The eight famous dishes in Jingzhou/Shashi area have a long history. During the Warring States Period 2,000 years ago, the capital of Chu State was five kilometers north of today’s Jingzhou. Many Chu people like to eat fish, so fish dishes in Kyoto are extremely abundant. One of the fish restaurants is doing very well, and the owner has a fish pond exclusively for his fish, so he can attract diners with fresh fish. One summer, business suddenly became slow. There were too many fresh fish in the pond, but many of them died. The shopkeeper couldn't bear to throw it away, so he simply took it out, removed the thorns, washed away the stains, chopped it into minced meat, and added tofu and egg white to make cakes. Then sprinkle with white wine to remove the fishy smell, put it into a basket and steam it. After steaming, the smell of fish fills the kitchen. The boss was happy and asked the kitchen workers to cut the fish cakes into pieces the next day, pour various condiments on them and steam them. It was put for sale at the door and was snatched up by diners. From then on, this fish restaurant specialized in specialty fish cakes and made a fortune. During the production, the kitchen workers continued to improve, and the quality became better and better. It was so well-known in the capital that even the royal family and nobles sent people to buy it. The "Jingzhou fish cake" passed down from generation to generation is made of white fish meat. It is crystal white, extremely fragrant, and has a Chudi flavor. Later generations also used red fish meat to fry fish balls, and stewed chicken, pork kidneys and pork belly, which became a famous banquet dish in Jingzhou. On top of the feast, the white fish cakes and red fish balls complement each other, which is particularly eye-catching and stimulates people's appetite. If you can taste Jingsha fish cakes and fish balls once, it will be something you will never forget. As a result, fish cakes became widely spread in the Jingsha area. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, fish cakes became the first dish in Chu palaces. Until the Qing Dynasty, they were still a court dish. It is said that after tasting Jingsha fish cakes, Emperor Qianlong blurted out: "You can't see fish when you eat fish." Human lily cake. Later, fish cakes became more and more exquisite. People used fish and fat meat to make cakes, and then used pork, yam, etc. to make meatballs. The meatballs are placed on the bottom, and the fish cakes are placed on top. Finally, the tripe slices and kidney slices are cooked and stir-fried to make a multi-vegetable bowl. It is commonly known as "flower cake" and "chowder meatballs". It is still the top of the banquets for weddings and weddings in Jingzhou. Dish. It can be seen that Jingsha fish cake has transcended a simple eating habit and has become a unique local folk culture after thousands of years of accumulation. According to relevant reports, "Jingsha fish cakes and other products were included in the second batch of provincial intangible cultural heritage lists."

Eight-treasure rice: According to legend, it was created by Xiao Dai, the cook of Empress Dowager Cixi in the late Qing Dynasty. Xiao Dai lived in Jingzhou City and was retained by the owner of "Juzhenyuan" to teach his skills. From then on, the eight-treasure rice became a famous dish in Jingzhou and became famous all over the world. The main raw materials of eight-treasure rice are glutinous rice, red dates, lotus seeds, barley kernel rice, longan meat, honeyed winter melon strips, honeyed cherries, osmanthus sugar, etc. It is first steamed into a dough, and then mixed with sugar and lard to make it. It is bright in color, oily but not greasy, and sweet but not boring. It is known as "taste carefully with a small spoon and have a long aftertaste after leaving the table".

