Three thousand years of history to see Beijing, seven thousand years of history to see Xi'an. Xi'an is not only a famous city of world history and civilization, it is also a gastronomic capital. When it comes to Xi'an cuisine, 800 miles of Qinchuan can be described as the world of noodles. There is a saying in the Guanzhong area: "The pot helmet of Qianzhou, the face of Qishan, the skin of Qinzhen around Chang'an!" "It is said that the first batch of Famous Snacks in Shaanxi That Were Selected for the Shaanxi Intangible Cultural Heritage List - Qinzhen Mipi.
Qinzhen Mipi, produced in Qinzhen, Huxian County, Shaanxi Province, also known as Huxian Mipi, was the first batch to be selected into the Shaanxi Intangible Cultural Heritage List, which has a history of more than 2,000 years. Qinzhen, also known as Qindu Town, is located on the west bank of the Feng River in Huxian County, Enyi District, Xi'an, which was a very famous ferry port in ancient times, where the climate is mild, the soil is fertile, and the rice peel here is the most authentic and delicious. Speaking of Qinzhen rice skin, it is said that during the Qin Shi Huang period, there was a year when there was a great drought in the area of Qin Town, the rice was withered, and the peasants could not pay taxes, at this time there was a man named Li Xio, who was very clever, he used rice to grind into rice flour, steamed out the rice skin and offered it to Qin Shi Huang to offset the tax, Qin Shi Huang ate Long Yan Dayue, praised the rice pi, so he ordered Qin Town to pay only rice peel every year, so he formed a long-standing cuisine.
The essence of Qinzhen rice peel lies in the chili oil used in mixing rice peel, this chili oil is different from the chili oil we usually eat, it is made of high-quality dried Qin pepper with seeds into chili noodles, put into the fine oil, add peppercorns, fennel and other condiments, repeatedly boiled over low heat, boiled until the aroma is overflowing, the spicy oil is red and bright, because boiling chili oil is regarded as a stunt, but also a secret skill, so the taste of Qinzhen rice peel is incomparable elsewhere. As for the rice noodle skin, it is made of local fresh rice, first wash the rice, soak it in water for one night, then beat the soaked rice with water into rice milk, add fine salt and stir well, blanch it with warm water, and then add cold water to make rice milk, spread a fine white steaming cloth in the steamer basket, pour the rice milk evenly on the steaming cloth, and steam it for five minutes on high heat. The steamed rice skin is pure white and translucent, soft and flexible, with a faint luster.
The method of cutting the rice peel in Qinzhen is also very unique, not the kitchen knife we usually use, but a special large knife that is nearly 1 meter long, 20 centimeters wide and weighs about 5 kilograms. The old craftsman first laid a white cloth on the cutting board, spread the rice skin on the white cloth, only to see the cutter handle rise and fall in the master's hand, the other end of the cutter on the cutting board gently moved, the rice peel was cut, this set of actions also has a very special name called "phoenix nodding".
Qinzhen rice peel also has fewer excipients, mainly soybean sprouts and small celery, which can be seasoned with salt, vinegar, monosodium glutamate and chili oil. Pay attention to more salt and less vinegar when mixing, generally put about three-quarters of the rice skin into the bowl first, add salt, vinegar, monosodium glutamate, and then use the remaining quarter of the rice skin, dip it in the chili oil bowl a few times, let the rice skin hang with spicy oil. Mixed rice skin mixed with good rice skin white in the red, red in the fragrance, plus a variety of colors of side dishes, eat sour and spicy, refreshing to the extreme, can be described as good color and flavor.
Qinzhen almost every family will make rice skin, Qinzhen rice skin as Shaanxi's famous intangible cultural heritage food, its unique and ancient production process, the unique taste memory created, raising generation after generation of children, Qinzhen rice skin is not only the inheritance, but every Qinzhen people, every Shaanxi people indispensable part.