Chapter 16 First time drinking soy juice

Twenty years have passed since I drank soy juice for the first time until I really liked it. At the end of the 1950s or the beginning of the 1960s, I can’t remember clearly now, Mr. Zhang Xueming, the younger brother of General Zhang Xueliang, came to Beijing from Tianjin.He was a member of the United Front, and he seemed to be the director of the Tianjin Garden Bureau at that time. After arriving in Beijing, he lived in Dongsibatiao Zhuzhai, which was the home of Mr. Zhu Qiling, the chief of transportation and acting prime minister of the Beiyang government. Mr. Zhu Qiqian was still alive at that time. .Mr. Zhang Xueming is the son-in-law of Mr. Zhu Qiqian, and Mr. Zhu Haibei is his uncle.The younger sisters of Zhang Xueliang and Zhang Xueming are also my great-uncles, so Zhang Xueming always comes to my house when he comes to Beijing.One afternoon, Mr. Zhang Xueming and Mr. Zhu Haibei came to see my grandmother. After chatting for a while, Mr. Zhu Haibei said that Mr. Zhang Xueming was going to Longfu Temple to drink bean juice.At that time we lived in Dongsi, not far from Longfu Temple.Although my family has lived in Beijing for a long time, no one in the family can accept the taste of soybean juice, so I have never drank soybean juice.Zhu and Zhang stood up to say goodbye, and I happened to be playing in the room, Mr. Zhang Xueming suddenly asked me if I had any soy milk, and I said no.Mr. Zhang Xueming and General Zhang Xueliang were exactly the opposite in shape. One was fat and the other was thin.When he heard me say that he had never drank soybean juice, he became anxious and said, "That won't work, you must go to drink soybean juice with us today."Although I have never drank soy milk, I often hear people mention it, thinking that it must be similar to soy milk and sweet, so I readily agree to go with them.

At that time, Longfu Temple still had a mountain gate, and the people's market was inside the mountain gate, which was divided into two large sales halls, east and west.On the west side of the West Goods Yard are the West Side Hall and Veranda in the temple. At that time, they sold some Beijing-style snacks.Soybean juice is usually sold in the afternoon, just after it is boiled, it is drunk with Jiaoquaner and shredded pickles.When the bean juice was brought to the table, I was dumbfounded. There was a bowl of gray-green things in front of me. I smelt it with my nose. It was sour and rancid. I wondered if it was bean juice... because it was too far from my imagination. .I excused that it was too hot, so I didn't drink it first, but I wanted to see how the two of them spent it.Unexpectedly, the two of them picked up the bowl very peacefully and naturally, drank slowly and gracefully, and ate some coke rings and pickles from time to time.It took a long time, and there was no reason not to drink it because it was too hot, so I had to bite the bullet and take a sip. The taste was a bit like vinegar, and there was a smell of rancidity, which was really hard to swallow.At this time, Mr. Zhang stared at me and said, "What's the matter? That's the taste, it's delicious."

In front of two people who are two generations older than me, I couldn't think of any reason to shirk it, so I had to hold my breath and drink it one sip at a time. After drinking the last sip, it was like an amnesty.Then there was a burst of nausea, I almost vomited, and I just used a focal circle to suppress it.Mr. Zhu Haibei only drank one bowl. It's hard to say whether he really likes to drink, or if he "sacrifices his life to accompany a gentleman".Twenty years later, Mr. Zhang drank one bowl and then another. It was a worthwhile trip. I was either ten or eleven that year.

After about twenty years, that is, around 1979, I went to Liulichang and passed Xinhua Street at two or three o'clock in the afternoon.There is a shop in Xinhua Street that specializes in soybean juice, which is well-known in the capital, and many friends have introduced it to me.But because of the impression of twenty years ago, I really didn't have the courage to taste it.Just passing by, do you want to try again?Besides, I have tasted a lot of ups and downs in the world in the past twenty years, and my taste will change.As I was hesitating, I ran into a familiar Peking opera actor who enthusiastically pulled me in and told me that he would come every day at this hour.

A bowl of bean juice was served, steaming, he took a mouthful of the bowl, I also tried to taste it, the taste was acceptable.The actor then talked a lot about soybean juice, from its production and process, to the details of soybean juice, when to drink it, how to drink it, and the benefits of soybean juice.As I listened and drank, the taste of soybean juice gradually changed in my mouth.After drinking a bowl, there is a feeling of sweetness in the mouth, and the aftertaste is wonderful.He suggested another bowl, which I readily agreed to.Since then, the bean juice has tasted better.It seems that after twenty years of vicissitudes, people's tastes will change.

Beijing's bean juice is made by soaking mung beans, grinding them into a paste, and then fermenting them.It is hard work to boil bean juice, you have to stir it while cooking, and the heat should be just right, so that the bean juice will make the bean quality and water become one, not thin or thick.Sometimes in some stores, it is found that the bean quality and water are decomposed, which is the reason for the poor cooking.In addition to the one outside Heping, I have also drank soybean juice from Shichahai Lotus Market and Xicheng Huguo Temple Snack Bar, and the quality is considered good.

Apart from Beijing, I have not seen soy sauce sold in any city. There is a shop in Taipei that specializes in Beijing snacks, called "Jing Zhao Yin", I don't know if it makes soy sauce.The late writer Mr. Liang Shiqiu lived in Taipei for many years, thinking about Beijing's bean juice day and night, so presumably "Jing Zhaoyin" may not have this product, or it is not authentic. There have been quite a few disputes over the question of what kind of pickles are suitable for drinking soybean juice.Some people wrote an article saying that to drink soybean juice, you need pickles, such as Babao pickles, braised shrimp dishes, and pickled radishes. For this reason, Mr. Aixinjueluo Yingsheng, a Beijing folklore expert, was very angry. He thought this was "nonsense" "You can never just drink soy sauce with pickles, and there has never been a thing about pickles, only very finely chopped pickled lumps.Carefully recalling the first time I drank bean juice, it seemed to be Korean spicy rice with sesame seeds. The next time I see Mr. Yingsheng, I will ask for advice in person.