National Tide 1980

"Of course, in addition to attaching importance to pasta, the more distinctive characteristics of the Manchu diet are also reflected in the main dishes. In fact, the Manchus do not eat much fish and rarely eat seafood. Whether it is shark fin, abalone, sea cucumber, dried razor clams, or scallops, in the Qing Dynasty, The court is not taken very seriously.”

"The emperors of the Qing Dynasty always rewarded the high-end seafood that came as tribute from Korea and Japan, or gave year-end bonuses to princes and ministers in the name of 'roe deer reward'. They were not handed over to the imperial chef for cooking."

"In addition, regardless of the banquet grade or the classification of eight delicacies, according to the regulations of the Qing Dynasty, the barbecue banquet is higher than the swallow's wing banquet, and the mountain delicacies are higher than the water delicacies. This shows that the Manchus do not think seafood The food is what comes from heaven’s kitchen.”

"On the other hand, the Manchus value the game they hunt very much, and they are a nation that is good at eating meat. Therefore, meat is the most important part of Manchu cuisine. Barbecued game is indispensable, as is pork and mutton."

"Of all meats, pork is the most mild and nutritious, and can be eaten all year round. Therefore, the Manchu people's hobby for pork is the best in the world. Even in summer, it is indispensable, and they must be eaten almost every meal. When it comes to making pork dishes , only the Manchus are the real experts. The popular braised pork, sauced pork, and barbecued pork are all the food traditions of the Qing Dynasty."

"Even 'Little Pig Yipin' was extremely popular in the late Qing Dynasty, and there are many ways to do it. Roast piglet, steamed piglet, boiled piglet, steamed piglet with oil bread, braised piglet, eight-treasure suckling pig, water mill Piglets, tiger-skin piglets, honey-stuffed piglets, pine nut piglets, steamed piglets, smoked piglets, braised piglets..."

"These pork dishes have a great impact on local flavors. For example, the meat for gods was introduced to Sichuan and transformed into garlic white meat, and it also evolved into twice-cooked pork. For example, roasted pigeon and roasted pigeon were introduced to Guangdong and transformed into roasted suckling pig and crispy pigeon."

"It wasn't until the Qing Dynasty that the popularity of these Manchu pork dishes expanded across the country, including the Qing palace's fondness for barbecue and game, and gradually declined. But even so, there were exceptions like Guangdong, where roasted suckling pig is still popular today It’s still very popular, and even sweet and sour pork is still preserved. But the recipe of Cantonese-style sweet and sour pork has changed, and sour sauce has been added.”

"In short, I took these factors into consideration, as well as today's new standards for people's understanding of food. That's why I provided barbecue seats for the main dishes, in addition to swallow's fins, sea cucumbers, shrimps and crabs. Nowadays, although Game is hard to find, but roasted duck, roasted chicken, roasted pig cubes, and roasted whole lamb can still generally reflect the characteristics of the nomadic people."

"What is worth mentioning is the Shengsheng Bao that can replace the main dishes and sit alongside the barbecue in the summer and autumn menus. This kind of 'bao' is not what the Han people call meat buns, but a unique food of the Manchu people. For its part The title of 'Victory Pack' shows that its name must have some deep connection with marching and fighting."

"It is said that on July 5, the forty-sixth year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty, the old Khan King Nurhaci led his troops to fight. When he came to a place called Qinghe, which is today's Yalu River, there was no food at all. The local farmers exhausted everything they could eat, and only sent Nurhaci a few pigeons, some perilla leaves, cabbage and rice. Then Nurhachi roasted the pigeons and wrapped them in vegetable leaves with the rice. In the subsequent battles, after Nurhaci won the victory, he established the ancestral system. From then on, his sons would eat "Desheng Bao" every July 5th to not forget the hardships of starting a business. From then on, this food also became It became the traditional food of the Manchu people.”

"As for why this kind of cabbage rice, which was completely created out of simplicity, can actually become the core delicacy in our menu. This is mainly because Xi Tai's simple diet has been improved and turned into an extremely luxurious delicacy. It must be based on the original The way to eat it is to wrap pigeon meat and rice with yellow sauce on vegetable leaves. But after the improvement, countless vegetables and cold meat and vegetables dishes were added, as well as delicacies and delicacies. It is like eating spring pancakes, which is equivalent to half a table."

"To be honest, the best thing about the 'use the dish as a bowl, wrap and eat' method is that you can have freedom of ingredients. And it has the fun of everyone doing it together and operating by themselves. Because no matter whether it is high-end, meat or vegetarian, it is all You can decide by yourself, and you can wrap whatever you like, and the taste can be decided as you like. In terms of harmony and level of enjoyment, it is not something that ordinary banquets can match."

