There is a saying that "the pasta in the world is in Sanjin". There are about 1 1,200 kinds of noodles in China, and it is said that there are hundreds of kinds of noodles in Shanxi, with various forms of pasta.
In Zuo Zhuan, Shanxi is called "inside and outside the mountains and rivers". It is precisely because it is located in the inland loess plateau, windy and dry, and the land is barren. Therefore, there is a shortage of seasonal fruits and vegetables in Shanxi.
Natural selection, in a special geographical environment, only cold-tolerant and drought-tolerant miscellaneous grains grow like simple and tenacious Shanxi people, and they are tenacious in reproduction and inheritance. One crop after another, Shanxi has the reputation of "kingdom of minor grains" and also created "kingdom of pasta".
People living here dig out the deepest treasure with their hands and make the whitest diet with their hands.
In the survey of "Top 20 Cultural Symbols in Shanxi", "Daoxiao Noodles in Shanxi" is the top food category.
Knife noodles are not only synonymous with Shanxi cuisine, but also the representative of Shanxi pasta culture.
First, the knife facet that lost the soul.
Pushing open the door of a foggy Daoxiao Noodles Pavilion, the aroma of the oncoming rush seemed to mix pepper and hemp with the tip of the nose.
Mixed with red oil, took two spoonfuls of Shanxi mature vinegar and dropped a spoonful of garlic water.
If I had a choice, one of my favorite moments in this world would be to put away my clothes, cover the menu and wait for a bowl of Daoxiao Noodles to be served.
Through the transparent glass, you can see the chef in the noodle restaurant holding a shiny dough in his left hand and holding a special machete in his right hand.
In front of a boiling cauldron, cha, cha, cha, the master rushed over one knife after another, and the knife light spread from left to right. Snow-white noodles flew into the cauldron, splashing a few drops of boiling water.
The soup is turned over, and the noodles are like whitebait, which is very beautiful.
Watching the master shave is like watching a martial arts performance. I am attracted.
Put a colander in the pot, against the direction of boiling water in the pot, and the cooked Daoxiao Noodles can be easily fished out and put into the bowl.
Pour a spoonful of prepared brine, cover with toppings and some scalded vegetables, and a steaming bowl of Daoxiao Noodles will be ready.
Grab a handful of coriander, pour in two spoonfuls of aged vinegar, one spoonful of sesame oil and a little bit of Chili oil, mix the topping on the surface with the salt water in the bowl and stir well.
Noodles with marinade and seasoning are bright in color and fragrant.
One bite into the soul, thin outside and thick inside, soft but not sticky. The more you chew, the more fragrant you are, and the more you eat, the more addictive you are!
There were few people in the noodle restaurant, so I simply chatted with the master. Just as most China cuisines can be traced back to the source and many allusions can be made up, he said that there is also an old legend in Daoxiao Noodles:
After the Mongols entered the Central Plains, the Yuan Dynasty was established. In order to prevent the Han people from rebelling and uprisings, they confiscated all the metal from every household, and stipulated that 10 households would take turns to cut vegetables and cook with kitchen knives, and then return them to the Mongols for safekeeping.
One day at noon, an old woman finished wearing makeup, and the sound of boiling in the pot was very loud. The whole family waited for Daoxiao Noodles to eat, but there was no knife, and everyone was in a hurry. At this time, the old man at home found a thin sheet of iron and said, use this sheet of iron to cut the plane!
Seeing that the iron sheet was thin and soft, the old woman muttered, "How can such a soft thing cut noodles?" The old man said, "Cut it at will."
The word "chop" reminds my wife that she put the dough on the board, picked it up in her left hand and held the iron piece in her right hand, and stood by the boiling pot to "chop" the noodles. A one-sided leaf fell into the pot, cooked it, fished it out and put it in a bowl, and poured marinade on it for the elderly.
The old man ate and said, "Very good, very good. I don't need to cut with a kitchen knife anymore. " In this way, one spread to ten, ten spread to hundreds, and spread all over Jinzhong.
In those two years, we ate a small noodle restaurant.
Among all Daoxiao Noodles in Shanxi, the most famous one is Daoxiao Noodles, Datong, which can be described as "the king of pasta".
Datong Daoxiao Noodles is cheap, delicious, and has formed a unique Datong style, which is highly praised by both foreign friends and local residents. Its Daoxiao Noodles is not only unique in technology, but also unique in taste, which can be called a hundred flavors.
