If an old artist is asked to judge a group of people who can eat salty food the most in the country, I will recommend the Hakkas first.

People in Guangfu are thirsty for salted fish, while Hakkas grew up in salt piles from their roots.

△ Hakka pickles

As most of the early Hakkas lived in mountainous areas, salted food is a very convenient choice for Hakkas who often wander, and the salty and fatty dishes that consume a lot of physical energy for a long time can supplement the salt and energy they need.

Eating salt has become the taste gene of Hakka people, and it has been passed down from generation to generation. In China on the Tip of the Tongue, the most important pen and ink of Hakka cuisine is salted chicken.

The special cooking technique of "salt baking" is a unique cooking skill of Hakka people, and it is also a skillful work of ancestors.

at first, just for the convenience of storing food, the whole chicken was put into a salt heap for salting and sealing, but it was unexpectedly fragrant and delicious after steaming.

The wandering life cultivates a thrifty personality. There are many plants and trees in the mountainous area, and firewood is often used for cooking. Therefore, the common way of Hakka cuisine is stewing. The cooked dishes cooked by fire are soft and salty, and "fat, salty and cooked" has become the signboard of Hakka cuisine.

△ Hakka Cuisine Highlights

Braised pork with plum vegetables is a good product among the fatty dishes.

Among them, the plum dish is the crowning touch, which was made by the Hakka ancestors in Meijiang River valley in eastern Guangdong after being salted and dried. Without salty plum dish, the braised meat lost its soul.

Besides, the special craft of "brewing" is also a great wisdom of Hakka people. Hakkas know well that "everything can be brewed", and you can brew almost everything you can think of: tofu, bitter gourd, eggplant and pepper ...

Legend has it that this is from the custom style of eating jiaozi as stuffing in the North during the New Year.

After moving south, Hakkas found that Lingnan area was not suitable for growing wheat in China, and it was not difficult to produce flour, so it evolved into a way of brewing all kinds of food to give new food inspiration, in order to pin their ancestors' thoughts.

Of course, with the climate and cultural differences in the scattered areas of Hakka, traditional Hakka dishes can be transformed into various varieties of Hakka dishes by combining local natural conditions and environment.

For example, Hakka tea-smashing, in which tea leaves, mint and peanuts are ground into tea paste and soaked in food.

This very old traditional food custom can be traced back to the Han Dynasty at the earliest, and it was later passed down by the Hakka people in the eastern part of Guangdong Province, but now it has become a minority Hakka species.

△ Hakka tea is not for drinking, but for eating

For example, when Hakkas move to Hong Kong, the culture of potted vegetables has become the most representative feature of Hakkas in Weichun, New Territories, and they will have a big feast to eat potted vegetables during festivals.

△ Making Potted Vegetables in Xinweicun Office

In the past, it was convenient for Hakka ancestors to put coarse and greasy cooked food in pots. Now, Potted Vegetables have become more and more luxurious, and abalone wings and belly have already replaced Nostoc flagelliforme, pork skin, boiled chicken, roasted meat and so on ...

△ Big Potted Vegetables

Hakka dishes in western Fujian pay attention to the original ingredients and eat them.

Hakka people in the mountainous area of southern Jiangxi are suitable for growing peppers because of the heavy local humidity, so the Hakka diet is salty and spicy, and proper Hakka dishes with heavy taste are born.

△ meatballs in Ningdu, Jiangxi, Hakka dishes in Jiangxi flavor

Hakka people eat vegetarian, coarse, wild and miscellaneous food. Nowadays, as more people pay attention to light health, less oil and salt and light diet, traditional Hakka dishes are obviously not suitable for urbanites who pursue delicacy.

But in any case, Hakkas are all over the world, and no matter how they change their tastes, it is hard for them to change their hometown tastes and taste buds. How many overseas Chinese wander abroad for that salty taste?