Some people say that where there are human beings, there are Wenzhou people, and Mo Yan is even more ruthless, "There may be places on the earth where birds can't go, but there is no place where Wenzhou people can't go."
Wenzhou people are indeed good at "going out", knocking on the door of the world with a button, a pen, a pair of leather shoes, and a restaurant. When you're in the only supermarket in a remote village in Africa, his boss is likely to be from Wenzhou. Smart, brave and tenacious are the image left by Wenzhou people to the world. And when they "walk back" in the dust, a bowl of sticky rice, a plate of river crabs, and a midge pliers dipped in soy sauce and vinegar can make the tenacity in their bones, like the sesame sauce that encounters hot water, open at once.
In the character background of Wenzhou people, it is always indispensable to have a long-term affection for hometown food. The Wenzhou dialect is obscure, but wenzhou food is simple and direct. From pyrotechnic rice stalls to private restaurants hidden in the city, the only purpose of our trip to Wenzhou was to find a delicious taste of Wenzhou.
This article is divided into three parts: private restaurant, rice stall stall, and street food, which together constitute our taste impression of Wenzhou.
Wenzhou's ancient name is Dong'ou, and Wenzhou cuisine is collectively known as "Ou cuisine". Wenzhou"seven mountains, two waters and one place", the ingredients are diverse, mainly seafood, the pursuit of the original taste of ingredients, both the commonality of Zhejiang cuisine, but also their own characteristics.
The Golden Gun Hui of the grape shed is said to be in cooperation with the Wenzhou Sea Fishing Association, which mainly eats deep-sea fish, with tuna as the main feature, and can also eat a lot of Ou dishes. The restaurant has been converted from a factory building and is secluded. The box is large enough, suitable for dinner when there are many people, on the basis of satisfying privacy, it is more grounded, so that people will not be too restrictive, and the price is more affordable.
River crab raw, the classic representative of Ou cuisine cold food, using Oujiang pike crab pickled raw food. Vinegar, soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, white pepper, in charge of sour, salty, sweet and spicy, a hundred flavors. Their river crab is seasoned with sweet and sour flavors, and the taste of rice wine is more prominent, and the taste is also very plump.
Squid rings with marinated duck tongue, squid seasoning is sweet, chewy taste. The fried taro next to it is delicious, and the taro is wrapped in soybean oil skin and fried until it is crispy, and the taro is sweet and powdery.
Fish balls are a popular snack with Wenzhou characteristics, the fish meat is picked and shaved, seasoned with starch, kneaded to be elastic. Although it is called a fish ball, it is actually a long strip, cooked and scooped out of the soup, and seasoned with rice vinegar, green onion, and pepper. The fish balls in the restaurant are much more delicate, with green beans and wonton to make a case soup, not so thick and starchy, but quite fresh.
When Wenzhou people get married and entertain guests, there must be a yellow fish on the wine table. Steamed with rice wine, the seasoning is simple, delicious and nourishing.
There was only one dish of tuna in the dish we ate this time, and together with the steak, it was very tender. The overall feeling of eating is that the ingredients are fresh, the taste is regular, and it is a good choice to invite friends to party and a relaxed atmosphere. Remember to remind the restaurant not to serve too fast before eating, otherwise the pace of dining will be a little flustered. After eating the portion in front of me, the next dish was a little cold next to it. Many hotels and restaurants in Wenzhou can eat Ou cuisine, but there is a private dish that makes us have a surprise taste.
Located in Nantang Street, the private restaurant is full of flavor, hidden in the city, with Ou cuisine as the base, adding a lot of ingenuity, no matter the ingredients, seasoning, collocation, you can eat a unique taste different from traditional Ou cuisine.
The decoration display of the restaurant is also very elaborate, from antique sofa lamps to small plates and chopstick holders, which are worth appreciating. From the first cold dish, you can see the intention of the dish.
The flavored river crab is raw, the seasoning is very proportionate, highlighting the deliciousness of the crab, and the crab meat is tender and smooth with a plump fat feeling. In particular, the red grapefruit has been added, and the rich taste has added a refreshing flavor.
