed with clean water, and then it is slowly added to the boiling brine. This is to use protein's adsorption and coagulation to absorb the impurities in the brine, so as to make the brine clear. If you are particular, you should use lean meat to clean the brine. However, it should be noted that the number of times of cleaning each pot of brine should not be too much, so as not to lose the fresh flavor of brine.
3? The floating oil in brine should be destroyed frequently, and it is best to keep only a thin layer of "oil face" on the surface of brine. Otherwise, too much oil will easily deteriorate the brine? Caused by oxidative deterioration of fat? .
4? When the brine is not used, it should be boiled and put into an enamel bucket to let it cool naturally, and don't shake it at will. In addition, the bottom of the bucket should be padded with bricks to keep the bottom ventilated. If it is summer, the brine must be boiled every day, and if possible, it can be stored in the cold storage. When brine is not used for a long time, it should always be taken out of the cold storage to boil, cooled and then put into storage.
The above is just my experience in making Sichuan-style brine. However, cooking is a subject of change, so readers should flexibly master the materials and preparation methods of Sichuan-style brine according to specific conditions, so as to prepare satisfactory brine.