When everyone mentions Su Shi, I don't know what identity they will think of first: a writer, a poet, or a gourmet?
Su Shi, as one of the eight masters of the Tang and Song dynasties, entered Beijing in his early twenties, and was praised by Ouyang Xiu. But compared with the achievements in poetry, calligraphy and painting, Su Shi's official career is really not smooth, and there is a joke: "Su Zhe worked hard to get his brother (Su Shi) and was promoted, and he became a scholar (equivalent to the prime minister)!"
Because of his opposition to Wang Anshi's reforms, Su Shi was demoted one after another, and even imprisoned for four months for the "Wutai Poetry Case". Although he was demoted all the way, Su Shi was not defeated, but became more and more open-minded and optimistic. In the course of his left migration, accompanied by poetry, wine, and food, he was degraded to where to eat, in addition to the name of the writer, he liked to mention the "Great Song Dynasty foodie" another title.
Su Shi, who lost the harvest of the east corner and became a glutton, left a lot of classic dishes, let us take a look at what delicacies are in the "Dongpo cuisine", these dishes have been passed down for thousands of years, and they still appear on everyone's table.
1. Dongpo meat
When Su Shi was in Huangzhou, he lived a hard life, and the local pork price was cheap, "Huangzhou is a good pork, and the price is as cheap as dirt." "The pork is good, whether it is rich or poor, it is not even eye-catching, which can give Su Shi, who has no money in his pocket, the opportunity, he bought the pork and cut it into cubes, simmered it over slow heat, and added soy sauce and other seasonings to burn it red and crispy, crispy and fragrant.
Su Shi not only ate it himself, but when he was in Xuzhou, he made "return meat" and gave it to the local people, and when he was in Hangzhou, he distributed pork to the migrant workers who dredged the West Lake. After eating, the people were amazed and amazed, and affectionately named this dish "Dongpo Meat".
Modern Dongpo meat, the selection of ingredients is more refined, often choose high-quality pork belly, lean pork belly or three-layer meat, after the oil is boiled, the color of the Dongpo meat made is ruddy and oily. The smell is mouth-watering, the food is fat but not greasy, thin but not firewood, which makes the mouth fragrant.
2. Dongpo tofu
The tofu of Huangzhou was also quite famous at that time, and the poor Su Shi planted soybeans in front of the house and behind the house, and grinded the tofu by himself, and also improved and innovated the tofu in Huangzhou. After the tofu is cut into pieces, it is coated in flour - this flour is also specially mixed by him, and more condiments are added when preparing with flour and eggs, and then the tofu cubes coated in batter are fried in an oil pan until golden brown, and then they are simmered with vegetables and simmered over high heat, and the juice is reduced over high heat. This practice makes the tofu delicious and delicious, Su Shi used it to entertain visiting friends, friends have asked for advice after eating, Su Shi is also willing to share, this Dongpo tofu spread.
Although Su Shi was poor in Huangzhou, he was not perfunctory about eating, and tried to make delicious dishes with cheap ingredients, such as Dongpo tofu. Modern Dongpo tofu has different methods, and some add ham, winter bamboo shoots and other ingredients, the taste is more fresh and fragrant, and the juice is thick and delicious.
Three, the east slope of the spring dove
A place in Huangzhou could not satisfy Su Shi's gastronomic ambitions, so he went to Luozhou, which is adjacent to Huangzhou, to eat celery, and made a "spring dove", that is, fried turtledoves with freshly grown celery.
At that time, turtle doves were not yet protected animals and were highly readily available. Su Shi caught it, took the breast meat of the turtle dove and cut it into thin strips, and stir-fried it with the cabbage (celery) segment, green onion, ginger and garlic, etc., the game of the turtle dove silk and the fresh combination of spring vegetables, fresh and refreshing, fresh and tender. After traveling to Luozhou, Su Shi brought the spring dove back to Huangzhou to make it to his friends, so that the dish spread.
When we remake this dish now, we can use pigeon meat instead of turtledove, which is legal and has the same flavor.
Fourth, Dongpo fish
Where there is something that flies in the sky, there is something that swims in the water. When Su Shi was demoted for the first time, he asked himself to leave Beijing and was demoted to Hangzhou to be a general judge. When he arrived in Hangzhou, according to Su Shi's gluttonous nature, he naturally wanted to eat the carp abundant in West Lake. He took carp as an ingredient, cleaned it in cold water, and cut five oblique marks on the fish, which looked like willow leaves - so this dish is also called five fillet fish. After that, rub salt on the surface of the fish, stuff the cabbage heart into the fish belly and put it in the frying pan, and then put a few shallots and white without turning it to fry all the time. When the fish is half-cooked, put ginger slices, wine and a little soy sauce, continue to simmer, and garnish with orange shreds before the fish comes out of the pot.
