Zongzi is eaten elsewhere during the Dragon Boat Festival, and the people of Gaoyou in Jiangsu only think of salted duck eggs

"Gaoyou salted eggs are characterized by fine and oily, soft proteins, and more oil than elsewhere... Usually eaten, it is usually eaten by knocking out the 'empty head' and digging with chopsticks. As soon as the chopsticks head went down, the red oil came out. This is Wang Zengqi's "Duck Egg of the Dragon Boat Festival." Before eating the salted egg pickled by my father, I always thought that the best salted egg under the heavens was sealed in Wang Zengqi's words. Suzhou celebrates the Dragon Boat Festival, known as the custom of "hanging eggs". I remember when I was a child, before the Dragon Boat Festival, the women in the family had already used five-colored silk threads to tie the knots, and early in the morning, they picked a boiled salted duck egg, packed them in the nets, and hung them on the chests of their children, implying that the children were not "bad summer". And instructed: When the stomach is hungry, you will peel off the shell and eat it yourself. At that time, the salted duck eggs were bought by widows and aunts from the market, not authentic Gaoyou duck eggs. It wasn't until I joined the work that a colleague from Gaoyou brought a large box of salted eggs from his hometown to share with us, that I tasted the taste of Gaoyou salted eggs for the first time in my life, and sure enough, a salted egg that turned over the sand and oil was accompanied by a bowl of smooth and sticky white porridge. Two years ago, as soon as the summer came, my father began to pickle duck eggs. He first went to the market to pick oval, smooth, and good-looking duck eggs. Then go to the nearby lake to dig some yellow mud to take home, use peppercorns, salt and other condiments to boil a pot of soup water, melt the yellow mud, and form a viscous salt mud. The duck eggs are rolled in the white wine, and it is said that this will produce the oil. The duck eggs are then wrapped in salt paste, and then placed one by one in a crock pot to seal the altar. When it comes to the Dragon Boat Festival, you can eat. Father's pickled salted eggs, salty and moderate, the yolk is also thick, empty mouth, not at all. I think that compared with Mr. Wang's high-post salted eggs, there is more than enough. I was surprised that my father had such a hand. My father once wrote in his Memoirs: "I have a special affection for salted eggs. "Just a salted egg, why does it make him so unforgettable at this moment?" Many years ago, my grandfather dragged his children and daughters and was sent to a poor village in northern Jiangsu to undergo "transformation". I lived in a simple hut and ate coarse tea and light rice. In order to improve the diet, my grandfather came up with an idea, he carried an empty bamboo basket and went door to door to buy fresh duck eggs from local villagers to pickle salted eggs. Father said that grandfather's salted eggs are just pickled, the yolk is red and sandy, the egg white is as smooth as gelatin, the salty point is over, the freshness is unbearable, just a bowl of white porridge, probably the most luxurious and happy thing for the family in the countryside. Salted eggs are easy to preserve and do not deteriorate, and can be eaten from the Dragon Boat Festival to Lidong. At that time, my grandfather used salted eggs to make "cinnabar" tofu and egg yolk baked pumpkin while turning over the pattern... On the one hand, the children are urged to memorize the Ancient Texts and English words. Fortunately, after the college entrance examination was resumed, one of his sons and daughters lived up to high expectations, one was admitted to Fudan University, and the other was admitted to Shanghai Jiaotong University. In recent years, every summer, my father's love of salted duck eggs has almost reached the point of "preferring to have no food for a day than no eggs for a day". I guess that's because he misses his grandfather more and more. Thinking about it, I understand that my grandfather was calm and calm in the most proud and difficult years, and he personally practiced "only food and love can not be disappointed", which is a positive and optimistic attitude towards life. Suffering comes from the outside, but strength is in the bones. It is a kind of wind and pride that grows in the blood, which is related to a person's dignity, strength and hard work. Even if fate makes them lose their fame and fortune as a background, they can still rely on these inner things to rewrite their fate and win back respect.

Column Editor-in-Chief: Kong Lingjun Text Editor: Chen Shuyi Title Image Source: Figureworm Creative Image Editor: Yong Kai

Source: Author: Shen Gongjing