Morning noodles: This is a famous traditional breakfast in Shashi with a history of hundreds of years. As for the origin of Zaotang Noodles, a more convincing theory is that after Shashi opened as a port in 1895, a local restaurant owner made this oil-thick noodle based on the characteristics of the dock workers here who like to eat oily and watery foods due to their manual labor. Fat, soupy and delicious noodles. It got this name because dock workers usually go to noodle shops in the early morning to eat noodles before going to work. The making of morning noodles is very particular. The owner of the noodle shop started working in the middle of the night, using live eels, old hens, pork belly, pork bones, and crucian carp to make soup. In order to prevent the fish bones from mixing into the soup, the crucian carp is also wrapped in a special cloth bag. First boil it over a strong fire, and then simmer it over a slow fire. The red fire licks the bottom of the pot, and the eels and old hens are rolling in the big iron pot. As the steam rises, the essence of these foods is concentrated into a pot of milky white broth. Put the stock into the cooked alkaline water, then put in the small pieces of pork belly stewed with pork skin and 70% fat; then shredded chicken breast, thinly sliced ??lean pork, and deep-fried until crispy and fragrant. Crispy eel bones and other large pieces; finally, a handful of fragrant local spring onions are sprinkled on top to meet the diners who have been waiting impatiently. Holding such a bowl of noodles, you can see the chewy noodles looming under the milky white soup stock, the white and tender chicken and pork, the browned eel, and the green green onions, all teasing your stomach. When you eat it in your mouth, the noodles are soft and smooth. The soup has the flavor of chicken, fish and meat, which is fresh but not greasy. The crispy aroma of eel, the tenderness of chicken, and the mellow aroma of lean meat will conquer your taste buds in an instant. At this time, you will definitely be jealous of those happy Shashi people, because every day for them starts with the delicious breakfast noodles. The biggest feature of Zaotang Noodles is the broth that is rich in collagen and various nutrients. When a man eats a bowl of morning noodles, he feels like he is not tired after drinking Red Bull; when a woman eats a bowl of morning noodles, she feels better than going to a beauty salon. There is no shortage of loyal "fans" of Zaotang Noodles. In order to grab the fresh soup from the first pot, there are "zaosi" fans at the doors of time-honored noodle restaurants such as Fu Shou and Xiyuan and several unknown but famous noodle restaurants at around 5 o'clock in the morning. Waiting in front. After seven o'clock, there will be a long queue in front of the noodle shop.

Spring rolls: It is a traditional snack to welcome the spring. It originated from the "spring plate" where people fed each other food on the day of spring in the Jin Dynasty. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the trend of eating "spring plate" became more popular. Du Fu once left a poem in Jingzhou about "spring plate with thin lettuce", and Su Shi also wrote a poem about "green song, yellow leek and spring plate". Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, spring rolls have gradually evolved into "spring rolls". The spring rolls are made of flour and made into a thin skin, with pork, leeks, etc. as fillings. They are rolled into a tube shape about two inches long and deep-fried in a pan. They are golden in color, crispy in skin, tender in filling, and have an attractive aroma.

Lotus root and pork ribs soup: "There are wild ducks and water chestnut roots everywhere, the autumn harvest is full of rice, and everyone says that heaven is beautiful, how can it be compared to the fish and rice land of Honghu Lake" This is an episode in the movie "Red Guards of Honghu Lake" , Honghu Lake in Jingzhou is the largest freshwater lake on the Jianghan Plain, located in the southwest of Jingzhou. Every autumn and winter in the Jingzhou area of ??Hubei Province, whether it is a large hotel or a small restaurant, the dish of baked lotus root soup is indispensable. What the locals call "baked" actually means simmering and stewing. Jingzhou's lotus roots are the most distinctive! Hubei people are famous for their fondness for soup. During festivals and when guests come to their home, they will bake a can of soup in a casserole. There is a saying in Jingzhou: There is no feast without soup. I remember a friend told us when he came back from Guangzhou last year that he couldn't drink lotus root soup like here in Guangdong. The reason why the lotus roots in Jingzhou are sweet and glutinous when stewed is because the water and soil in Jingzhou are good, while the lotus roots in Guangdong are not stewed at all. It's not rotten, it has a nice crunch in your mouth. Jingzhou's authentic local "Lotus Root Pork Ribs Soup" is made from the finest Honghu red lotus roots, which are simmered in an earthen clay pot over a coal stove for more than three hours to create a fresh and mellow soup. The best lotus root is soft and sweet after being stewed. When you bite it, you can pull out thin filaments. Regular consumption of lotus root soup can also nourish the heart, spleen, and nourish the skin and activate blood circulation. In the cold winter, have a bowl of "Lotus Root Pork Ribs Soup" and drink it to warm your whole body. Pork Ribs and Lotus Root Soup has the sweetness of lotus root and the richness of pork ribs. It is a warm and delicious soup. Lotus root has high nutritional value and is rich in trace elements such as iron and calcium. It is also rich in plant protein, vitamins and starch, which can replenish qi and blood. During the change of seasons, many people are prone to colds. Drinking pork ribs and lotus root soup has the effect of enhancing immunity. Strengthening the body can reduce the chance of contracting the disease.

