Yangzhou is one of the ancient Kyushu in China, known as "the capital of the left, the richest in the world". Shang Gong said "Huai, the sea is only Yangzhou", which means "Yangzhou is the place where the Huaihe River enters the sea". Zhou Li Paper Mill is also called "Southeast Yangzhou". In other words, ancient Yangzhou refers to the southeast of China or the vast area of Huaihai. According to the interpretation of Ci Hai, ancient Yangzhou not only includes the area south of Huaihe River and north of Yangtze River, but also includes the present three provinces of Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Fujian, up to the present Huangmei area in Hubei Province and the present shopping mall in Henan Province, with a vast area. During the Western Han Dynasty, Yangzhou assassins ruled Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian and parts of Hubei, Jiangxi and Henan. Later, the governor was in Shouchun, or under construction, or in Guangling, or in Huiji. In the early years of Sui Dynasty, Fang Ding referred to Yangzhou today. Huainan was in Yangzhou in the Tang Dynasty, and Liu Xiyi's "Jiangnan Qu" in the Tang Dynasty has a saying: "The tide sees Chu, and the sky sees Huaiyang." Later, Yangzhou was always called Huaiyang. The land of Huaiyang in A Dream of Red Mansions refers to Yangzhou House at that time.
"weeping willows continue to pick up weeds, and geese tooth Hongqiao Yanyan draws pictures. It is also a pot selling gold, so it should be called Slender West Lake. " It is not difficult to imagine that such a piece of land is naturally scattered in the suburbs, with elegant gardens, chess and cards, calligraphy and painting, singing and dancing, and restaurants all over the streets. However, due to the blockage of the Grand Canal, Yangzhou is declining. Even so, if you go today, you can suddenly hear the flute of the Jade Man on the moonlit night of the Twenty-four Bridges and the laughter of the Eight Eccentrics in Yangzhou drinking tea and talking about poetry and painting.
Yangzhou, as a world-famous bustling metropolis, has disappeared, but its humanistic culture still exists among the people, and Yangzhou cuisine is one of them.
There are many different schools of cooking in China, but no matter which one, there is definitely no shortage of "Luyang". Shandong cuisine is headed by Confucius. Since Dong Zhongshu in the Western Han Dynasty put forward the idea of "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone", Kong Qiu has been regarded as a good teacher and friend in all previous dynasties. As a teacher, at least on the surface, you should follow suit. As a result, the Shandong cuisine eaten by Confucius evolved into court food. The food the emperor eats is naturally the highest among all the dishes. Yangzhou cuisine, however, is enduring because of its vast territory and the love of the broad masses of people-Yangzhou cuisine.
Just now I talked about the origin of Yangzhou cuisine, and now I'm talking about Yangzhou cuisine itself.
Yangzhou cuisine includes Yang cuisine, Huaiyang cuisine or Weiyang cuisine. All from "Huaihai only Yangzhou". "Yang" and "Huaiyang" here should be regional concepts, and because "Wei" communicates with "Wei", Wei has the meaning of self-esteem. In general, the three concepts of Yangzhou, Huaiyang and Weiyang can be used universally. However, when expressing local flavor names, there are some established things that cannot be ignored. Generally speaking, Yangzhou cuisine and Huaiyang cuisine have a large coverage and can be called cuisines. Weiyang cuisine has a small coverage and cannot be called a cuisine.
Huaiyang has a developed cooking culture. Developed cooking culture has created a proud cooking history. Not to mention all the missing volumes of Old Tang Shu 120 and Huai Nan Wang Shu 13, we can get a little information only by reading the records of other documents. Ni Zan, one of the four great painters in Yuan Dynasty, wrote Yunlintang Diet System Collection, which is a model for recording Yangzhou's diet and cooking methods in ancient literature. Among them, the dish "Roasted Goose" was also included in the Garden Food List by Yuan Mei in Qing Dynasty and named as "Yunlin Goose". Li Dou's "Yangzhou Pictures" described a considerable number of Yangzhou foods and drinks, and even recorded the "full banquet" held in Yangzhou restaurant at that time, which shows that the skill level is extraordinary.
