Gongshan Nu ethnic cuisine - stone slab rice dumplings
01. Slate
Speaking of Nu cuisine, the first thing that comes to mind is the Gongshan Nu slate slab rice dumplings.
Many people know that Gongshan can bake the stone slab of Gongshan, which is a special product of Gongshan and a geographical indication product of the Nu River.
Slate rough origin
quarrying
This stone slab is not everywhere, and only one place has been found in the entire Nu River Gorge, located in the Shipu Group of Qiuna Barrel Village in Gongshan County, which is a kind of local blue-black shale. Locals usually use a crowbar to pry down, the available material, with iron brazing stripping pieces trimming, basic molding back back to the village and then polished and polished, after making the finished product, placed in the fire for a month or two, thoroughly dried water can be used. This slate is not suitable for machine processing, it is completely dependent on local craftsmen to peel the pieces little by little, each slab is different in size, with its own unique texture. Properly preserved can be passed down for generations. Slate has a major feature, that is, no matter how fierce the firepower, it will not explode, and it will not stick to food. In the process of cooking food, the trace elements in the stone slab will be fused with the rice in small amounts. This kind of roasted rice has a certain health effect.
Production process
Originating in the Neolithic Age, this stone cooking method of cooking food by heating stone slabs by fire is one of the oldest food preparation methods that can be seen today. Due to the improvement of living energy and the popularity of modern household appliances, few people have mastered this craft in Shipu Village, so the stone cooking culture of Gongshan is particularly precious.
Finished slate
Bake by the fire
02. Wheat noodles
The Nu people in Bingzhongluo Town and Phongdang Township have a tradition of growing wheat, and after May every year, the Nu people dry the beaten wheat and can't wait to carry it to the riverside water mill to grind the first bag of fresh flour every year. I said that I was not in a hurry because I was eager to taste the wheat-scented rice dumplings. Riverside water mill. The river flows down the canal into the trough, and the impact of the water pushes the wooden drive wheel, which drives the drive shaft, which rumbles with the two granite millstone discs above. The grains of wheat fall from the pendant's wooden hood into the mouth of the grinding disc, turn into flour, and then sprinkle down the tooth pattern of the grinding disc into the dough box. It is such a simple process, and the flour made by the mechanical flour machine has a difference in taste, texture and strength. Therefore, in the Nu village, as long as there is a river, you can see the water mills lined up one after another.
Water Mill
Fresh flour is generally not fermented, directly with cold water and noodles. According to the amount of noodles, add two or three native eggs, a little salt, and a slightly hard point, and then wake up for about 20 minutes, and then roll out into a thin and uniform disc.
The fire pond burns the fire, the stone slab is set on the iron triangle, and after being heated, it changes from soft and cuttable to solid and dense, the fire is not broken, and the water does not crack. Before roasting the wheat noodles, sprinkle a thin layer of fire ash, which is the ancient method of non-stick pans handed down from ancestors. Then burn the wheat noodles on it. In the gradual roasting of the fire, the wheat noodles emit a faint burnt smell and a wheat aroma. At the edge of the fire pond, there is a bowl of butter tea and a plate of pipa meat, and the taste of the Nu people is on the tip of the tongue.
Baked wheat noodles
03. Soba noodles
Buckwheat in Gongshan belongs to the late autumn crop. After September, the mountains are full of buckwheat flowers, white like snow and red like fire. It is bitter buckwheat that blooms white flowers and sweet buckwheat that blooms red flowers. Buckwheat is a highly vigorous crop, adaptable, does not pick land, is drought-tolerant and hardy, and is suitable for growing on mountainous land with cold climate or poor soil. Below the snow line, one by one, dotted with the late autumn of the depression. The deep green leaves, lush stems, and bright and dazzling flowers of buckwheat are clustered into colorful oil paintings, teaching people to sincerely praise its beauty and sincerely fear its life form. When harvesting, they are generally harvested with scythes and stems, and then carried home with a grate, piled up in the courtyard dam, men and women, standing in two rows, holding shackles to peel off the buckwheat. Then dry the buckwheat in a ventilated, dry place.
Buckwheat land
Most of the Nu people like to use stone grinding to make soba noodles. The grinding method is roughly the same as that of ground wheat noodles, the difference is that the grinding of buckwheat noodles pursues large particles, and the buckwheat grains are separated from the buckwheat shell, so that the soba noodles produced will not be mixed with crushed buckwheat shells.
Baked soba noodles
Making soba noodles is simpler than wheat noodles, no noodles, no kneading, directly stir the noodles and water together, maintain a certain viscosity. Depending on the taste, eggs can be added appropriately. After stirring well, pour evenly on the hot stone slab and flatten it with wood chips to form a round shape. After being heated on the stone slab, the soba noodles gradually overflow from the pores with caramel, making people salivate. If it is bitter buckwheat, you can dip it with a little honey, but if it is sweet buckwheat, you don't use it.
Baking process
Soba noodles and pipa meat
In the Nu village, cut the cooked soba noodles into slices, put them in a bamboo box, and taste the gifts of nature with pipa meat, butter tea, and mountain wild vegetables, and the taste of late autumn in Nu township will fill your journey for a long time.
Source: Gongshan County Cultural Center