Everything and every scene is the hometown, and it is all human feelings.
Grass kway (web image)
"Bean blossoms, grass grits, frozen grass kway teows."
The iron spoon tapped the porcelain bowl to make a silver bell-like sound, accompanied by undulating shouts, wandering in the alleys and alleys, streets and streets.
I still remember that when school was over, the door of the school was bustling, there were people selling colorful ducklings, some selling Wangwang crushed ice, and some had been tapping porcelain bowls, and there were bean blossom and grass stalls that were rhythmically shouting. I remember that there was often an uncle at the door who came to "squat" to sell bean flowers and grass. A bowl of bean blossoms and a bowl of grass kway teens are a dollar. Arbor gently scooped up a spoonful of grass with an iron spoon, and the jelly-like grass fell into the dull blue-and-white porcelain bowl. Cut a few times in a bowl, sprinkle a layer of sesame sugar lightly, scoop up a spoonful and cover. A bowl of sweet and smooth grass kway teow was handed over.
The old man selling straw on the streets of Shantou. (Image from Doully Chaozhou)
One person, one car, one spoon, one bucket, one porcelain bowl.
Maybe it's the Chaoshan people's childhood memories of the grass and rice stalls.
Grass kway teow, with a hint of bittersweet medicinal taste, tender and smooth in the mouth, is a characteristic snack in the Chaoshan region. Legend has it that in ancient times, the summer heat of Chaoshan was unbearable, and the rainy season was even more alternating between humidity and heat, and the ancestors of Chaoshan were always looking for a good way to cool off the heat. Li Shizhen also recorded in the "Compendium of Materia Medica" that the grass is sweet and cool, and the internal administration has the effect of clearing heat and detoxification. Folk also use grass kway teow (fairy grass) to process it into a gelatinous grass kway, which is eaten to relieve heat and heat. Because the price is cheap and suitable for the season, it is widely spread in the folk.
Grass grits. (Image from Doully Chaozhou)
Huang Liebo of Xiaocui Road has been selling straw for more than 30 years, year after year, and the guy who once walked the streets in a white shirt has now entered the year of flower armor. According to Master Huang, the first step in making grass grits now requires the collection or purchase of large grass kway teow grass. After that, the grass is washed, put in a large pot and boiled with water, cooking on high heat for half a day, until the grass turns into viscous black water. Then filter slowly, remove the dregs and cool. At this time, the filtered grass grits water continues to boil, while stirring evenly, while adding a certain amount of potato flour, slowly extinguishing, and when it cools to a certain temperature, the grass grits water will condense with the potato flour, and the elastic and tough grass grits will be ready.
In the Chaoshan dialect, "to cut a bowl of grass" is used to mean to buy a bowl of grass, which is enough to see that the toughness of the grass needs to be "cut" by a spoon
There are also many Chaoshan folk proverbs related to "grass grits". For example, "the grass is cooked, the weather changes, two bowls are sold to make one; the south bank floats dark clouds, and the grass is sold and stored." This means that if the cooked grass is encountered on a rainy day, it is easy to deteriorate, and the uncle who sells the kway teow will worry that his grass cannot be sold, affecting the family's livelihood. It can also be seen that the purchase and sale of grass is also closely related to the seasonal weather.
(Image from @Yifan in Shantou blog)
"Arbor, come to the bowl of grass."
Arbor smiled, quickly wiped his sweat with the towel draped over his shoulders, opened the barrel, and repeated the skillful movement.
Handing over the grass, Abel smiled sheepishly and said, "The herbivorous is good, my grass is clear, and the food is very good on hot days." ”
"Hahaha, yes. Unforgettable sweetness and the taste of memory. ”
With a thud, a bowl of grass was already in the stomach.
Resources:
Jieyang Daily, August 2, 2016, [Eat in Jieyang] to eat bowls of grass and tofu flowers
Source: Hua You, Contributor/Li Ying, Editor/Meng Xi