Because of the lancet marks on the fish, it is not only convenient for the soup to soak into the fish, making the fish more flavorful, but also convenient for chopsticks to pick up, so that the fish will not be scattered and it tastes very tender. Under the influence of Su Shi, this practice once again swept the country, and Dongpo fish spread again. The Dongpo fish methods that are circulating now are different, and there are different theories about frying, boiling, and steaming, but I think the best is the "Dongpo fish" created by Su Shi back then.
Fifth, the elbow of the eastern slope
When it comes to satisfying gluttonous dishes, everyone may not agree on the same opinion, but as far as I am concerned, the first choice for satisfying cravings must be elbows! And there is one in Dongpo cuisine, that is, Dongpo elbows.
In fact, Dongpo elbow comes from "Meishan elbow", there is a small story here: when Su Shi invited guests, Mrs. Wang Fu chose to use Meishan elbow to entertain, but when firing, she was negligent for a while, and the surface of the elbow was burned yellow, she hurriedly added various seasonings to cover up the burnt taste, but she didn't expect Su Shi to taste it when she opened the pot, and the taste was extremely delicious. Served to the table to feast guests, as soon as this elbow came out, the fragrance wafted all over the house, and the guests were full of praise after tasting it. The unintentional delicious elbow was renamed "Dongpo Elbow" with the name of Su Shi's "Dongpo Layman".
Now the Dongpo elbow method is more exquisite, and it is raked but not rotten to eat, and it is already a famous specialty food in Meishan. When you travel to Meishan, you might as well try the dishes created by this mistake.
Sixth, Dongpo jelly
In the years when Su Shi was running around, his first career was in Fengxiang, Shaanxi. When he came to Shaanxi and experienced the heat in the north, Su Shi, as a Sichuanese, went to the East Lake on the edge of the city to escape the summer. But the weather is still hot and there is no appetite, in order to appetize and reduce heat, Su Shi created a refreshing Dongpo jelly.
He ordered people to take lentils, grind them into powder, boil them into a paste, put them in a stone bowl, cool the paste and cut them into strips, and then sprinkle them with salt, vinegar, peppers and other seasonings and stir. After Su Shi made it, he gave it to his entourage to eat, and they all felt smooth and delicious, and the cold powder was delicious and appetizing. After this cold salad spread in the local area, it was called "Dongpo Liangfen".
7. Dongpo cake
There is a local snack in Huangzhou: Dongpo cake, which will have the shape of a flipped flower when fried. Nowadays, the deliciousness of Dongpo cake lies in the meticulous process, and it is unintentional to create it.
It is said that one day, Su Shi and Master Jilian played chess late, and when they were hungry, they looked for the master to eat, but there was only a bowl of leftover noodles when they looked for it. The little monk put the leftover noodles in sesame oil to heat, Su Shi was so hungry that he couldn't bear to come to the kitchen to check, and the little monk who kept the fire actually fell asleep, and the leftover noodles had been fried into cakes. But Su Shi was not only angry, but also tasted the fried golden leftover noodles with great interest, and the taste was extremely crispy. Later, Su Shi communicated this practice with the owner of the pastry workshop, and the boss made "Dongpo Cake" according to this method.
Dongpo cake is golden in color, sweet and crispy, and not greasy to eat, and many diners have come to taste it. And it did not have the slightest meat, and later became a food in major temples.
8. Dongpo sheep backbone
Su Shi entered and exited the court three times, and when he was demoted for the third time, he was sent to the land of Lingnan, Huizhou, with the charge of "committing an official". Huizhou at the beginning and now can not be compared, Lingnan is located in a remote area, known as a place of insect poison and smoke, and even the market in Huizhou at that time could only kill one sheep a day. After the local officials bought the mutton, Su Shi, as a criminal official, thought that he couldn't fight for it, so he bought some lamb backbones, and roasted them slowly over low heat after returning home.
We now eat lamb backbones, whether they are barbecued or stewed, and we eat the taste of the bones, as if the meat that we are trying to pour out of the cracks in the bones is more fragrant. The barbecue is sprinkled with cumin and chili, and the fat bursts in the mouth in one bite, and then the burnt bone marrow is pounded out with chopsticks, and it is finished after sucking it clean;
- Lao Jing said -
Dongpo cuisine is diverse, according to statistics, about 66 dishes were born because of him, Su Shi went all the way to eat, and there were rumors about food in various places. If you say that you can find a poet to be a dinner partner with, Li Bai is free and uninhibited, and he feels that he will miss the appointment at any time; Du Fu is too bitter haha, too serious; Su Dongpo is very suitable, he is a very interesting person, and he has a lot of research on food, but it is a little bad - I am afraid that he will call you to get up at night, and come to "Huaimin has not ......slept yet" again. But being woken up by Su Dongpo, who wouldn't want to?
I am a foraging story in the market, and I have been fighting with the world for many years, and I am still glorious and full of interest! I update the food recipes and market life every day, follow me, enjoy a comfortable life and don't get lost.