Donghai Specialties

Although many people have not heard of the Donghai region, the local specialties are quite famous, including Lion's Head, Three-piece Duck in Farewell My Concubine, etc. These dishes are very appetizing to eat, and only local people can make such flavors, especially the braised Lion's Head, which is relatively simple to prepare. As long as you pay attention to the techniques, you can make a simple Lion's Head.

Farewell My Concubine

The original name was dragon and phoenix stew. When Xiang Yu held a founding ceremony in Pengcheng (Xuzhou), the capital of the country, he prepared a "Dragon and Phoenix Banquet" for the grand ceremony. According to legend, it was designed by Empress Yu Ji herself. "Dragon and Phoenix Stew" is the main dish in the "Dragon and Phoenix Banquet". The ingredients used are "turtle" (turtle belongs to the water creature, and dragon is the leader of the water creature) and pheasant (pheasant belongs to the feather creature, and phoenix is ​​the leader of the feather creature), so it is named after the meeting of dragon and phoenix. Now turtles and chickens are used to replace tortoises and pheasants. This dish has been passed down from generation to generation and is a famous delicacy in Xuzhou, becoming an indispensable dish at festive banquets.

Three sets of duck

A traditional Yangzhou delicacy, the preparation method of set duck was recorded in "Diao Ding Ji" of the Qing Dynasty, which was "deboning the fat domestic duck and the pressed duck, stuffing them into the stomach of a domestic duck, steaming them until they are very soft, and serving them whole". Later, chefs in Yangzhou combined lake ducks, wild ducks and pigeons, and stewed them in a purple clay pot produced in Yixing over low heat with a large amount of soup. The domestic duck is fat and tender, the wild duck is crispy, and the pigeon is delicate and fresh, with unique flavors.

Boiled dried shreds

It is related to Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty's visit to the south of the Yangtze River. During Emperor Qianlong's sixth trip to the south of the Yangtze River, local officials in Yangzhou hired famous chefs to prepare delicious dishes for the emperor. One of the dishes was the "Nine-Strand Soup," which was made with shredded dried tofu and shredded ham stewed in chicken broth. It was extremely delicious. In particular, the dried shredded silk is cut into fine pieces, which allows the flavor to penetrate better and absorbs all kinds of delicious flavors. It became famous all over the world, and was therefore renamed "boiled dried shredded silk". When cooked with shredded chicken and ham, it is called shredded chicken and ham. When added with dried shrimp, it is called shredded shrimp.

Lion head

According to legend, it began in the Sui Dynasty. After Emperor Yang of Sui went to Yangzhou to view the magnolia flowers, he was deeply attached to Yangzhou's four famous scenic spots: Wansong Mountain, Jinqiandun, Ivory Forest and Sunflower Hill. After returning to the palace, he ordered the imperial chef to prepare four dishes based on the above four scenes, namely, squirrel mandarin fish, golden shrimp cakes, ivory chicken strips, and sunflower meat. The emperor was very impressed and gave a banquet to all his ministers. From then on, these dishes spread all over the country. In the Tang Dynasty, the famous chefs in the mansion of Duke Xun were inspired by the "Sunflower Meat Offering" and made huge meat balls into sunflower shapes. The unique shape looks like a lion's head. It can be braised or stewed. The stewed one is more tender, and after adding crab roe it becomes "Braised Crab Roe Lion's Head", which is popular in Zhenyang area.

Crystal pork trotter

It is also known as Zhenjiang Yaorou. According to legend, more than 300 years ago, the owner of a small hotel on Jiuhai Street in Zhenjiang bought four pig's trotters on a hot day and wanted to pickle them with salt, but he mistakenly used the saltpeter that his father-in-law used to make firecrackers. Unexpectedly, the quality of the meat did not change, but became even firmer and more fragrant, with the meat red and the hooves white. Soak in clean water, blanch it, then put it into the pot, add onion, ginger, pepper, fennel, cinnamon, and simmer with water. I wanted to use high temperature to remove the toxins, but unexpectedly I smelled a fragrant aroma. The aroma attracted the immortal Zhang Guolao, who transformed into a white-haired old man to buy the pork trotters. He ate three and a half of the four pork trotters and the owner ate the remaining half. He found it delicious and used this method to make pork trotters from then on.