The annual autumn wind is strong, yellow ginkgo biloba, red yellow oak. The streets and alleys of Beijing are colorful, and it is time to eat lamb again.
The chill is getting thicker, it will soon be Winter, yesterday I have made an appointment with my friends, and tomorrow we will eat a lamb hot pot together.
Imagine that the cold wind outside, but the hot pot restaurant is very lively. Put a copper pot on the rack and order two plates of lamb. A lamp of water, two or three green onions and ginger, wait for the water to boil, and then put on the "meat net swallow thorough" lamb, three or five confidants sit around, drink while shabu, talk freely, so unhappy.
When it comes to lamb, it is delicious, cold-repellent, and nourishing, and it is more suitable to eat in autumn and winter, and if you can still sit around and eat it together, it will be more beautiful.
Beijingers have always had a soft spot for mutton. Not only because Beijing is located inland, the weather is bitter and cold, but also because there are a large number of Muslims living here, most of them are engaged in catering, and their cooking skills are exquisite, and the way to eat lamb is not only diverse, but also extremely exquisite.
Shabu lamb is a must-have food for Beijingers, and the picture shows diners at donglaishun restaurant in Dong'an Market.
Living in today's life, it may be difficult for us to think that a hundred years ago in Beijing, the daily diet of the people was actually based on mutton. The 1935 edition of the "Outline of Cultural Relics of the Old Capital" states: "Eating habits, mainly sheep, help them, and fish are cooked again." According to Mr. Deng Yunxiang's recollection, in the 1930s and 1940s, his family lived in Xicheng, and he remembered that from Ganshiqiao to Xidan, there were as many as four or five lamb beds on both sides of the street, always more than pork shops.
In the 1950s, the Hengrui Mutton Farm in the southwest corner of Xidan Road junction was rumored to have frequented this mutton bed when Ma Lianliang lived in Baozi Street.
Shabu lamb is one of the mainstream ways to eat (pop roast shabu) in halal lamb restaurants in the past.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > shabu-shabu lamb: lamb pot is the most common delicacy in the cold of the year</h1>
There are different theories about the origin of shabu lamb, but the matter of eating mutton is very much related to the northern nomads.
During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, as a large number of ethnic minorities such as xiongnu and Xianbei entered the Central Plains, mutton gradually replaced pork and became the head of the six animals, often appearing on the table of the northern Han people. The Luoyang Jialan Chronicle says: "The sheep are the most landborne." ”
In the Tang Dynasty, the Li Tang royal family already had Hu ancestry, and their living habits were similar to those of the ethnic minorities in the northwest, in addition, the open ethnic policy also attracted many Hu people to do business or enter the dynasty as officials.
As a result, Hu Feng prevailed in the north, Hu family wine, Hu Ji, etc. appeared repeatedly in poetry, and mutton was used as a characteristic of the Hu family and entered the Zhumen and Hanhu. The way to eat lamb is also colorful, huitang arsenal, red sheep branch staff, patrol sauce, shengping hot, sheepskin filigree, Zhenlang... And so on.
Zhang Xiaojing, played by Lei Jiayin in "The Twelve Hours of Chang'an", the first thing he did when he was released from prison was to go to the West Market to eat water basin lamb, and once he ate it, it was two pots.
By the Song Dynasty, successive emperors were notoriously fond of eating sheep. During the Song Dynasty, the imperial dining room consumed more than 400,000 catties of mutton every year, and an average of 10 sheep were killed every day. According to the "Song Hui Zhi Manuscript", during the Song Zhenzong period, the number of sheep slaughtered every day had reached 350...
During the Liaojin and Yuan dynasties, especially in the Yuan Dynasty, hui returned all over the world, and there were many Hui people living in the capital city, all of whom were upstarts or rich merchants in the imperial court. Mongols and Semu people love to eat mutton, according to the Yuan Dynasty court diet collection "Drinking and Eating Zhengwei" recorded in the dishes recorded in the "Juzhen Yimen", a total of 96 dishes, 73 of which are lamb as the main ingredient or auxiliary material, accounting for 3/4 more.
