Starting yesterday, we will be pushing articles around a keyword in each issue. We hope to provide you with some interesting stories, short histories, and even cold knowledge to let everyone understand China in "food, clothing, housing and transportation".
Keywords in this issue:
Food, food, mainly refers to rice, grain.
In the 5,000-year history of Chinese civilization, our festivals are inseparable from food. For example, the Lantern Festival should eat tangyuan, the Dragon Boat Festival should eat rice dumplings, and the Mid-Autumn Festival should eat mooncakes. These foods were called "snacks" in ancient times, and the so-called snacks are today's snacks.
A piece of dim sum is a microcosm of the history of an era. The evolution of dim sum is the evolution of traditional Chinese culture.
Yellow period
A sacrificial culture arose, creating a spiritual core for the use of dim sum for sacrifice
During the Yanhuang period, the sacrificial culture arose. During the annual harvest season, tribal groups gather together, bonfires and jubilant, and sacrifice the best grain of the year to Shennong the Great. It means that God has given people a rich harvest, and people repay gratitude with grains. Such a custom of "courtesy and exchange" can even be said to be the origin of the spiritual core of "the Chinese nation, the state of etiquette". Later, dim sum evolved into a figurative "object" of this spirit. Implicitly Chinese, pray to God with small snacks, depict beauty, and pass on wishes.
Statue of Emperor Yan (top) Five grains for sacrifice (bottom)
Xia Dynasty
Handmade sacrifices were produced and pioneered for the use of dim sum for sacrifices
The Xia Dynasty, the first hereditary dynasty recorded in Chinese history books, was produced as handmade sacrifices.
Archaeology has found that there are a certain number of bronze and jade ceremonial vessels in the cultural relics of the Xia period, which shows that the ceremonial system has been continuously developed and improved with the production of the hereditary system, and the sacrificial items have evolved from the original natural products such as grain and sacrifice to the artificial products. People still have a ritual tradition of worshipping ancestors and praying for longevity and blessings. The difference is that the allegorical dim sum made by mold replaces the original complicated artificial casting ceremonial vessel and becomes an important role in the ritual worship.
Shang Dynasty
The emergence of molded production methods has contributed wisdom to the application of molds to make dim sum
In the Shang Dynasty, divination sacrifices were prevalent, and bronzes appeared in large quantities as sacrificial supplies. Archaeological findings have found that bronze casting is dominated by the model lost wax method. Bronzes, which were originally complicated in craftsmanship, were copied and processed in large quantities through standard models. It can be seen that in the Shang Dynasty, the use of molds to manufacture batch products has become a major breakthrough in productivity.
From this, we suspect that the sacrifice of cattle and sheep, which is widely used in sacrifices, or the production of complicated sacrificial items, may also be processed using the same "mold shaping method". The production of this mold processing and production mode is the manifestation of the progress of Chinese civilization, and it is also a major innovation and breakthrough in Chinese food culture, which fully demonstrates the wisdom of the ancient Chinese. Later, the application of molds in the production of dim sum was an extension of this production method.
Zhou Dynasty
The Hehe culture sprouted, creating the premise for dim sum to be used as souvenirs
In the pursuit of harmonious etiquette between people, Confucius set an excellent example for us.
It is said that Confucius worshipped him with a goose in order to ask Lao Tzu for advice on the Zhou Li. The use of "orderly goose movement" symbolizes etiquette and devotion to Lao Tzu. Lao Tzu knew his meaning and said, "The rich and noble send people wealth, and the benevolent ones send people words." I cannot be rich, steal the trumpet of benevolence, and send my son to speak. "Lao Tzu's return gift to Confucius is a word of teaching. It can be seen that as early as the Zhou Dynasty, the harmonious style of "etiquette and exchanges" has been highly valued.
Confucius worshiped Lao Tzu's Han portrait stone rubbing. When Confucius visited Lao Tzu in those years, he carried gifts to express his greetings to the elders, which shows that handwritten letters have been a must-have for Chinese visitors to visit friendly countries since ancient times.
For thousands of years, Chinese has always believed in "valuing harmony, making money with harmony, rejoicing in family, and harmony and unity". Later, people used dim sum sacrifices to pray for blessings on important festivals, that is, to pursue the "harmony" between man and the heavens, and to express their hearts with dim sum, that is, to pursue the "harmony" between people.
