The Manchu and Han Banquets in Qing Dynasty

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Concubine Rong nodded and smiled, but she didn't want Xueshan to listen to her words.Xueshan felt uncomfortable for a while, but she was angry but didn't know who to send it to.She silently prayed that her cousin would win, if that Lin Zixiu won, wouldn't Concubine Hui be even more proud?

Sure enough, Xuesong did not disappoint her. While everyone was admiring Zixiu's knife performance, he had already finished the dragon's body and tail, and it was time to make the dragon's head and phoenix head next.

The material for making dragon head and phoenix head is very simple, it is common carrot, but this carrot is bright in color and moderate in size.Of course, the most important thing is the skill of the chef.

Xue Song picked up a carrot and peeled off the head, tail and skin, then carefully carved it into a dragon head, and carved the other carrot into a crested head in the same way.

His side is already halfway through, and Zixiu's side is about the same.After cutting the shiitake mushroom slices, he patted the crisp and tender cucumbers into fan shapes one by one.The power to shoot the cucumber should be moderate. If the power is too high, the pat will be too broken and incoherent.However, the cucumber slices taken by Zixiu are uniform in size and beautiful in shape, which is a model of cucumber photography.

After taking the picture, he held the cutting board with his left hand and placed it in front of his chest. With his right hand, he turned the kitchen knife a few times in the palm of his hand, and then gently clamped it with the back of the knife facing outward.With a movement of his wrist, the cucumber slices on the cutting board flew into the plate one by one, and landed on the tree trunk one by one, dotted into clumps of branches.

He sprinkled chicken breasts, egg whites and other items on the plate to form two elegant cranes, and finally decorated the forest with cherries to form clusters of small flowers.

At this time, the production on the cedar side was also coming to an end. After carving the dragon head and crested head, cedar made the wings and tail feathers of the phoenix, and finally formed the scene of the dragon and the phoenix leaping on the plate.

Looking at the time again, it was still half a quarter of an hour before half an hour.

Xuesong finished first, and he glanced at Zixiu, seeing that Zixiu was still hard at work, so he was even more proud.He looked at the jury, and exchanged glances with Xueshan. Xueshan nodded slightly, indicating that he did a good job.

Half a quarter of an hour later, when Zixiu finished, Liang Jiugong walked between the two of them, knocked on the gong, and announced, "It's time."

Following this announcement, everyone started discussing again, and both parties had completed their works, so let's see who made it better.

"Hesheli Xuesong finished the dishes first, so you should taste his dishes first, Hesheli Imperial Chef, please." Liang Jiugong made a gesture of invitation, Xuesong greeted him, and then took the plate and walked to the judging panel.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, and all your lords, what the servants just made is 'Dragon and Phoenix Bring Prosperity', please enjoy it." Xue Song put the food plate on the table, and then lifted the lid.

Everyone just felt their eyes brighten. There was a pair of dragons and phoenixes with their heads facing each other on the plate.As soon as this dish came out, it immediately won the favor of everyone.

The things on the plate exude a unique mixed aroma, which lures everyone to taste it.

Kangxi picked up the silver chopsticks and picked up a piece of phoenix feather. The duck meat seemed to fall apart with a light grip.He fed it into his mouth and chewed it a few times, showing neither surprise nor disgust.

Next is Xueshan. She sandwiched a piece of anchovies, which are made of sliced ​​pork and shrimp. Compared with duck meat, the anchovies have another taste.She smiled after eating, it was better than the meals she used to eat, it seemed that my cousin was well prepared.

Then came the six Shangshu. Everyone tasted it in different places, but after tasting, they couldn't help nodding and showing satisfied smiles.The rest of the people didn't have to taste it, but judging from their expressions, they knew that this dish was absolutely extraordinary.

Rong Ruo snorted softly, thinking that Zixiu's dishes must be much more delicious than this person's.He already had a kind of blind trust in the dishes made by Zixiu. He felt that as long as it was cooked by Zixiu, it must be delicious.

After seeing that everyone had tasted it, Xue Song took the food plate and retreated.Liang Jiugong said: "The following is Lin Zixiu, Lin Yuchu's dish." For some reason, in his subconscious, he felt that the winner would be Lin Yuchu.

Zixiu walked up to the crowd with the dish he made, and introduced: "This dish I made is called 'Songhe Yannian', please the emperor, empress and all adults to taste it."

He put the plate down and lifted the lid.

On the food plate is a picture of a combination of pine trees and cranes. The ingredients of this dish are simple, and the most challenging thing is knife skills, but everyone knows that the simpler the ingredients, the more difficult it is to make them delicious.

Kangxi picked up a pine branch, dipped it in the seasoning, and felt that it tasted crisp and delicious, sweet and delicious, and the boredom of many days disappeared with it.Zixiu's dishes always have this kind of effect, which can shake his spirits and relieve his fatigue.

Xueshan picked up the crane's feathers, and thought the taste was too bland, not as thick as Xuesong's dishes.The rest of the people also tasted it one by one, and their reactions varied.

