Ancient Huizhou was surrounded by mountains and rivers, with rich products and outstanding people. Since ancient times, the literary style has been prosperous and the cultural relics are extremely rich. Huizhou’s geographical environment, humanistic environment, and eating habits have contributed to the formation of Huizhou cuisine. Huizhou’s natural environment of green trees, criss-crossing ravines, and pleasant climate provides Anhui cuisine with inexhaustible raw materials. At the same time, Anhui cuisine can capture the beauty of the integration of landscape and humanities. .
“Peach Blossom Flowing Water Mandarin Fish Fatty”, the most classic representative of Anhui cuisine is undoubtedly the stinky mandarin fish, also known as pickled fresh mandarin fish. The so-called pickled food means smelly in Huizhou dialect. The fish meat in this dish is fat and tender, and the fragrance is deep into the bones. The sharp contrast between "fragrant" and "stinky" is the unique feature of stinky mandarin fish.
Within Huizhou, many streams flow endlessly in the mountains. The unique landscape allows Huizhou people to have a wider choice of food ingredients. However, the traffic jam makes it difficult to transport food. In order to preserve the freshness of the fish, the smart Huizhou people remove the scales and internal organs of the fresh mandarin fish, cut them into pieces, put them into wooden barrels, sprinkle them with salt, and stack them in layers. , and finally put a heavy object on top of the mandarin fish to compress it tightly.
The fish meat was slightly fermented during the journey. When it arrived at the destination, the fish's gills were still red, its body glowed with light green, and its scales were complete and lifelike. It smells a little stinky, but it's actually the smell produced by lactic acid bacteria fermentation. It tastes strangely delicious after being burned. Nowadays, with the changes of the times, transportation is no longer an obstacle, but stinky mandarin fish is still famous throughout the country as a representative dish of Anhui cuisine.
After pickling, the meat of the smelly mandarin fish becomes firmer, forming a unique texture of "garlic meat", and the meat texture is similar to that of fine yellow croaker. As soon as the fish enters your mouth, you can feel its unique "pickled fresh" taste, and it also maintains the original flavor of the mandarin fish. Once you eat it, you will be obsessed with one bite after another, and you will not be able to stop at all.
The pickled fresh mandarin fish is first fried and then grilled, and the soy sauce is used. The spicy and rich braised sauce is the same as most Anhui dishes. It not only enhances the deliciousness of the food, but also is very suitable for rice and serving. It's just a plate of scenery, salty, spicy, fresh and sweet. It's extremely satisfying to drink wine and eat rice.
Soybeans have played an important role in China’s thousand-year farming civilization. Huainan is the hometown of tofu, and Hui people are particularly good at making tofu. Thanks to the endless exploration of Huizhou people, tofu has become an indispensable dish in every household. Different from the stinky tofu in Hunan cuisine, the hairy tofu in Anhui cuisine is the representative of the "lightly mildly rotten" characteristic of Anhui cuisine.
Mao tofu is made by using artificial fermentation to grow slender, plush-like mycelium (vegetable protein) on the surface of the tofu. This is inspired by Huizhou's humid climate. Because the plant protein in tofu is converted into amino acids through fermentation, it tastes particularly delicious after cooking. This rich flavor is called "the taste of hometown" by Huizhou people.
After frying, the fuzz on the surface disappears, and a layer of golden crispy skin wraps a semi-solid substance like fermented bean curd. It is soft and spongy, with a slightly bitter taste. It will be difficult to eat it when dipped in sauce. It tastes bitter but has a lingering fragrance in the mouth, which is loved by those who love it. Whether in an authentic Anhui restaurant or on the streets of Tunxi Old Street, you can easily find hairy tofu.
The most interesting way to eat is to meet a salesman walking around on the street. He uses a small stove to pick hairy tofu, pours sesame oil on it, tops it with chili paste, and eats it in the oil pan. While chatting, it is both delicious and unique. Huizhou people who have lived abroad for a long time will arouse a strong feeling of homesickness when talking about hairy tofu.
There is also such a legend about hairy tofu. According to legend, after Zhu Yuanzhang captured Bancheng, he sent his troops north to garrison Jixi. People in this area often used water tofu to work for the soldiers. Later, the water tofu was given too much and could not be eaten for a while. When the weather was hot, the tofu grew white and brown fluff. In order to prevent waste, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the cook to fry it first and then use it with a variety of sauces. When the ingredients are simmered, the unique flavor of hairy tofu is produced. After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he served this dish to his Huizhou counselor Zhu Sheng from Huaitang in She County, and the dish was spread back to Huizhou. Later, the production process was improved many times through generations of workshops, forming today's characteristic Anhui cuisine.