"Drinking and Eating" Juzhen Strange Cuisine Gate Chapter 1, the three soup ingredients in the picture contain mutton, the picture source Confucius Old Book Network.
It is worth mentioning that it is now generally believed that shabu lamb originated in the early Yuan Dynasty.
Originally, although the Mongols loved to eat lamb, most of the methods were extensive, mainly stewed or grilled.
Kublai Khan led his army on an expedition to the south, and the people were sleepy and hungry, thinking of the stewed lamb in their hometown. Who thought, seeing that the fire had just burned and the sheep had been slaughtered, the enemy army was already approaching, so how could the warriors go into battle and kill the enemy on an empty stomach?
In a hurry, the chef was in a hurry, and the flying knife cut off more than ten thin pieces of meat, put them in boiling water and stirred them a few times, and when the color of the meat changed, he immediately fished them into a bowl and sprinkled fine salt. Kublai Khan ate several bowls in a row and turned over on his horse to lead his army to meet the enemy, and as a result, he won the victory.
As a result, this convenient and delicious method gradually became popular, and was given the name "shabu lamb" by Kublai Khan.
Yangshikou, near Huashi, has been a distribution center for slaughtering and selling raw sheep since the Ming Dynasty. Behind the donkey cart in the picture, you can see the archway of "Shangsanjiao Hutong" in Yangshikou and the sign of "Mutton Old Shop" written on it.
The lamb hot pot really appeared in the records, and it was already in the Qing Dynasty, and there was a dish of "wild hot pot" on the Imperial Diet Recipe of the Qing Palace. The Qianlong Emperor undoubtedly had true love for hot pot, and he once set up 530 tables of hot pot tables in the Qianqing Palace to feast on the clan room, and the grandeur was unprecedented. When the Jiaqing Emperor ascended the throne (1796), he held the "Feast of a Thousand Sorrows", and this time a total of 1550 silver, tin and copper hot pots were used. More than 5,000 people were invited to taste it, which was the largest hot pot feast in history.
After that, shabu lamb gradually spread to the private market and flourished in halal halls. Xu Lingxiao's "Hundred Words of the Old Capital" Yun: "The lamb pot, for the most ordinary delicacy in the cold of the year, must be eaten with the mutton restaurant." This way of eating is studied and evolved by the northern nomadic heritage, and it has become a special flavor. ”
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > Zhengyang Building: Mellow wine self-made Crab shabu-shabu is famous in Beijing</h1>
Speaking of shabu lamb, the first thing that comes to mind is the halal old name Donglaishun, which has the reputation of "China's first shabu". But before Donglaishun, shabu lamb was more famous for coming from a Hanmin restaurant, zhengyang lou, one of the "eight buildings" outside the front door.
There was a poem: "Mellow and good wine started from scratch, and crab shabu-shabu is famous in Beijing." During the Republic of China, a state banquet was set up, and the front door canteen ate every day and night. ”
Zhengyang Lou Restaurant is located in the West Grinding Factory outside the Qianmen Gate, founded in the 23rd year of QingdaoGuang (1843). The father of the boss, Sun Xueren, known as "Sun Xiaobao", came from Ye County, Shandong Province, and came to the capital to make a living due to the drought in his hometown. Because most of the restaurants opened in beijing at that time were Shandong people, he was given a lot of care, and a few years later, Sun Xiaobao opened a small wine stall in the east of Qianmen Avenue Road. Because of the genuine goods, the business is booming, and The fourteen- and fifteen-year-old Sun Xueren also came to help. The grandfather and grandfather painstakingly operated for thirty years, and used the money they saved to plate a two-story tavern on MeatShi Street and renamed it Zhengyang Building. I want to borrow the name of Zhengyang Gate and let my business flourish like the noonday sun.