Mud garlic, a characteristic "seafood" from a shallow beach, also known as "sand sausage", resembles earthworms, but it is a favorite taste of locals. Mud garlic is rich in gum, and the most common practice is to jelly. Flavor melting version of mud garlic jelly, is a luxurious combination of garlic jelly, flower glue jelly, yellow fish jelly, hand-boiled jelly tender taste, mud garlic, flower glue, yellow fish to bring a richer taste experience.
Duck tongue is also the store's own brine, from the fat tongue meat to the root of the brittle bone, Q bomb has a tough feeling, the seasoning is relatively light and clean, belongs to the more elegant kind of brine, one after another, easy to addictive.
Ou cuisine traditional garlic fish skin, shark skin as the main ingredient, add garlic boiled to cook. Here it was modified to be roasted with green onions. The green onion is fragrant, the fish skin is soft and sticky, and it is very fragrant.
Three silk knocking fish is one of the "three best of Ou cuisine", fish meat plus tapioca flour, knocked into a pancake, the traditional practice is to cook with chicken shreds, ham shredded, shiitake mushroom shredded, vegetable hearts into a soup. The selection and seasoning of the flavor fusion are more exquisite, and the amount of starch is just right with the East Sea bass, which not only increases the smooth taste, but also can eat the umami taste of the fish. The "three silks" are replaced with equally smooth and crisp lettuce, and the soup base is made of chicken broth, fish bones and ham, which is fresh and clear.
At first glance, the sub-plum fish (plum child fish) has some similarities with small yellow croakers, except that the head is fat and round, and the black tail is black fin. Steaming is the best way, fresh plum fish steamed out of the meat in the shape of flakes, sizzling fish meat, fresh and tender seafood.
Cuttlefish original sauce roasted cuttlefish (eye fish), with a rich green onion flavor and Hanyuan peppercorns of fresh hemp, is extremely aggressive. The large pieces of cuttlefish are thick and chewy, and the seafood is eaten with a sense of heroism.
There are also vegetable juice stir-fried vegetables, using tender vegetable hearts, the leaves outside the heart of the dish are not wasted, beaten into vegetable juice, fried out of the soup emerald green, eating is also refreshing.
The store is reserved, and the owner arranges dishes according to the needs of customers, so each guest will eat a slightly different dish. There is also a staple food in our package, Yaozhu Khumbu Juice Yam Rice, which is richly seasoned and satisfying.
The dessert is almond rot with mochi, which is put to the end with a little oil, but the almond rot is not enough. The jelly is as tender as a jelly, scooping a piece into your mouth and instantly turning into a rich almond dew.
If you're lucky, you'll also find Spanish ham and freshly dug oysters.
The oysters are also raw and drunk, big and tender, full of the taste of the sea. The restaurant has only four private rooms, which must be booked at least one day in advance. The restaurant will arrange the dishes according to the customer's preference for dishes and tastes.
Hotel private dishes are mostly used for banquets, and Wenzhou people prefer affordable and delicious street food - rice stalls, food stalls.
In addition to the legend of the small restaurant transformed into a high-end restaurant, the story of Wenzhou's city well is also a special memory of several generations. The dishes are more homely, with many choices, fast serving, a comfortable environment, and affordable prices, which has the meaning of a fly restaurant. However, many Wenzhou rice stalls have stepped out of the pattern of small shops and small restaurants and opened into single-family large shops, but fortunately, the people-friendly temperament has not changed.
Jian Yong is one of the representatives of Wenzhou rice stalls, and there are enough dishes to "pass through the mouth". Cold dishes, hot food, soups, freshly fried, seafood are readily available, there are many methods, and you can also eat a lot of authentic home-cooked flavors. When the meal arrives, the crowds are crowded and lively.
Midge is the favorite crab of Wenzhou people, which belongs to a kind of green crab. The mid-autumn festival before and after the mid-autumn is fat, it is the right time! Steaming is enough, eat fresh and sweet in white mouth, and you can also dip it with soy sauce and vinegar like Wenzhou people.
