Before talking about braised suckling pigeons, let's talk about "braised",
Braised braised is one of the many cooking techniques in China. In the cooking dictionary entry, it is explained like this: it is a cooking method that cuts and prepares the cooking ingredients, after frying, steaming, frying, boiling, boiling water and other methods, and then put them into the prepared colored sauce, and heat it over medium-low heat until it is cooked into the flavor, hook or not hook, and harvest the juice into a dish on high heat!
The approximate process flow of braised dishes: selection of raw materials - cutting - semi-finished product processing - seasoning firing - juice collection - out of the pot - plate into dishes.
China is a culinary kingdom with many delicacies, which are prepared by chefs using various cooking methods. Among the many cooking techniques, "braised" is a relatively common cooking method, which is also a large category in various cuisines, and there are many famous dishes, such as braised lion's head, braised pork, braised fish, braised eggplant, etc., which are basically made according to this definition and process.
Speaking of suckling pigeons, in the north, many city squares or park squares will have pigeons flying and landing freely, and many people feed it, which is also a model for people and animals in the city, people and nature to live in harmony! The scene of a person squatting in the square to feed pigeons is also common in many film and television works, adding a little romantic atmosphere to the male and female protagonists.
However, eating pigeons in Lingnan is as common as eating rabbit heads in Chengdu, in people's eyes, pigeons are the braised pigeons with golden red crispy skin, tender and juicy meat inside, eating until the fingers are stained with meat, licking the fingers after eating, the mouth will be biubiu juice, the oil fragrance is full of mouth, bringing an orgasm to the tip of the tongue! Especially in Cantonese cuisine, it is a more famous dish, in many Cantonese restaurants have braised pigeon this dish, it seems that without this dish, this Cantonese restaurant seems to be missing something.
As the saying goes, "one pigeon tops nine chickens", and the delicacy of the pigeon is predestined! In Cantonese restaurants, pigeons are given full play according to the quality and part of the meat, and people cook dishes with different flavor characteristics, such as young pigeon braised, old pigeon stew, pigeon blood stew, pigeon offal brine, pigeon egg boiled silver ear sweet soup.
In the north there are also pigeons to cook, such as Yinchuan, the common is pigeon stewed noodles and pigeon casserole noodles, there is a trend to become a party feature, @ Yinchuan Guixiangyuan Wei Ji chat diet has eaten many times, to be honest, not delicious, ugly point is to say that it is a tyrannical treasure, of course, this is not a slanderous meaning, after all, the Qing Dynasty cuisine everyone Yuan Ming he old man also said "palatable treasure", existence is justified! Just because individuals don't like to eat doesn't mean that others don't like to eat!
Lingnan people also pay attention to the seasons when they eat pigeons. The north wind whistles and the pigeons are the most flavorful. Whenever the cold air goes south to Lingnan, the weather begins to turn cold, and there are more pigeons in the stalls of the sellers' poultry, because at this time, Lingnan people also begin to frequently use pigeons to eat and open the autumn and winter health mode. Pigeon, in the hearts of Lingnan people, it is eaten as a delicious "tonic".
It is said that the history of human eating pigeons dates back to 3,000 years ago when Europeans hunted original pigeons (wild pigeons, pigeon ancestors). Until now, some countries in the West have also had suburban pigeon hunting activities, and this primitive hunting really makes people feel a strong sense of satisfaction!
For Chinese, it is not so complicated, and simply breed "meat pigeons" to satisfy their appetites. Many families even raise their own pigeons, and they eat and dig up the pigeon nests as they eat. Of course, in ancient times, people regarded pigeons as a tool for transmitting information and intelligence, and there is an idiom "flying pigeon book" that indicates the role of pigeons, that is, because pigeons have a very strong sense of cognitive direction and home, and they can fly home thousands of kilometers away. Nowadays, there are still "carrier pigeon associations" in many cities, which is already a fun and pastime to raise pigeons!
There is still a lot of emphasis on choosing suckling pigeons to cook, because the suckling pigeons are divided into 22-23 days of young pigeons and 12-14 days of BB pigeons. The former has a strong meat flavor, the latter has a tender taste, delicious or not, depending on the taste preferences of the gluttons. And after thirty days of pigeons become fleshy coarse wood, you can call it an old pigeon, it is not suitable for braising, but used to stew soup, plus party ginseng, red dates, goji berries such a combination, both mellow and nourishing blood, worthy of a bowl of old fire soup, especially suitable for girls with cold hands and feet in winter.
Real "Braised Pigeon"
The "braised" in the real braised pigeon refers to the use of maltose or big red Zhejiang vinegar brushed through the marinade and then tightly over the pigeon skin, and the pigeon is grilled, baked, fried and drizzled, making the pigeon skin red and crispy, and the gravy becomes attractive and fragrant. Traditional Cantonese chefs like to brine pigeons and then fry or drizzle them to make the skin crisp and tender.
In a word: the traditional roasted pigeon, kung fu is exquisite.
Each braised suckling pigeon is first bathed in a secret brine filled with spices such as cinnamon, fragrant leaves, tangerine peel, star anise, etc., in order to infuse the pigeon meat with a mellow and fragrant flavor. The pigeons that "soak in the bath" are fished up, suspended in water, and wait for the skin to dry before brushing the sweet and sour water to color, so that after frying, they can have a crisp red skin.
When frying pigeons, the gravy must first be locked by boiling oil tightly on the skin, and then the crispy crust is fried by the low fire, so that after several complicated processes, the roasted pigeons can finally be served!
Today's braised suckling pigeons are all one pigeon with seven knives and set up on the table. When I was a child, when I saw the pigeons on the table, Wei Ji first tore from the tender leg position, one by one, the hot water vapor of the gravy, suddenly flowed from the tear, a strange fragrance spread out, let the population flow, bite, the slender and tender calf, the crisp skin of the Boba Ben... It's so fragrant that you can't get it back!
As for the chicken and pigeon comparison, it is not necessary, although compared with poultry chicken duck goose, the smallest pigeon is like an inconspicuous supporting role, for many people who pay attention to the meat of the pigeon do not look at the pigeon meat, do not know, people who have eaten pigeon meat, for its taste is also obsessed.
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