Zhuzhou Daily reporter Yu Qiangnian took a photo of the "Steam-headed Shrimp" in Huifeng Tower. How can it be so popular? Photographed by Zhuzhou Daily reporter Yu Qiangnian Every lobster dish and every late-night snack here is researched by the owner Cui Xiang himself, so the ta

The temperature is slowly rising, and the night snack scene is becoming more and more lively.

Crayfish is an indispensable delicacy on the midnight snack menu of Zhuzhou people. In the various photos of eating crayfish posted in WeChat Moments, several signature restaurants such as Huifenglou, Wang Beard, and Jiuzi Spicy Crab appear frequently.

In the eyes of foodies, these shops are the banners of crayfish in Zhuzhou’s late-night snack scene.

▲The "braised prawns" cooked by Wang Guangyun, the founder of Wang Huzi, himself. Photographed by Zhuzhou Daily reporter Yu Qiangnian

Huifeng Building

"Steam-headed shrimp", how can it be so popular?

In the center of the dining table, the gas stove was spitting out flames, the water in the steamer was boiling, and under the glass pot lid, plump lobsters were jumping around and showing their teeth. White steam quickly enveloped the shrimp body, and the air flow pushed against the lid of the pot, making a hissing sound. Eight minutes later, the boss Cui Xiang opened the pot lid.

This is the new product "Steam Head-fried Shrimp" just launched by Huifenglou.

"This is my first time trying this method. It's very fresh, tender and smooth." Two beauties from the Zhangjiajie Self-Driving Tour Association tasted the shrimp meat and were full of praise.

"Many customers are worried that the lobsters are not fresh. Our 'steam-exploded shrimps' are designed to allow customers to see live shrimps served on the table. We put cooking wine, ginger and garlic in the steamer, and of course my own research Ingredients, steam evaporates to emit a special aroma, which can remove the fishy smell of shrimps and maintain the freshness of lobsters to the maximum extent, which is especially suitable for customers who don’t like spicy food,” Cui Xiang explained.

At six o'clock in the afternoon, there were more customers, and all 11 private rooms were full. "The current business has only recovered to about 50% to 60% of the original level." Cui Xiang said, "Most of our customers are repeat customers."

▲ Cui Xiang, the owner of Huifeng Building, displayed the latest product "Steam-fried Shrimp" on the spot. Photo by Zhuzhou Daily reporter Yu Qiangnian

Every lobster dish and every late-night snack here is researched by the owner Cui Xiang himself, so the taste is naturally unique. In his words, the way he prepares a piece of tiger skin chicken feet is completely different from others, and the taste is absolutely special.

Hui Feng Lou’s signature lobster is “dry fried shrimp”, which has a history of 20 years. "When stir-frying in oil, we add our secret spices to prevent the loss of nutrients in the shrimp to the maximum extent. The shrimp is fresh, spicy and fragrant, and the order rate is very high. At most, we sold thousands of catties a day." Cui Xiang said that back then, " When "Dry-fried Shrimp" became popular, many late-night snack bars in surrounding cities came to him to learn his skills. Some foreigners thought it was good after eating it, so they came to the store to package it and send it to their family members abroad to taste.

Cui Xiang is from Ningxiang. He came to Zhuzhou to start a business at the age of 18. He worked in sales, worked as a supper shop, opened a restaurant, and also traveled to other cities. By chance, he learned how to cook Chaozhou cuisine from a Chaoshan native, then returned to Zhuzhou and opened Huifeng Restaurant. "Catering is culture, and it's ethical and particular. I was inspired by how to match ingredients and how to use them," Cui Xiang said.

Huifenglou has been established for 21 years. It has won word-of-mouth and repeat customers not only by taste, but also by ingredients that reassure customers.

Huifenglou’s lobsters are purchased from Changde, Hubei and other places. They are large in size and of good quality. Through cold chain transportation, the shrimps are kept fresh and the cost is naturally high. "Some late-night snack shop owners also wanted to buy lobsters like us based on our delivery orders, but they found that the cost was too high and they couldn't do it," Cui Xiang said.

Every one of our lobsters is cleaned with both hands by our employees, never using detergent. "Everyone has different tastes. Our shrimp may not suit your taste, but it will definitely make you feel at ease." Cui Xiang said confidently.

王beard

" Konjac Shrimp Balls" can be eaten in soup

The cooked braised shrimps are red, shiny and deep in color. Breaking open the hard and crisp shrimp shells, you can see the full shrimp paste. The shrimp paste is plump and the shrimp meat is translucent and plump.

On the evening of April 21st, Hejia Tu Renmin Road Wang Huzi. Xiaoxuan, a girl born in the 1990s, and her two best friends ordered a pot of braised shrimps in oil and a pot of garlic shrimps, each weighing 3 pounds.The three of them eat in slightly different ways. Some eat with plastic gloves, some roll up their sleeves and eat with bare hands, and some use chopsticks. Wang Guangyun, the founder of Wang Huzi, who was standing aside, came up to give some advice, "There are certain things to pay attention to when eating shrimp. You have to peel them with your hands. Generally, you don't eat the shrimp heads."