How much do Wenzhou people like soy sauce and vinegar? It's like being deceived. It is an essential seasoning for Wenzhou people to eat. As the name suggests, it is soy sauce and vinegar, but it is Wenzhou rice vinegar, which should be boiled first, and then add soy sauce in proportion, and a little garlic will be added. Then placed on the table, diners pick themselves up.
Jiangsu and Zhejiang are also very obsessed with mullet eggs, which are also steamed with rice wine, and the taste is as smooth and tender as the shape.
Shrimp meat is the next meal of old Wenzhou, pork belly with Wenzhou specialty shrimp sauce, steamed with condiments, salty with a little fresh, the taste is actually very similar to the shrimp sauce meat bowl of my hometown in the north thousands of miles away. I can't help but feel the wonder of food culture once again, separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, but have the same food taste.
Dried cauliflower, and sliced meat are simply stir-fried, the dried vegetables have a unique taste, crisp and tough.
Yellow croaker, Wenzhou people also like simple home cooking methods, together with tofu, simple and very flavorful.
If you want to eat seafood, you can go to the food stalls at night, the best choice for Wenzhou people to have a late-night snack. According to locals, Yizhan Fang was the first to do affordable seafood stalls, maintaining stable production and high reputation over the years, and then a large number of seafood stalls such as Zhengliang, Zhengge and Xinglong emerged, so that Wenzhou people have more choices at night.
The food stalls have a wider selection of seafood and a wider range of recipes. From the raw and exotic expensive seafood to the cheap and delicious grounded small fresh, you can choose.
In seafood food stalls, midges are also made more. For example, the steamed midge of the sweet potato makes the crab meat faintly more sweet than the sweet taste of the sweet potato.
There is also stew with pigeon egg old wine, there is only one feeling, that is: supplement! Wenzhou people love rice wine too much, not only steamed with rice wine to steam various seafood, but also with rice wine to cook noodles, a Wenzhou express train driver told me that he was checked for drunk driving because he ate a bite of rice wine Yuezi noodles made for his wife.
Nine shrimp with a few celery, simple white blanched, Q bomb fresh and sweet.
Snails can also be incandescent, there are also many people who order salt baking, and the flower snails are neatly arranged on the snow-white salt, and the shape is strange and beautiful.
Wenzhou people have long been no longer satisfied with a light and delicious single taste, the pursuit of a variety of flavors of stimulation. Sauté the snails into a spicy and sour flavor, and the fresh hemp flavor will be added.
Salt and pepper shrimp, with fried golden garlic, more flavorful, but now pippi shrimp is inevitably too empty.
Locals also love to eat water, which is what we call tofu fish, nine-belly fish, steamed with chopped pepper, tender and spicy. There are too many food stalls in Wenzhou, which one is the most worth eating? What are the à la carte skills and what are the characteristics of the different food stalls? For more details, please pay attention to the food table follow-up tweets.
But to be honest, the Wenzhou seafood I ate on this trip did not seem to have the strong sense of impact and satisfaction that Taizhou gave me before. However, fortunately, Wenzhou snacks are rich enough, which adds a lot of goodwill to this trip.
Walking in the old city of Wenzhou, there is a feeling that time is still. Wenzhou snacks also seem to have chosen to be static, and for decades as a day, many Wenzhou people have multiple tastes from snacks to big ones, which is enviable.
"Don't eat sticky rice, do it for free", of course, Wenzhou people have not said this sentence, this is what I said, because glutinous rice is so delicious. Locals also call this cooking rice, and there is a kind of cooking smoke steaming life gas. Fragrant glutinous rice, topped with shiitake mushrooms, served with crispy fritters (soft fritters are also available), sprinkled with green onions, spoon the gravy, mix well and send it to your mouth.
Figures are quick and convenient to have rice balls, the meat sauce is wrapped in it, you can also add salted egg yolk, meat floss, more suitable for office workers, walking on the road to take advantage of the air to eat two bites.
To eat sticky rice, it must be accompanied by a bowl of sweet syrup, tofu brain or egg syrup. Tofu brain also has two kinds of sweet and salty, salty is not unusual, sweet tofu brain is sugared bean blossoms, especially to add mint water. Peppermint water can be called Wenzhou dessert class "soy sauce vinegar", eat tofu brain, cold powder, drinks like to add, there is a similar cool oil to the refreshing smell.
