It is indispensable to adjust the taste

A few days ago, our reporter went to the first floor of the Beijing Urban and Rural Trade Center and saw dozens of varieties of pickles from brands such as Liubiju and Tianyuan. There are many kinds of vegetables, such as pickled mustard, assorted vegetables, eight-treasure vegetables, pickled cucumbers, sugared garlic, dried radish, etc., and there is an endless stream of consumers buying them. The reporter noticed that there were many customers buying pickles, not only middle-aged and elderly people, but also many young people who visited the pickle counter. A customer who was choosing pickles said that today's pickles are not as good as before. Nowadays, people regard pickles as a necessary accompaniment to daily life. They are indispensable for three meals a day. Some pickles have even become gifts given to each other.

Currently, pickles come in many flavors, such as sour, sweet, salty, spicy, etc., which can suit the tastes of different consumers. The price of pickles is mostly four to five yuan per 500 grams, but there are also a few pickles that are more expensive, reaching more than 10 yuan per 500 grams. Judging from the outer packaging, pickles are very different from a few years ago. In the past, most pickles were bulk products, which were difficult to taste. Nowadays, pickles are processed more and more finely. Some pickles are also packaged in gift boxes, making them great gifts for relatives and friends. It is understood that the price of pickles packed in such gift boxes is not expensive, ranging from tens to hundreds of yuan. The reporter also saw in a supermarket that some manufacturers have specially launched pickles made with coarse ingredients, less oil, less salt and less sugar, and suitable for summer consumption. Li Ruifen, a nutrition expert at the China Cuisine Association, said that people's appetite is easily affected by the hot weather in summer. If you eat some pickles appropriately, it will help restore your appetite and add salt appropriately. At present, many manufacturers have developed some new varieties of pickles to adjust and adapt to consumers with different tastes, giving ordinary consumers a greater choice.

High-quality pickles are carefully made

The quality of pickles is inseparable from the careful selection of ingredients and strict production. A salesperson from a well-known pickle manufacturer in Beijing said that the quality of pickles has a lot to do with the quality of the pickles themselves. The factory makes homemade soybean sauce and sweet noodle sauce. The soybeans are required to be large, plump, yellow in color, thin-skinned and oily. The white flour uses first-class wheat with high stickiness, which is especially suitable for making sweet noodle sauce. In the process of making pickles, there is a set of strict operating procedures. All aspects from the purchase of product raw materials to the production process are strictly controlled, and traditional production processes are still maintained in key aspects of some products to ensure the quality of pickles.

It is understood that some manufacturers currently attach great importance to the development of pickle varieties. While maintaining traditional pickle varieties, they also develop low-salt, low-sugar, light and nutritious products that meet the tastes of modern people. In terms of packaging, we have also developed towards diversification, gradually developing vacuum bags, bottles of different specifications, and gift-packaged pickles.

It is understood that many pickle manufacturers are currently developing vegetable small packaging production technology. Through scientific processing methods, they pay attention to the use of fresh vegetables during the production process, and then cut them through processes such as sauce making. Processes such as sorting, seasoning, packaging, and sterilization are also carried out. At the same time, the packaging of pickles is improved to improve the grade of small-packaged pickles. On the premise of maintaining the color and aroma of pickles and extending the shelf life of the product, even if the product does not contain preservatives, the shelf life It can also last for more than 6 months, and different flavors can be formulated according to consumer needs.

Rich varieties and complete tastes

There are many types of vegetables in our country, so there are also many varieties of pickles. At the same time, due to the vast territory of our country and different eating and living habits in different places, the taste of pickles produced is also very different. Pickles are said to be "sweet in the south and salty in the north". However, at present, both pickles in the north and pickles in the south have been developed in terms of taste. There are many new varieties. It can be said that the pickles produced in various places have all the flavors of "fragrant, spicy, sour, sweet and salty". The main raw materials can be any vegetables, and the most common ones are radish, cabbage, cucumber and so on. It can be roots, stems, leaves, fruits and other parts.

