Preface
Turning time back decades ago. When you walk to the Zhongnanhai Juxiang Bookstore, you will hear a rhythmic "da da da" knocking sound from the room, and there will always be one or two times a day.
Don't be surprised, this sound just means that the owner of the bookstore has started to eat. Every time this time comes, Chairman Mao would pick up food with bamboo chopsticks and slap the ground constantly while stepping on the board.
and Mao Zedong also gave his move a very vivid name: beating drums!
Minister2Minister's small dining table when Mao Zedong's "beat the drum"
Minister's small dining table that can be used to beat the drum has become a necessity in Chairman Mao's life, and it is always indispensable when eating.
So, what exactly did Chairman Mao eat on the dining table with such a strange habit?
The "three old things" that are indispensable
There are three things on Mao Zedong's dining table, and the first one is chili.
Chairman Mao is from Hunan, and it is well known that he is addicted to spicy food. His preference for peppers has always been consistent, even reaching a greedy level.
Chairman Mao’s life administrator Wu Liandeng once recalled: "When the chairman eats, he must have a plate of chili peppers!"
Mao Zedong himself also said: " During the Long March , he didn’t want to eat meat, but he just wanted to eat peppers."
Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong especially likes to eat chili peppers, and even regards chili peppers as the most delicious thing in the world, and even thinks of it when returning the gift.
942, Stalin sent someone to send generous gifts to Mao Zedong. After receiving the gift, Mao Zedong began to worry. After thinking about it, he didn't know what gift to give! When eating, Mao Zedong, who was slightly anxious, was particularly loud. Although he held the bamboo chopsticks in his hand, he didn't pick up the meal at all, and he was still thinking about the gift he gave to Stalin!
At this moment, Mao Zedong looked at the plate of peppers on the table, and immediately decided: The gift I gave Stalin was peppers!
The peppers given to Stalin were sowed, cultivated and harvested by Mao Zedong. The peppers were put into a special cloth bag and handed over to the Soviet friends who came to give gifts this time.
and Mao Zedong said: "There is nothing special here in Yan'an. I will give Comrade Stalin this gift to express my gratitude!"
Mao Zedong took a photo of Stalin
Mao Zedong likes to eat chili peppers, so he also half-truely told the "Cupole Revolution Theory".
In 1934, when he was in Ruijin , he said to Li De, a military adviser who was not used to eating chili peppers: "The food of the real revolutionaries is red peppers. Whoever can't eat red peppers can't fight."
Mao Zedong once joked with Wang Jiaxiang's wife Zhu Zhongli because he dared not eat chili peppers. He said: "You are afraid of the peppers in the bowl, and you dare to fight the enemy?"
In April 1962, Mao Zedong ate Chaotian pepper specially made by the chef in Wuhan Donghu Hotel. Although he was sweating heavily, he was very satisfied and ate one more bowl of rice.
, who was very happy to eat, Mao Zedong once again talked to his 'Pepper Revolutionary Theory' to his entourage: "Eating chili requires determination. Don't be afraid of spicy or bitter. Chili is a good thing, and most revolutionaries love to eat it. Every family in Hunan grows chili peppers, everyone eats it, and everyone revolutionizes."
Mao Zedong
In order to be able to eat chili peppers, Mao Zedong once argued with medical staff and talked about fallacies.
After getting older, there was still a plate of chili peppers on Chairman Mao’s dining table. Once, after he finished eating the chili peppers, his teeth began to hurt. As the saying goes, toothache is not a disease, it is a fatal pain.
Looking at Mao Zedong with pain on his face, the medical staff said to Mao Zedong anxiously: "Chairman, if you get angry, you will have toothache. Eating chili peppers is anger. Can you not eat chili peppers?"
When he heard that he could not eat chili peppers, Chairman Mao acted as a scoundrel: "What's the matter? Eating chili peppers is obviously a way to clear the fire!"