Yipinguo originally originated in Jixi County, Anhui Province, and is also known as Jixi Yipinguo. Some people say that the origin of Yipin Guo is related to Poon Choi in Cantonese cuisine. Poon Choi may be the originator of Yipin Guo. Both are a combination of several delicacies in one pot. Rich ingredients are layered into the large plate, and the juices blend together. , the taste is rich and fragrant, but this cannot be verified.
After Mr. Liang Shiqiu tasted the "Yipin Guo", he praised the dish very much. He once wrote a detailed description in an article: "A large iron pot with a diameter of almost two feet was served hot. It's still boiling, with a layer of chicken, a layer of duck, a layer of meat, a layer of fried tofu, dotted with some egg dumplings, and radish and green vegetables at the bottom. It tastes great."
Huizhou merchants travel around the world all year round. In order to find the feeling of returning home, they create special "Yipinguo". The ingredients are carefully selected and stacked layer by layer. What you want is a prosperous and round meal. On festive days, each family cooks its own flavor, and the pot contains indelible nostalgia and joy. On top of the firewood, dried bamboo shoots, chicken, duck, pork, fried tofu, egg dumplings are stacked in layers in a somewhat old-fashioned iron pot... When you open the lid of the pot, it is steaming and the aroma is fragrant.
Speaking of Yipinguo, Mr. Hu Shi has to be mentioned. When Hu Shi lived in the United States, he was deeply homesick and entertained guests many times with "Yiping Guo" in the name of his hometown flavor, which made it famous internationally. Therefore, Yipin Guo was named after Hu Shi and was called Hu Shi Yipin Guo.
When a steaming iron pot is brought to the table, the rich and fragrant soup is still boiling and rolling. The colorful colors composed of a variety of ingredients are like the splendid Huizhou. The egg dumplings and fried tofu are fragrant and juicy, and the pork belly on the base is as plump and crispy as braised pork. The soup becomes thicker as it simmers, and you can eat several bowls of rice with the soup.
Zhonghe soup is an authentic traditional dish from Qimen, Anhui. It is clear and fragrant, tender and not greasy, with moderate consistency and is suitable for all ages. Whenever Qimen people have a banquet, Zhonghe soup is indispensable, and it is the first dish on the table. Zhonghe was originally called "Zhonghe". It is a river in Qimen County that flows into Poyang Lake. It is called Changjiang River in Qimen.
It is said that during the Southern Song Dynasty, Fang Yue, a Jinshi from Qimen, once served as an official in Poyang. In his spare time, he often went boating on Poyang Lake, tracing back to the source of the Zhonghe River, taking a sip of the beautiful water from his hometown, sipping tea and reciting poems in the green mountains and green waters. time, it can somewhat soothe his frustrated mood. Fang Yue was fond of tofu. Once when he was cooking tofu on a boat, he lacked seasonings. Seeing that there were a lot of shrimps in the river, he fished some and put them in the pot to cook with the tofu. He never thought of accidentally inserting willows into the shade and making tofu soup with shrimps. Even more delicious. After that, Fang Yue went to Zhonghe to catch some shrimps as a common condiment for cooking tofu, and named the dish "Zhonghe Soup".
Since Fang Yue introduced this bowl of "tofu soup" to Qimen, the Qimen people added local mountain delicacies and integrated it into the mountain people's dietary preferences. Some literati and poets also implanted Huizhou Hehe cultural elements and changed it. "River" means "harmony", and "Zhonghe Soup" has become the representative soup of Anhui cuisine. The improved Zhonghe Soup is clear and fresh, oily but not greasy. In the cold winter months, drink a small bowl before meals to appetize and drive away the cold, and to nourish the whole body. It has become a favorite for wedding banquets and family gatherings in Qimen area. Special dishes.
There are many representative dishes of Anhui cuisine, far more than the above four, including stewed turtle with ham, braised civet, Huangshan braised pigeon, steamed stone chicken, Wenzhengshan bamboo shoots, Huizhou dumplings, knife board Traditional delicacies such as Xiang, Li Hongzhang's Chowder, Cao Cao Chicken, and Stone Cake. Local ingredients, unique and imaginative processing and cooking, create Anhui cuisine.
Anhui cuisine, seemingly simple and heavy, contains the principles of tenderness and fineness. Using local materials to win with freshness; making good use of heat and unique fire skills; skillful in stewing and stewing, with suitable thickness; paying attention to nature and nourishing the body with food... Every scene and every dish is full of love and expectation for life. It is not only a feast for the eyes, but also the crystallization of Huizhou customs and culture.