Chapter 10 Zhijiang Duck

Zhijiang is located at the southern foot of the Wuling Mountains and the extension of the eastern part of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. It borders Zhongfang County and Hecheng District in the east, Hongjiang City, Huitong County and Tianzhu County in the south, Xinhuang County and Wanshan Special Zone in the west, and Ma Yang County and Tongren City are known as "the gateway of Yunnan and Guizhou, and the throat of Guizhou and Chu".In ancient times, it belonged to Wuxi Barbarian Land, and it was named after Qu Yuan's "Mrs. Xiang" "Yuan Youzhi Xi Li Youlan". I have heard of the reputation of Zhijiang duck, and I have seen several restaurants in Changsha that serve Zhijiang duck, but I don’t want to eat it, I want to find an opportunity to eat it in the place of origin.I went to Huaihua many times on business trips, but because of the unified arrangement of the reception unit, I couldn't act alone, and I didn't eat Huaihua's Zhijiang duck.This time I went to Huaihua to participate in the pen meeting. Before leaving, I called Chen Yongfen, who had worked in Huaihua for many years. He asked me to finish the pen meeting and stay in Huaihua for two days.He also told me that he found a restaurant in Huaihua that serves premium Zhijiang duck, and he will clean up the dust for me there.

Zhijiang Duck, also known as Purple Ginger Duck and Aberdeen Ginger Duck, is a specialty food in Zhijiang, Huaihua, Yuanling and other places in western Hunan.With a long history and unique flavor, it has been enduring for hundreds of years. It is a traditional banquet dish and the best main dish for Huaihua people to entertain foreign guests. The Wushui area of ​​the Yuanjiang River is rich in teal ducks, mainly shelducks raised on rice bran.Zhijiang folk song says: "Osmanthus fragrans is fragrant and pomegranate is red. On August 15th, duck males are killed. The boss eats duck heads and feet, and the wings are waiting for long-term workers." The duck-eating culture in Zhijiang is prosperous and unique.Eating duck pays attention to three parts: duck wings, duck head, and duck feet. It is commonly known as "flying and jumping", and it is also called "three heroes on the table". It is used to entertain distinguished guests and close relatives.Since the Yuan Dynasty, Zhijiang people must eat fried duck during the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Double Ninth Festival, and present the cooked duck products to relatives and friends.

In late spring and April in Zhijiang, the river water gradually warms up, and duck breeders will appear.In rural market towns, ducklings are on the market, and vendors carry the newly hatched ducklings and sell them through the streets and alleys.Duck farmers selected duck seedlings and started a year of duck herding. They carried long pennies on their shoulders, strolled in the fields and river beaches, lived in the wind, slept in the open, exposed to the sun and rain, and stayed with the ducks all day long.In the seventh month of the lunar calendar, after the early rice is purchased, the duck farmers drive the ducks into the rice fields to pick up the scattered grains, and the ducks grow rapidly.The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, the ducklings are just over a catty, the female ducks have not yet started to crow, and the male ducks have not yet plumped up. They are ideal ducklings.Duck farmers tie ducks with straw and transport them to market towns for sale, and farmers buy them for festivals.

Zhijiang people like to eat not only young ducks, but also adult ducks. The net weight of two-year-old ducks is about two and a half catties, not more than three catties.Zhijiang people use the temperature difference between autumn and winter and Zhicao spices to make ducks that cannot be imitated.In autumn and winter in Zhijiang, the local temperature, humidity, and wind speed are different from those in neighboring counties. The wild Zhijiang grass is very lush and exudes a strange fragrance. People in Zhijiang kill ducks and are used to keeping duck blood.After the duck is killed, cut off the duck's feet, clean them, do not scald them with boiling water, and keep the skin of the duck's feet.Then scald the duck with boiling water, pull out the duck feathers, wash the duck body, cut open the front chest, take out the viscera, remove the duck liver, rinse with water, and cut the duck body into one-inch cubes.Add some pork belly, cut into quarters.Ingredients Ginger and red pepper are cut into pieces, scallions are divided into roots, and tied into knots.Stir-fry the duck feet, duck head and viscera first, then crisp up.Put the duck pieces and pork belly into the pot, stir-fry with tea oil, and fry until the water is dry, until golden brown.Add duck blood, stir-fry until chestnut color.Put the broth and simmer over low heat until the duck meat is crispy, add rice wine and stir-fry, sprinkle with salt, until the fragrance is elegant.Add fresh red pepper, cinnamon, ginger slices, soy sauce, sweet sauce, simmer for ginger aroma, and add MSG.Just before leaving the pan, add ox horn onions and cook for a while.People in Zhijiang roast duck, there are four generals: ginger, green onion, red pepper, pepper, pepper is the main hemp, red pepper is spicy, ginger is removed, and green onion is fragrant; ginger is golden, pepper is red, and green onion is bright green. , the pepper is bright.

According to folklore, Qianlong's southern tour passed through Yuanzhou Mansion (Zhijiang). Someone was making Zhijiang duck. He smelled the fragrance and was very refreshed. He followed the smell to find it. As a tribute, it has been widely circulated since then.In the Qing Dynasty, West Lake made Taiwan Weiwuzhuang, transferred to Yunnan and Guizhou to work, passed Yuanzhou, tasted the fried Zhijiang duck of Sanmenzi, and praised it, and confirmed the four characteristics of Zhijiang duck: crispy, crispy and spicy. The taste that is not greasy has been passed down to this day. After I finished the pen meeting, I stayed in Huaihua for two days before returning to Changsha.On the first night, brother Chen Yongfen entertained me with Zhijiang duck.Seeing the Zhijiang duck served, the strips are neat, the oil is shiny, and the duck meat is bright yellow, which is very dazzling.I couldn't help but moved my chopsticks, first picked up a wing, the fragrance was wafting, the skin color was bright, I took a bite, the skin was crispy and the meat was tender, tender and delicious.I mobilized all the taste senses in my mouth and tasted the duck wings. The taste is extremely fresh, crispy and spicy, oily but not greasy, and has a unique taste.I ate several yuan in a row, but couldn't stop talking. Chen snickered at it.So far, aftertaste, are superb.

Brother Chen Yongfen told me that he had been working in Huaihua for several years, and he often went to Zhijiang County with his colleagues to look for the authentic Zhijiang duck restaurant.After dinner, we talked about some legends and stories about Zhijiang Duck in the hotel before we left.