Two people and several stoves, "Zhang Four Pot Cake" is more than 40 years old.
In the shop at No. 215 Xinhua Road in the urban area of Qihe County, there is a "pot cake master". Unlike most noodle shops, he makes pancakes that are baked with old fat noodles and wood. When each pan cake becomes brown in the stove, and when the hot air breaks a piece, a simple sweetness penetrates from the taste buds to the heart.
The couple has been holding out for more than 40 years
Photography: Li Kunyan
"Uncle Pot Cake" is named Daniel Zhang, 60 years old this year, and has been selling pot cakes for more than 40 years. When he was young, Daniel Zhang learned to make pot cakes with his grandfather, and after his grandfather's death, he passed on this old craft.
Daniel Zhang's pot cake shop is called "Zhang Si Da Pan Cake", as long as you have eaten the pot cake he made once, you will be impressed and often remembered. "Every time I come back home from out of town, I carry a few. The pan cake that just came out of the pot is full of aroma, and I can't help but tear a large piece of it and chew it up, the outer skin is crispy, and the inside is salty, and the more you chew, the more you can't stop. "The customer Mr. Zhang just drove off the highway, passed by the pot cake shop Daniel Zhang, bought five pot cakes in one go and took it home.
At 10 o'clock in the morning, Daniel Zhang was rolling out the noodles with his head down in the shop, and there was a pot on the stove next to him, which was the place he knew best for so many years.
"As long as there are no accidents, the store is open every day, and this stove is guarded in winter, which is quite warm!" Daniel Zhang said that although he has been making pot cakes for so many years, he still thinks it is fun.
"The bread you made was so delicious!" Hearing the praise of customers, Daniel Zhang said cheerfully: "This may be the taste of hometown!" ”
Making pancakes is a technical job
The pot cakes of "Uncle Pan Cake" are attractive, do not worry about selling, and often exceed the supply during the New Year's Festival, which is also for a reason.
The first night, Daniel Zhang have the flour ready, and the next day at 4 a.m. get up and noodles, and add old alkali to neutralize the sour taste.
"The noodles have to adjust the temperature of the water according to the temperature, and the noodles can neither be too old nor too raw." The hardest thing is the noodles, there can be no half falsehood, kung fu in place, the pot cake is fragrant. "Daniel Zhang said that the noodles are a technical job.
Handmade and noodles, more water and less water, dough tendons are not tendons, bubbles are kneaded, the hands know. Every morning and afternoon, he would separately go to forty or fifty pounds of noodles, and work hard like a young man. "The longer you wait, the more you knead and the more you stretch, the better the dough will be."
At more than 10:00 a.m., in the shop of Daniel Zhang, the new Yellow River client reporter saw that he quickly took out a ball of noodles and kneaded it, and a crisp sound of throwing noodles and pressing noodles sounded on the board. Then, he put the dough into the machine for secondary kneading, after the dough is removed, he then uses a tool to trim the dough cake, sprinkle with water after the trimming is completed, then sprinkle sesame seeds, put it into the pot, the whole action is completed in one go.
After several rounds of flipping through, Daniel Zhang felt that the heat was almost over, so he clipped a large pot of cake and put it on the board. In an instant, the scent of wheat spewed out, making people salivate.
There is a human touch in the old craftsmanship
"Eating his pot cake for many years, the big brother is very real, without chemical additives, such a large pot cake, only sells for 3.3 yuan." Aunt Yang, who came to buy pot cakes, said that pot cakes can be fried, boiled, and eaten, and the pot cakes are real materials and crispy inside, new and old methods, and the taste is particularly good.
Daniel Zhang's big pot cake from the noodles to the pot, the whole process takes about 40 minutes, he can make 10-20 pieces a day, in addition to doing it himself, some of the processes have also added to the machine, which is much more convenient than before.
In the shop of "Uncle Pan Cake", there is a QR code on the wall, and his wife helps collect money. Customers consciously put money in or scan the code to pay. Within ten minutes, there were more than a dozen people visiting, most of them regular customers.
"Come on, is the blood sugar still high?" If you want to be high, eat less pot cake. "Daniel Zhang was familiar with many customers and became friends with each other. Whoever has been unwell lately, whose children are in grade, he knows.
Daniel Zhang family has 3 children, two daughters and a son, and all three children have formal jobs and a good life. The two of them could have been at home for years, but they couldn't put down their own pancake shop. "I'm afraid that old customers will come looking for me, and it's inappropriate for me not to be here." Daniel Zhang said that many customers have come from all over the world to buy him pot cakes, and they have to do a good job of this trust of everyone.
"It's a pleasure to be with everyone and talk and laugh. Moreover, when you are in good health, you can do a little bit, and try not to ask the children for money. "Uncle Pan Cake" once again shoveled up the cake, the small pot cake stall, wafting out not only the fragrance, but also a long human touch...
Qihe Cauldron Cake >>
Qihe cauldron cake, according to legend, has a history of nearly a thousand years.
The pancakes are round, about 45 cm in diameter, about 2 cm thick, weigh about 3 kg, and are sold in pieces. The process of making pot cakes is slightly different from the north and south of the county. When making in the southern part of the county, each pot cake is made of about 2.5 kg of dry flour, add about 0.5 kg of water and a little fermented noodles (commonly known as old noodles) and noodles, after repeatedly pressing and evenly on the pressure bar stone, kneading into a round ball on the board, covering slightly awake, and then pressing with your hands first and then kneading into a thick and moderate round cake, printing the "chrysanthemum" or "longevity" pattern, face up, with both hands into the pot cake chain with moderate heat, slightly rotated, to prevent sticking, cover the pot lid; high heat evenly burned for 10 minutes, lift the lid and rotate, wait for the bottom layer to knot, You can turn over, evenly wipe the water on the surface, sprinkle a little sesame seeds, cover the pot, change the heat, burn for about 15 minutes, flip the lid, slow heat and bake evenly, about 5 minutes, bake fragrantly, cook the pot, dry it thoroughly; when selling, the front pattern is outward, the appearance is exquisite and delicate, the color is pale yellow, the entrance is sweet and fragrant, and it has unique local characteristics.
In the northern part of the county, the pot cake is baked, or the noodles of the pot cake at a time and several pot cakes, then 3 kg of noodles are cut out, repeatedly squeezed evenly, kneaded into a round cake, edged by hand, and then lifted with both hands, face down, put into the pot, and the subsequent production process is the same as in the south. Qihe County pot cake round thick and luscious, layered inner, tough and chewy, and resistant to storage.
Source: New Yellow River APP