In my hometown, on the streets and alleys, wherever there are people, there is a noodle shop every three or five steps. No matter it is called "XX Beef Noodle House", "XX Beef Offal Noodle House", or "XX Physalis Noodle House", there must be a bowl of noodles in it, and it is also the best-selling breakfast noodle, that is "Tofu Noodles" !
Although it is not as famous as Beijing Zhajiang Noodles and Chengdu Dandan Noodles, it is not as popular as Qishan Sauce Noodles and Lanzhou Ramen, nor is it as popular as Shanghai Yangchun Noodles and Guangzhou Wonton Noodles. Light and refreshing, healthy and nutritious...but it is a taste that every foreigner like us can't get rid of!
No matter how long you have lived outside and how much your taste has changed, when you return home, you will always follow the local customs and resume the habit of eating tofu noodles for breakfast. Sometimes I can't even wait to get in the house, but when I get off the train, I drag my tired body to the tofu noodle shop. Just for the long-missed local flavor, just to enjoy the satisfaction on the tip of the tongue when the noodles dance in your mouth!
I remember when I was in Germany, during a German class, the teacher asked me to talk about what I eat for breakfast. In fact, after living abroad for many years, I haven't had noodles for breakfast for a long time. But for some reason, when it was my turn, I blurted out "noodles"!
Our German teacher is an Italian who grew up in Germany. He was surprised, with confusion written on his face, and stared at me for a long time, until I confirmed again, "Ja, Nudeln! ( Yes, noodles!)" and explained - but China is very big and not every place eats noodles for breakfast. Only then did he accept that in this country far in the east, there is a place where noodles are eaten for breakfast. fact!
Because in his eyes, noodles belong to dinner, just like their pasta.
Yes, wouldn’t it be too heavy on the stomach to eat noodles for breakfast? Not worried about malnutrition? How about some steamed buns and a bowl of porridge; a few fried dough sticks with soy milk; some bread and a drink of milk?
...not good!
Breakfast, a bowl of tofu noodles is as important to us as hot dry noodles to Wuhan people, small noodles to Chongqing people... It best represents the temperament of this small town in my hometown: it can be said that it wakes us up in the morning Yes, it’s not an alarm or a dream, but it’s time to eat noodles; it can be said that only a bowl of tofu noodles is eaten for breakfast, and the day officially begins!
The noodles used in tofu noodles are alkaline noodles. As the name suggests, this noodle contains alkali.
I once asked many people in my hometown, including old people, young people and middle-aged people: Why do we like to eat alkaline noodles for breakfast? The answer I got was without exception - "I'm used to it!"
Although I am not satisfied with this answer, I always feel that it should have a mysterious origin or a beautiful story behind it, but I also I really can’t tell you anything! I only know that since I was a child, I have liked a bowl of alkaline noodles for breakfast. I am probably just used to it...
Until I once watched "A Bite of China", which said when introducing Chongqing noodles : Alkali is the key to mixing noodles. It can make the gluten protein in the noodles form a dense network and lock the starch granules. The noodle soup will not be turbid, and it can also make the noodles have a pleasant elasticity in the mouth... I think , this is probably the original reason why tofu noodles use alkaline noodles, in order to get a better taste!
Noodle restaurants usually cook the noodles one night in advance, and then apply oil after they are fully heated. The next day, when the diners arrive, grab a handful of alkaline noodles, put them into a colander, put a few mung bean sprouts on top, then quickly blanch them back and forth a few times in a large steaming boiling water pot, and then pour them into a large bowl. . In this way, the bean sprouts are at the bottom of the bowl, so when the bowl of tofu noodles is served, the bean sprouts will not be visible.
Then, pour the cooked soup, top with golden fried tofu and smooth soft tofu, stewed kelp and pig blood cubes, then pour some red butter soup, sprinkle with a little The chopped green onions, coriander, and fried soybeans really make you want to stop at the smell.
After serving, be sure to stir it first so that the noodles are fully immersed in the noodle soup. At the same time, the mung bean sprouts at the bottom are evenly mixed with the noodles. When you eat them, you will make a "chi-chi-" sound. The crisp sound is full of fun!
Of course, if you tell the boss that you don’t want chili pepper, then he will omit the butter for you, or only put a small amount of butter, and the whole bowl of noodles will be much lighter!
In my hometown, soy milk is usually paired with tofu noodles, while rice wine is preferred in Xiangyang area. Some noodle restaurants will also pair it with free rice soup or red bean soup... A bowl of light soup is just right. It neutralizes the thick texture of tofu noodles.
There are so many tofu noodle shops, which means that although the taste in each shop is roughly the same, it is not the same. However, it seems that there is no authentic and famous noodle shop in the entire city that is recognized by everyone.
If you want, you can even find out several criteria to judge whether a bowl of noodles is authentic. Some noodle restaurants pay more attention to the spiciness of the soup base, while some noodle restaurants have a salty and fresh taste. Some noodle restaurants have spicy, spicy and fresh ingredients but cut corners, such as no kelp or pig blood... But this doesn't seem to affect it. business in the store. Because everyone has different tastes, and their standards for authenticity are also different. Just like for a person who doesn't eat pig blood, a bowl of tofu noodles without pig blood is still authentic in his mind!
Therefore, when eating tofu noodles, you don’t have to go to the same restaurant all the time. If you eat them every now and then, you will get unexpected surprises.
Someone asked on Zhihu: Why can’t Xiangyang butter noodles (tofu noodles) go out?
Butter noodles are what people in Xiangyang call them. This is rarely the case in my hometown. The price list of noodle restaurants only lists tofu noodles. The price is usually 4 yuan a bowl. In a slightly remote place, 3 yuan a bowl. After wandering around for many years, whether in the north or the south, I have indeed never seen a noodle shop selling tofu noodles.
Fellows on Zhihu have answered the question very comprehensively: because it is too heavy in taste and cannot satisfy most people’s stomachs, and it is also incompatible with the healthy and light life philosophy that people advocate today; because Many people are not used to eating alkaline noodles because it is not very clean...
However, do those delicacies that go out really still taste the same as before? Just like Wuhan's duck neck, when sold to Nanjing, it will be spicy and sweet; Tianjin's pancakes, sold to our hometown, actually put alkali in the batter, and the whole pancake is full of a strong alkali flavor; you must not have imagined that, The bowl of noodles in the picture below is "Lanzhou Ramen" from our hometown. Except for the noodles themselves, they look the same as tofu noodles... How many delicacies are deliberately changed for the sake of profit and catering. After spreading, The inherent flavor is gone!
"A Bite of China" says: Most delicacies are fissionable wonders produced by the collision of different combinations of ingredients. If we look at the encounters between ingredients in terms of human relationships, some are amazing matches made in heaven, some are touching encounters by chance, and some are shocking and regrettable. Human activities have contributed to the gathering of food, and the separation and separation of food also mobilized the gathering and dispersing of humans. Westerners call it "destiny" and Chinese people call it "fate".
The encounter between tofu noodles and hometown people is not the same: it is like a culture and a habit that has been deeply rubbed into our bones, integrated into our lives, and become a lifelong The most unforgettable taste.
It doesn’t need to be famous all over the world, nor does it need to deliberately change itself in order to go out... It’s good to just maintain its authenticity and guard this small area!
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