Yangzhou is one of the most famous cities in Tang and Song poetry. I know Yangzhou, first of all, from Du Mu's "The green hills are faint with water, and the grass in the south of the Yangtze River has not withered in autumn." On the moonlit night of Bridge 24, where do jade people teach blowjobs? Later, from Jiang Kui's "Yangzhou Slow", "Huaizuo Mingdu, Zhuxi is a good place, and the saddle is less in the initial journey. "After a spring breeze of ten miles, will the wheat be green?" In the past, I have deepened my love for this exquisite and chic Jiangnan town. Over the past years, I have traveled to and from this "green city" for more than a dozen times to visit the beautiful scenery of Huaidong and taste the delicious food on the tip of my tongue. And from this, I became attached to many friends in the same industry. In addition to singing poems, * * * tasted the classic dishes of Huaiyang, and every time I got something, I enjoyed it.
It is said that "Yangzhou Banquet" restaurant, together with "Fun Garden" restaurant, which is also a subsidiary of "Yangcheng Yiwei", was selected into the "Erzuan" list of China Black Pearl Restaurant, occupying only two of the three seats in Jiangsu Province, which is not easy. During the Spring Festival in Jihai, I accidentally met the "Wang Zengqi's family banquet" in the quaint "Yangzhou Banquet" restaurant, which is full of Jiangnan culture. This surprised me with the "Wang Fen" of a veteran foodie, and I was full of delicious food.
why did Wang Zengqi's family banquet appear in Yangzhou? The hospitable host untied the knot for me. Master Chen Wanqing, the founder of this banquet and the inheritor of Huaiyang cuisine, is not only a hardcore "Wang Fen", but also a fellow villager of Gaoyou of Mr. Wang Zengmao and a close friend of Wang Lao's descendants. A few days ago, when Chen Xiaoqing, the general director of China on the Tip of the Tongue, came to Yangzhou to shoot the food feature film Flavor World, Chen Wanqing led the way and paid a visit to the former residence of Gaoyou Wang Zengqi. Restoring some of the hometown dishes described in Wang Zengqi's book has been Chen Wanqing's long-cherished wish for many years.
I see.
Yangzhou is the most qualified place to restore Wang Zengqi's family banquet. Traditionally, this place is not only one of the central cradles of Huaiyang cuisine, but also several classic works handed down from generation to generation in the history of China's food culture, such as Yuan Zicai's Menu of Eating with the Garden and Li Daiweng's Casual Send, all of which involve Yangzhou cuisine. Feng Qiyong, a famous red scientist, thinks that many exquisite dishes in A Dream of Red Mansions belong to Huaiyang cuisine, and some dishes are still very popular in Yangzhou. Many people mistakenly think that the "Manchu-Han banquet" originated from the court, but this is not the case. It first came from the Record of Yangzhou Painting Boat written by Li Dou during the reign of Qianlong Jiashen. According to records, "the temples before and after going to Shangmai Street are all big kitchens for six departments and hundreds of officials to eat? , the so-called Manchu banquet is also. " There are also more than 1 Yangzhou dishes at that time. Thus, since the "First Banquet of the Founding of the People's Republic of China" in New China, Huaiyang cuisine system has always been the main choice for state banquets, which makes sense.
in the 198s, Yangzhou catering industry, under the impetus of famous cultural scholars such as Feng Qiyong, Wang Shixiang and Yang Renkai, developed and resumed the "Red House Banquet" after 2 years, which was popular in the cultural, artistic and food circles at home and abroad. Feng Lao sometimes wrote a poem praising: "The delicacies in the world belong to Yangzhou, and there are three sets of duck stewed fish heads. "Last night, the Red Mansion held a grand banquet and feasted on Kyushu. Chen Wanqing is one of the important participants.
The "Red Mansion Banquet" was undoubtedly a grand feast for dignitaries, and its luxury was inevitable. However, Wang Zengqi's family banquet is the private kitchen of ordinary literati, and it will definitely not produce any big dishes. It will mainly focus on ordinary hometown dishes, and the coarse dishes will be carefully cooked. This positioning, the "Yangzhou Banquet" is accurate.
the procedure of family banquet is quite ceremonial. The title of the menu is "But a Bowl of Human Fireworks Wang Zengqi's Family Banquet". Among them, eight kinds of cold dishes are presented respectively: boiled broad bean, pickled fish, south milk shrimp, Jieshou dried tea, radish, salted goose, combed cucumber and pot-stewed platter. Another exquisite fruit and vegetable basket, red, fat and green, is the finishing touch.
among them, the most impressive one is the small pickle fish in the bamboo basket container. Fish is bream produced in gaoyou lake. It is marinated and air-dried. After adding soybean and Shaoxing wine, it is burned and eaten cold. Fish is selected in the crotch position, which is good to eat, tough and has fish jelly. Nuoxiang, wine and fresh fragrance are intertwined, and the food is memorable and full of fragrance. Brother Wan Qing, who presided over the scene, couldn't help cheering repeatedly, so he called for another one. For professionals whose mouths deal with all kinds of food every day, this move is extraordinary.
