Original taste is the biggest feature of Gancai, which is the consensus of all Gancai chefs and researchers, and also the great charm of Gancai. Most of the raw materials used in Gancai are produced locally, and Jiangxi's rich products have laid the most solid foundation for the development of Gancai. Jiangxi has beautiful scenery and has always been a land of plenty. Fish and rice are the basis of vegetables. Jiangxi is not only rich in grain, but also has many varieties of rice, such as Wannian Gong, Lengshuijing, Yuanzhou black glutinous rice and Fengxin snow glutinous rice. . . Different kinds of rice will make different dishes. Without frozen rice, there would naturally be no frozen rice chicken in Suichuan. Without flour ground from good rice, where can there be the smell of steamed meat and steamed fish? According to statistics, there are no fewer than 500 kinds of raw materials for dishes in Jiangxi, and there are more than 70 kinds of fish in Poyang Lake alone, including red carp in Xingguo, red purse carp in Wuyuan and glass red carp in Wan 'an. Black-bone chicken, black-bone chicken, Sanhuang chicken ... There are many kinds of chickens, and the dishes cooked by different chickens naturally taste very different. And all kinds of games. There are many mountains in Jiangxi, and pheasants and ducks are everywhere. As for specialty products, it is even richer. Anfu's ham can be compared with Jinhua, Nan 'an's salted duck has a long-standing reputation in Southeast Asia, Lushan has stone fish, stone ears and pheasants, and Pingxiang has bacon ... What a rare thing! Dried vegetables are popular because of the extensive and meticulous selection of materials. Moreover, dried vegetables pay attention to the application of materials, and all kinds of best raw materials are used to the best of their ability.
With the development of modern cooking and the increasingly developed technology, the status of named condiments in cooking has been greatly improved. This was supposed to be a good thing. It is all because of excessive use or over-reliance on condiments, and a direct consequence is that it affects the original flavor of the raw materials of the dishes. It tastes good, but it often overwhelms the taste of the raw materials themselves. This is actually the role of a usurper. In this respect, talented people just show their unique personality. Always adhere to the original flavor of their own raw materials, not how to highlight the seasoning. A common rule in cooking dried vegetables is that seasoning should be light rather than heavy. This is a very important innovation in culinary science, and it is the embodiment of sticking to one's own path. According to the cooking theory of dried vegetables, the taste of raw materials is the most distinctive and often the most delicious and tasteful. A hundred different ingredients will have a hundred different flavors. What condiments in the world can match the original flavor? The more human beings move towards civilization and progress, the more they admire nature and simplicity. Authentic dishes face this consumption trend squarely.
If we carefully study the characteristics of dried vegetables, we can find that the original flavor is the true pursuit of dried vegetables. Whether it's burning, stewing, stewing or frying, the eighteen kinds of martial arts boil down to one thing, that is, do everything possible to cook the original flavor. Soup is the source of all kinds of fresh food, and the cooking of Gancai pays great attention to the production of soup, just to highlight its original flavor. For example, the dried vegetable Wabo soup, which is now popular all over the country, and the old fire soup, which was once popular in Guangdong, are also ashamed. The difference is that Wabo soup pays more attention to the original flavor. Why are three cups of chicken highly regarded? A cup of oil, a cup of wine, a cup of soy sauce, chop the chicken into pieces, seal it in a pottery bowl, and then simmer it with low fire. Chicken soup is really original and fragrant. The soup of dried vegetables, if it is clear soup, is crystal clear and delicious; If it is milk soup, it is as white as milk and has a strong taste. These are the unique cooking methods of Gancai. Boiled bighead is also a famous dried dish. Not only Jiangxi people love to eat, but also foreigners love it. The reason is that the original flavor of fish has been fully displayed. Although it's just a fish head, it doesn't seem as delicious as a fish. In fact, the connotation of fish head is the richest. Once the original juice is stewed, the taste is naturally endless. There are also yongxin dog meat, lotus blood duck, braised bamboo shoots and other dried vegetables. Perhaps the secret of their success is to keep the original flavor.
Of course, Jiangxi cuisine also has many characteristics, such as crisp and tender, moderate salty and spicy, strong oil but not greasy, mellow taste, and so on. Masters of dried vegetables all over the world can list many characteristics and advantages of dried vegetables, but in the final analysis, these characteristics and advantages are original derivatives. The charm and value of dried vegetables lies in their original flavor. To learn Gancai, we must first distinguish its original flavor; To cook dried vegetables, we must first master its original flavor. We know the talent, say it's 1000, say it's 10 thousand. If we leave the original flavor, it is worthless. At a time when all parts of the country are scrambling to brand their own cuisines, we should even raise the brand banner of Gancai, with four big words written on it: authentic! During the Anti-Japanese War, the Kuomintang provincial government moved to Taihe, and Huaiyang cuisine moved to Nanchang, Jiangxi with the anti-Japanese people, and then moved to Taibukou and Ningdu. Huang Xinheng, Bu Qiaxiang, Kong and other Huaiyang culinary masters made a living in Nanchang, and their apprentices handed down their skills, which had a great influence on Jiangxi cuisine. However, the formation of a local cuisine flavor depends on the level of local chefs; The launch of a local food brand also benefited from the unremitting struggle and efforts of local chefs.