Spring and Autumn period
The rudiments of dim sum appeared
During the Spring and Autumn Period, people have begun to pursue the refinement of food. Confucius's saying that "food is not tired of fine, and the heart is not tired of fine" depicts the scene at that time. "Chu Ci Summoning Souls": "The cabinet honey bait has dwarfs." "It can be seen that the product of fine production of diet. Some scholars believe that this kind of food is the prototype of Chinese dim sum. At this point, the Chinese dim sum that carries the blessing of the heavens and the transmission of wishes has officially entered the stage of history.
Qin Dynasty
Unified weights and measures to provide material weighing standards for dim sum production
The Qin unified the six kingdoms, unified the writing, currency, and weights and measures, made "standardization" the core of the circulation of social goods, and provided guidelines for the measurement of dim sum production materials. In addition, dim sum was also included in the classic ancient book "Zhou Li Tianguan", which guided the code of conduct of the pre-Qin state: "The first person is ashamed to eat, and the belly bait is powdered." "The mold mentioned here refers to fried rice noodles or fried noodles. Bait is a general term for cake bait or rice bait. Flour dumplings are foods made from rice flour or rice. This is the first time that a record of dim sum has appeared in the historical materials of our country.
It is still popular in northern China (left)
Rice is used as a raw material for dim sum (right)
Han dynasty
Sesame cake appeared, and health symbols added meaning to the snack culture
Sesame cake, which has a traditional memory, is still one of the favorite pasta dishes of modern people
In the Han Dynasty, Zhang Qian went to the Western Regions and introduced foreign food culture, the taste of Chinese dim sum was historically innovated, and the dim sum loved by the common people- the earliest sesame cake in China appeared. "Interpretation of the Name": "The work of the hu cake, the flax on the top." "Flax refers to sesame seeds, so pepper cake is actually sesame cake."
The Han Dynasty Chinese pay attention to hierarchy and etiquette, and a large number of Excavated Han portraits reflect the scenes of ceremonial hospitality and feasting on the bricks and stones. At the same time, due to the belief in immortality, Chinese reached a climax in the health requirements for eating.
Traditional Chinese medicine and Taoist cultivation have provided inspiration for the creation of Chinese dim sum flavors and allegories. The creation of jade rabbit medicine became an important cultural symbol of the period. Later, the image of the jade rabbit pounding medicine that appeared on the mooncake mold in shanxi was the same as the "immortal" symbol of this period. Glimpse the epitome of Chinese culture in the Pattern of Chinese Dim Sum, which makes people lament the enduring charm of Chinese culture.
Three Kingdoms period
Dim sum cakes make a battle achievement, and substitute sacrifices into sacrifices
The ancients often used molds with dragon and phoenix patterns, which mean auspicious and auspicious
During the Three Kingdoms period, the cake could not only "raise relatives", but also showed a special significance in the war.
According to legend, in order to seize Jingzhou, Sun Quan pretended to be willing to give his sister Xu to Liu Bei as his wife. When Zhuge Liang learned of this, he made a plan and ordered skilled craftsmen to make small gifts as a "meeting gift" for Eastern Wu. A craftsman who has made sugar snacks for most of his life has made a kind of big cake with a dragon and phoenix pattern, which means that the dragon and phoenix are matched and auspicious. This kind of cake was immediately selected by Zhuge Liang, who ordered the craftsman to make 10,000 pieces, and asked Zhao Yun to send them to all the households in Nanxu City, and composed a song: "Liu Beidong Wu came to become a relative, and the dragon and phoenix cake is the media evidence." It can be seen that the custom of "carrying sugar" for wedding cakes has a long history in China.
In addition, the use of "living things" such as dim sum instead of sacrifice for sacrifice is also related to this period.
Statue of Zhuge Liang
In the autumn of the third year of the Shu Han Dynasty, Zhuge Liang took an offensive battle, and after the seven captures and seven columns subdued Meng Yu, Ban Shi returned to the dynasty. When the army reached Lushui, it was suddenly covered with clouds, the wind was fierce, and the waves were fierce, and the army could not cross the river. Zhuge Liang was proficient in astronomy, but this sudden change also puzzled him. He was busy consulting Meng Yue, who had come to send him off and was very familiar with the geography and climate of this area. Meng Yue said: "There have been wars here for several years, many soldiers have died here, and the ghosts of these strangers often come out to make trouble, and anyone who wants to cross the water here must use 49 human heads to sacrifice." Zhuge Liang thought that the price of using a human head for this sacrifice was too great.
Zhuge Liang pondered hard and finally thought of a wonderful way to replace the human head with another object. He ordered his soldiers to slaughter cattle and sheep, chop the beef and mutton into meat sauce, mix it into meat filling, wrap it in flour on the outside, and make it look like a human head and steam it in a cage drawer. This sacrifice is called "steamed bun".