At another table, seven people sat around and ordered about 20 kilograms of shrimp. Xiao Meng, an old fan, ordered a bowl of "Konjak Shrimp Balls", ate the shrimps and added noodles to the soup. Wang Guangyun introduced that "konjac shrimp balls" are made by pinching off the heads, removing the shrimp threads, and then frying them in large oil. After the shrimp tails turn red and curled, they add stock and various spices and simmer the konjac until they are clean and the soup is edible.

In 1999, crayfish emerged in the Zhuzhou night snack market. By 2003, crayfish became the protagonist in the Zhuzhou night snack market. "At that time, we mainly ate flavored shrimp ." Wang Guangyun's son Wang Weiming recalled that when business was at its best, customers lined up from the lobby to the kitchen. "The guests took the initiative to pass the dishes on, and I didn't need to pass them on."

There are more and more crayfish night snack restaurants, and Wang Huzi is constantly innovating. Wang Weiming made a special trip to Qianjiang, Hubei, and worked "undercover" in a late-night snack shop for three months, learning how to make braised prawns. Today, in addition to flavored shrimp, the store has also launched new products such as braised prawns, garlic prawns, scallops shrimp paste fried noodles. Fried noodles with scallops and shrimp paste is an "exclusive dish". The raw materials include scallops, shrimps, homemade sauces, etc. The noodles are chewy and elastic, have a rich aroma in the mouth, are soft but not rotten, and are favored by customers.

In order to adapt to the new trend, Wang Guangyun handed over the business to his son. Young Wang Weiming continues to expand the market with the help of the Internet. "No matter how the form changes, the essence is still the quality of the food. First, making shrimp is like being a human being, and second, you have to do it yourself." Wang Guangyun muttered to his son.

Jiuzi Spicy Crab

Shrimp and crab They are both in the same house.

Take a taxi to Jiuzi Spicy Crab. The old taxi driver may ask: "Which store should I go to?" Hexi is near the gymnasium. The flagship store is right opposite the taxi gas station. The drivers see each other every day and are very familiar with it. The old store in Hejiatu, Hedong has been open for more than 10 years and is very popular. So drivers are asking this question.

At 6 pm on April 22, the reporter went to the flagship store of Hexi Gymnasium. Although the spicy crab is the signature dish, "shrimp and crab are indistinguishable", so owner Leng Lianbao confidently chose to serve lobster first.

▲The garlic shrimps of Jiuzi Spicy Crab are large and delicious. The garlic is rich but not overpowering, with a hint of sweetness. Photo by Zhuzhou Daily reporter Li Jun

Three plates of lobsters were served on the table, dry-fried shrimps, flavored shrimps with bright red shells and green chives, and garlic shrimps that were quite large and fragrant with garlic. Each one has its own characteristics. The dry-fried shrimps are cut along the backs of the shrimps, and the shells are crispy and the meat is delicious; the flavored shrimps are cut into the tails, and the meat is fresh and tender; the garlic shrimps are as garlic-like as rice grains and have a rich aroma, but they are not overpowering in the mouth and have a hint of sweetness.

Leng Lianbao is a native of Changde. After being laid off from a township enterprise in the late 1990s, he started a business with eight friends. Because his parents owned a restaurant, he has been exposed to it since he was a child, loves to eat, knows how to eat, and has also mastered some skills in catering.

In 2000, Leng Lianbao and his friends visited Hubei, Anhui, Chongqing, Chengdu and other places. After the inspection, they absorbed the best from various places and combined it with Changde's taste improvement to develop an original brand. Because nine people worked on it together, the name of the store is "Jiuzi Spicy Crab".

In 2004, Leng Lianbao went to Zhuzhou and opened a shop in the midnight snack street in Hejiatu, Lusong District. He remembers that it was Christmas Day when it opened, and business was a little slow. Although he is confident in the product, he is also uneasy. Relying on word-of-mouth from customers, in less than two months, the business was booming, and people from Tianxin and Hexi came to eat crabs. At first, they expected to make 5,000 yuan in half a month, but later they could make that much in one day. Recalling the heyday of

, Leng Lianbao said that the period from 2005 to 2015 could be called the "golden decade". People often come from , Xiangtan, , Changsha and other places to eat crabs. "At the busiest time, 500 kilograms of crabs a day are slaughtered by four people."

has been a signature store for more than 10 years, and it has become more and more prosperous, relying on continuous innovation. , as well as careful selection and strict preservation of ingredients. Whether it's crab or lobster, Lenglianbao is developing new flavors.As for the ingredients, the crabs are high-quality meat crabs from Myanmar, Vietnam, and other places. They are airlifted from the cold chain and kept fresh in a self-built cold storage. During the epidemic, foreign logistics was affected, so he also chose to purchase goods from Yangcheng Lake in Jiangsu Province and Datong Lake in Yiyang Province.

Leng Lianbao personally supervised the crabs or shrimps that died during transportation and was not allowed to use any of them, because "many old people and children like to come here to eat, and the food must go into their mouths."

Leng Lianbao's There is also a story behind the words.

For several years, a family living in Shiraishi Port , their eight children were often brought to eat crabs by their grandfather or grandmother. "Each child ordered one pound and came almost every weekend." Later, when the children entered middle school and high school, they came less often. Leng Lianbao said that he originally had a poor memory, but the appearance of those eight children, "I will never forget it in my life."

content source: Zhuzhou News Network

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