At the beginning of the opening, although Zhengyang Lou was said to be a pub, its appetizers were not only boiled peanuts, boiled broad beans, rose dates, fried forked sheep's head meat, pork noodles, etc., steamed crab in autumn can be described as prestigious, and roasted and shabu lamb in autumn and winter is a must.
According to legend, the shabu lamb in Zhengyang Lou is quite distinctive in terms of ingredient selection, knife work, soup base and seasoning. For example, the lamb used in the store is a lamb bought from Zhangjiakou and slaughtered after fattening in its own sheep pen. The lamb must be pressed with ice cubes to preserve freshness and remove blood and blood from the meat.
The chef of Zhengyang Lou is from Shanxi, the knife technique is quite exquisite, two or two lamb can cut out 20 slices, the meat slices are as thin as cicada wings, the length is the same, and the fat and thin red and white are between each other, and the natural pattern of the meat can be seen on the plate.
Hand cut sheep on the brain
The horizontal cutting method of its sheep loin was learned under the guidance of Pu Jun, a descendant of the royal family, which came from the knife work of the Qing court's imperial dining room, the cut waist, thin and beautiful, cooked in the water, and had a special taste.
Xia Renhu's "Old Beijing Trivia" also records that "the Zhengyang Building of the Beijing Meat Market, named after the good cutting of mutton, is as thin as paper, and none of it is incomplete." ”
Hand-cut lamb tenderloin
In order to meet different tastes, Zhengyang Lou also placed different parts of the lamb separately, which is also the first in Beijing. Those who love to eat fat can choose the "three forks", the meat color is white on one side and red; love to eat thin, there are "cucumber strips", pure red meat; as for those who like half fat and half thin, there are "small three forks", two red middle white.
Cucumber strips, almost all thin, but the taste is very tender
Eat shabu lamb in Zhengyang Lou, pay attention to the whole seasoning, there are small ground sesame oil, sesame paste, soy sauce tofu, leek flowers, soy sauce, rice vinegar, brine shrimp oil, chili oil, pepper oil, cooking wine, sugar garlic, cabbage, coriander, sauerkraut, vermicelli and so on nearly 20 kinds. The hot pot is also filled with fresh mushrooms, Sichuan winter vegetables, sheep's tail oil, fresh crucian carp and green onion and ginger, and the hot simmered fresh soup is the best.
The meat is good, the slices are thin, the ingredients are complete, the soup is fresh, and the shabu lamb in Zhengyang Lou is counted in the whole capital.
Because the treasurer Sun Xueshi traveled widely, he was appointed president of the Beijing Chamber of Commerce in 1923. Therefore, at that time, many important people in the military and political circles often patronized the Zhengyang Tower, and sometimes state banquets were also held here.
Unfortunately, the situation was chaotic, but Zhengyang Lou was not spared. The "Old Beijing Bamboo Branch Words" once wrote: "Roasted lamb Zhengyang Lou, sell three cups of good pouring sorrow." Generations rose and fell in this building, who for thieves who were nichu. Sun Xueren, the treasurer, and his cousin had a conflict, the family business was scattered, and the Zhengyang Lou Restaurant naturally suffered a lot of impact. In addition, in the 1920s and 1930s, the treasurer of the Donglai Shun Shabu Meat Restaurant in the Dong'an Market spent a lot of money to poach two top knife workers in Zhengyang Lou, and the trading of Zhengyang Lou was seriously injured.
With the raging artillery fire, in 1942, zhengyang lou had to close its doors, which was forty years. It was not until December 30, 1984, that it reopened outside the front door.
Zhengyanglou Restaurant in the 1980s
However, due to the location at the front door, the traffic is large, fast food is more popular, so the first floor of the store half fast food and half stir-fry, but after two years, it can not stick to it, changed to all fast food.
In 1992, Zhengyang Building was renovated, imitating the business model of foreign fast food, and started the first "Chinese fast food" in Beijing. The red-faced gray fiberglass fixed table and chair, and the steaming underneath the grid of stainless steel dining table can hold more than 20 kinds of dishes.