Zhuge Liang took the bun made of meat and flour to the edge of Lushui, offered a sacrifice, and then threw it into Lushui one by one. After the sacrifice, the water suddenly opened and the fog dispersed, the wind and waves were calm, and the army crossed smoothly and properly. Since then, people have often made various sacrifices with their buns as offerings. Since "shou" and "head" are synonymous, "bun head" was later called "steamed bun". This is the earliest record of dim sum replacing living sacrifices.
"Barbarian head" is an ancient southern ethnic minority worship item, but also the origin of steamed bread (left) Eastern Han Dynasty red pottery kitchen figurines, reflecting the ancient people's dietary life (right photo)
Later, dim sum was widely used in sacrifices. I collected a large number of cattle and sheep-themed snack molds in the Shanxi region, which confirmed this conjecture. People use molds to make snacks in the shape of cattle and sheep instead of slaughtering cattle and sheep sacrifices, which not only unifies the shape, enriches the meaning, but also allows people to save time in processing exquisitely shaped food.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties of the Wei and Jin Dynasties
The ancestor of yokan appeared and is still popular in Japan
One of the classic Chinese traditional dim sums - yokan soup
The Southern and Northern Dynasties of the Wei and Jin Dynasties were a period of great population migration and great mixing in Chinese history, and the ethnic minorities represented by the Wuhu (Xiongnu, Xianbei, Shi, Qiang, and Qiang) achieved intermingling with the Han nationality in the Central Plains. Dim sum also takes on a new look in this blend. Yokan with tea became a feature of this period. The earliest yokan was a prairie dim sum, made from lamb boiled and cooled to freeze to accompany the meal. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the sheep soup made after the surrender of Song Maozhi to Wei was called "Absolute Taste", and Emperor Taiwu of Wei ate it, "Great Joy, take 脩之 as a Taiguan Order". This is where the popular dim sum "yokan" in Japan comes from.
Originally, yokan was a soup made by adding lamb and then cooling it to a frozen meal. Later, yokan was introduced to Japan, from the Kamakura period to the Muromachi period of Buddhism. Since monks abstained from eating meat, yokan slowly evolved into a jelly-shaped food made from beans. Since then, yokan has become a famous refreshment in the tea ceremony, and the Japanese have slowly developed and transformed yokan into today's many different flavors of yokan.
Sui and Tang Dynasties
The representative of Chinese dim sum "moon cake" appears "Five Color Cakes" is "carved wood lotus, lotus animal shape is formed", and the surface of the cake is printed with a beautiful pattern, which is similar to the production process of molds used in pastry shops today.
Yu Xiaoling's re-engraved Hua xiangrong mooncake series shows the elegance of Tang Dynasty dim sum to the fullest (left); 'Exquisite prayer cakes are still loved by people today (right)'
"Five Blessings" is also a kind of dim sum cake, with five different fillings, and this pastry has become no different from today. Known as the oldest dim sum in Japan, the Pure Joy Troupe, it was also brought back to Japan by the Tang envoys during this period. The flourishing Tang Dynasty culture spread to Japan along with the Chinese dim sum, which symbolized reunion, and influenced Many aspects of Japanese food, architecture, etiquette and so on. At the same time, the custom of eating "cake" on August 15 also appeared. The Japanese monk Yuanren once recorded in his "Record of the Journey to The Tang Dynasty to Seek the Dharma" that on the fifteenth day of August, "the temple set up a bo dumpling, bread and so on." The prosperous and romantic Tang Dynasty also produced many legends about mooncakes.
According to legend, Tang Xuanzong and Shen Tianshi and The Daoist Hongdu looked at the moon in the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Xuanzong suddenly arose the idea of visiting the Moon Palace, so the Heavenly Master did this, and the three of them went up to Qingyun together and roamed the Moon Palace. However, the palace was heavily guarded and could not enter, and could only overlook the Imperial City of Chang'an. On this occasion, the sound of immortals was heard, and the beauty was amazing, like a moving person. Emperor Xuanzong had always been familiar with the rhythm of music, so he memorized it in his heart. This is exactly "This song should only be heard in heaven, and can be heard several times on earth!" Later, Xuanzong recalled the musical singing of the Moon Palace Xian'e, and he composed and arranged the music and dance himself, which is the famous "Neon Dress Feather Song" in history.
