There has always been a saying in Jiangnan: A authentic Jiangsu and Zhejiang restaurant, whose ancestors will definitely be able to get a relationship with Emperor Qianlong . Although this statement sounds a bit exaggerated, it is not without reason, because Emperor Qianlong not only likes to "go to the south of the Yangtze River", but also pays great attention to "eating". At least compared with his father, Emperor Yongzheng and Emperor 4, he is indeed an absolute "foodie".
Yongzheng has always advocated frugality and was not concerned about the luxurious food in the palace. Qianlong was different. He not only expanded the imperial kitchen , but also loved the exquisite and exquisite Suzhou dishes. To this end, Qianlong went to Jiangnan six times and not only called for the name to taste Suzhou weaving official dishes, but also brought the official kitchen back to the palace during his fourth southern tour.
It is recorded in "The Grand View of Unofficial History of the Qing Dynasty". The imperial chef who was brought back to the palace was named Zhang Dongguan . Later, he not only brought innovation to the imperial chef in the Qing Dynasty, but also pushed Chinese food to a new peak. However, at that time, the imperial chef in the palace had always been a profession passed down from generation to generation. Outsiders could not enter the palace to take office casually, and even the emperor could not break the etiquette. This shows Emperor Qianlong's obsession with Jiangnan dishes. If Qing Dynasty had " Zhihu ", I think I could invite him to answer the question "What places are worth visiting for food?" Qianlong would definitely say, "Thank you for invitation, I think it's Hangzhou."
During the southern tour, officials and wealthy merchants from all over the country made delicious dishes and invited favors and honors in order to win the emperor's favor, which exactly promoted the development of Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine series. Many famous Jiangsu and Zhejiang dishes we eat today were formed during this period.
Having said so much, I believe you are all very curious about what kind of delicacies there are in Jiangnan that can attract Emperor Qianlong to six southern tours? Regarding this question, perhaps we can find the answer from the "Jiangnan Festival As-Old Food List" existing in Palace Museum . This note records the route of Emperor Qianlong’s travel, staying in the palace and daily meals during the 30th year of Qianlong’s Documents Southern Tour (the fourth southern tour). Among them, the most eye-catching ones are the local specialties presented by the high-ranking officials, such as fried gluten , ham, shredded pork filling, etc.
This document also reveals a story that happened in Hangzhou when Emperor Qianlong went to Jiangnan for the fourth time. On the 18th day of the leap month of the thirty years of Qianlong (1765), the empress Ulanara received the emperor's reward when she entered breakfast, but at dinner, the word "Empress" was covered with paper and replaced by the three words "Ling Guifei". The next day, Emperor Qianlong said that the queen was crazy and sent someone to send the queen back to the palace by water. From then on, the queen was sent to the cold palace and died of depression a year later. Now hundreds of years have passed, we don’t know whether this Ulanara queen has gone crazy. What has been passed down now is just a royal secret that people use as a tea-related topic.
In fact, during the southern tour, Qianlong not only had a meal with local officials, he also ate a lot of delicious sweet esters among the people. "Qing Bai Lei Chao" records the story of Emperor Qianlong eating vegetarian at Tianning Temple in Yangzhou. Perhaps he was tired of eating big fish and meat. After eating the vegetarian vegetarian food, Emperor Qianlong praised it and said to the main monk: "Vegetables are delicious, better than deer jerk and bear paw!"
In addition, there are also records that there is a monk named Wen Si in an ancient temple in Yangzhou . He is good at making various tofu vegetarian dishes, especially tofu soup made of tender tofu , golden needle dish , fungus and other ingredients. It tastes delicious and is highly praised by Emperor Qianlong. He even gave this dish " Wen Si tofu " and included it in the palace menu.
When it comes to bean products, we have to mention the anecdotes of Emperor Qianlong and the "Yongfeng Five Flavors Scented and Dried". When Qianlong passed by Yongfeng Town, Zhejiang, someone presented his own fragrant dried . A piece of dried fragrance as big as a palm can be cut out as thin as a cicada's wings, rolled into a roll, folded like paper, and put it in your mouth. It has all the salty, spicy, fragrant, sweet and fresh flavors. After tasting it, Qianlong praised it and asked his followers to bring more back to the capital.Since then, "Yongfeng Five Flavors Scented Dried" has not only become a delicacy on the table and gifts for ordinary people, but has also become a "promoted" to become a tribute.