However, even if he is so addicted to spicy food, he once blamed others for the appearance of chili peppers on the dinner table. What's going on?
In May 1930, Mao Zedong came to Xunwu, Jiangxi to conduct research. His eating habits were different and the conditions were limited, so he ate boiled cabbage every meal, with almost no oil and salt.
During this period, Mao Zedong's mouth had almost no smell, which made the guard Wu Jiqing see it and hurt in his heart.
Later, he heard that Mao Zedong liked to eat chili very much, so he began to ask his fellow villagers door to see who had chili at home. Hard work pays off, Wu Jiqing finally found a bunch of red peppers.
That night, Wu Jiqing asked the chef to help fry the peppers, and he brought them to Mao Zedong's room.
Because Mao Zedong was always busy with work, he had to cheer for several times.
Fried Chili
, who had been called several times, just put down the research report that had been written halfway through his hands when he saw the peppers brought by Wu Jiqing, and his eyes lit up!
Mao Zedong looked at Wu Jiqing put the plate of red pepper on the dining table, then got up and walked over, and asked: "Where did you get this pepper?"
Seeing the excitement that just flashed in Mao Zedong's eyes, and when he heard his question again, Wu Jiqing returned with a smug look: "I'm asking for what I want for my cousin. Only his family has a bunch of them!"
Hearing this, Mao Zedong frowned and his face darkened: "Have your company commander ever told you about the organization's 'three major disciplines and eight points of attention to '?"
After realizing that Mao Zedong was unhappy, Wu Jiqing's proud expression immediately stopped, and turned to a confused look.
Mao Zedong looked at Wu Jiqing who was shaking his head in front of him and sighed. Thinking that he had just started working, he patiently explained to him: " Comrade Wu Jiqing, you can't blame you for this matter. The main reason is that we do not promote the new soldiers' policies on the party, and our education is not able to keep up in time. Let's do this. In a moment, you will tell your company commander and ask the Chief to send the pepper money to the fellow villagers from my meal fee, and you will also apologize to others."
Oil Painting - Mao Zedong
In Mao Zedong's mind, peppers are delicious, but the organizational discipline cannot be broken. There is another thing like
. During the Long March, there was a shortage of food and peppers were also a rare thing. When the organization distributed food to the central leaders, Mao Zedong's guards received 20 more red peppers for him who liked to eat chili peppers. After Mao Zedong found out about this matter, he immediately asked the guards to return the peppers in full.
After the guard returned the peppers, Mao Zedong taught him seriously: "We are Red Army , how can the leaders make special?"
In addition to peppers, the Hunan fermented bean curd made by Master Liao often appears on the dinner table.
fermented bean curd is not delicious if it is moldy. After seeing this, the doctor around Chairman Mao immediately proposed to test the fermented bean curd.
Cheng Ruming, who has been having dinner for Mao Zedong for more than ten years, talked about this during the visit. He said: "These are the same as Hunan stinky tofu , what to test! And what he said doesn't count, the chairman has the final say, the chairman eats it! There are many things, the health doctor says this is not good, and that is not good, the chairman will say it is okay!"
Cheng Ruming took a photo of Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong had a great principle for eating, that is, eat what he liked.
Of course, Mao Zedong would also eat wild vegetables that meet scientific standards, that is purslane .
It can not only clean the intestines, but also cure diarrhea. Sometimes, the effect is better than taking berberine.
Whether in the era of war or after the founding of New China in , there was always this "three-in-law" figure on Mao Zedong's dinner table.
Frugal Mao Zedong
As the son of a farmer, Mao Zedong knew the sufferings of the masses.
Even though his living conditions improved after the founding of the People's Republic of China, he still maintained a frugal lifestyle.
. Food, clothing, housing and transportation are frugal in all aspects, and they are dressed simply. They make up for one piece of clothing and repaired one pair of shoes many times. A meal is just a simple three dishes and one soup.