After Zixiu went down, Liang Jiugong said: "Now everyone has tasted the dishes made by the two imperial chefs, please choose the winner among them."

Xue Song glanced at Zixiu, and found that Zixiu was smiling calmly, as if he didn't care much about the result, he showed a mocking smile, thinking what to pretend?

Rong Ruo looked at his own Ama, and seemed to be expressing his thoughts silently, but Mingzhu was discussing with the people next to him, and did not hear his voice.

Kangxi thought, as expected, what Zixiu made was to his liking.

I can’t find the picture of Dragon and Phoenix Chengxiang, I’ll go back and look for it O(∩_∩)O~

No.16 dishes

All eyes were on Kangxi, waiting to hear what he had to say.

Kangxi said: "The first dish 'Longfeng Chengxiang' is top-grade in terms of shape, color, and aroma, but the taste is not outstanding at all. I have tasted countless imperial dishes, and this dish can only be regarded as the upper-middle quality. "He glanced at Hesheli Xuesong, and found that the other party's face was very bad. He secretly laughed, knowing that this was a person who could not afford to lose.

Xueshan gritted her teeth secretly, she didn't care much about Kangxi's words, she looked at her cousin, showing a bit of anxiety.

I just heard Kangxi continue: "The second dish 'Songhe Yannian' is much better. Regardless of its shape, color or taste, it is the best. I wonder what you think after tasting it? I think This dish has a strange flavor that brings back the deepest memories in the heart.”

The six ministers nodded their heads in agreement, and Xueshan became anxious when she saw it, and said: "I don't think so. Lin Yuchu's dishes are bland and tasteless, and the ingredients are extremely simple, with no special features at all. On the other hand, Hesheli's imperial chef's dishes are mostly meat. The combination of vegetables is very good, and the taste is also brilliant, it is a rare top grade."

She didn't dare to look at Kangxi, but she could feel Kangxi's gaze. It wasn't fierce, but it definitely wasn't approval.She gritted her teeth and continued: "I believe that 'dragon and phoenix bring prosperity' is the winner."

Kangxi did not refute, but looked at the six ministers and said: "What about the opinions of the Qing family?"

The six people hesitated, looked at me and looked at you, not knowing how to answer.The bias of the emperor and empress is obvious, and neither of them can offend, which presents them with a problem.

Mingzhu said: "Return to the emperor, please allow the ministers to discuss for a while, and then answer later."

Kangxi said: "My loves, please discuss slowly, I hope I won't be disappointed." Although his tone was not strong, Mingzhu felt a strong threat.

Mingzhu thought she was unlucky, why did such a thing happen today?

Supporting Hesheli Xuesong, isn't that against the emperor?But none of the ministers dared to do this; but if they supported Lin Zixiu, they were very unwilling.Lin Zixiu won. Doesn't that mean that the cooking skills of the Han people are better than that of the Manchus?Isn't that a slap in the face?

The six fell into a tangled state, not knowing what to do.In the end, Mingzhu proposed a compromise solution, which was always agreed by the other five people.

Mingzhu said: "The dishes of the two imperial chefs each have their own strengths. Imperial Chef Hesheli's 'dragon and phoenix presents auspiciousness' has an advantage in aroma and taste, while Lin Yuchu's dishes are better in color and shape, using extremely simple ingredients. It can be seen that their skills are extraordinary. Therefore, our conclusion is: there is no winner between the two."

After Mingzhu finished speaking, she lowered her head, not daring to look at the emperor and empress. They offended both sides by doing so, but if they supported one side, their fate would only be worse.If the two royal chefs fight, the emperor and empress will punish them less even if they want to blame them.

"No winner?" Kangxi frowned.

Mingzhu said: "What I mean is that Manchu and Chinese cuisines have their own strengths. Your Majesty, wouldn't it be better if we combine the Manchu and Han cuisines, take the essence and discard the dross?"

As soon as these words were uttered, everyone fell into silence. This was the first time I heard of the fusion of Manchu and Han dishes.

"What Aiqing said makes sense. Manchus and Han people are my citizens of the Qing Dynasty. Since Han people can enter the court as officials like the Manchus, why can't the dishes of the Han people be integrated with the dishes of the Manchus? There are dishes from the Han people, but there are also dishes from the Manchus. How about calling this kind of feast a Man-Han banquet?"

Kangxi's speech was so loud that even Xueshan and Xuesong, who were originally dissatisfied, couldn't help but nod their heads in praise. The full banquet of Han people can not only reflect Kangxi's generosity to Han people, but also show that he attaches great importance to both parties.For a country to enjoy long-term peace and stability, the most important thing is to stabilize people's hearts.

The first vegetable fight in the palace ended in a draw, and Zixiu came into everyone's sight from an unknown little imperial chef.

Although he was a little disappointed that Zixiu didn't win against Rongruo, but thinking that he didn't lose, he felt that he could accept it.He is very supportive of Ama's statement. Manchurian and Han cuisine have their own strengths, and there is really no need to distinguish which one is better.