Surrounded by water, the ancient Huizhou Mountain is rich in products and outstanding people. Since ancient times, its style of writing has been prosperous and its cultural remains are extremely rich. Huizhou's geographical environment, humanistic environment and eating habits contributed to the formation of Huizhou cuisine. The natural environment of Huizhou, which is shaded by green trees, criss-crossing ravines and pleasant climate, provides inexhaustible raw materials for Huizhou cuisine, and at the same time, it can capture the beauty of the integration of landscape and humanity through Huizhou cuisine.

"Peach blossom and flowing water mandarin fish fertilizer", the most classic representative of Anhui cuisine is stinky mandarin fish, also known as pickled mandarin fish. The so-called pickled fresh means smelly in Huizhou dialect. The fish in this dish is tender and tender, fresh and fragrant, and the sharp contrast between "fragrance" and "stink" is the uniqueness of stinky mandarin fish.

Within the jurisdiction of Huizhou, many streams run endlessly in the mountains, and the unique landscape makes Huizhou people choose more ingredients. However, the blocked traffic makes the transportation of food difficult. In order to keep the fish fresh, the clever Huizhou people remove the scales and internal organs of the fresh mandarin fish, cut them into several knives, put them in wooden barrels, sprinkle salt on them, stack them layer by layer, and finally press heavy objects on them to compact them.

The fish was slightly fermented on the way. At the destination, the gills of the fish were still red, and the fish body was light green and shiny, and the scales were complete and lifelike. It smells a little smelly, but it is actually the smell produced by lactic acid bacteria fermentation, but it has a strange taste after burning. Nowadays, with the changes of the times, traffic is no longer an obstacle, but the stinky mandarin fish, as a representative dish of Huizhou cuisine, is still famous at home and abroad.

After curing, the meat quality of Siniperca chuatsi becomes more compact, forming a unique texture of "garlic clove meat", and the meat quality is similar to that of top-grade yellow croaker. After eating fish, you can feel its unique "pickled fresh" taste, and keep the original flavor of mandarin fish. Once you eat it, you will bite after bite and you will never stop.

the pickled mandarin fish is fried first and then burned, and the soy sauce is emphasized. Like most Anhui dishes, the spicy and thick braised sauce not only enhances the delicious food, but also is very suitable for eating. The table is a dish of scenery, salty, spicy and sweet, killing wine and killing rice, which is extremely satisfying.

In China's thousand-year farming civilization, soybeans occupy an important position. Huainan is the hometown of tofu, and Hui people are especially good at making tofu. With the endless exploration of Huizhou people, tofu has become an indispensable dish in every household. Different from the stinky tofu of Hunan cuisine, the hairy tofu in Anhui cuisine is the representative of the "mild micro-rot" of Anhui cuisine.

hairy tofu is made to grow slender plush hyphae (plant protein) on the surface of tofu by artificial fermentation, which is inspired by the humid climate in Huizhou. Because the vegetable protein in tofu is converted into amino acids after fermentation, it tastes very fresh after cooking. This rich flavor is called "the taste of hometown" by Huizhou people.

after frying, the fluff on the surface disappears, and a golden crispy leather bag is wrapped in a semi-solid like sufu, which is soft, soft and slightly bitter. It is hard to taste bitter when dipped in the sauce, but the mouth is full of fragrance, which lovers love. No matter in the authentic Anhui Cuisine Hall or in the streets of Tunxi Old Street, you can easily find the figure of hairy tofu.

the most interesting way to eat is to meet peddlers walking around the streets, with a small stove, hairy tofu at one end, sesame oil and pepper paste, and chat while eating in a frying pan, which is delicious and unique. Huizhou people who have lived in other places for a long time, when it comes to hairy tofu, will arouse a strong homesickness.

There is a legend about hairy tofu. According to legend, after Zhu Yuanzhang captured the city, he sent troops north to station troops in Jixi. People in this area often use water tofu to make soldiers work. Later, when water tofu was given too much, they couldn't eat it for a while. When it was hot, the tofu grew white and brown fluff. To prevent waste, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the cook to fry it first and then stew it with a variety of seasonings, which produced a unique hairy tofu. After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he served this dish to Zhu Sheng, a Hui counselor in Shexian County, and this dish was returned to Huizhou. After many times, the workshops improved the production process and formed today's characteristic Huizhou cuisine.

