Hongze Snail Food Festival in Huaian City, Jiangsu Province Photo/ Xinhua News Agency
Before and after the Qingming Festival, there are two things that must be eaten, one is snail , and the other is moi dumplings .
The snails in this season are called bright-eyed snails. It is said that no matter adults or children, if they eat the snails grown at this time, they must have clear eyes and clear minds. In Baima Lake , there are as many snails as the hair of a cow. It is only near the river port near the bank. Under the stone steps of daily washing dishes and dishes, there are large and small edges everywhere, but not many people touch it. They think it eats oil and stains. The meat is not clean and not fresh. So we have to go along the river to find the Qingshui area that few people go to, and touch them one by one. The way to be lazy is to spread the big fan-like palm leaves to the bottom of the river, and lift them up after a few days. basket. Three or four palm leaves can lure a large pot of snails. If you want something fresher, you can put a boat to the island in the middle of the lake. There are not only snails, but also yellow clams in the sand and mud occasionally, which is very delicious.
Children have the most fun running around. Usually when we go to the river to play, adults are to blame, for fear that we will fall into the river and drown. Now when it comes to touching the snails, the mothers only told us to be careful, and we let us go. We carried a bamboo basket with snails, like a token of protection, and wandered around the water. A whole morning or afternoon of morning light, just passing by while playing. That’s why we don’t like palm leaves the most. We feel that touching the snails in this way is not interesting at all. Sometimes we see leaves in the water and even sneak them ashore and throw them away. Of course, no matter how crazy you are, the last basket of snails must be full, so as not to go home and be trained. So at the end of the game, I always give it to you, you give it to me, and everyone goes back to their respective homes. The snails brought home are poured into the basin, filled with water, and kept overnight, so that they can spit out the sludge in the shell.
In the evening, I often see mothers sitting at the door, chatting and cutting snails with big scissors. The pointed tail of the snail shell, we call it snail buttocks, cut it off, and the cooked snail meat can be sucked out. If there is a stinky snail, the butt will be exposed as soon as the butt is cut, and there is only silt in it, no snail meat. The taste of stir-fried snails is the most unforgettable. Stir ginger in hot oil, stir the ginger fragrance first, and then pour in all the snails that have gone to the buttocks. The snail shell hit the iron pot, and there was a lively clatter, and everyone knew that they were frying snails. Stir fry for a few times, add cooking wine, soy sauce, and sprinkle some sugar lightly. When the juice is collected, it is good-looking and delicious with fresh green onion chopped in the green onion pot. In the countryside, stir-fried snails are always eaten, and everyone has practiced this ability-one snail enters the mouth, and as soon as the snail is swallowed, a shell is spit out. Some people like to eat it cooked. Boiled snails are not suitable for swallowing, because there is no taste, you have to take a thin embroidery needle, pick them out one by one, and eat them slowly with sauce and wine.
Touching the snails in the water, Cai Ai will run towards the hillside. Aloe vera buds early and grows much more. At the foot of the mountain, by the side of the field stems, there are small blossoms growing. Its leaves are fluffy, and when it is picked, the plush at the fracture is still connected, like a thread of cotton wool is being pulled. The yellow flower must be picked tenderly. If you can't wait for it to grow up and pull out the yellow flower spikes in the center, it will be too old to eat. Pick up the yellow wormwood that comes home, put it in the water and knead it into the flour to make dumpling skins.
Dumplings made of Huanghua Ai are yellow after steaming and have a dull luster. In comparison, the dumplings made with chicken feet and Ai are green, shiny and much more beautiful. Chicken feet mugwort is mugwort , and the dumplings kneaded with it are the real mugwort dumplings. So mothers will never go out for Huang Hua Ai.It was the beginning of spring, when the chicken feet and wormwood were not yet flourishing, the flavor that our children used to kill time and tongue. When the green grass in the field grows, and the wormwood leaves like chicken feet are lifted from the grass in small pieces, the mothers set out with baskets on their shoulders. Their eyes looking for mugwort are really sharp, and the method of picking mugwort leaves is really fast, as if they just walked around so gently and quickly, the basket of tender mugwort leaves is already full. As usual, mugwort leaves should be boiled in boiling water to remove the astringency, and quickly knead it into the flour with the hot water that was just taken out. Kneading and kneading, the white dough gradually turned into a pleasant pink-green color. In order to retain the greenness of the mugwort leaves after steaming, alkali is added to the dough. The mugwort dumplings without the alkali will be green when they come out of the pot, like the juice that has just been soaked in mugwort. But the amount of alkali is the most difficult to control, the less is useless, the more is astringent and bitter, only the housewives who are good at it can resist.
has a skin, but also to do stuffing. The commonly used stuffing of Ai dumplings, one sweet and one salty, is red bean paste and shredded winter bamboo shoots. We all love the latter. Take out the scallop in a ball from the pickle jar, squeeze out the marinade, and finely chop it on the cutting board. Peel out the snow-white winter bamboo shoots and cut them into shreds. The shredded pork should also be cut as finely as possible. Heat oil in an iron pan, fry the shredded pork first, then slide in the shredded winter bamboo shoots and snow lily, and fry until the whole house is full of aroma. The dumpling skin should be twisted slightly thinner, put in two tablespoons of winter bamboo shoots and shredded pork and stir-fry the snow lily, then wrap the skin and clam shells together, squeeze out the sides of the dumplings, and place them on a large steaming rack. All uniform. While kneading dumplings, you can also see the styles of each family. Rough people, just knead the two sides together. But most people will also make all kinds of lace, and the shape of the lace depends on the habits of each family.The side of the dumplings in our house is the kneading method taught by my grandfather. After the skins on both sides are closed, we must use the thumb and forefinger to knead and fold the sides to form a circle of fine and even ripples around the belly of the dumplings and send them to the neighbors. Home always attracts admiration. The breakfast before and after Qingming is often two large mugwort dumplings, stuffed with winter bamboo shoots and shredded pork, fried with snow lily, and fried rice without getting tired of eating. When I eat at school at noon, sometimes there are two or three mugwort dumplings, which are packed in aluminum lunch boxes, and I don’t need a steamer. I can eat them cold, which is also delicious.
often cooks another type of pasta that is steamed with Ai Dumplings. We call it Mai Tan, which is often referred to as Qingming Dumpling, which is much easier than Ai Dumplings. Grab a ball of dough kneaded with mugwort leaves, rub a few times in the palm of your hand, and flatten it into a round piece on the chopping board, and you're done. Sometimes, a wooden wheat dumpling mold is used, the dough is pressed into the mold, and then knocked on the chopping board with a "tuk". Mai Tan also does it at ordinary times, and the bright Mai Tan that Ai Ye rubs is only Qingming. This tanzi is very sticky and has a light taste, which children do not like very much. But we love to learn from adults and chant: Bright-eyed Mai Tan sticks and tweets, Baikun hides in the scorpion...
Qingming mugwort dumplings are the same as snails. All have the effect of driving spring dryness.
After the Qingming Festival, the snails are not delicious, the meat is deflated and the taste is dry, and the small snails that are hatching are often eaten in the big snails. In the shallow water beside the river port, new small snails emerged in small pieces and gradually grew larger. The stems of mugwort grow long, the leaves of mugwort get old, and the time to eat mugwort dumplings will naturally pass. Mugwort grows wildly in the wild, waiting for the arrival of the Dragon Boat Festival. Then someone will remember them.
Author: Zhao Xia
Editor: Xie Juan
