The best taste in the world always carries emotion.
Every city has some kind of extremely simple, even cheap food.
The taste of these delicacies has been fermented in the center of the stomach for generations of people,
Thus forming a unique flavor that belongs to the city.
As an intangible cultural heritage food in Lijiang, Lijiang rice dumplings are one of them, and that taste is deeply hidden in the memory of many people. The name of Lijiang in Lijiang is almost a household name, and it has a history of 100 years since the Ming Dynasty, which is recorded in Xu Xia's Travels.
Don't look at it is just a simple fried rice dumpling, the authentic Lijiang rice dumpling production process is also complicated, the selection of materials is picky and harsh, only to present the most perfect taste.
In Lijiang, no more than 20 people have fully mastered the traditional production techniques of authentic Lijiang rice dumplings, and Li Chunfang is one of them.
Grandma Li, 75 years old, worked at the Lijiang Grand Hotel when she was young, and since that time she has studied to do Lijiang Rice Dumpling with Zhao Feng, the daughter-in-law of Lijiang "Commander of Lijiang", Ah Zhongxing, and has been learning to do Lijiang Rice Dumpling for more than 50 years now. "This is our most original flavor of Lijiang, people who have eaten it will know what Lijiang looks like, and people who have not eaten it can roughly know Lijiang through it, so the old taste cannot be lost."
But if you have eaten authentic Lijiang rice dumplings once, its taste will definitely make you unforgettable for a long time. Some people say that its characteristics lie in the filling, and some people say that it lies in the skin, in fact, both are indispensable.
Grandma Li said: "Flour kneading is the root of making rice dumplings, and it is also the most exquisite, soft and hard will affect the taste." ”
Different wheat makes different tastes of rice, in order to control the taste of rice, every time the wheat is recovered, it takes a certain amount of time to run in. "Flour also has a personality, so every time I take back a new wheat, I deal with it like a new friend, and I can do it well with my heart and time."
The biggest feature of Lijiang rice dumplings is that the outside is crisp and soft on the inside, and the layers are soft. If you want to make such a taste, you have to constantly grease and pull the noodles, pulling the noodles is a technical job, and the most proud thing for Grandma is that she and the noodles can stretch for 1 meter continuously.
There are two kinds of sweet and salty rice dumplings, and the tastes are different but each has its own characteristics. Salty blended with Lijiang Sanchuan ham, plus oil residue, pepper salt, green onion, the meat flavor is fragrant, crisp and refreshing. Sweet with Grandma's homemade brown sugar roses, the floral flavor is fragrant and sweet.
The control of this taste is in the process of making, slowly groping out with heart, and the control of pushing and kneading, portion, time, and heat is extremely meticulous, without sloppiness. This is the ingenuity and persistence that comes from the craftsman.
"The dumplings should be crispy, and turning the noodles is also a very important step, the more times it is turned, the more delicious the rice dumplings will be." Grandma said, "In the past, when I learned this craft, I suffered a lot, and it was always easy to burn my hands when I turned it over, or I couldn't turn it in a sticky pan." Now that I think about it, food has a temper, and only when we understand it with our hearts will it present the best side. ”
From unfamiliar to mature, from young to skilled, as the years grew, Grandma also passed on this craft to the three daughters of the family, in order to pass on this craft.
Today, Grandma's second daughter, Li Wanzhen, has also opened three shops in the ancient city of Lijiang. "I am very happy that my daughter loves this craft and can continue to do it as a career, and I am waiting for more people to taste authentic Lijiang rice dumplings to understand the real Lijiang."
After the vicissitudes of the sea, what is the first feeling of a Lijiang rice dumpling for you? The answer may be obvious. Or maybe it's looking back and patting the railing all over. Some of them are delicious and worth taking the passing days and repeating them.
Maybe we should rejoice,
There are many great things that can be done in the world.
But there are some people,
Willing to devote a lifetime to the blessings of others and retain the original taste of the city.
Author: Liu Fang, Lijiang Reader