Zhong is a master of Chang Guoqiang
Gossip About Hunan Cuisine 74 I work with several Hunan cuisine masters
Zhang Xiaoxiong
Before I started writing Articles on Hunan Cuisine, I only had friendships with Zhang Zhijun, a master of Hunan cuisine. Some of the other masters, some of whom had only had one or two encounters, could not even say my name.
Zhang Zhijun and I are old friends for more than 30 years. As early as the mid-1980s, I was a small reporter in charge of the Communist Youth League in the editorial department of Hunan Daily, and the Provincial Youth League Working Committee recommended me to interview Zhang Zhijun. He was a true disciple of the Hunan cuisine master Shi Yinxiang, and his name was very big at that time. Another point is that his Chinese paintings are very powerful, and I admired them, so I wrote an interview and posted it in Hunan Daily. Because we all live in the compound of the provincial party committee, we have been in contact for decades. On a rainy day the year before, my old friend Yi Jun asked Me and Master Zhijun to drink tea at the Jiushou Hotel, and he explained to me the practice of "Dong'an Chicken" and "Fragrant Crispy Duck". I learned how the technique of "hooking" was, which aroused my keen interest in Hunan cuisine.
I know Master Shi Yinxiang because I often attend some important meetings and reception activities of the provincial party committee and taste his own dishes. The first book I read about Hunan cuisine was the "Hunan Cuisine Collection" edited by Master Shi. I edited a news item for the debut of the new book, which was the beginning of a friendship with him. But the real interaction with him was after his son opened a Hunan restaurant near the Furong Hotel, and remembered that the sign was a small seal written by Mr. Li Li, which was very chic. I went there to eat, and I always had to talk to Master Shi sitting at the door for a while. Unfortunately, the restaurant did not operate for a long time, and the old man drove to hexi.
Master Wang Moquan and Master Xu Juyun are very famous, and I don't have much close contact with them. When I was very young, every time I went to the "experimental restaurant" in Wuyi Square to eat, I always heard that the dishes there were master Chef Xu's, and I must have tasted them many times. Later, I read in the newspaper that Xu Xuan, the son of Master Xu, had also become a master of Hunan cuisine. Recently went to the "Old Xu Family", Master Xu proudly said that since his father's generation, the Xu family has four generations of famous chefs, and I have a lot of admiration in my heart.
I remember that in the late 1980s, Sheng Boji, who was already a famous man at that time, took me to "another village" to eat Wang Moquan's dishes once. His best skill is, of course, "hair blinds". On that day, Master Wang beat the egg sharply, and I still remember it. Unfortunately, he went to the embassy abroad to serve soon after, and he did not see him for many years, until last year when he went to Xinchangfu to eat the "Han Shan Master Banquet", and he had the opportunity to shake hands and chat with him.
In the past month, he participated in the planning and selection of the "Changsha Cultural Theme Banquet", and was fortunate to be in a judging panel with Master Chang Guoqiang, and the two quickly became good friends at first sight. Master Chang has also served in embassies abroad, has rich experience, exquisite cooking skills, and is also a senior management expert in the catering industry. The famous Master Xu Juyun was introduced to the party by him, which shows that his qualifications and abilities are beyond the reach of others. He was different from us as a judge, and every time he had to go to the back kitchen to have a look, from the selection of ingredients to the placement of tableware, we had to carefully observe, which showed how careful the work was.
After each cultural-themed feast, I write an article that is included in my "Gossip Hunan Cuisine" series. When I first wrote about Master Chang Guoqiang, I actually mistook his name for "National Victory", and Master Chang actually saw it. I thought he was going to be angry, it was a big disrespect. I didn't expect him to just laugh and say that this can "deepen the memory", which is really atmospheric. Every time we went to the banquet to taste food, we sat side by side, which was just right for me to ask him a lot of professional questions. He always patiently explained to me, said the ingredients, said the process, easy to understand, which benefited me a lot. He had to leave a message after my article each time, and praised me for deliberately placing the chef in the middle of the group photo after the review, "not so much as the recognition of the chef and the dish, but rather the respect of the literati for manual labor and the respect for the chef industry." This evaluation has been raised and over-praised. I'm just sincere.
I've seen a passage from the Internet that he commented on a contest a few years ago. He said: The standard of this competition is relatively high, whether it is the organizer, the scale, the contestants or the dishes made, the overall level and quality are very good compared to other competitions. The overall competition was very smooth, the contestants were disciplined, listened to the arrangement, very cooperative with the on-site work, the appearance was clean and decent, and on such a large occasion, it subverted people's perception of traditional chefs dressed in greasy clothes. From the perspective of dishes, the overall level is good, but there are also some problems. For example, some contestants do not fully understand the competition dishes and the supply dishes, the supply of dishes mainly pay attention to taste, while the competition dishes pay more attention to knife work and collocation, with some technical production nature. Although the dishes such as small stir-fried yellow beef and chili fried meat of Hunan players taste good, they are lacking in appearance and art compared to the dishes of other players. In addition, some dishes are too decorative, but do not pay attention to the dishes themselves. There are also cases where the decoration is not different. Some decorations should be used on cold cuts, but they are used on hot plates, so that there is no distinction between raw and cooked, which affects the hygiene and taste of the dishes. Cooking competitions pay more attention to the test of knife work and fire, but some dishes are not made to reflect this requirement, which affects the score.
Such comments, professional, down-to-earth, humble and awe-inspiring.