Yangzhou cuisine, as a representative of Huaiyang cuisine, is as famous as Beijing cuisine, Sichuan cuisine and Cantonese cuisine, and enjoys the title of "Southeast Cuisine". There are more unique requirements for the production of dishes: "strict selection of materials, fine knife work, clear soup color, thick but not greasy, light and smooth, suitable for both north and south." The Records of Yangzhou, compiled during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, has the following statement about Yangzhou cuisine: "Yangzhou has a luxurious diet and exquisite production. Mancheng products, praise the river table. " Because there is no in-depth discussion on Yangzhou cuisine itself, we know that Yangzhou cuisine has the characteristics of elegance, beauty, precision, ingenuity and abundance, and enjoys a good reputation overseas.
Yangzhou cuisine is famous for many reasons, in addition to historical reasons, there are the following aspects:
First, Yangzhou's advantages in weather, geography, products and humanities have formed a folk custom of paying attention to diet.
Yangzhou belonged to Wu in the Spring and Autumn Period. When wuyue is destroyed, the more Chu dies, the more it belongs to Chu. At that time, the economic and cultural level of Chu was the highest among all countries, and the cooking level was also high. One of the famous dishes in The Songs of the South contains Yangzhou flavor, such as "soft-shelled turtle" and "chicken with exposed spine", which has obvious origin with the famous dishes in Yangzhou today, such as stewed fish and braised chicken. By the Ming Dynasty, Yangzhou had to "treat 152 wild animals" every year, including Beijing swans, live deer, geese, pheasants, quails and roe deer. In the Qing Dynasty, Cao Yin was the salt supervisor in Yangzhou, and paid tribute to Kangxi every year, such as "salt to shoot bamboo shoots". As the saying goes, "fish and shrimp are always full of water, and the lake is full of lotus seeds without paying any money." Because it is a land of fish and rice, Yangzhou cuisine has more aquatic products than delicacies and more poultry than specialties. There are many aquatic geese, geese, ducks and pheasants, as well as fresh seafood. Shrimp, crab, fish and turtle are common foods on the dining table, and pork with special features is more than cattle, sheep, dogs and horses. Rice and noodles are staple foods and snacks.
Besides all kinds of dishes originated from nature, there are many snacks in Yangzhou. Su Shi's "Send a Tour of Local Things in Yangzhou" was given to Qin Guan because he was from Yangzhou. There are pickled crucian carp, drunken crab, dried salted duck eggs and Jiang Miao in the poems. Except for what "salted duck egg dried" is, the others were served by Yangzhou people.
Second, the unprecedented prosperity of Yangzhou economy
Yangzhou is located between the river, the Huaihe River, the lake and the sea, with both plain and mountainous areas, rich products and solid cooking material foundation. This can also be seen from the tributes of past dynasties. According to "Shang Yu Shu Gong", "Yangzhou absolutely guarantees public orange pomelo and Huai Gong Shuang fish." In the thirty-fourth year of Zhou Dynasty (486 BC), Wu Chengyong communicated with Jianghuai, which greatly promoted the economic development of Yangzhou. At the beginning of the fourth year, Jiangdu King was established in Han Jing, and Yangzhou became an important town in the southeast. Sui and Tang dynasties became the hub of land and water transportation between north and south, where sea salt, brown rice and tea were distributed, and they were important merchants in foreign trade. Song Hong Mai called the cities outside Chang 'an and Luoyang "Yangyi Yi Er". During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Yangzhou was a charming place where merchants gathered, goods flowed, streets were bustling, and all industries flourished. "Flowers and willows on both banks are close to the water, and all the way up the mountain" and "riches and honour, riding a crane down Yangzhou" are the true portrayal of Yangzhou at that time. Many stories about princes and grandchildren, courtiers, literati and dusty chivalrous men gathering in Yangzhou are based on this background. Therefore, it further promoted the rapid development of Yangzhou cuisine.
Third, the uniqueness of cooking skills.
The choice and materials of Yangzhou cuisine are also very particular. Yangzhou enjoys superior geographical conditions, and rivers and lakes crisscross the territory. In addition, the four distinct seasons, abundant rainfall, suitable climate and rich products also provide a strong backing for the development of Yangzhou cuisine.
