In the past, Cantonese restaurant has always been an upscale restaurant in Beijing. ? In addition to drinking morning tea, I felt that the Cantonese restaurants at that time were basically seafood restaurants. ? My husband is from Guangdong. When we are in love, every time I ask him to order some authentic Cantonese food, he always says "Authentic Cantonese food is seafood". ? For a long time, I thought that the life of Guangdong people was like eating out every day. ? There are all kinds of exquisite morning tea snacks in the morning, and seafood dinners at noon and evening. ? After I got married and settled in Guangzhou, I gradually realized that people in Guangzhou also want to eat home-cooked food. ?

The most important thing for Cantonese home cooking is to win with fresh ingredients. In fact, the cooking techniques are not complicated. ? Before introducing Guangzhou home cooking, you must first introduce Guangzhou's vegetable market. ? The place where I live in Guangzhou is very close to the city center, which is probably within the Second Ring Road of Beijing. ? There is a big vegetable market 51 meters downstairs from my house, which is a little farther away. There are two other shops, and there are also some shops or ghosts selling fresh vegetables and fruits on the roadside. All the fresh foods in our family, including meat, eggs, poultry, vegetables and fruits, are basically solved in the market, and rarely go to the supermarket. ? The impression of fresh things in the supermarket is that they are expensive and not fresh.

The stalls in the market are all fixed all the year round. Most vendors who do neighborhood business will not cheat and sell fake goods, which will ruin their reputation and lead to no business, so the quality is generally reliable. ? The cleanliness of the market is surprising. ? Every day before the market closes, people clean it with water. For me, who comes from a water-deficient city in the north, I can't help but be amazed when I see Guangzhou people cleaning the food market with water every day, even the streets.

Cantonese people say that "all chickens are unhappy". ? So there must be a poultry department in every market. ? Not only chickens are sold here, but there are more than N kinds of chickens, such as Taiye Chicken, Qingping Chicken, Zhanjiang Chicken, Qingyuan Chicken, etc ... Besides chickens, there are all kinds of ducks, quails, pigeons and pigeons, which are young pigeons and old pigeons, with different practices and effects. ? All these birds are alive, buy now and kill now. ? And you can buy half a chicken and a quarter a duck. ? This is unheard of in Beijing. If someone kills a chicken for you, they must take it all away. Who will sell the remaining half? But in Guangzhou, this selling method really ensures the freshness of the ingredients. How can a family of three eat a whole chicken and a whole duck in one meal? ? It won't be fresh until the next day, so it can be cut and sold. Because it is fresh and has a large passenger flow, I don't mind buying half cut by others.

The seafood stalls in Guangzhou market are really seafood, not just fish and shrimp. ? Even fish are diverse. The bigger fish are sold by cutting, such as the head, tail and middle part of the fish, with different prices, as well as the fish balls made now. ? Fish are swimming and chilled. There are all kinds of shellfish all the year round, such as clam, Bai Bei, and even high-end seafood such as abalone, scallop and conch, which are also available in the market. ?

There must be more than one pork stall in each market. All parts of the pig are cut separately, some are hung on hooks, and some are placed on cases. They are bright red, pink and tender. ? Later, a famous chain brand in Guangzhou, "No.1 local pig", was opened in the vegetable market. It was very expensive, and it was actually possible to do it, thanks to the love of Guangzhou people. ? I have lived in Guangzhou for several years and found that the beef in Guangzhou market is not good. ? First, beef is rarely seen in the market or supermarket, even if it is, it is not fresh, and it will not be rotten after thousands of cooks. ? But the beef brisket powder in Guangzhou is so soft and delicious. I don't know what beef they use and how to cook it.

The variety and freshness of vegetables are really incomparable to our northern cities. ? Many vegetables are unheard of, such as mustard, sweet potato leaves, Chinese cabbage seedlings, late flowering Chinese cabbage and so on. ? Vendors selling vegetables in Guangzhou market actually buy goods twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon. So for dinner, sometimes we go to buy fresh vegetables in the afternoon. ? Tomatoes, potatoes and wax gourd in the north of China are not vegetables here. Vegetables must be green with leaves. ? After living in Guangzhou for several years, I have developed the habit of eating green Nahana for every meal, but it is very healthy.

