? Meihekou City is located in the southeast of Jilin Province, at the western foot of Changbai Mountain. It was once a royal hunting paddock of the Qing Dynasty. Every autumn, the emperor would lead the royal family, court officials and thousands of soldiers to the paddock for hunting. Hunting competitions during the day, rewards based on merit. After nightfall, people hold a grand banquet, barbecue and feast on the animals harvested during the day. As early as ancient times, after forest wildfires, primitive people discovered that cooked animal meat was more delicious and easier to digest. Therefore, after humans learned to use fire, they developed the delicacy of barbecue. At first, most of the animals were cleaned and roasted whole, or dismembered into half and then roasted. As the earliest cooking method mastered by humans, barbecue has been continuously improved and perfected. It is no longer just a primitive barbecue, but has evolved into various forms of barbecue with local characteristics, and has gradually become a culture.

Last summer, Jiang Ming, a fellow villager of my beloved, came to visit me at home. Not being a good cook, I cooked a few home-cooked meals and felt like I was neglecting the guests. So, I decided to choose a unique hotel to treat me well. When asked about his favorites, Jiang Ming said: "I really miss the barbecue at Gaolilou in Meihekou." A few years ago, when he was a soldier in Meihekou, he had eaten the barbecue at Gaolilou several times, and he has never forgotten it. After being demobilized, I traveled all over the world to run my business. I have eaten barbecue in many places, but it just doesn’t taste like the barbecue at Gaolilou in Meihekou.

? Gaolilou Barbecue evolved from Korean barbecue combined with local characteristics and tastes. It has the local characteristics of Meihekou and has become one of the landmark delicacies of Meihekou. Its taste completely retains the Korean flavor. The spicy and fragrant barbecue style also retains the juice of the meat to the greatest extent, making the meat tender but not woody, fragrant and delicious.

? Calling two local friends to accompany us, we chose the nearby Yongshu Lao Gaolilou Hotel opposite the Meihekou Market. This hotel has two floors. The first floor is the lobby and the second floor is the private rooms. The largest private room can seat more than a dozen people and can be grilled on three charcoal stoves at the same time. Eight of us booked a room with two charcoal stoves. When I arrived at the hotel, I saw that the lobby on the first floor was packed. If I hadn't made a reservation in advance, I wouldn't have been able to book a room. When we first stepped through the door, a waiter wearing bright Korean costumes greeted us with a sweet smile. One of the waiters enthusiastically introduced us into the room, poured us each a cup of barley tea, and then handed us a thick cookbook. I ordered eight plates of meat and several side dishes. A few minutes later, a waiter brought out several plates of Korean special dishes: platycodon mixed with homemade spicy sauce, authentic Korean spicy cabbage, spicy garlic sprouts, small potatoes and sweet potato stalks, and two perilla leaves (one is pickled). pickles, a kind of fresh food wrapped in meat), and homemade hand-smoked dry tofu rolls with a unique flavor. These appetizers are colorful and authentic in taste, making you salivate before you even use your chopsticks.

At the same time, another waiter brought up two charcoal stoves. The neat charcoal rods burned red. I heard that these were smokeless machine-made charcoals, which were more resistant to burning and had even charcoal fire. The charcoal stove is placed under a stretchable exhaust pipe. The waiter brought a stack of iron curtains, each covered with a piece of white barbecue paper. Using charcoal fire and grilling meat on paper is a unique feature of Meihekou Gaolilou Barbecue.

? This paper barbecue has a certain technical content. An iron curtain with good technology can bake seven or eight plates of meat on a piece of paper, but a new iron curtain will be needed to bake one plate with poor technology. I am also an expert at grilling meat. I can grill about three or four plates of meat on one piece of paper. The beef at Yongshu Lao Gaolilou is carefully selected from the finest meat, cut into thin slices, marinated with secret seasonings and then served on the plate. I first spread a plate of meat evenly on the paper, and then placed the iron curtain on the charcoal stove. Once the charcoal fire is grilled, the meat on the paper will gradually change color. Place the chopsticks as flat as possible, at an angle of about 30 degrees to the grill curtain, and gently turn the meat on the paper. Try not to use chopsticks. Touch the grill paper directly. The meat is roasted on the paper until it sizzles and the aroma is overflowing. Don’t underestimate this piece of barbecue paper. It can block the excess substances that are harmful to health emitted by the charcoal fire. It can also absorb the excess fat of the meat and lock in the meat juice. In this way, the grilled meat can reduce the burnt smell and smoke. Smokey flavor. When the entire piece of meat changes color, it is ready to eat. Dip it with special dipping sauce, it is fragrant and tender, fragrant but not greasy, and has a unique taste.