After eating glutinous rice, we still had to come to a bowl of pork dirty powder, and we went to Shouying of LaocangQiao. Pork dirty powder is made of coarse rice flour, which is also called dried powder by locals, and combined with fresh soup, large intestine, and duck blood, sprinkled with a handful of garlic to enhance the flavor. You can also enlarge the intestines and bones, and you can eat from early to late at night. The large intestine has a flexible taste, and the duck blood is smooth and tender, light and delicious. For a bit of a heavy bite, you can also add chili sauce, bean paste, soybean sauce or home-made oil sauce. Wenzhou people are too good at appreciating the bass, and it is not enough to eat it directly, but also to make it into various forms.
Fish balls, in fact, are fish balls, but they are made into long strips, reminiscent of Fujian meat soup. Because of the addition of sweet potato powder, the taste is relatively powdery. Locals also add a lot of pepper when they eat.
Made into a fish cake, the texture is a bit like a fish dipped in universal soy sauce vinegar, and the texture is sticky with a little tendon.
The highest value is silver wire jelly, snack bar in order to cost is unlikely to use pure fish glue, the taste is a bit like skin jelly, transparent and smooth.
There are many "long people" in Wenzhou, there are long people's awnings, there are also long people wontons, "long people" is the meaning of tall.
Probably many people go to Wenzhou will go to the long-term wontons, but the store we went to this time, the experience is that the wontons are good-looking, the umami taste is insufficient, you can eat, but it is not worth eating.
There are long people and there are also dwarves, such as this dwarf muffin. Their muffins are all steamed, and the taste choice is very large, sweet and salty, osmanthus flowers, black rice, red dates, bacon... The muffins taste very porcelain, and the locals buy a large steak to go back and eat as a staple food.
Lantern cake is the memory of Wenzhou people, a bit like the oil pier in Shanghai, which is white radish and can also be added with eggs or salted eggs.
Stir-fried flour and mixed noodles are also the daily staple foods of Wenzhou people, which can be eaten on the street, in stalls and hotels. Leeks, shiitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, eggs, onions, plus powder dried and stir-fried, the pot is full of gas. The eldest brother, who was plastered, wore a gold chain, and painted a tiger with a dragon, also ate before a plate of dried powder.
Wenzhou noodles are simple and delicious, flat noodles poured with minced meat, accompanied by green onion oil and vinegar, the soup is abundant, and the sour and delicious after mixing well. You can also drink it with a bowl of pork liver soup.
Qingjiang three fresh noodles are too suitable for eating in the morning, the soup base is light and delicious, order a seafood noodle, you can have yellow fish, river prawns, clams at the same time, and the portion is gratifying.
Wenzhou people also love to eat beef offal, and the signature is beef offal powder. Many people go into the powder shop in the morning, order a bowl of beef flour, and add some beef offal to eat. The 25 pieces of beef powder covered with beef offal, delicious tubes are full, and many people are happy.
At night, it belongs to bubbles and almond rot. Bubbles are actually fried skewers, and the vegetables and meat of your choice are fried well, but the seasoning is relatively light.
Almond rot is a representative of Wenzhou desserts, before coming to see many articles to write almond rot is amazing, but in fact, it can be roughly understood as a canned fruit collection. We ordered bubbles, almond rot, egg ice cream, and ice milk like locals, but we couldn't eat much.
These drinks and snacks have long been beyond the scope of taste standards for locals, and these tastes and environments are their memories and habits. For outsiders, it is good to be interested in experiencing it.
When I really came to Wenzhou, I found that it was actually a very gentle southern town. You can find traces of time in the old buildings, blow the river breeze by the Ou River, see Jiangxin Island, or go to Jiushan Lake Park to eat an old-fashioned ice cream and feel the leisure and freedom of an ancient city.
After all, the Wenzhou people who can fight hard also need a comfortable hometown.
Text | Xiao Chan afra
Figure | Si Yu
Design | Eleven