This is only the first floor of the restaurant, and the second floor is the traditional dish of Zhengyang Building, which was restored in 1992 and 1999 respectively, and new dishes were developed.
Unfortunately, if you look for the Zhengyanglou Restaurant in Beijing again, you will no longer be able to "check this person".
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Donglaishun: 100 Years of Charcoal Halal Shabu-shabu</h1>
Compared with the Zhengyang Building, Donglaishun should be said to be the latecomer.
The founder of Donglaishun, named Ding Deshan, was a Muslim who initially set up a stall in Dong'an Market to sell halal snacks such as bean juice and steak cakes. A few years later, the Ding brothers set up a shop, taking the meaning of "from Jingdong, everything is smooth", and officially hung the sign of "Donglaishun Porridge Stall".
Unfortunately, the weather was unpredictable, and in 1912, the Dong'an Market caught fire and the porridge shed was burned. After the reconstruction of the market, Ding Deshan built three tile houses in the original place, changed the sign to "Donglaishun Mutton Restaurant", and at first just made some mutton soup, haggis, etc., and later introduced "shabu mutton" into the shop.
In the 1920s and 1930s, the boss Ding Deshan dug up a famous chef with exquisite knife skills from ZhengyangLou Restaurant, helped the workers pass on their skills, and also made detailed regulations on the cutting methods of mutton from different origins and different parts.
In addition, the lamb used in Donglaishun is already tender, and the cut lamb slices are spread in the blue and white porcelain plate, and the pattern on the plate can be faintly seen through the meat, and over time, eating shabu meat in Donglaishun and watching the masters cut the meat has become a scene.
Donglaishun Mutton Restaurant has also attracted countless diners, and dignitaries and literati inkers often come and go here, such as Mr. and Mrs. Lao She and his wife Hu Xiaoqing, Chinese painting master Qi Baishi, Peking Opera master Ma Lianliang, Zhang Junqiu and so on.
From the quaint copper hot pot, to the red and white lamb slices, to the fragrant and light mushroom soup, all of them tempt diners to pick up chopsticks and shabu-shabu, cook it for a long time, and then pour delicious spices, eat it tenderly and refreshingly, and eat it without being greasy.
Today, Donglaishun is a nationally renowned shabu-shabu restaurant, and some of the procedures in the past have been simplified. For example, the process of pressing meat and draining acid only needs to be placed in the freezer at minus 5 degrees Celsius for 12 hours. For example, in the past, it was all manual meat cutting, but now it is replaced by machines, and hand cutting only accounts for a small part. Only some old food will also order hand-cut lamb, and if you pay attention to the point, you will also order meat according to the part.
Nowadays, lamb hot pot has long become the first choice for our daily gatherings. While feeling the lamb, people may also want to taste the wonderful past related to the mutton in history.
What other stories do you know about shabu lamb?
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Acknowledgements and statements
The pictures in this article are partly from the Internet, and they are invaded and deleted.
Reference articles
[1] Xu Zhiqi, The Rise and Fall of Generations – Zhengyang Lou, Beijing Industry and Commerce, 2002
[2] Zhengyang Building: A vein of fireworks guards the Temple of Heaven
[3] Wang Lang, Beijing lamb pop roast shabu
[4] Beijing Traditional Culture Alliance, why is the old Beijing copper pot shabu lamb? 2019.12.05
[5] Beijing Traditional Culture Alliance, Youfang Hutong not only hides oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, but also witnessed the rise and fall of Beijing's carving and lacquer line, 2020.10.22
[6] Xinmin Weekly, Stove Gathering Cooking Cheers, Baiwei Melting Kettle, Nothing Is Impossible to Solve with a Hot Pot, 2017.10.06
[7] Kai Feng Zhi saw, and the gluttony | Sheep Scorpion and Su Dongpo
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