Qianzhang Pork: Made from pork belly that is both fat and lean, it is boiled and fried, colored with brown sugar, cut into thin slices, and steamed in a bowl. Because the meat slices are as thin as paper and shaped like a shuttle , with many slices, hence the name Qianzhang Pork, also known as Comb Pork. According to legend, this dish was made by Duan Wenchang, the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, who improved on the traditional method of preparing comb meat when he returned to Jiangling Province for relatives. He brought it back to Chang'an for his friends to taste. Since then, this dish has become famous all over the world. To make braised pork, you must use fat and lean pork belly with skin. First cut the pork belly into large pieces about 10-12 cm wide and 12-14 cm long. Boil it in a pot of boiling water until it is cooked. Then put the meat into the fried Beijing sauce for coloring and simmering until the flavor of the seasoning is absorbed. After putting it in, fry it once in oil to release some of the fat in the meat, so that the meat is fat but not greasy, and the skin is chewy. The skin of the fried meat is wrinkled, much like the skin of a tiger, so the pork belly is also called "tiger skin pork belly". Wait for the meat to cool before cutting into thin slices. It should be as thin as possible. People with good knife skills can cut the meat as thin as paper. A piece of 10 cm long meat can be cut into more than 30 to 40 pieces. Therefore, Braised pork also has another name: "thousand-layer pork". After the meat is cut, place the meat slices face down neatly in a bowl, and put the pepper on top. (The pepper is a local dish in Shashi. It is made by mincing fresh peppers and mixing them with rice noodles and then putting them in a lotus leaf jar. When eating, Stir-fry it and it will have a special aroma. If there is no pepper, you can also use tempeh, Nanfeng pickled vegetables, dried prunes or dried beans. Steam it in a basket for 20 minutes. When serving, place the steamed pork belly upside down on a plate, sprinkle with chopped green onion, or place a garnish of cucumbers and coriander on the edge of the plate. In this way, the pork belly with good color, flavor, and shape is served to the table. It will give people a strong impact on the sense of sight, smell and taste, making you unwilling to stop eating chopsticks. It is also a good accompaniment to wine and rice dishes. In the past, people in Jingzhou could only eat braised pork at banquets. Now their living standards have improved. This dish is not only available in hotels and restaurants, but also often made in ordinary people's homes. Especially during the New Year and festivals, this dish is absolutely indispensable on the dining tables of Jingzhou people.

Beef rice noodles: Just like Zaotang noodles, Jingzhou people who like strong flavors usually choose beef rice noodles. The sour and spicy ones make people salivate just thinking about it. More than 20 kinds of Chinese medicines and spices are added to the beef noodle soup stock, as well as beef bones, so the soup is so fresh. Their beef noodles are also carefully marinated, using 18 kinds of ingredients and marinated for 4 hours. Become. There are several secrets to whether rice noodles are delicious or not: rice noodles must be tough, soft and broken when pinched, which is not delicious; the hot and sour taste should also be strong, which is very similar to the taste of Chongqing hot and sour noodles; of course the essence is It's beef. The beef needs to be chewy, and the soup needs to be boiled stock. It's the perfect beef rice noodle pairing. Gongan beef rice noodles and Huangjiatang rice noodles are both good choices.

Mi Yuanzi: (we usually call it Tofu Yuanzi) is mainly about taste. To taste good, you need all the seasonings. There are 12 kinds of seasonings such as shrimps and seaweed. A bowl of Mi Yuanzi There are actually 12 kinds of condiments, and the taste is incredible. Just talking about this shrimp is not simple. You need to choose shrimps that are 2 centimeters long, freshly sun-dried that year, and dried extremely well, so that they can bring out the special umami flavor without being soaked. However, it’s not enough to just taste good, it also needs tender and smooth rice seeds to match it. The master said earlier that to make good Mi Yuanzi, you must be very careful and not be careless in every process. First select good new rice as the raw material, then grind the rice into fine rice milk. After adding auxiliary materials to increase the viscosity, it is time to heat. After the rice milk becomes a paste, then make it into round balls. Mi Yuanzi.

