When it comes to Sichuan cuisine, people often think of Pixian bean paste. A spoonful of watercress, what kind of past life and this life, a past, how many pen and ink annotations will be. How is it called the "soul of Sichuan cuisine"?
There is a saying called "eat in Sichuan, taste in Pi County", which confirms the charm of PiXian bean paste. PiXian, the birthplace of douban sauce, is even more delicious, and new Sichuan dishes emerge in an endless stream, all because of the exquisite use of watercress sauce. The use of Pixian watercress sauce makes Sichuan cuisine more delicate and changeable, salty, home-cooked, spicy, paste spicy, fish aroma, pepper hemp, sour and spicy... As a skill and culture, Pixian Douban has been deeply integrated into the blood of Sichuan people and the soul of Sichuan cuisine.
Cooking technology is not good, do not be afraid, with Pixian bean paste cooking dishes, you can make the dishes color and flavor. Sichuan dishes that people often eat, such as Mapo tofu, Hui pot meat, Mao Blood Wang, boiled meat, spicy hot pot, all need Pixian bean paste to be a supporting role, without it These dishes will lose a lot of color.
Pixian Douban is a specialty of Pidu District (formerly Pixian County) of Chengdu City, a Chinese geographical indication product, and is one of the three famous petals in Sichuan. It is unique in the selection of materials and craftsmanship, and it is unique. The aroma is mellow but without adding a little spice, the color is oily but no oil is added, all rely on the fine processing technology and the excellent raw materials to achieve the standard of color, aroma and taste, with the characteristics of heavy spicy taste, bright red oil, large pepper block, sweet aftertaste, is a commonly used seasoning in Sichuan flavor recipes, and its production skills are listed in the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.
Pidu District is located in the heart of the Western Sichuan Plain, between 103°42-104°2 east longitude and 30°43-30°52 north latitude, with an area of 437.5 square kilometers. Except for a shallow hilly terrace in the northwest corner, the territory belongs to an endless plain. The area belongs to the irrigation area of the upper reaches of Dujiangyan, the natural conditions are unique, the terrain is flat, the land is fertile, the water conservancy resources are abundant, the Baitiao River, Xuyan River, Zouma River, Qingshui River and other rivers run through the county from west to east, and the unique geographical environment provides superior natural conditions for the production of unique Pixian Watercress.
The average annual temperature of Pidu District is 15.7 °C, the climate is mild, there is no severe cold in winter, no heat in summer, four distinct seasons, long frost-free period, good air quality, and no pollution. Dujiangyan, which is about 20 kilometers away from Piguan Street, is the starting point of the Western Sichuan Plain in the western part of the Sichuan Basin, and the altitude of more than 3,000 meters along the Zhao Gongshan Mountain Range in Dujiangyan is low temperature and humid air all year round, while Pi County is located in the plain, the sunshine is relatively more, the air humidity is higher than that of the Zhao Gongshan Mountain Range, under the action of the wind, the flow cycle of wet air is formed, providing the best environment for the survival of the Watercress microbial flora in Pixian County, so that its microbial bacteria community can fully fission and grow and purify in this excellent environment. The combined action of the unique microbiota creates the unique appearance quality and inner flavor of Pixian Douban.
98% of the soil in Pidu District is gray alluvial fluvo-aquic soil, which is slightly acidic in the middle. Among the gray alluvial fluvo-aquic soils, the area of paddy soils of oil sands, mud fields and caotian types accounts for more than 90%, of which the oil sand fields and mud fields with fertile and loose soil are the mainstays, accounting for more than 80%, which are suitable for the growth of crops and cash crops, and are particularly conducive to the growth of red peppers and beans, the main raw materials of Pixian Watercress.