It is understood that the pickle industry in Beijing has historically been divided into three types according to the different methods of producing pickles, namely the old soy sauce garden, the Beijing soy sauce garden and the southern soy sauce garden. Laojiangyuan originated from the Baoding pickle method, which has a salty taste and a fragrant aroma.

Jingjiangyuan is Beijing’s traditional pickling craft. Its pickles taste sweet, light and pleasant. Nanjiangyuan imitates the southern style and tastes sweeter. Currently, there are more than 30 kinds of pickles commonly available in the Beijing market, among which the high-end ones include sweet-sauce Babao melon, sweet-sauce peach kernels, sweet-sauce almonds, sweet-sauce silver seedlings, sweet-sauce nectar, etc. Others such as: candied and spicy dried radish, five-spice dumplings, shrimp oil cucumbers, pickled winter melon, pickled Jerusalem artichokes, etc. are mid-range pickles. The more popular one is Babaogua with sweet sauce, which is named Babaogua because it uses eight kinds of fruit ingredients. This product has excellent ingredients and meticulous processing. The product has a strong sauce aroma, sweet and slightly salty, and has a unique flavor when eaten. It is the best pickle in the category. In addition, Beijingers also particularly like sweet sauce nectar, also known as pagoda vegetables. Its products are golden and shiny in color, have a strong sauce flavor, are sweet and salty, have a tender and crisp texture, are neat in size, and have no roots or impurities.

A series of pickles produced in Sichuan and Yunnan, such as spicy mustard greens and soybeans, are also favored by consumers. In addition, pickle products from South Korea and Japan have also been launched, and their exquisite packaging and unique taste have also attracted consumers' attention.

How to choose pickles

At present, there are hundreds of large condiment companies in my country, all of which regard pickles as one of their leading products. There are more and more types and manufacturers of pickles, but the quality of pickle products is not optimistic. It is understood that the pickle products of some manufacturers have the problem of excessive additives, including sweeteners such as cyclamate and saccharin sodium, as well as chemical preservatives such as sorbic acid and benzoic acid. The additives in some pickle products greatly exceed the limits stipulated in the national mandatory standards. This Harmful to consumer health.

In addition, some unscrupulous vendors produce counterfeit pickles. Due to the filthy underground processing sites of the unscrupulous vendors, it is difficult for the pickles produced to meet hygienic standards. Pickles produced through these informal channels often flow into the market. Our reporter often saw pickles sold without packaging and without sanitary protection measures at a market in Fengtai District, Beijing. These pickles look dull in color and are served in crude containers, but many consumers still buy them.

Relevant people from the National Non-staple Food Quality Supervision and Inspection Center said that there are currently three common problems with pickles: excessive use of benzoic acid preservatives; excessive use of saccharin sodium; saccharin; and excessive sorbic acid content. In addition, major supermarkets in Beijing have special counters for bulk pickles. Due to long-term exposure to the air, bulk pickles will not only oxidize, but are also more likely to be contaminated.

So, how to choose pickles? According to industry insiders, top-quality pickles should be full of color, flavor and flavor. High-quality pickles are crisp, tender, refreshing and elastic; they are bright and translucent in color; they also exude the fragrance of pickles, must not have sourness or peculiar smell, and must be fresh. The taste of pickles should not be too salty, without bitterness or lettuce taste.

According to reports, inferior pickles not only lack the strong, pure sauce flavor of high-quality pickles, but also have sour, stinky and other bad smells. The juice of inferior pickles is turbid and often contains many impurities. Some inferior pickles have sticky surfaces and white film spots.

Bai Yan, secretary-general of the China Condiment Association, reminded consumers that since it is not easy to identify bottled pickles, it is best to go to regular shopping malls and supermarkets to buy brand-name products, and remember not to buy from unlicensed vendors. pickles.

Reprinted from: China Consumer News