After the founding of New China, Wu Xiangting had just served as Chairman Mao’s life administrator for a few days, when he saw Chairman Mao in the kitchen.
Mao Zedong took a photo
After Mao Zedong walked into the kitchen, he saw the busy Wu Xiangting at first sight. He patted Wu Xiangting on the shoulder and asked: "Wu Xiangting, what are you doing?"
"Chairman, I just came back from going out to buy vegetables. " Wu Xiangting said and pointed to the vegetable basket on the table.
Mao Zedong looked in the direction of Wu Xiangting's finger, saw the fresh vegetables in the vegetable basket, and nodded.
and then said as if he was thinking of something: "You have changed your career! Okay, let me tell you, in the future, you just need to cook the food cleanly and hygienic, don't buy any expensive things for me to eat." After
, he walked a few steps forward, took out the yellow light that Wu Xiangting had just bought from the vegetable basket, and continued to say: "For example, it's winter now, it's winter now. , don’t buy these fresh vegetables such as cucumbers, tomatoes, etc. Now the money is to buy a cucumber, you can buy a basket of cucumbers in summer. You can only eat one meal for a cucumber in winter. You can eat dozens of meals for a basket of cucumbers in summer. ”
Fresh vegetables
Wu Xiangting listened to Mao Zedong’s words and nodded, and had a new understanding of Chairman Mao’s frugality. Once after
, Wu Xiangting went out for something, so Wang Zhenhai was allowed to perform the task of buying groceries instead. He bought some tender corn cobs, prepared them by the chef, and brought them to the dining table.
When Mao Zedong saw this, he looked unhappy and was reluctant to take his chopsticks. He said to the staff around him:
"How many corn does it take to stir-fry such a dish? How much grain can you make when you grow up! Isn't it a disaster for me to eat such a dish? Take it back and ask me to eat it if you buy it!"
For Mao Zedong's frugality, Zhongnanhai chef Kang Hui, a chef at Kung Hui He has a great say: "Chairman Mao lives frugal and requires simple requirements. Whether it is New Year's Day or Spring Festival, his family dinner always has three meats and two vegetables and one soup. abalone ginseng wings and does not have it, and he doesn't like it. He generally says that a meal has a meat and vegetable, which is enough."
Kang Hui spent the Spring Festival at Mao Zedong's house. He said: Chairman Mao's family, like ordinary people, will make dumplings during the New Year's Eve dinner. There were only a few more meat dishes on the table than usual, and the whole family had a lively meal.
Mao Zedong took a photo
Cheng Ruming's memory of Chairman Mao's New Year's Eve dinner was the same as Kang Hui, and he felt nothing special. On several New Year's Eve, Mao Zedong even asked them to bring the leftovers from noon to the dinner table.
Whenever it comes New Year's Day and New Year's Eve, Mao Zedong will not have any special requirements for the kitchen. For this reason, Cheng Ruming will make more dishes that he usually likes.
Chef Wang Jinren Worked by Mao Zedong for six years, and he once recalled: "Now many people know that I used to be a chef for Chairman Mao back then, and thought I was an amazing person, but it was not. To be honest, working by Chairman Mao and taking care of Zhongnanhai, the skills I learned are almost useless..."
Why did he say that? This starts with a dish made by Kang Hui. Once, he stir-fried a flower-killed pork belly, which was crispy and tender, and had a great taste.
Mao Zedong was also very happy to eat, but after he finished eating, he said: "Don't let the kitchen master work hard. It's better to read two more books if you have this time. This dish is carved like a flower, and you know it's very troublesome."
It is precisely because of Mao Zedong's words that the chefs no longer cook some special time-consuming dishes.
In 1962, when Mao Zedong personally invited Puyi , he also made some simple dishes.