Jieshou dried tea is a famous product in Gaoyou, and it was once a tribute to Ganlong in Qing Dynasty. Wang Zengqi also mentioned it in his works. Dried tea is cut into filaments and mixed with coriander, which is refreshing and refreshing. It is an excellent wine dish. South milk shrimp, mixed with red rot milk and white wine, drunk and choked gaoyou lake live shrimp; Choose the small red radish in early spring, pat it flat and pickle it with sweet and sour sauce. It is red and lovely, crisp and refreshing. Yu Zhi's brine, Yangzhou old goose platter, etc., are all loaded like works of art, and the knives are meticulous, each spreading the local flavor and teasing the taste buds. The kitchen knife among the three knives in Yangzhou is really not a wave of fame.
cold dishes are used to warm up at the beginning, just like a maid making an appearance first. Hot dishes are the main characters, and it's when the ladies come out to stage. Eight items are recommended: gaoyou lake Fat Fish Soup, Traditional Huaiyang Soft Pocket, Garlic-flavored crab roe vermicelli, Roasted Winter Bamboo Shoots with Bacon, Stewed Little Sagittarius in Chicken Soup, Roasted Beef brisket with Small Potatoes, Braised Shredded Pork with Vegetable Moss and Steamed Mandarin Fish with Salted Sausage.
gaoyou lake Pangtou Fish Soup takes the lead. Snow-white milk-like soup has both fat silver carp head and Q soft fish ball, which is old-fashioned in heat, with no earthy smell and extremely fresh taste. Hot stir-fry has been baked one after another, especially garlic-flavored crab roe vermicelli and chicken soup cooked with little arrowhead. It's the first time to try it, leaving a special fragrance in the mouth.
In Food in Hometown, Wang Zengqi repeatedly mentioned sagittarius in his hometown, and specially wrote an introduction of sagittarius soup with pickles. Sagittarius also cooks arrowhead mushrooms. The Ci Gu Tang in Wang Zengqi's family banquet was researched and promoted according to this. In the corner of the restaurant, in a huge casserole, an old hen is steaming and stewing. Choose a little sagittarius who eats better and cook it with chicken soup at the right time. The bitterness of the little arrowhead dispersed and absorbed the essence of chicken soup. Knock another egg into the pot and quickly break it into scattered flowers. A bowl of egg-flowered arrowhead chicken soup made my neck sweat slightly. At this time, I remembered Wang Zengqi's teacher, Mr. Shen Congwen's evaluation of sagittarius: "This is good! Grids are taller than potatoes. "
To tell the truth, I didn't want to use chopsticks in the original dish "Garlic-flavored crab roe vermicelli". My eyes have been fixed on the lively Huaiyang soft bag on the table. This kind of taste and ingredients are my favorite. I have put three or four chopsticks quietly. This is the most classic in Huaiyang cuisine, which is made of the best eel neck and back meat and cooked according to the traditional method. If you put it aside at ordinary times, this dish, coupled with a bowl of white rice, is already a golden partner, and it is absolutely wonderful.
Brother Wan Qing smiled and suggested that I might as well have a taste. This test is "the golden wind and the jade dew meet, but the victory is countless." The main ingredient of this dish is local mung bean powder skin, the auxiliary materials are Gaoyou Lake hairy crab crab yellow and lake shrimp, and garlic cloves are burned together in a casserole. The vermicelli is soft and rotten and keeps its shape. The crab, shrimp and garlic are perfectly immersed in the vermicelli, and the mouth is as smooth as hot bean jelly. Its delicious taste is beyond description. Only eat a few spoonfuls more to show its beauty.
Dim sum is the highlight of Wang Zengqi's family banquet, and it is called "shepherd's purse big glutinous rice balls", one for each bowl. Choosing tender shepherd's purse in early spring as stuffing is rare. It's a delicious food that slaps the face and doesn't let go. However, this is only for the sake of taste, and it will never be grandstanding or usurping the host's role.
The climax of Wang Zengqi's family banquet ended with "Yangzhou fried rice" cooked by Master Tao Xiaodong, a "Huaizuo elegant chef". If you don't watch it on the spot, you don't know how complicated its production is. The ingredients are as follows: long-grain white rice, Jinhua ham, diced chicken, gaoyou lake shrimp, mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, diced sea cucumber, Yuanbeisi, tender green beans, chopped green onion, eggs, XO sauce, etc., fried with gaoyou lake Shuanghuang duck egg oil. There is no egg yolk in the eggs, and every grain of rice is completely wrapped with egg yolk in exquisite cooking. Huang Chengcheng looks excellent, which is commonly known as "gold wrapped silver". The secret of special taste is to pour a little high-alcohol liquor before cooking. Yangzhou fried rice, as a world-famous food landscape, is the finale, and it is a tribute to Wang Zengqi's family banquet in Yangzhou, the capital of food!
when I was in a trance, I seemed to see Mr. Wang Zengqi holding a small handleless wine cup and squinting at me with a playful smile and asking, "How's it going? Is it not bad?"
"Of course," I replied contentedly.