Yipin Pot originated in Jixi County, Anhui Province, and is also known as Jixi Yipin Pot. Some people say that the origin of Yipin Pot is related to the potted vegetables in Cantonese cuisine. Pot vegetables may be the originator of Yipin Pot. Both of them are a collection of delicacies in a potted dish. The rich ingredients are layered into the big plate, and the juices are mixed, and the taste is rich and fragrant. However, this has been impossible to verify.

after tasting the "Yipin Pot", Mr. Liang Shiqiu praised the dish and wrote a detailed description: "A large iron pot, almost two feet in diameter, was served hot, and it was still boiling, with a layer of chicken, a layer of duck, a layer of meat and a layer of oily tofu, dotted with some egg dumplings, and radish and vegetables at the bottom, which was delicious."

Huizhou merchants run around all year round, making special "one-product pots" in order to find the feeling of going home. Carefully selected ingredients, layered around each other, what you want is a thriving, round and round. On festive days, each family cooks the flavor of each family, and the pot contains the nostalgia and joy that can't be melted. On top of the firewood, dried bamboo shoots, chicken, duck, pork, bean curd and egg dumplings are stacked in layers in an old-fashioned iron pot ... When the lid is opened, it is steaming and fragrant.

speaking of yipin pot, I have to mention Mr. Hu Shi. During Hu Shi's stay in the United States, he was homesick for many times. He entertained guests with the name of "Yipin Pot" in the name of hometown flavor, thus making it famous internationally, and Yipin Pot was named Hu Shizhi, called Hu Shi Yipin Pot.

when a steaming iron pot is served, the rich soup is still boiling and rolling, and the colorful colors constructed with various ingredients are like splendid Huizhou. The egg dumplings and oily tofu filled with meat are delicious and juicy, and the pork belly on the substrate is as fat and crisp as braised pork. The more stewed the soup is, the thicker it will be, and even with the soup, several bowls of rice can be eaten.

Zhonghetang is an authentic traditional dish in Qimen, Anhui Province. It is clear and fragrant, fresh and tender, not greasy, and moderately thick, suitable for all ages. When Qimen people hold banquets, neutralization soup is indispensable, and it is the first dish on the table. Zhonghe, originally called "Zhonghe", is a river that flows into Poyang Lake in Qimen County, and it is a river in Qimen.

According to legend, Fang Yue, a scholar from Qimen, was an official in Poyang during the Southern Song Dynasty. In his spare time, he often went boating on Poyang Lake, tracing back to the Zhonghe River, holding a handful of beautiful water in his hometown, sipping tea and reciting poems among the green mountains and green waters, which can somewhat soothe his frustrated mood. Fang Yue was fond of tofu, and once when he was cooking tofu on a boat, he lacked seasoning. When he saw that there were many small shrimps in the river, he fished some and put them in the pot to cook with tofu. He never thought that the tofu soup cooked with small shrimps was more delicious. After that, Fang Yue deliberately went to Zhonghe to get some shrimp as a common seasoning for cooking tofu, and named this dish "Zhonghe Soup".

Since Fang Yue introduced this bowl of "bean curd soup" to Qimen, Qimen people joined the local delicacies and incorporated them into the dietary preferences of the mountain people, and some literati and poets implanted Huizhou Hehe cultural elements, changing "river" to "harmony", and "Zhonghe soup" became the representative of Huizhou cuisine soup. The improved Zhonghe soup is clear and delicious, oily but not greasy. In the cold winter months, a small bowl is drunk before meals to stimulate the appetite and dispel the cold, and it has become a special dish for wedding banquets and family gatherings in Qimen area.

There are many representative dishes of Anhui cuisine, far more than the above four, and there are also traditional delicacies such as stewed turtle with ham, braised civet, stewed pigeon in Huangshan, steamed stone chicken, bamboo shoots in Wenzheng Mountain, Huizhou dumpling, knife board incense, Li Hongzhang's hodgepodge, Cao Cao chicken, stone bun and so on. Native ingredients, unique and imaginative processing and cooking have created Anhui cuisine.

Anhui cuisine, under the seemingly simple and heavy dishes, contains the truth of softness to delicacy. Take local materials and win by fresh; Make good use of heat, fire power is unique; Delicate in stewing, suitable for shade; Pay attention to nature, keep fit with food ... Every scene and every dish is full of love and expectation for life. It is not only a feast for the mouth, but also the crystallization of Huizhou customs and culture.