Mao Zedong's photo
There are only side dishes such as peppers, bitter melon, fermented black beans on the table, and the other ones are The staple food is rice and steamed buns. The only thing that can be said is the bottle of wine. The
banquet was set up in Yinian Hall, and Mao Zedong also invited Zhang Shizhao, Cheng Qian, Qiu Ao and Wang Xiaofan to accompany him. During this period, Mao Zedong also recommended the green pepper fried bitter gourd to Puyi.
Mao Zedong picked up a chopstick and put it in Puyi's bowl. When he saw him eating it, he asked with a smile: "How does it taste?" "
Puyi, who doesn't eat chili peppers often, was sweating all over his face. After hearing Mao Zedong's voice, he quickly said: "Not bad, not bad, spicy and fresh! "
Mao Zedong is frugal, but the food costs are very high
Chairman Mao eats very simple. Each meal is three dishes and one soup. The dishes and soup are common common common foods for people.
Chairman Mao is from the south. The staple food is rice. Sometimes it is mixed with some miscellaneous grains, and it is often mixed with millet, red beans, etc.
After the meal, he sometimes eats roasted sweet potatoes or boiled corn. From now on, these foods are simple, but they are very scientific and nutritious.
Chairman Mao still eats a lot of foods. He will eat something that makes people feel unavailable and popular among the people. For example, loach , chicken neck, fish head, small fish and shrimp, etc.
Like to eat ht Mao Zedong, who is ml4 mixed grains, also likes to eat eight treasure rice, and there is a short story about eight treasure rice.
After the founding of New China, Wang Jinren cooked for Chairman Mao for the first time. He felt a little nervous, and when he saw the menu, he became even more nervous.
Wang Jinren
The eight treasure rice that Chairman Mao wanted to eat, there was no treasure in the kitchen at this moment, and there was no such thing as assorted fruit shop, red dates, peanuts, lotus seeds, glutinous rice, and white sugar.
, he quickly found Li Yinqiao and told him this situation. Li Yinqiao heard it and smiled and said: "Master Wang, the eight treasure rice that the chairman wants to eat is not the kind you cook in the restaurant. "
"? " Wang Jinren looked puzzled.
"You just put rice, millet, corn (crumbled), mung beans , red beans, soybeans, broad beans, and green beans and cook them together. The Chairman often ate this kind of meal on the Long March and had already developed feelings for him. "
Mixed Grain Rice
From Li Yinqiao's words, we can know that the eight-treasure rice that Chairman Mao likes to eat is just mixed and cooked.
In addition, Mao Zedong rarely eats tonics, not because there is no, on the contrary, he is not short of tonics.
Every year, Mao Zedong receives them from all over the world. Gifts, and the rare high-end supplements such as ginseng, deer antler, bear paw, Ganoderma lucidum are available in the gift list.
However, Mao Zedong handled them the same way as other valuable gifts, registering and submitting them to the public.
In 1964, Indonesian Overseas Chinese representatives once sent Mao Zedong a high-end bird's nest weighing 31.5 kilograms, and it The fate of his fellow gifts was the same as other gifts. Mao Zedong told the staff to send these bird's nests to Great Hall of the People to entertain foreign guests.
Great Hall of the People
Although Mao Zedong's recipe is simple and there is nothing precious, his food cost is very high.
On the bill for the second quarter of 1963, the food cost was 3,873 yuan per item. Why is this?
? It's very simple. Although he is very stingy with himself, he is very generous to others.
Chairman Mao paid for the guests himself, and the banquet mentioned earlier was deducted from his food expenses. In addition, the staff around him would often accompany him to have dinner, and all the money was paid by Mao Zedong.
Because of this, Mao Zedong once joked when he was having dinner with a staff member:
"You are 'three notes' here for me - you don't have money for eating, housing, and reading books and newspapers. "
Mao Zedong
After saying that, Mao Zedong laughed with the staff.
A pair of bamboo chopsticks, a simple dining table with feet stomping, and a few plates of chili mold tofu, Mao Zedong seemed to have maintained his unique "nutritional balance" throughout his life.