In Datong, Shanxi, the success, failure, existence and extinction of a Daoxiao Noodles Pavilion are closely related to the secret recipe of marinade in this noodle restaurant. The noodle shop owner can give you the noodle shop, but this recipe is not easy to find.
This is why in Datong, a bowl of delicious Daoxiao Noodles is not necessarily in a luxury hotel, but may be in a street stall at home.
In Datong, many guests here would rather give up the luxurious banquet of big fish and big meat than go to the local noodle restaurant to taste Daoxiao Noodles.
These are several famous local Daoxiao Noodles pavilions:
1. Second Board Knife Faces
When I heard it, I thought Baner was a man with a thick waist and a round waist. Unexpectedly, when I went to the store, I saw an aunt smiling at people. Upon inquiry, I learned that Baner is a strong woman and started her own business when she was young.
The old lady is white, with broken hair and curly hair, light lipstick, red scarf and short white cotton-padded jacket. As soon as they met, she opened the chatterbox:
"I have been selling noodles for 38 years. I started with a dime and two food stamps. I'm doing this to. I don't care whether his pork goes up or not. I should scoop a spoonful of meat and eat as many noodles as I want. Also sold 8 pieces, also sold 10 pieces. After all, it has been sold for a long time, and its price increase has still risen less. "
The price of pork has gone up a lot, but it has gone down a little, but the old lady seems to have a clear idea: no matter how much meat costs me, we can't make noodles for our guests.
Although it is winter, the air in the house is warm. The smell of the secret dried meat gravy got into the nasal cavity, and the meat was round.
"I won't brag about myself. I am a real farmer and an uneducated woman. I won't cheat anyone. What's noble about rotten noodle restaurants? It all depends on hard work and endurance. It was the customer who delayed me. What is there to be proud of?
"It's really affordable. Others can't add a bowl of meat to three bowls of noodles, so my customers like to come here. "
2. Dongguan Daoxiao Noodles Wang
Known as "the first side of Sanjin", it is Dongguan noodles. The boss is a boss. He has been selling noodles since he got married in his twenties. Although it is famous now, I don't open a chain store, but I just want to run this store well.
"We don't sell anything but Daoxiao Noodles and pressed bean noodles. There are only two kinds of gravy, one is home-cooked pork and the other is vegetarian food. It was made by repeated experiments by the boss and mother, which was particularly fragrant. "
Watching an experienced master cut noodles can cut 200 knives a minute, which is exactly six inches long. Brush the pan and cut into pieces, cook until the edge of the noodles is translucent, take it out and pour the oily meat topping. The taste is soft but not sticky, and the more you chew, the more fragrant it is.
Maybe I won't have the opportunity to come to such a far place to eat noodles in the future, but I will definitely think of her at some point, and I will also think of the flowery noodle cutting skills and the aroma of a bowl of noodles for decades.
In a small bowl of noodles, the most familiar and favorite taste of Chinese people is concentrated. Artificial shaving has undoubtedly injected a human touch into noodles.
Eating noodles in a small noodle restaurant is a kind of enjoyment, a kind of welfare and a real life for ordinary people.
Three colorful noodles, every day is a new day.
In Shanxi, a bowl of Daoxiao Noodles can be made into hundreds of flavors, and there is no fixed way to eat it.
You can mix toppings and gravy as you like, such as diced chicken with mushrooms and rich mutton soup, braised pork with sour soup and eggs, and gravy with fungus, tomato and egg flowers with vegetables and shredded cucumber.
Of course, Daoxiao Noodles must add eggs, meatballs, dried tofu, not one less!
If you don't like side dishes and soup, you can also fry or stir-fry Daoxiao Noodles, pour a spoonful of hot oil and serve it with a "Zi La", which is very attractive!
Some local eating methods prefer to pour the cooked Daoxiao Noodles directly into the aged vinegar mixed with soy sauce and salt, mix it with shredded cucumber and blanched bean sprouts, and send it directly to the mouth after full stirring.
The combination of vinegar and flour, black and white, is the soul concentrated in a small bowl.
Living in Shanxi made me realize the persistence of Shanxi people. Every morning, high-rise buildings, low eaves and low windows, cities and villages, streets and alleys, all flow with a fragrance and disperse with the crowd.
Noodles are slippery, pickles are crisp, slippery, spicy and solid. A sense of happiness in a down-to-earth life will quietly come to mind.
A new day begins with noodles.
It is no exaggeration to say that noodles have been accompanied by Shanxi people from birth to the end of their lives, weddings and funerals, and every household. Sweet company all the way, all the way, all the way.
The rivers and mountains outside face the world. The land of Sanjin faces all directions.