In the old days, Zhenjiang was popular to use Jingjiang Navel (饣奇) as a holiday gift, and the Zhenjiang literature and history of the 1980s recorded: "At that time, people from other places who came to Zhenjiang to do business or visit relatives, as well as Zhenjiang people who went out, had to buy ten or so (each za had ten and twenty tied with baskets) to send to relatives and friends." This custom may be related to the Manchus, who sometimes return to their hometown to visit their relatives, come a few days ago to book, and always leave in sacks of marijuana before leaving. ”
"Navel" and "Qi" are harmonious, and the Zhenjiang people's consciousness "Qi" is a complete and happy auspicious omen, so a unique folk custom was formed at that time: "The newlyweds returned to their mother's house to bring a gift with a navel, and when they returned late, the Yue family still brought the navel back to them, which means 'Qi' to 'Qi'; young couples take their children to visit the elders, and the elders must have the navels to take away for the younger generations; once there is a red and white happy event, the family must always prepare the navels, and let them take them away when the guests disperse; every year on the Qingming Festival, it is even more that every household must eat navels and steamed buns."
Jingjiang navel is salty and sweet, it, the taste is not fresh, the appearance is not beautiful, the "six-clawed" Jingjiang navel is really ordinary to some "cold". Can't get on the table of the star-rated hotel, can't get into the eyes of senior diners, the essence is "a ball of flour" Jingjiang Navel is indeed simple and somewhat "rustic".
However, just such a lump of "gnocchi" that is slightly sweet or slightly salty is an unforgettable simple memory in the hearts of many old Zhenjiang people.
Sweet navel
Salty navels
The sweet navel in the Jingjiang navel is also called tiger's foot claw, and the salty one is suitable for making lamb soup. This is probably the most famous traditional tea snack in Zhenjiang, with six horns, sallow yellow, and looks like a "hexagonal Zhengzheng". The newly baked Jingjiang navel is overflowing with aroma, eating until the skin in the mouth is crisp and sticky, full of mouth; the cold Jingjiang navel should be chewed slowly and swallowed, in order to have a taste, as the saying goes, "Jingjiang navel hot eat crisp, cold eat taste" is this meaning.
Old Zhenjiang likes to eat hexagonal Jingjiang navel, especially the salty navel, the best soon out of baking, the skin is crisp, the heart is soft, the bottom is hard.
Jingjiang navel eating methods are also diverse, suitable for all kinds of people.
People who like to drink tea in the tea house, brew a pot of tea, drink tea while chatting, break the Jingjiang navel and chew it slowly, two Jingjiang navels go down, and the stomach will be full.
People who are in a hurry to work, fill a bowl of barley porridge, take two Jingjiang navels to deal with, and a breakfast will be solved.
People who go out to the far house have more than a few Jingjiang navels, and when they want to eat, they can chew coldly and blister, so they can be hungry all the way and can also keep healthy.
In the past, in urban and rural areas, women gave birth to confinement, and mostly used brown sugar to bubble steamed buns and brown sugar to soak the Jingjiang navel as nutritional products for maternal consumption.
Nowadays, the living conditions are better, and more people are drinking sheep soup in winter, only to feel that this jingjiang navel that can relieve the oil is just right, so the Jingjiang navel and the sheep soup are also an excellent match.
In short, children as snacks, young people as snacks, the elderly as health care products, the diversified role of Jingjiang Navel is still the same.
The production of Jingjiang Navel is still very elaborate.
When fermenting, the temperature should be properly mastered, the overheating destroys the gluten, the fermentation force is too large, so that the finished product loses its softness, too cool is the fermentation time is long, the fermentation force is insufficient, and the finished product is not full. The amount of alkali mixed and the amount of lye must be determined by the degree of fermentation of the dough and the temperature.
The trick to making is all about craftsmanship and pyrotechnics, making dough, kneading dough, putting alkali, greasing and pulling corners, baking in an iron oven...
After the furnace is started, it must be greased once, and the processes cannot be sloppy. The biggest feature of Jingjiang Navel is alkaline, which has the effect of conditioning and nourishing the stomach for people with excessive stomach acid. The second is baked in a carbon oven, which lasts longer than ordinary food.
Just baked Jingjiang navel like a three-dimensional snowflake, six angular, soft and crisp to eat, but also can be broken open, soaked with boiling water and broth to eat, the elderly eat noodles, often and noodle soup soaked food, a unique flavor.
Jingjiang Navel is ordinary to eat, but it is the taste memory of generations of Zhenjiang people.