At No.353 Jinshengta Street, south of Nanchang, in an extremely humble hut, I visited the famous Nanchang Cuisine Association, an organization of Nanchang chefs themselves. The sign of the association is hung at the door, but to enter the association, you still need to go through the pavement of a barber shop and climb two narrow stairs. There are four desks and chairs, a telephone, no sofa and no living room in the association office. It is said that in order to welcome China Chef's Day, a wall-mounted air conditioner was added. There is no preparation, no administrative appropriation, and there is no reward for the work from the president to the officer. However, it is this culinary association that brings together tens of thousands of chefs in Nanchang and spares no effort to inherit and innovate the brand of Gancai. Nearly 100 group members hold annual meetings, technical exchanges, seminars, skill competitions and musical instrument exhibitions every year, and have compiled more than a dozen pamphlets on dried vegetables research and menu arrangement, which have trained chefs for decades and passed on the traditional skills of dried vegetables from generation to generation. It is this association that has made great efforts and done a lot of detailed and concrete work to prepare for the 13 China Chef Festival.
Wang, the president of the association, is a 70-year-old man who has been engaged in the catering industry almost all his life. He has been working here since the association was established in May 1985. Speaking of Jiangxi cuisine, his face can't help showing pride, and there is a deep love in his eyes. He introduced me to the history, characteristics, development and innovation of Jiangxi cuisine, just like a colorful picture scroll, which was amazing. His views are clear. In China cuisine, dried vegetables have their unique characteristics and should occupy a place. Tu Libo, the executive vice president, and Wang, the chef, worked together for the prosperity of Gancai. There are also several association staff who are busy with their work and enthusiastically discuss Jiangxi cuisine with me. I finally found the answer from this small room: Nanchang Cuisine Association holds high the banner of revitalizing Jiangxi cuisine, and Nanchang chefs shoulder the burden of developing Jiangxi cuisine without hesitation!
The prosperity of Gancai today is inseparable from the association's insistence on training Gancai chefs for many years. Now in Nanchang, as well as many other cities, a large part of the chefs who cook dried vegetables are trained here, including examination rooms, on-site lectures and on-site demonstrations. Chefs who are proficient in dried vegetables operate and explain themselves. The students are divided into two groups, one is going to cut vegetables, and the other is cooking on the stove. There is no profound theory, but every class is true. A training class is generally about 40 people. After three months' study, students can use and master the selection, taste and basic skills of dried vegetables. This kind of training course has been held for more than 100 times, and the chefs of Gancai have learned skills from it, and the tradition of Gancai has been carried forward here.
The tireless old chefs have made a respectable contribution to the promotion of Gancai. Let us remember the names of the older generation of Gancai masters who stepped onto the podium: Xiong Xingen, Bu Qixiang, Luo Xidi, Cai, Yang, Wang Liangsheng, Tu Libo, Yu Kemao and Du Mingzhe. Another great contribution of the chef to the promotion of dried vegetables is to vigorously promote dried vegetables. They know that if a local food wants to make a brand in the whole country, it must boldly go out and go to the national market, and constantly expand its influence through market practice and foreign exchanges. In an open era and an open society, cooking technology must be more open in order to achieve innovation and development. With Nanchang Cuisine Association as the leader, since the fifth National Chef's Day, the chefs of Gancai have sent their own delegations to participate in each session, and every time they have carefully launched the booth of Gancai. Some cities hold food festivals and other activities, and chefs of Jiangxi cuisine are scrambling to show their skills when they hear the news. China Cuisine Association held the selection of famous shops in China, and Nanchang Cuisine Association actively organized Jiangxi restaurants to participate in the selection. There are 13 hotels and restaurants in Nanchang, such as Unique Restaurant, Folk Restaurant, Jiangxi Hotel, Poyang Lake Restaurant, Peace Hotel, Sunshine Hotel, Yuzhangcheng and Fanshigang, which have been listed. At the Tianjin Food Festival, Jiangxi cuisine caused a sensation, and a Jiangxi restaurant was opened in the famous food street of Tianjin Heather. In 2007, China West Lake Expo Food Festival, Gancai became the exotic food with the most awards except the host. Wabo soup in Nanchang has been running from Guangzhou to Shenzhen. Today, nearly 20 Wabo soup shops are still crowded with wedding customers. Folk restaurants have opened four branches in Shenzhen, which are also popular every day. Lion Building is very popular in Beijing and Haikou. As soon as Beijing Opera entered the hotel, it attracted countless fans and customers. A new Poyang Lake hotel in Beijing is located at Jimen Bridge in the Third Ring Road. Although the geographical location is not prosperous, the business of dried vegetables is still very prosperous because of its unique reputation. In Shanghai, in Hangzhou and in Wuhan. . . It is impossible to count how many cities in China have opened Jiangxi restaurants! I only know that Nanchang Cuisine Association is required to recommend Gancai chefs all over the country, and the demand is in short supply. Luoyang, Henan Province also specially invited chefs from Nanchang to perform there for half a month, and the banquet hall of Luoyang Aviation Building was full of guests every day. The people's evaluation of dried vegetables: "Sichuan cuisine is too spicy, Jiangsu cuisine is too sweet, Shandong cuisine is too solid, and dried vegetables are better, taking into account the southeast and northwest."
Looking back on the development of Gansu cuisine in recent years, Wang sighed with emotion: there are mainly a group of chefs who have devoted themselves to studying, an organization that can unite chefs, and of course the support of the government and the cooperation of public opinion. His words made the best footnote for the kitchen, which is the soul of food. Today's dried vegetables can be so brilliant in the food industry in China, and it is a feast created by generations of dried vegetables chefs with exquisite dishes.