Chapter 5 Banquet

More than ten years ago, in the Spring Festival Gala sketch, the old lady Zhao Lirong went to work for Gong Hanlin's Queen Mother's Restaurant, and sang: "What I make is fried belly roasted meat and fish slices, fried pork ribs with vinegared kidneys, pine flowers turned into egg whites, and mixed with jellyfish." The stomach is full of flavor, four cold and four hot, the eight dishes, and a pot of Baigan old wine." Although there are differences between the north and the south, this table of northern style dishes is not awkward on the Jiangnan New Year's Eve dinner table.My evaluation of this table is the same as when Gong Hanlin helped the old lady: "It's delicious, it's so delicious!"

According to my experience, from the north to the south when it comes to big stories, and from the countryside to cities when it comes to novels, it generally goes from broad, juicy, rich and powerful to delicate, delicate, light and neat.Since I was a child, the dishes have become more and more exquisite, but when it comes to Chinese New Year, the dishes are always rich, fragrant, homely and simple.There are two reasons: one is that the weather is cold, crab powder tendons, braised trotters, and a large pot of fish head soup are more pleasing than stir-fried shrimps and steamed sea bass.Mencius laughed at King Hui of Wei, who was too fat and content to ask for anything extravagantly.In fact, the common people ask for the word "fat and sweet" during the New Year. They want fat, sweet, and steaming.The second is that the New Year's Eve dinner is a home-cooked dish after all, and most of them are eaten at home.After all, my parents are not professional cooks, and they can't make anything with gorgeous knives and ingenious ingredients-if you want something rare, it will be difficult to buy it during the New Year.My family members don't have to be polite, they eat happily.

But going to the countryside to eat New Year's Eve dinner is another matter. On the second day of the Lunar New Year, I went back to the countryside with my parents. My parents praised that the road was well repaired and the car could be driven safely.But in the end, the closer we got to the countryside, the more bumpy it was.Dad pointed it out to me, saying that he used to catch toads on this bridge, he used to wash rice in this river, he used to sit on this rock and fish for shrimps, how he got through the hole in the wall of the machine tool factory when he caught shrimps, and stole them. Eat the grilled shrimp with the material that caught fire.The owner of the small shop selling rice wine and sauced meat on the side of the road waved and laughed when he saw Dad.Dad said that this person was the worst chess player in Fangyuan and the most addicted to chess. After three meals in the morning and noon every day, he went around looking for someone to play chess.For country banquets, all the wine and meat are bought from him.

The houses in the country are uneven.Some are made of wood with knee-high thresholds, and some are tile-roofed houses with sweeping doorways.The children played a flat football in the shade.The masters in the kitchen were bustling with each other, and their loud voices spread directly outside the door.The boys were naughty and fired some earthen cannons, which made the girls cry in fright.The master was miserable, so he had to ask the parents to go out and coax him.The parents went out to speak harshly and confiscated all the earth cannons in the boy's pocket.Dad chats with uncles, mom and aunts do household chores, and everyone eats melon seeds, peanuts and candies.Among the distant relatives who came to visit relatives, a young girl with red hands was carrying boiling water to make tea for the elders of the family. When she was praised for her beauty, she blushed and turned and ran away.

At dusk, the sound of dogs barking can be heard far away, and relatives from various families sit around the big round table to eat and drink.If there are not enough glasses, put wine in bowls.The New Year’s food in Jiangnan is similar to that of normal weddings and banquets. Cold dishes are served first, followed by stir-fried dishes, and vegetables are served after a few dishes with heavy oil and meat. It is very real.The kitchen masters kept yelling the names of the dishes, the adults drank and talked, and the women divided the dishes and put them in the bowls, allowing the short-handed children to eat.After a round of eating, everyone didn't feel hungry, so they started drinking.Give me a toast, and I'll return you a bowl.Men eat meat, women drink soup.The children were full and impatient, running around asking for candy, and looking for the TV remote control to watch cartoons.The banquet could not be separated, and it became a free occasion.Some lazy women sat on the sofa and ate melon seeds.

However, the master cooks carefully one by one.The local vegetables in the country are not very delicate, but they are thick and flavorful, and they are magnificent.At the end of the banquet, I was afraid that everyone would not be full, so I specially made the tails: steamed hoof with dried plums and vegetables, whole chicken soup, etc., it is not a big-bellied man who just looks at it and feels dizzy.At this time, there are not many people who still have the appetite to eat chopsticks, and more people have already gone to drink and talk, or enjoy themselves.The master chefs were invited to the table, served wine and soup, and ate their own meals.They always ate and drank quite reservedly, and if someone praised him for cooking well, he would just smile and say nothing.

After eating the banquet, it was already dark.The men were a little drunk, blushing and went to visit next door with wine.The house next door hadn't finished eating yet, and they hurriedly opened the door when they heard someone knocking on the door. They each patted their shoulders and laughed, talking about missing each other for another year.Lights were hung in front of each house, lest drunk men might fall.The women cleared the tables in the room and began to play cards.Some of the children were tired at this time, some squatted on their mother's lap to watch the game of cards, and some fell asleep on the sofa.A little unwilling to be lonely, I ran to the river from the back door, and heard the sound of geese in the distance.

The men came back full of alcohol, fell on the sofa one by one, drank the tea handed by the women, smoked cigarettes and began to chat about each other's children.When they got excited, they pulled their children over, called elders, and patted their heads like showing off.Those who said they wanted to go home first out of politeness were left behind by the master.Each family opened the card table, and men and women went into battle.Some women pat their children to sleep and help men read cards while knitting.Occasionally there was still a dog barking in the quiet night, and some men who were still drunk stood up, saying that they would beat them to death, and everyone smiled and persuaded them to sit down.

Until it was almost midnight, the host family put snacks on the table.Dishes that are not used for the banquet are simply cleaned up and served with lighter wine, lighter tea, porridge with chicken soup, and some pasta for dessert.The children didn't know how hungry or full they were, so they jumped at the desserts when they saw them.The men and women drank the soup and porridge quite reservedly and politely, and each sighed.The amount of alcohol is not enough. Drink more soup at this age to be healthy.Look at me, I'm fat like a pig.Oh, it's good to be fat, blessed.Neighbors and children who did not set off enough firecrackers and fireworks during the Chinese New Year made the midnight sky colorful, and men and women drank warm porridge and soup, calmly and gently talking about the year.

This is the softest part of a country dinner, and it's the finale. By the next morning, rice balls made with fermented glutinous rice, or rice cakes hidden in porridge, are all sticky and sweet things, without salt and oil, and the routine is light.So in my impression, the New Year’s Eve, the rich and delicious New Year’s Eve dinner, the frequent phone calls and text messages, the dazzling Spring Festival Gala, and the sky full of fireworks are always lively.On the first day of the new year, children who get up early play cannons outside, eat rice porridge, rice cakes and glutinous rice balls, and feel innocent, clean and refreshed. .The New Year's Eve dinner is similar every year, so during the Chinese New Year, you can always go back to the time when you didn't have to think about anything when you were young.