It is also worth mentioning that dim sum was already produced as a commodity in the Tang Dynasty. In the Tang Dynasty, pastry shops have emerged, and the production technology is gradually improving. The emergence of the form of snack commodities has higher requirements for mass production, and it can be speculated that molds have appeared in large quantities during this period. According to the literature, there are pastry shops in Chang'an, and there are also professional "cake masters". At that time, Bai Juyi's poems about pastries included: "Flax cakes are like Kyoto, and the crispy oil is freshly baked." Sent to ambassador Yang of hunger, taste to see to complement the excitement. ”
Song dynasty
The snacks are endless, delicious and delicious
In the Song Dynasty, the Song Dynasty people with exquisite elegance created more possibilities for dim sum. Crystal soap, perilla paste, Goryeo chestnut cake, snowflake crisp, lion man heavy yang cake and other good and delicious snacks emerged in this dynasty.
Crystal soap
Crystal soap is actually sugar-soaked locust beans. Locust beans are the fruit of the national locust tree (there was no acacia tree at that time), because locust beans are alkaline, and in ancient times they were mashed and could wash clothes, so they were called soap. Locust beans are cooked and edible. Northern Song Dynasty Zhuang Qiu", "Chicken Rib Compilation": "JingShi took soap pod kernels and boiled them, and soaked them in sugar water, which is called crystal soap." "Crystal soap is made by soaking locust beans in sugar water after they are cooked.
Perilla paste
Perilla paste is to grind perilla, cinnamon, tangerine peel, galangal, licorice, etc. into powder, add water to boil, add cooked honey, and slowly boil into a paste. It is both a snack dessert and a medicine that can treat indigestion. It can be seen that the idea of the same origin of medicine and food has always run through the production of Chinese dim sum.
Goryeo chestnut cake
According to the "Chronicle of Shirin Guangji", goryeo chestnut cake is not counted in chestnuts, dried in the shade, shelled, pounded as noodles, one-third of which is added with glutinous rice flour and evenly, moistened with honey water, and steamed and eaten. At that time, cake desserts were generally made of rice noodles. At present, we still follow the ancient method of making cakes, and most of them use rice noodles.
Snowflake crisp
"Wu's Middle Feed": "The small pot under the oil dissolves, filters, puts the fried noodles under the hand, stirs well, is not thin or thick, and the pot is removed from the fire." Sprinkle the sugar in the sautéed noodles, stir well, and combine into one place. Roll out the case and cut like an eye block. "This means: melt the oil in a small pot, put the fried flour in it, stir well, and when it is not thin or thick, take the pot off the heat, sprinkle with sugar and stir well. Roll it out on the case and cut it into eye-like pieces. Because the color is as white as snow, it is called snowflake crisp.
Lion's Wild Yang Cake
"Tokyo Dream Hualu Shigeyo": "One or two days ago, each one was sent with a flour steamed cake, a small flag with color cut on it, and a meat mixed with fruits, such as pomegranate seeds, chestnut yellow, ginkgo biloba, and pine nuts." He also used powder as the shape of a lion barbarian king, and placed it on the cake, which is called a lion barbarian. "That is, a day or two before the Chongyang Festival, steamed cakes with flour and noodles, with small bunting flags on top and fruits embedded in them, such as pomegranate seeds, chestnut yellow, ginkgo biloba, pine nuts and the like. Others are embedded with shredded pork, beef and mutton. Use powder to make the shape of a lion barbarian king. Nowadays, some places are still popular in making lion brute Chongyang cake during the Chongyang Festival. A variety of dried fruits are rich in flavor, sweet and delicious, suitable for all ages.
The Song Dynasty dim sum was exquisite and seductive, which made Emperor Huizong of Song want to stop. Legend has it that once Song Huizong micro-service private visit, saw a small cake can not help but want to taste a bite, there is no coin on the body, and can not bear to miss the mouth-watering food, so with a priceless gold coin in the street market for a small piece of dim sum.
The Tuanhua fukusai series developed by Xiao Ling (above); the lion is the beast in the minds of the ancient Chinese people. Used in various decorations or snacks, it has the meaning of auspiciousness and is also a symbol of status and status. (Below)
Yuan
Dim sum highlights the national characteristics, and frozen cheese flows into foreign countries
Frozen cheese in Western food culture
The Yuan Dynasty accompanied the Mongol rulers' southern conquests and northern wars, and ethnic minority cakes also flowed into the Central Plains, including some milk raw materials commonly used by nomadic peoples. After the ancestral capital of the Yuan Dynasty was Beijing (Yuan Dadu), there were ethnic foods mainly mongolian food on the market. The shops that deal in this food are called the Shuko Shop. For example, the tap red of the milk skin has strong national characteristics.
