Some people may wonder, how can eating belong to the ranks of art? In fact, what I want to tell you is that eating can actually be combined with art, especially the banquets in the Qing palace, which are very particular. Naturally, they can be called works of art and classified as works of art, which is enough to show the importance attached to it.
Banquets in the Qing dynasty followed the specifications of the previous generation, but added their own characteristics on this basis. Because it is a palace banquet, rules are an important part. These rules and regulations include a series of parts such as name, grade, location, table and chair specifications, dining order, and even catering units. It can be said that everything is covered, and the whole process is in an orderly way and there will be no mistakes.
As the last feudal dynasty in China, the cultural prosperity of Qing Dynasty promoted the prosperity of food culture, which was not only the food itself, but also the tableware. These exquisite tableware embodies the royal style, with royal luxury and nobility.
In addition to the most expensive gold and silver utensils, there are bones, porcelain, pottery and so on. No matter what the material is, the shapes of these utensils are very unique. Besides being used as tableware, they are also good at decoration and have a strong artistic atmosphere. Of course, in addition to these most common materials, jade, enamel, etc. are also used to make tableware in the Qing palace. These utensils are beautifully made. Of course, many of them can't really be used as tableware, but they are more decorative.
As mentioned earlier, many tableware in the Qing court were made of gold, silver, enamel and jade. These tableware have many patterns and are very decorative. However, although they look beautiful and each one looks exquisite, some of these utensils are still the same for those of us who don't know how to make them. However, in fact, these vessels that seem to have little difference at first glance are also exquisite. The texture and decoration of tableware used by all classes are clearly defined. If you accidentally use it wrong, it is likely to be a punishment.
Imperial court meals in Qing Dynasty mainly developed from three local cuisines, namely Manchu cuisine, Shandong cuisine and Suzhou-Hangzhou cuisine. Manchu cuisine is naturally to satisfy Manchu aristocrats who have just entered the Central Plains, and they are basically game and all kinds of meat. With the development of time, these Manchu cuisines have also undergone new changes and are no longer extensive. The most important thing about Suzhou and Hangzhou cuisine is that Emperor Qianlong likes it. It is because of his love that Suzhou and Hangzhou cuisine quickly became popular in the palace and became a court? Catering industry? One of the Big Three. Of course, there are not only fixed eating habits in the court, just look at what the emperor likes to eat. Just as Emperor Qianlong just mentioned that he liked Suzhou and Hangzhou cuisine, Suzhou and Hangzhou cuisine in the palace became popular. In addition to Emperor Qianlong, Puyi liked western food after his abdication, and there was also a western restaurant in the palace for Puyi to eat his favorite western food.
The food in the palace is for the nobles, so these royal meals should not be sloppy. From material selection to processing, we can't be sloppy, and the taste and nutrition are up to standard. Even the shape and collocation should make the nobles feel comfortable, not to mention the name of the dish. Jade white jade soup is more expensive than cabbage tofu soup.
The selection of materials in the Forbidden City is very meticulous, starting from the place of origin, not to mention the quality, and even the size and parts used have strict regulations. Game, such as bear's paw and velvet antler, must be used in the northeast, abalone can only be selected in Shandong, shark's fin is not suitable for boys, and even water can only be used in Yuquan Mountain, while carp only uses one and a half pounds, so the size is very strict and direct.
There were many banquets in the court of the Qing Dynasty. Besides almost three festivals in each dynasty, there are other kinds of birthday parties. There are banquets that existed in the previous dynasty, and there are banquets that did not exist in the previous dynasty. Without exception, these banquets are not organized casually, and they all have certain regulations. The concubines' birthday party is naturally not as good as the queen's birthday party.
Modern people like to eat hot pot very much. In fact, they also like to eat hot pot in Qing palace, and even have hot pot at banquets. For example, the banquet in the Qing Palace is a hot pot meeting. At this banquet, the Qing Palace will set up three kinds of hot pots with different textures of silver, tin and copper for use according to the different status levels of the participants.
In addition to thousands of banquets, many banquets in the Qing court in winter are inseparable from hot pot, which actually has historical factors. The Qing royal family was Manchu, and most of them lived in the northeast of China. The weather in the northeast is cold, and hot pot is the best tableware, which integrates cookware and tableware. It is also warm when eating, and naturally someone loves it.
There were two kinds of hot pot in Qing dynasty. A hot pot is equipped with a stove. The stove of this kind of hot pot burns charcoal fire, which can directly boil the water in the pot, thus cooking the vegetables in the water. The other is much more complicated than the second. The second type is combined type, which consists of pot, hob and ring. Stove plates and alcohol bowls can not only cook food, but also be used as cooking pots to heat cold food.