Let's introduce Guangdong home-cooked dishes in combination with cooking methods.

speaking of Guangdong's old fire soup, everyone knows it. ? When I came to Guangzhou on my first business trip, I was immediately shocked when I saw a wall outside the restaurant full of soup pots. ? Cantonese people often cook soup at home, even if they don't cook soup every day, they have to cook soup three or four times a week. ? The material of soup is mainly a combination of different meats and different plants. ? Drugstores can be seen everywhere in Guangzhou. I feel that all Cantonese people are half Chinese medicine practitioners and know all about the medicinal effects of various Chinese herbal medicines. ? I used to think that Cantonese soups are all boiled soups, but I slowly realized that there are actually many ways to make soups. ? Generally speaking, when we talk about making soup, we put all kinds of ingredients into the soup pot and cook the soup with ingredients for at least two hours, which becomes the old fire soup. Among them, the proportion of water is far greater than that of ingredients. ? The ingredients are called "soup dregs" and can be eaten, because many of them have been stewed and have no taste, and even throwing away some of them should be acceptable. ? Another kind of soup is called "stew soup". Generally, it is more precious ingredients (such as Cordyceps sinensis, crocodile meat, etc.). Put the ingredients in a stew pot (that is, a small closed pot) and add a small amount of water. The method used is actually steaming in water. It is said that it is not easy to waste the ingredients. ? There is also "boiling soup", which should be the kind of soup that we northerners often cook. ? As the name implies, rolling ingredients in water is soup, which means that cooking time is very short. ? Boiling soup with Cantonese people is probably a last resort. Talking is better than nothing, and it is not really regarded as soup. It turns out that tomato and egg soup and melon meatball soup, which are our family's masters, have long lost their place in our small table in Guangzhou.

I admire the delicious and nutritious Guangdong old fire soup with all my heart, and I am determined to learn the authentic Guangzhou old fire soup. Following the recipes on the internet is always beside the point. ? Fortunately, the soup cooked by my sister-in-law is amazing, so I humbly ask her for advice. ? When she cooks, I take a small notebook and follow her. I buy whatever she buys; What ingredients she puts in the soup, what I put; When she puts the ingredients, when I put them; All recipe steps are recorded for reference at any time. After several rounds, I found that it was still not as good as the soup she cooked. ? I can't say why, but I always feel a little worse. This is probably the lack of precipitation. ? Having been a daughter-in-law in Guangdong for some time, I feel that the course of making soup can basically pass. ? Once I cooked a soup carefully and asked my husband to evaluate it. ? My husband's comment is that "it tastes delicious, but it is still not a qualified Guangdong daughter-in-law." ? A real Guangdong daughter-in-law can not only cook delicious soup, but also cook various corresponding soups at any time according to the season, family health and so on. ? For example, if a family member coughs, it is necessary to boil the soup of South and North Apricot and Lean Sydney (note: South and North Apricots are two kinds of almonds that grow in the south and the north respectively); If you get angry, you should cook mung bean old pigeon soup (note that it can only be old pigeons, not young pigeons). " ? It seems that for Cantonese people, every food must have some effect except delicious food. ? I feel that I will never get the true meaning of Guangdong soup in my life. ?