Yuan Dynasty merchants added honey and pearl powder to the ice, stirred it, drizzled with various honey bean soups, and made a unique dim sum - frozen cheese. During the reign of Kublai Khan, he began to produce frozen cheese, and in order to keep the secret of the production process, he also issued an edict prohibiting the manufacture of frozen cheese except for the royal family. It was not until the 13th century when the Italian traveler Marco Polo left China that the method of making frozen cheese was brought to Italy, which eventually evolved into ice cream. Marco Polo said in the book "Oriental Insights": "In the El Dorado of the East, the inhabitants like to eat milk ice. ”
Ming dynasty
Dim sum festivals have become fashionable, and Soviet-style dim sum has developed greatly
The cake snack that has developed so far
The Ming Dynasty attached great importance to the sense of ceremony, and the Mid-Autumn Festival became the mainstream of society.
Shen Bang's "Wanju Miscellaneous Notes and Folk Customs" "August Moon Cake" entry: "Shi Shu furniture is left with moonmade noodle cakes, varying in size, and is called moon cakes." The market is filled with fruit, with a strange name, and there is a cake worth hundreds of dollars. Tian Rucheng wrote in the book "West Lake Tour Zhiyu Xi Dynasty Happy Affair": "August 15 is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the folk leave moon cakes to take the meaning of reunion. It is the evening, and the people have a feast to enjoy the moon. ”
Soviet-style dim sum was greatly developed during this period. According to records, its famous varieties include jujube mud cake, moon cake, qiaoguo, muffin cake, pan fragrant cake, chess piece cake, crispy cake, thin shortbread, shortbread, flour cake, horseshoe cake, ice cream, flower cake, bee cake, hundred fruit honey cake, fat oil cake, cloud cake, fire cake, Dingsheng (Dingbao) cake, rice cake, Umi cake, three-layer jade belt cake, etc.
Qing Dynasty
Manchu and Han combined, West Point East gradually
In the Qing Dynasty, the production method of dim sum was combined with the production techniques of the Manchu and Han people, and new pastries such as Jingba pieces and Sakima appeared. The Qing Imperial Dining Room also had a special baker, and the emperor often rewarded the ministers with dim sum, and the people also exchanged dim sum as gifts. Large households must carve their own dim sum molds for important days such as worship, dowry, and celebration.
A model of a silicone mooncake reproduced from a mold from the Qianlong period
This mold was found in the Jinnan region of China. The history of Southern Jin, called Pingyang, has a history of 5,000 years of civilization, and has been very developed in social economy since ancient times, and the cultural heritage is very deep. Often the richer the place, the more elaborate the diet. The delicate and delicate carving pattern shows the deep assets and social status of the main family. In terms of the content of the pattern, although the theme is the common "Moon Immortal Gui", in terms of the characteristics of the elements, there is a typical "Jinnan atmosphere" - the Guanghan Palace is depicted as a courtyard, and the courtyard has a deep momentum of the Jinshang compound. The regular prismatic floor tiles symbolize smooth business and family well-being. This reflects the living conditions of rich families. The jade rabbit medicine symbolizes the prayer for the health of the elders, and the official's ordination symbolizes the pursuit of the descendants and the first.
The mooncakes made in this mold are mainly sacrificial, first sacrificial and prayed, and then the family is reunited to eat. It is both a remembrance of the ancestors and a prayer for reunion. Thinking back to that year, a family of old and young, in the Mid-Autumn Festival, the day of the full moon, burning incense and praying, punishing the ancestral training, the youngest child is still in the arms of the nursing mother, although they do not understand what the adults do, but the taste of the moon cakes eaten, and the story of Chang'e running to the moon are preserved in the memory. Chinese culture is passed down from generation to generation in the seemingly ordinary time of ordinary people's homes.
From the five grains sacrificed to the heavens, to the hand rituals of honoring the teacher, from the initial coarse tea and light rice, to the exquisite handmade snacks. The evolution of dim sum is the evolution of traditional Chinese culture. Be courteous and respectful. Chinese dim sum is born of etiquette and inherited from the heart. The sense of ceremony in the ordinary increases people's expectations for a better life and enriches people's memories of home.
Dim sum – it has become a cultural bond that connects people, hearts and minds, past and present. The experience of handmade, the enjoyment of taste buds, the joy of eating together, and the friendship of gifts are integrated into a warm, time-honored Chinese dim sum culture, and tell stories and convey emotions on the leftover molds.
(The article is selected from "Small Snacks, Big Culture")
"Small Snacks, Big Culture"
Yu Jinjiang Edited / Produced by Yu Xiaojing, Guangxi Normal University Press
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Editor丨Liao Ru painting Huang Chen (intern)
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