The texture of Qing Palace hot pot is also very rich, such as the three textures mentioned above, and of course enamel is also one of the big heads. In addition to various textures, the shape of hot pot in Qing Dynasty is also very rich. Most of the shapes are auspicious patterns, such as plum blossom and star anise. In addition to being used alone, many of them are used in combination, which is amazing.
The favorite person to eat hot pot in Qing Dynasty should be Cixi. Generally speaking, hot pot is eaten in winter, but Cixi is different. She eats hot pot all year round. De Ling, a former maid officer of Cixi, said that Cixi was very excited before eating hot pot. Like a countryman about to go to dinner? .
There are many banquets in the Qing palace, which is followed by its rich tableware. As mentioned above, the tableware in the Qing Dynasty is very rich and varied, and the types of tableware are different except for texture and quality.
Besides bowls, plates, knives and so on, there is even a refrigerator! The full name of this refrigerator is cloisonne enamel flower refrigerator. It is a refrigerator in Qianlong period, and now it is in the Forbidden City in Shenyang, with a history of more than 200 years. How does this big refrigerator cool down and store food when there is no electricity? The interior of this refrigerator is lead, and there is a layer of wood as an interlayer between it and enamel. Both wood and lead have good heat insulation effect. When in use, you can put ice cubes in it to cool down and store food. At the same time, there is a drain hole in the lower part of this big refrigerator, so there is no need to worry about the ice cubes in the box melting and accumulating water. There are also two ventilation holes in the upper part of this big refrigerator, and ice cubes can be put in to adjust the room temperature in summer. It can be said that a box is multi-purpose and very convenient.
In addition to these various tableware used for food, wine utensils are also indispensable tableware for banquets! In fact, the court banquet in the Qing dynasty was not like many dynasties, and it was necessary to get drunk. Banquets in the Qing Dynasty paid attention to three rounds of wine. After three rounds, the music stopped, the emperor basically retired, and the banquet broke up. But even so, wine played a very important role in banquets in the Qing Dynasty, so there are many existing wine vessels, which are no less than ordinary food and tableware. Most of these wine vessels are made of gold and silver, and they are inlaid with many precious stones and jade, which are very beautiful. In addition to gold and silver, wine vessels at this time also have materials such as crystal, agate and enamel. These wine vessels have a variety of shapes, except the most basic squares and circles, as well as hexagons, octagons, flat barrels and so on.
In addition to eating and drinking, some banquets will also have games, such as ordering wine. We need to raise money with wine. There is a scene of a group of people drinking in A Dream of Red Mansions. Such scenes also exist in the Qing Palace, but they are generally small banquets, and such scenes are almost not allowed on large grand banquets.
Besides wine, tea is also one of the favorite drinks of the nobles in the Qing Dynasty. China has a long history of drinking tea. By the Qing Dynasty, tea culture had been very rich and perfect. The most prosperous period of tea set in Qing Dynasty should be considered as the period of Kang and Gan. At this time, Jingdezhen porcelain had the same name as Yixing Zisha ware and became the most common tea set in Qing Dynasty. Teapots are bamboo, pomegranate, melon and so on. Besides local tea sets in the Central Plains, there are also tea sets from Tibet? Domu pot
The royal family in Qing Dynasty had a very close relationship with Tibet. In addition to Tibetan Buddhism entering the royal family, many Tibetan items also entered the Qing palace, such as wooden pots. Domu pot was originally used to hold buttered tea and other drinks. Later, it entered the Qing palace, and gradually became a practical instrument from the earliest instruments used for sealing and offering sacrifices. Of course, the matching milk tea has naturally become the daily drink of the Qing palace.
Moreover, milk tea is very popular not only with modern people, but also with Qing people. To what extent? At that time, it was clearly stipulated that from the emperor to the concubine, everyone's daily milk quantity was fixed. Of course, it is different from the current milliliter calculation. At that time, it was calculated by the number of cows. The emperor can have 65,438+000 cows a day, while the queen has 25 cows. As for the following concubines, nature is less and less. Of course, in addition to daily drinking, milk tea is also an important role in banquets, and milk tea not only appears frequently at banquets, but also at sacrifices. During the mourning period, the concubine should use milk tea three times to show her respect.
There are many kinds of banquets in the Qing court, and even the utensils used are very diverse. From the many cultural relics left over today, we can see the luxury of banquets at that time.