Master Chang not only commented in place, but also wrote a few poems when he was happy, which was quite interesting. That day, during the feast of "The Summer Solstice Has Arrived at the Heart of Ice" in the Ice and Fire Building, he improvised four sentences:
Ice and Fire Upstairs,
Cultural themes are praised.
Beautiful environment and good service,
The quality of the dishes is the same.
Concise and bright, casually coming, not carving, compared with The landscape paintings of Master Zhang Zhijun, elegant and popular, there is no artistic conception.
A few pieces of information:
● On June 13, 1991, the People's Government of Hunan Province awarded Comrade Shi Yinxiang the honorary title of "Hunan Cuisine Master".
● On November 6, 1997, the Hunan Provincial People's Government awarded Xu Juyun, Wang Moquan, Nie Houzhong, Tan Tiansan the honorary title of "Hunan Cuisine Master";
Comrade Zhang Lixing was awarded the honorary title of "Xiangdian Master".
● On May 24, 2004, the Hunan Provincial People's Government awarded Zhang Zhijun, Cao Qiuquan, Xiao Houpei, Ping Jian, Yi Guoping, Zhu Kechun and other 6 comrades the honorary title of "Hunan Cuisine Master".
Since then, the title of "Hunan Cuisine Master" has been evaluated and awarded by the Provincial Culinary Association (Note: the current Provincial Catering Industry Association) in strict accordance with the relevant procedures.
● On November 29, 2007, The Hunan Catering Industry Association awarded: Deng Heping, Xu Dabin, Ren Weizheng, Tan Zhaoyuan, Huang Huiming, Zhang Tao, Huang Bangwei, Zhou Si'an, Zhou Hengkai, Yang Wenbin, Li Kun, Chen Jie, Hao Zhiwang, Wang Fuming, Luo Jixiang, Jian Zhongyao, Wang Kaizhong, Gao Shenxiang, Luo Quan, Zuo Zongxi, Zhu Bingsen, Chang Guoqiang, Xiao Kezi, Qin Zhenqiang, Lin Youqing, Liu Yongping, Wu Tao, Tan Zhaoqun, Mao Faqing, Ouyang Hailin, Xu Xuan, Wang Yanfeng, Nie Bo, Zhu Jianlong and other 34 people as "Xiang Cuisine Master" Honorary titles.
Awarded: He Huashan, Long Haiwei and other 2 people for the honorary title of "Xiangdian Master".
Awarded: Zhou Yinghua "Hunan Catering Service Master" honorary title.
● On December 5, 2011, Hunan Catering Industry Association awarded: Zhu Wenming, Zhang Weiming, Shi Xinghui, Luo Juelin, Li Jianguo, Huang Guojun, Qi Yuedong, Mao Qixin, Luo Ganwu, Yang Jian'an, Lei Pingqing, Guo Qingxian, Zheng Johnson, Yang Lixin, Zhang Xiaochun, Feng Haiquan, Yan Jian, Liu Sheng, Pei Shijun, Cai Zhimin, Shuai Mingwu, Liu Wei, Yang Jun, Long Shuguang, Xiao Zhizhong, Gong Zhaoyong, Wang Yongbin, Xia Ge, Li Qiang, Zeng Guangfu, Zhang Liang, Liao Shengren, Xia Xiaohu, Chen Can, Luo Bing, Liao Ren, Li Can, Zhang Li, Yang Long , Liu Yi, Luo Zhihe, Zuo Zhongdong, Ouyang Langyang, Zhou Tianshun, Zhou Junliang, Wang Hailin, Yan Hong, Chen Guoshun, Liu Guanghua, Chen Zhihua, Wang Gonggong, Xie Deyi, Zhang Junsheng, Liu Kuanxin, Tong Pengfei, Fu Xingming, Zhong Qingshan, Ding Jinzhong, Shi Dinggui, Tang Hongwei, Ma Mansheng, Liu Guangming, Xu Shi and other 73 people are entitled to the honorary title of "Hunan Cuisine Master".
Awarded: Peng Xueping, Wu Ping, Huang Liyun and other 3 people as the honorary title of "Xiangdian Master".
Awarded: Xiong Hongxia, Li Yuxue, Wang Xiyun, Xiao Haiyan, Li Fang, Tang Limin, Peng Minli and other 7 people as the honorary title of "Hunan Catering Service Master".
● On May 5, 2014, Hunan Catering Industry Association awarded 24 people the honorary title of "Hunan Cuisine Master" including Zhou Guoqiang, Li Qingming, Luo Lei, Li Yan, Qin Feilai, Sheng Jinpeng, Xu Jianqiao, Huang Zhengyi, Wang Yong, Luo Zan, Wu Xingxing, Li Dengke, Fan Zhiwei, Sheng Xianyang, Yin Dejing, Ding Jianguo, Zhou Yue, Yi Bin, Hu Zhiming, Wu Shiping, Xiang Guihua, etc.
Awarded: Wu Yinhua, Tang Jing, Liu Hongzhuan and other 3 people for the honorary title of "Hunan Catering Service Master".
In 2019, the Hunan Catering Industry Association passed the qualification review, comprehensive character quality screening, practical operation assessment, and strict assessment in accordance with relevant procedures. A total of 197 Hunan cuisine masters (including Hunan cuisine masters and catering service masters) were awarded: including 164 Hunan cuisine masters, 1 Xiangdian master, and 32 Hunan catering service masters.
(The above information comes from the Internet and is for reference only.) ）