Not only is the fame of "Yongfeng Five Flavors Scented Dried" related to Qianlong's southern tour, but also the famous Yangzhou dish " Yangzhou Gansilk ". At that time, officials and merchants in Yangzhou racked their brains to welcome the emperor. Often, before the Qianlong people arrived, local officials put on various delicacies at the intersection a day in advance and waited for them. One of these delicacies is called "Jiu Si Soup", which is cut into thin strips of nine delicious delicacies including dried tofu, ham, chicken, and then simmered in chicken soup to allow all kinds of umami flavors to be soaked in dried tofu shreds. Emperor Qianlong ate two plates in one breath. After that, he even called for this dish when he came to Yangzhou again during his southern tour. "Jiu Si Soup" has since been renamed "Yangzhou Gan Silk", which is famous all over the country and has been passed down to this day. Emperor Qianlong's habit of eating tofu spread throughout the country, from 90-year-olds to 3-year-old children, they all knew it, everyone knew it. According to legend, Emperor Qianlong went to Qufu to worship Confucius Sheng, and by the way he went to Confucius , the 71st generation grandson, Kong Zhaohuan (Qianlong's in-laws) as a guest. Kong Zhaohuan knew that Qianlong liked to eat tofu, so he was unique and prepared a table of " tofu banquet ". Qianlong was very satisfied with the tofu banquet prepared by Kong Zhaohuan, and especially praised " first-grade tofu ".
Nowadays, the first-grade tofu in the "Qianlong Banquet" on Louwailou is actually the first-grade tofu from Shandong cuisine " Kongfu Banquet ". It was first used on a cruise ship on West Lake as a dish of "Qianlong Banquet".
It is better to say that a tofu is a work of art than a dish. Since its birth, the recipe has become more refined and the style has become more beautiful. The plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum on the surface of tofu are all carved from food ingredients, lifelike, like the reappearance of the objects in the painting.
privately thinks that this dish is a bit similar to the Tamakoyaki in a Japanese restaurant. Tamakoyaki uses eggs as the main ingredients, and adds yam and shrimp meat. It tastes fluffy and sweet, changing the original appearance of the food. Yipin Tofu is named "tofu", but in fact, the taste of tofu is completely changed by adding fish glutinous rice balls, crab noodles , Yaozhu and shrimp . Although it still looks like a piece of tofu as white as snow after serving, as long as you stretch out your chopsticks to touch it, you can find that it feels completely different from ordinary tofu.
Therefore, " molecular cooking " is not all patents of Westerners.
Of course, there are only a few people who can eat tofu like Emperor Qianlong. People don’t pay so much attention to eating tofu. Just one ordinary tofu can make a different taste.
According to the old custom, each of the 360 ancestra has its own ancestor, just like the teacher worshiping Confucius, the chanting of opera worshiping Minghuang of Tang , and the carpenter worshiping Luban , the tofu industry also has its own ancestor, and this ancestor is Liu An, the king of Huainan , who "one person is enlightened, and the chicken and dog are ascending to heaven". According to legend, Liu An unexpectedly invented tofu during the process of alchemy. In the fourth year of Xianfeng (1854), the Tofu Association in Hangzhou also created a place to worship this "Tofu ancestor". Every year on the 14th day of the fourth lunar calendar, all practitioners in the tofu industry would gather to worship their ancestors and pray for blessings.
The tofu industry is also divided into "gangs". At that time, the tofu gang in Hangzhou was led by the Shao gang, followed by the Hangzhou gang, Ning gang and Qu gang. Today's common soy product brand "Hongguang Langhua", formerly known as "Yu Fuxing", is the oldest tofu shop in Hangzhou. This store was opened during the Xianfeng period of the Qing Dynasty and has a history of more than 150 years.
When it comes to tofu business, there is a village that has to be mentioned, that is, the "Pier's Hall" not far from Xiangji Temple . The bean products produced in this village have a great taste and have been well-known in Hangzhou, Jiaxing and Huzhou since the Ming Dynasty. If you want to ask why the soy products produced here are so unique, it is because the geographical conditions here are unique."Pier's Day" is located on both sides of the Grand Canal . The soybeans grown in black clay soil here are full of grains and strong in shape. The protein and fat content of are very high. Soy products made with such raw materials are naturally top-quality.
"As thin as fat, white as jade, soft and tender, smooth and delicious", this is probably the highest evaluation of tofu by literati. A piece of tofu can change into a variety of postures, such as crab roe tofu , ordinary as farmer tofu, and specialty such as Hakka stuffed tofu , which will eventually change. The tofu is of good quality and even if it is just a dip sauce, it is delicious.
Water-ground tofu tests the quality of tofu and the skills of the chef. Turn on the stove and low heat, put oil in the pot, put your hands on the oil pan, and feel it is slightly hot, put in the old tofu slices of farmhouse that are cut into one to two centimeters. After the tofu slices are put into the pot, it is time to test your patience. horse spoon and colander cannot move, just look at the oily to moisturize the tofu. The word "simmer" on the soup is used appropriately here, which is to simmer the tofu in oil. After about ten minutes, when the tofu slices in the oil pan were golden and floated up fatly, they took a chopstick and poked it and broke it. Then it was time to heat.
The experienced master calmly picked up the fried tofu. The steward who served the food did not dare to delay for a moment in the middle and brought the freshly prepared golden tofu to the table. The diner bite it and found that the tofu was not greasy, it looked crispy on the outside but hollow on the inside. You don’t need to dip any sauce. Take a bite and it will be full of bean flavor. Next, dip it in some soy sauce and farm spicy sauce, and a sip of wine. It is pursuing a quaint rural flavor.
In fact, whether it is a first-class court or a homemade farmer, it is all good tofu.
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