In my family's cookbook, the only dish used for steaming is egg custard. ? In fact, steaming can maintain the nutrition of dishes to the maximum extent, and it is simple and fast. ? There are many steamed dishes in Cantonese home cooking, such as steamed fish and steamed ribs. ? Personally, I think the fish mainly sold in Beijing are not fresh enough. Even live fish, mostly river fish, such as carp and grass carp, have Saturn flavor, so they must be seasoned with heavy flavors such as braised pork and sweet and sour pork. ? The fish bought in Guangzhou food market, mainly marine fish, are basically fresh, just steamed and poured with sauce, which is very delicious. ? Even the high-grade fish, grouper, is available in the market, and the key to buying it back for steaming is the heat. That is, 5 to 8 minutes. Over time, the fish will get old and not so delicious. ? The time is short, it is not steamed, and the meat is bloodshot from the bone. If you go back to the pot and steam it again, you can't make it as delicious as once. ? Cantonese steamed fish does not put salt, only ginger and onion are used for seasoning. Ginger and onion should be cut into filaments and spread under the fish. ? After the fish is steamed, pour out the fish soup on the plate (note that this fish soup is not poured out, it condenses all the delicious fish and can be drunk alone). ? Then open another oil pan, and when the oil is hot, pour in steamed fish soy sauce or soy sauce, and then immediately pour this sauce on the steamed fish. ? Just eat, it's not much different from hundreds of stone spots in restaurants outside. ? In addition, you can also steam fish with chopped peppers or winter vegetables, so don't buy groupers, which will spoil the fish. Ordinary bass, or the middle of a big fish. ? Spread the onion and ginger, then put the chopped pepper or winter vegetables bought in the supermarket and steam them in the pot, and it will be done in less than ten minutes. ? The most common and cheapest fish in the market is tilapia, which is African crucian carp. ? But not as prickly as our common crucian carp. ? This kind of fish can't be steamed even if it is bought from live fish. If I want to braise in soy sauce, I usually buy tilapia. ?

Scallops are also sold. When you choose them in the market, the vendor will help you open them and clean them up. ? When you get home, put in garlic, and once the vermicelli is steamed, it is the same as steamed scallops with garlic vermicelli eaten in restaurants outside, and the price is half cheaper. ? Abalone is also sold in the market. ? I remember about RMB at that time? 8-11 yuan each, not big, just suitable for home-cooked food. ? Buy two or three by one person, and when you buy them, the vendors in the market have been cleaned up. ? When you come back, add shredded ginger and scallion, steam with soy sauce, and get a dish in less than 11 minutes.

ribs can also be steamed. ? Chop it into small pieces and buy it back. Grab it with soy sauce, salt and starch, add minced garlic, marinate it for about 21 minutes, add a few douchi, and steam it for about 11 minutes. ? There is a simpler way to steam the marinated ribs with rice, which saves both fire and time. ? When the meal is ready, the ribs are ready. Just stir-fry a green vegetable and you can have dinner.

Steamed meat pie with winter vegetables is a real home-cooked dish. ? Meat is bought and chopped by lean meat, and it is not delicious to steam the meat directly. Winter vegetables are a kind of pickles. ? Chopped meat with soy sauce, salt, starch, some oil, and winter vegetables is delicious when steamed casually. ? My daughter loved it very much when she was young.

vegetables can also be steamed, but generally we only steam cabbage with garlic or pumpkin. ?

it's not easy to steam chilled fish when you buy them back. ? Iced fish refers to frozen fish, which are basically marine fish. ? Pomfret (that is, flat fish), redwood fish and sand tip fish can all be bought and fried. ? There are golden pomfret and white pomfret in pomfret, and golden pomfret is not so delicious. ?

all vegetables, except fried with garlic, can also be boiled in white. ? It's sultry in summer in Guangzhou. I have no appetite, such as Chinese cabbage and mustard greens. After washing, blanch it with water (put a little oil in the blanched vegetable water) and pour it with soy sauce. It's almost no difficulty, but it's refreshing and nutritious. ? Blanched vegetables are easy to turn yellow. If you want to make the green boiled vegetables in restaurants, there is a secret: blanch the blanched vegetables immediately. ? The vegetables treated in this way will not turn yellow even if they are left for a period of time.

The shrimps are basically boiled and then dipped in sauce. It seems that the braised shrimps have never been cooked. ? I like to eat that kind of patterned conch very much. If I buy it, I can also blanch it in boiling water and dip it in seasoning. Eating at least 7,81 yuan a catty in restaurants is less than half the price in the market, and it is guaranteed to be fresh.

as I said before, home cooking is only available at home. ? Beijing's home cooking is cooked for me by my parents and raised me to grow up; Guangzhou's home cooking is for myself and for my husband. ? Later, we had a daughter, and our family moved to Vancouver. I have to write about Vancouver's home cooking in the future. ?