How to be a Gourmet

The title "Gourmet" comes from the novel "Gourmet" by Suzhou writer Lu Wenfu. However, "gourmets" have long existed in history.

Someone once listed "Top Ten Gourmets in China", and the first one was Yi Yin, the prime minister of Shang Dynasty. It is said that this Yi Yin was a famous chef of Shang Tang generation, with the reputation of "the saint of cooking", and "Yi Yin soup" has been celebrated for thousands of years. The next nine, in turn, were the famous witch and chef Di Ya in the Spring and Autumn Period, the famous chef Tai Hegong in the late Spring and Autumn Period, the famous female chef Shanzu in the Tang Dynasty, the nun in the Five Dynasties, the famous female chef Fan Zheng, the female chef Liu Niangzi in the Gaozong Palace in the Southern Song Dynasty, the famous folk female chef Song Wusao in the Southern Song Dynasty, the famous prostitute Dong Xiaowan in Qinhuai in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, the famous female pastry chef Xiao Meiren in the Qing Dynasty, and Wang Xiaoyu in the Qianlong Palace in the Qing Dynasty, all of whom were famous chefs of their time.

To regard famous chefs as gourmets reflects the limitations of the times. If you are a superb cook, you can be called a gourmet. By this standard, I'm afraid that chefs found everywhere today can be called gourmets, because their cooking skills are definitely above those of ancient chefs. So, are there too many gourmets? A cook is just a craftsman who specializes in food and cooking. Even if he is given a "name" in front of him, he can only cook good local dishes and can cook more famous dishes, which seems to have nothing to do with "home".

is a glutton whose priority is to have a full stomach a gourmet? Not really. Lian Po, who offered a humble apology in history, said that "a bucket of rice, ten catties of meat" was just to prove that "putting on armor and getting on the horse to show that it was still available". It is obvious that this edible Lian Po is not up to the standard of a gourmet. And Zhang Fei, the "Taoyuan sworn friend", is said to be not only a butcher, good at cooking, but also a special eater. According to legend, Liu Guanzhang once gave a big banquet when he became sworn brothers in Taoyuan. In order to have a delicious appetizer, Zhang Fei told his method of making beef for the chef to make. Braised beef, with black face and red heart, is delicious. Beef has since become a famous food in Langzhong City, Sichuan Province. Can Zhang Fei be listed as a gourmet? Obviously, there is also a question mark. Being able to eat only shows that you are strong and have an extraordinary appetite. You don't know the cultural beauty of "food", let alone the pleasure of eating. How can you say "home"?

I still agree with Lu Wenfu's image of a gourmet: I know the local food like the back of my hand; Where there is new food, you must be the first to arrive; Comments on food are always original and incisive ... Gourmets should be people who are delicious, can eat, can eat and are good at evaluating food. They are not only familiar with the origin of food culture, but also know why, and they can create a way to eat or delicious food at their fingertips, and even write poems for Wen Li from time to time, giving comments brilliantly and uniquely, and making a name for food.

By this standard, Su Dongpo, a famous politician and writer in the Northern Song Dynasty, can be regarded as one. He not only has profound literary attainments, but also has a good knowledge of cooking skills. He can not only eat, but also cook. He is also good at organically combining diet and culture to form a unique food culture landscape. There is a legend that one day, a guest came to Su Dongpo's house, and he cooked his favorite pork to entertain the guests. Put the pork in the pot, add water and seasoning, and simmer slowly with low heat. He played chess with his guests, and they were very interested in it. It was not until the end that he suddenly remembered the meat cooked in the pot. I thought a pot of pork had been burnt, but I entered the kitchen and smelled delicious. When you look at the pot, the pieces of pork are ruddy in color, inseparable in shape, and soft and rotten. When served on the dining table and tasted with the guests, everyone felt that this vegetable juice was rich and mellow, waxy but not greasy, and very delicious. Later, in the sequel to Dongpo, Su Dongpo described the practice of Dongpo meat with an ode to pork. Since then, "Dongpo Meat" has been widely spread and continuously improved, becoming a famous historical dish in ancient and modern times.

Liang Shiqiu, a famous modern literary critic and essayist, should also be counted as one. As a cultural guru in the Chinese-speaking world, Liang Shiqiu's "Essays of Elegant Houses" written in Beibei, Chongqing is his masterpiece. Among them, "Yashe talks about eating" especially shows Liang Shiqiu's talent in food culture all his life. Anyone who has read his chapter on "Tiled Fish" in Henan cuisine knows that this article not only quotes the classics, introduces the origin of its name allusion, but also describes the characteristics of this dish in detail. In order to find out the material selection, knife method, ingredients, processing and eating skills of tile fish cooking, Liang Shiqiu also made a special trip to Houdefu, an old-fashioned Henan cuisine, to taste it and ask the chef there for advice.

Gourmet is the unity of color, fragrance, taste, shape and container, which gives people a special cultural enjoyment with a high degree of spiritual and material unity; Food, cooking pays attention to taste and interest, and has certain elegant requirements in the naming of dishes, the way of taste, the choice of time, the rhythm of eating, and the interspersed entertainment. Gourmet, representing the historical development level of national food culture, is also an important symbol of national civilization, courtesy and healthy life. And gourmets are just connoisseurs, creators, propagandists and representatives of food. As an ancient civilization, China is bound to be a country where gourmets come forth in large numbers.

(Excerpted from Hong Kong Ta Kung Pao by Li Beiling)