After the first plate of meat is grilled, pull the grilled meat to one side of the iron curtain, and then place the second plate of meat on the grilling curtain while eating. Make sure that the barbecue paper is always covered with meat, otherwise, the exposed paper will be burned. Everyone was full of praise for my barbecue skills. Jiang Ming said: "Well, this is the taste! It's a taste I haven't seen for a long time!" I also felt a little proud. When the third plate is baked, the paper will change color slightly under the action of high temperature and oil. Continue to spread the meat on top, and then pour a little beer on the meat. The meat will take on color in the beer foam and become darker. red. The meat at this time is more tender and tastes more delicious. What we eat is not only delicious food, but also the process of barbecue.

? Beer and barbecue, everyone enjoyed the meal, and I ordered a bowl of cold noodles for everyone. My friends tried to stop me again and again, saying that I was already very full and couldn’t eat anymore. I insisted on asking the waiter to bring the cold noodles. I was very confident in the cold noodles at Yongshu Lao Gaolilou. Especially the cold noodles in cold soup can relieve tiredness and relieve heat, refreshing the heart and spleen. Speaking of cold noodles, there is a past event that is still fresh in my memory.

That was when I first started working. I would pass by Gaoli Tower every day and swallow my saliva as I smelled the aroma of meat wafting out of the air vents. After I received my first month's salary, I hesitated for a long time and walked in. I saw that the tables were full of people, having barbecue and drinking wine. I silently ordered a bowl of cold noodles and sat in the corner. It was the best cold noodles I have ever eaten in my life...

When the cold noodles came, there was a light yellow and transparent soup. , green cucumber shreds, red spicy cabbage shreds, crystal clear noodles. It looks clean and refreshing, take a sip of the soup, it is refreshing and cool, with moderate sweetness and sourness. After taking a bite of the noodles, it is very chewy. Who would have the heart to leave such delicious cold noodles?

? Food is not just food itself, it is a culture, a custom, and a desire. As the quality of life improves, people have higher requirements for delicious food, and they often enjoy the process of eating delicious food. Meihekou not only has picturesque scenery, but also has many delicacies that people will never forget after eating it. Friends who have been to Meihekou, if you have not tried Lao Gaolilou Barbeque, you will definitely have some regrets.

About the author: Gao Jiannan, a native of Meihekou, Jilin Province. Born in September 1969, graduated from Hailong Normal University in July 1989. Vice chairman and secretary-general of Meihekou Writers Association, member of Jilin Provincial Writers Association, and member of Chinese Prose Poetry Research Association. A student of the 2016 Young and Middle-aged Writers Class of Jilin Provincial Writers Association. His works are scattered in publications such as "Qinghai Lake", "Cultural Jilin", "Beidou Poetry Magazine", and "Poetry Northeast". In 2014, his work "The Soul and Flesh of Prose Poetry" won the first prize at the Seventh Congress of Chinese Prose Poetry. In 2015, his work "Qingfeng" won the first prize of Jilin Provincial Integrity Culture Creation Literary Works category; he compiled the Arabic folk tale "Eight Nightmares" published by Jilin Publishing Group Co., Ltd. and the National Top 100 Book Publishing Unit. ” and “Jha’s Story.” In 2016, "Love is Like the Snowflake", one of the Meihekou Literature Series, was published. In 2018, in the first "Elite Cup" National Literary Creation Invitational Competition, four other poems including "Snowflake" won the second prize and were compiled into a volume published by the national regular publishing house.