Buns include: a thing called wontons in Beijing, wontons in Shanghai, chaoshou in Chengdu, and buns in Shashi. The thin bread has a thin dent, hence its name.

Because it is thin, it melts in your mouth. It is so delicious when paired with the shrimp and seaweed soup. The best thing to eat is Daixiang Baomian, because the red meat is revealed in the noodles, which shows the delicate craftsmanship.

Fried dough sticks wrapped in glutinous rice: It is simply a genius invention, not a hamburger, but better than a hot dog. On a small table, in a small space, glutinous rice, fried dough sticks, various canned kelp shreds, salted fish shreds, radish shreds, potato shreds, mustard shreds, beef shreds, ham... complement each other and are a perfect match. Perhaps only the young students who ride to school with one hand in the cold winter understand the feeling best.

Tofu brain: Northern tofu brain is braised, with chive flowers and chili oil added, making it salty. Shashi tofu is white and clean, like a mirror, sweetened with sugar. There is a world of difference between the two. The most similar thing is probably that they were both eaten with fried dough sticks. However, Shashi Tofu Nao not only favors fried dough sticks, but also embraces many fried goods such as fried dough sticks, fried dough cakes, glutinous rice cakes, and glutinous rice cakes.

Fa Gao: The raw material is very simple - glutinous rice. After a not very complicated production process of fermentation, steaming and cutting, it has become a food suitable for all ages in the small town. The origin and age of Fa Gao are unknown to this day, but it probably has some history. There are only two or three types of snacks in my childhood memories, and steamed cakes are one of the important ones. Fa Gao is the true nature of glutinous rice. Its taste is sweet, but not cloying at all. It has a natural starchy sweetness, so no matter the elderly, adults or children can eat a few pieces at one go. In the past, the surface of the cake was a bit rough, and dense holes could be seen on the sides, making it extra light and soft, so the taste was even better.

Soda raking: Just put something like white batter onto the pot, draw a circle with a piece of bamboo, cover the pot and let it simmer for a while. The top layer will taste like steamed cakes. The layer below is golden and crunchy.

There must be three delicacies inside the tofu skin, and it also has an outer skin. That is to say, it has skin and filling. The skin of this tofu skin is made by grinding mung beans and rice into a paste, then mixing the paste with eggs, and then putting it into the pot and spreading it into dough (the dough remains in the pot at this time). The stuffing is usually made of glutinous rice, diced meat, and dried tofu (some places add more ingredients, which naturally doubles the value), and then wrapped in the spread dough, it looks a bit like Fold the clothes, then fry in oil until golden brown (some chefs will add a little lard to fry, which will make it more fragrant). The three fresh tofu skins are charred on the outside but tender on the inside. They have the crispy aroma of eggs on the outside and the sweet aroma of glutinous rice on the inside. Mixed with the umami flavors of diced meat and dried tofu, it naturally feels like a collection of the best flavors from each family. If The master finally fried it in lard, which was like the finishing touch, and all the aromas were immediately elevated to a higher level.

Huanxi Tuo: Other cities also have sesame balls similar to Huanxi Tuo. But the belly of Ma Tuan is full, while the belly of Happy Tuo is empty. Shashi's Huanxi Tuo was bulging when it first came out of oil, but it shrank when eaten in the mouth. It turned into a faint sweetness in the mouth, as if it was a forced smile. Huanxi Tuo is not only delicious, but also cute.

Gong’an Guo Nang: It’s a bit similar to Xinjiang’s naan, but not as thick. The Guo Nugget is just a thin layer, and you can choose sweet or salty flavors. There are also meat-wrapped and grilled ones. It tastes crunchy like a biscuit when it comes out, and the taste is so delicious!