Hangzhou has 36 traditional famous dishes, and the most famous ones have to be West Lake Vinegar Fish, Barking Boy Chicken, Dongpo Pork and Longjing Shrimp, etc., and all of these famous dishes have an allusion and a moving legend.
"Dongpo Pork" is the signature dish of the century-old Tianxianglou restaurant, using thin-skinned strips of meat, roasted red color, eating taste mellow juice, crispy but not greasy mouth, even the lady bent on losing weight would like to eat a few more bites.
"West Lake Vinegar Fish" selection of fresh grass carp, burned before the general need to starve for a day or two, such as the fish excrete intestinal debris, burned up will not have a taste of soil. Lonely Mountain in front of the century-old store Louwailou, in front of the store there is a special hungry grass carp fish pond. In the past, when Premier Zhou Enlai feasted on VIPs, he specialized in ordering this dish here.
Hangzhou is rich in famous tea, with tea as a dish, which is probably also Hangzhou's original. "Longjing shrimp" is a fresh river shrimp, with the new tea before and after the Qingming Festival Longjing cooking, burned shrimp white, tender, tea green, fragrant, color and flavor.
Many places in the country have roasted chicken this famous dish, Hangzhou's "called the children's chicken" is unique, it has local characteristics of the tender hen, filling in the chicken belly, with the Xihu lotus leaves wrapped, and then with Shaoxing wine feet, salt water and wine altar mud wrapped in the outside, placed on the charcoal fire or oven simmering, the original juice does not go, the chicken is crispy, tender, fragrant and flavorful. The chicken meat is crispy and tender, and the flavor is mellow and penetrating.
Hangzhou is also famous for its traditional specialties such as "Fish Head Tofu", "West Lake Brunswick Soup", and "Sister Song's Fish Soup".
The legend says that West Lake Vinegar Fish is the most famous dish in West Lake Hangzhou, which was first made in the Southern Song Dynasty when Emperor Gaozong was in power, and according to ancient records, West Lake Vinegar Fish dish came from "Uncle and Sister-in-Law Passing on the Jen".
Legend has it that in the Southern Song Dynasty, there were two Song brothers, quite learned, but not willing to serve as officials, and therefore living in seclusion, rely on fishing for a living. There was a local bully named Zhao Da Guanren, who saw his sister-in-law's youth and beauty, so he plotted to kill his brother, and wanted to take over his sister-in-law. As a result, Song's uncle and sister-in-law were devastated. In order to avenge their brother's death, the uncle and sister-in-law went to the government office together to complain about the injustice, but the government and the evil forces at that time had the same nostrils, so they were beaten up and kicked out of the government office. After returning home, the sister-in-law had no choice but to let her brother flee to another country. Uncle and sister-in-law parted ways, Song sister-in-law special sugar, vinegar roasted grass carp bowl, said to the brother: "This dish is sour and sweet, hope you have a day of success, do not forget today's bitter". Later, Song Di went out to fight against the gold defending the country, made a merit, returned to Hangzhou, punished the villains, but has not been able to find the whereabouts of his sister-in-law. Once went out to a banquet, the table learned of this dish, after inquiring to know his sister-in-law incognito in this place as a cook, and thus reunited. Thus, the beautiful dish of "Sister-in-law Chuanzhen" was also spread in the folklore as well as the legend. The Qing dynasty Fang Hengtai has a "West Lake" poem, Yun: "Small Park Lake five willows live, when the feast raised the net to get fresh fish. Sour flavor favorite silver knife hinoki, river carp river bream is not as good." Said the West Lake vinegar fish cooking and delicious. West Lake Vinegar Fish to the end of the Qing Dynasty, to the West Lake outside the building of the restaurant is the most prestigious cooking, and still today.