The texture of Yangzhou cuisine is quite rich. Through exquisite processing, reasonable collocation and accurate use of fire, the effect of "smooth, tender and crisp without losing flavor, crisp without losing bone and shape" is achieved. The texture of dishes mainly includes fresh and tender, crisp, crisp, soft, waxy, tough, crisp outside and tender inside. There are many dishes with Yangzhou cuisine characteristics, such as crystal trotters, salted shrimp, Yangzhou old goose, tianxiang lotus root, bergamot bud ginger, pagoda pickles, crab powder lion head, red sandalwood tiger tail, boiled dried silk, golden onion Gaoyou duck, Yangzhou fried rice and so on. There are nearly 30 kinds of cooking methods used in Yangzhou cuisine, and there are more than 20 kinds commonly used, mainly including steaming, frying, roasting, frying, boiling, stewing, frying, stewing, honey juice, mixing, freezing, frying, pot stickers, frying, boiling and simmering.
Yangzhou cuisine materials are mostly collected from the branches of fields and rivers, advocating nature; Although the raw materials are rich, the compatibility is simple, for freshness; Knife work is extremely exquisite, which complements the sense of simplicity; Accurately grasping the temperature is just seeking heaven and earth; Processing continues for thousands of years of inheritance and innovation, and then blends into the essence of local dishes such as Shandong cuisine, Sichuan cuisine and Guangdong cuisine, thus making Yangzhou cuisine have the highest realm of "appealing to both refined and popular tastes, suitable for all ages".
Fourth, salt merchants promoted it.
Yangzhou has been the economic and cultural center of southeast China for thousands of years. It is a "good cemetery on the Zen Mountain" and a place to enjoy. "Wealth, riding a crane to Yangzhou" dajia colluded with princes and nobles, * * * for profit, paying attention to ostentation and extravagance and diet. Some salt merchants write their own recipes. For example, during the Qianlong period, Huiji worked as a salt merchant on the ridge of Yangzhou. He wrote a book called Children's Food Rules, also known as Beiyan Food List. In addition, the famous diet cookbook "Diaoding Collection" recorded nearly 2,000 kinds of restaurants in Yangzhou at that time, which was a rare food book and a chef's secret treasure. This kind of harvest is rare in the world. The summarized experience has a great influence on Yangzhou cooking.
Five, peer competition
Take the Qing Dynasty as an example. At that time, there were many restaurants in Yangzhou, including more than 40 famous restaurants. Famous chefs come forth in large numbers. Kong An and Tian Yanmen, as well as the female bakers Xiao, Xiao Shan and Si Wen outside the south gate of Yizheng, can all make good dishes and do them beautifully. When a family has a new dish, colleagues are scrambling to copy and create new dishes, "striving for innovation and beauty", each with its own side. In addition to the kitchen, there is a kitchen; In addition to vulgar kitchens, there are temples that manage food. Everyone competed to perform, showing their magical powers and attracting customers, which greatly promoted the improvement of cooking skills.
Sixth, the promotion of scholar-officials.
Taking the Qing Dynasty as an example, Zhu Yizun, who had been to Yangzhou in the early Qing Dynasty, wrote The Secret of Fresh Water and Flood. Yuan Mei, a writer, wrote "Menu with the Garden", collecting and evaluating the delicacies in Yangzhou, Jiangsu, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Guangzhou, and systematically summarizing the positive and negative experiences of cooking. Li Dou's "Painting of Yangzhou" also records the famous dishes of famous chefs in Yangzhou. The gentry are proud of their own kitchen meals, and the chef also values recording. Once a master is inscribed, he is worth a hundred times, and this promotion is immeasurable.
Seven, the government advocates
Zhao Yuankai, the magistrate of Liyang county in Sui Dynasty, was promoted to Jiangdu county magistrate because of his peculiar smell. The Ming and Qing emperors "visited the south", and the ministers took over, hoping to invite pets. Big banquets are popular, especially among wealthy businessmen. At the same time, these ceremonies are related to the chef's life, and the chef dare not take the slightest pains and strive for fine management, which is also a great stimulus to the improvement of cooking skills.
On the Slender West Lake, it is convenient for the boatswain to cook and entertain guests in Sha Fei. Yangzhou is all the rage, and prosperity is back. Over time, who can say that Yangzhou will not reproduce its past prosperity with Yangzhou cuisine?