Pixian Douban has a unique flavor and is closely related to the local water quality. Pidu District belongs to the Dujiangyan artesian irrigation area in the upper reaches of the Min River, the water source is pollution-free, meets the national water standards, and has good water quality conditions, and is included in the scope of Chengdu Water Source Protection Area. There are more rivers in the territory, the distribution of the water system is even, and many rivers form a rich groundwater resource in Pidu District, and the excellent water quality conditions provide rich mineral nutrients and water for the microbial survival in the brewing and fermentation process of Douban in Pidu District, so that it can fully grow and secrete a large number of enzymes, promote the decomposition of various raw materials in Douban, thus forming the unique "color, aroma, taste and shape" of Pixian Douban.
For the people of Pixian County, there has been a tradition of homemade watercress sauce since ancient times. Every year, when fresh chili peppers are on the market, families use traditional methods to make their own bean paste as a daily cooking.
Walking on pixian street, you can smell the watercress sauce. Some century-old shops operate watercress sauce of good quality, moderate price, and more importantly, the scene from the sauce tank to sell. It seems that the small bean paste is quite complicated to make. From the preparation of raw materials to the finished product, it takes a year. As the saying goes, "wine is good for aging", I didn't expect that this watercress sauce was also slowly brewed over the years.
The main raw materials of Pixian bean paste are broad beans and chili peppers. The production method is very exquisite, and every procedure cannot be wrong, otherwise, the taste of the sauce will not be right. Put the sun-dried broad beans in boiling water and boil for one minute, then remove them and soak them in cool water for ten minutes. Then, remove the water and mix dry and add wheat flour for fermentation. After six or seven days, the primary fermentation is complete. After that, add water, salt, and put it in the tank to ferment again. This process is relatively long, about a hundred days or so. After full fermentation, the color of the fava beans is brown.
The peppers are selected from the two red peppers produced in Pixian County, rinsed and put into a wooden basin, and chopped evenly with a shovel-like tool. The chopped chili peppers are marinated in a jar with salt. I saw the sauce maker pouring a bag of salt into the jar. I couldn't help but wonder, "With so much salt, isn't the sauce that comes out salty?" But the sauce maker smiled and said, "What can I do?" We all do it in a certain proportion. "It is known through understanding that this ratio is about one hundred to twelve." Once the chili peppers are marinated in water, the broad beans can be poured together and stirred, using a traditional special sauce turning tool called a pestle stick.
Pixian watercress sauce needs to be aged with traditional ceramic watercress jar dew. "Turning around during the day, dew at night, sunbathing on sunny days, and covering when it rains", this is the smooth mouth of the ancient fermentation of Pixian bean paste. Every day before sunrise, open the lid of the watercress to accept the infiltration of the "dew" in the sky; then bathe in the sun. After three years, thirty-six months and more than 1,000 days of aging, it can be said that it is the essence of collecting the aura of heaven and earth and the essence of the sun and the moon, creating the best Pixian bean paste, pure and rich sauce, and achieving the most delicious Sichuan cuisine.
Three hundred years of historical and cultural inheritance and skill refinement have made Douban sauce famous at home and abroad as China's intangible cultural heritage and pixian business card. Pixian watercress sauce tastes fresh and spicy, when cooking, put a spoonful, the smell of watercress, not only to add color to the dish, but also to stimulate your appetite.
Since the day it was born, Pixian Douban has formed an indissoluble relationship with the people of Shuzhong and all those who like Sichuan cuisine. From the perspective of nutrition, Pixian watercress is rich in protein, fat, carbohydrate, vitamin C and capsaicin, long-term consumption can enhance appetite, promote human blood circulation, and play a role in driving away dampness and cold.
In addition to influencing local dining habits and food culture, Pixian Douban has also played a certain role in some other cuisines in the country. The export of Pixian Douban began in the early years of the Republic of China, from the waterway and land out of Sichuan Pixian Douban can be east through Chengdu and Chongqing into Xiang, Hubei, south to Yibin and marketing Yun, Gui, west from Ya'an and exported to Kangzang, north through Guangyuan to Shaanxi and Gansu. Nowadays, it is not far away from the ocean to be sold abroad. As an indispensable accessory to Sichuan cuisine, Pixian Douban has had a profound impact on the culture of one side and the dining customs of one side.