"Finally, I would like to emphasize that many things in the menu I ordered seem simple, but they are not. For example, the Bazhen tofu passed down from Kangxi strictly uses soft tofu, shiitake mushrooms, mushrooms, and pine nuts. Ren'er, green beans, chicken breast, ham, shrimp, and then boil the chicken soup and pour the bean curd, it's not perfect at all."

"Even side dishes like this mustard dumpling and golden cake are different from what you usually see. The mustard dumpling needs to be sprinkled with hawthorn, peach, and apricot candied fruit to enhance the flavor. The golden cake should not be as red and shiny as the outside. The color is like red gold. The sweetness and sourness are just right. Even the fried food must be accompanied by perilla salt, and you can’t just use peppercorns and salt.”

"If you can do these things well, you will certainly be better than others. It is said that a mule is driven by a horse. When the time comes, there is no need for you to say whether what you are doing is food for the common people or food for the palace and guests. You can know it yourself. The other two palace restaurants must also know it in their hearts."

"There are also some names of dishes. I deliberately used the names from the palace in the past. For example, the dish that is now called Guotai Pork Slices in the Northeast, according to the original name in the palace, would have to be called Golden Pork. We common people call pickles Xueli Hong , the name in the palace is Liaoying. Winter melon boiled meatballs are called winter melon Sirzan in the palace. After autumn and winter, there are more Manchu dishes with their original names that can be eaten, such as roasted lamb Wucha, Harba, Sailer Piece, lala meal..."

"At that time, let's make a careful calculation and add what we can slowly. This is what I can help you with, restore the old appearance of the palace food to the greatest extent, and pursue the original taste to the best of our ability. I think that is the only way to let any discerning person Only by looking at it can we know that you, the imperial cook in the palace, are not cheating on the world, not cheating, not just children playing around..."

After "Zhang Dashao" said this, Ning Weimin not only gained a lot of knowledge, but also felt very moved.

Only then did he realize how much effort and brain cells it took to figure out such a menu.

How much knowledge and insight are needed.

There's nothing to say, the old man was too worried about him and planned too hard for him.

In turn, the favor he asked for was so great that it far exceeded his original expectations.

If I continue to pretend to be confused while still pretending to understand, it will be a bit unbearable.

So Ning Weimin took the initiative to bring up the issue of remuneration.

"Master Zhang, I am so lucky to have you as my consultant and advisor. You are my timely blessing. No, that gift can no longer represent my respect for you. Whatever you say, I don't care. You have to show it with actual actions.”

"If you don't mind, how about we just set the consulting fee at 300 per month? I still say the same thing, this is not a job, it doesn't require you to do anything, and it doesn't require you to work. I just hope that you can take over the job in the future. If you give me some pointers, I will be satisfied."

"It's not that I'm not surprised. The knowledge you have is really a treasure. It is a treasure for all the nations in our country. You actually keep it in your stomach all the time and don't use it? Hey, I do it for the whole country. The people feel sad..."

"Zhang Dashao" laughed loudly after hearing this. "You have three advantages, kid. The first is that you know the goods, the second is that you are generous, and the third is that you are sweet-talking. However, forget about the consulting fee. We really don't need to mention the money."

"I have my chapter book. Since I agreed to help you, I won't put you down halfway. I have to see you set up the restaurant. Just say hello, I'm determined. As long as you listen If you are willing to do as I say, I will ensure that you beat those two families when it comes to dishes."

"Okay, don't try to persuade me anymore. When you make money, you will consider me again. Even though I was not polite to you when I asked for rent, we didn't have any friendship at that time. People of my age I don’t care anymore if I don’t have money. Besides, my monthly salary and rent are quite high now, which is enough for my expenses. It’s too late to ask for so much money.”

"Actually, through the restaurant you run, I can see the authentic royal cuisine reappearing in the world, which is more meaningful to me as an old man. I am not afraid of your jokes. When people reach the end of their lives, they always want to leave something behind. . In the past, I insisted on not spreading things to others. Now I am not so valuable. On the contrary, I am afraid that I will not be able to keep it. It is fate that you and I can meet. It is also fate that you come to me for this palace dish. You can trust me so much. It’s more of a fate. Why else should I help you? All three factors come together, it’s called a coincidence..."

Ning Weimin was extremely moved, but he couldn't say anything.

For no other reason than that they just don't care about money. This is no longer something he can understand.

For a while, he really couldn't think of how to thank him.

The night he got the menu back was a very exciting night for him.

Just thinking about the wonders of these dishes was enough to make him so upset that he couldn't sleep.

If before setting up this restaurant, he was still worried about the dishes, which he once regarded as his biggest weakness.

Well now this idea is completely reversed.

Instead, he was vaguely looking forward to the day when he could meet Zhenzhang as soon as possible and compete with the other two restaurants in terms of dishes.