As the saying goes: "There is heaven on the top, and Suzhou and Hangzhou on the bottom.". When we think of Hangzhou, the first thing that comes to mind is the West Lake. West Lake is a place of praise for the literati and inkers since ancient times, and today our protagonist, the West Lake vinegar fish, is inseparable from the West Lake.
West Lake view
West Lake vinegar fish, also known as "Uncle Sister-in-law Chuanzhen" and "Song Sister-in-law Fish", formerly known as "Song Sister-in-law Fish Soup", is a traditional flavor dish in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. The history of the West Lake vinegar fish dates back to the Southern Song Dynasty. According to legend, on the shore of The West Lake in Hangzhou during the Song Dynasty, there were two brothers surnamed Song, full of articles, very learned, and lived in seclusion in the West Lake to make a living by fishing. Unexpectedly, the elder brother was persecuted and died tragically by the government, and the younger brother also offended the government because of his brother's revenge. Before Brother Song took refuge, Sister-in-law Song deliberately burned a fish, added sugar and vinegar, and burned it in a peculiar way. Brother Song asked Sister-in-law Song why the fish was burned like this, and Sister-in-law Song said: "The fish has sweetness and acidity, I want you to go out this time, don't forget how your brother died, if your life is sweet, don't forget the bitterness of the people being bullied, and don't forget the bitterness of your sister-in-law's drinking and hatred." Unfortunately, later, Brother Song returned to Hangzhou after taking the meritorious name and took revenge for killing his brother, but at this time, Song Sister-in-law had heard nothing. Once, Brother Song went out to a banquet, and during the banquet he ate a piece of fish, which was the taste of Song Sister-in-law's burning when he left home, so he quickly asked who burned it, only to learn that it was his sister-in-law who made it. Song Di was very happy to find his sister-in-law, so he resigned his official position, took his sister-in-law back home, and resumed the life of a fisherman who made a living by fishing.
West Lake vinegar fish
West Lake vinegar fish is cooked with fresh grass carp. The main ingredient of this dish is a grass carp, and the ingredients required are 1 small piece of ginger, 20 grams of starch, 30 ml of rice wine, 30 ml of soy sauce, 20 grams of sugar, 50 ml of vinegar, and 10 ml of sesame oil. The washed grass carp is inserted from the tail with a knife, and the flat knife is along the vertebrae of the fish to the gills, and the fish head is opened so that the fish becomes two pieces connected by bones. Finely chop the ginger, add starch to water and set aside. Make boiling water in a pot, spread out the treated grass carp, put the back down into the water, bring the water to a boil, and cook for about three minutes. Remove the cooked fish, drain and spread the skins up on a plate. Heat the pot, add the soup of boiled fish, add rice wine, soy sauce, sugar, ginger and bring to a boil, add vinegar, and finally add water starch. Pour the boiled sauce into a little sesame oil Titian and pour over the fish.
Knowing the cultural legend of the West Lake vinegar fish and its practices, do you also have an impulse like me to go to see the West Lake in hangzhou in the literati poem "Want to make the West Lake more suitable than the West Lake, light makeup is always appropriate", and do you also want to taste this different kind of West Lake vinegar fish like me?