Is there anyone who knows how to eat pork better than people from Northeast China?

When you mention Northeastern cuisine, what image comes to your mind?

Is it the pig-killing dish with snow flying outside the window and the fire burning brightly on the stove?

Is it when you push open the door of a delicatessen in the winter, wipe the mist off your glasses, and see a huge basin filled with a mountain of sticky, steaming pig’s trotters?

Is it a dish of braised pork intestines with shiny starch, clean and white color, but cooked to the extreme of sweetness?

Or a pot of big bones with elastic tendons, thick fat and bright cream?

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The Northeast is vast, and Northeastern cuisine is even more all-encompassing.

But if you take a closer look, you will find that there are only a few classic dishes that cannot be avoided, including chicken stewed with mushrooms, goose stewed with sauerkraut, and Demoli stewed fish.

The ingredients of all the other Northeastern delicacies that are strong, authentic and unforgettable are almost all taken from pigs.

As the world's undisputed largest pig-eating country, pork is almost the most important animal ingredient in the food customs of most parts of China.

The Northeast is definitely an extremely important area on China's pork-eating map.

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Northeastern people eat pork in a rich, exquisite, vigorous and satisfying way.

You can taste the subtle flavor of the high-quality pork fat that lingers on your tongue for three days with a long aftertaste, and you can taste the warmth and tenderness of the vast snowfields and dotted villages.

The most important thing is that pigs in the Northeast menu are not limited to pig-killing dishes and sweet and sour pork - the Northeastern people and Northeastern chefs have a deep understanding of pigs that actually far exceeds the cognition of most outsiders.

02

Are people from Northeast China rough?

They eat pigs more delicately than anyone else.

There are many words in Northeastern dialect that come from Manchu, such as "maidan" (to be in a daze), "guo" (to suck), "zhengjing" (to be in a daze), etc. If you take a quick inventory, you will find an interesting phenomenon:

That is, most of the Manchu words in the Northeastern dialect are relatively complex verbs, adverbs or verb-object phrases. And the few nouns that remain are almost all used to describe the parts of a pig.

The Manchu term most familiar to people in Northeast China is probably "Galaha", which is a small bone on the knee joint of animals such as pigs.

In the eyes of the ancestors of the Tungusic people, it is the most spiritual bone in the body of animals.

Jurchen generals used it to demonstrate military formations, shamans and witch doctors used it for divination, and in modern times, the pig's Galaha has gradually become an important game prop for children in Northeast China.

I remember when I was a kid, when my family was stewing big pork elbows or I was eating pork elbows in a restaurant, if the elderly found the fatter part of the pork elbow on the plate, they would always think of taking the Galaha off and leaving it for me.

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But I already had a lot of toys at that time, and Galaha had no special appeal to me, so the warmth of the elders was often in vain.

But to this day, when I eat pork elbows, it has become an instinct to observe whether it is the front elbow or the back elbow and judge whether the galaha can be removed.

Then there is "nangnanglu", which is the fat on the pig's belly. It is the worst meat on the pig and is specially named for it as a warning and to avoid danger.

Today, its scope of reference is no longer limited to pigs. Every man in Northeast China tries his best to avoid being described as "full of lumps" by his wife.

There is also "Halaba", which is the meat on the pig shoulder blade.

Old-school Northeastern chefs usually cook the halaba with the bones, then tear the boneless meat into strips and pile them next to the bones.

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A few old friends took chopsticks, picked up the meat slowly and dipped it in garlic sauce. The more they chewed, the more they could taste the most advanced flavor of pork, and the perfect balance of the three textures of fat, lean and tendon.

The reason why Manchu language subdivides the various parts of the pig so precisely is that for thousands of years, pigs have been the most important domestic animal for the Manchu people.

These Manchu "pig nouns" that are preserved in modern Northeastern dialect and are still quite vital today are enough to prove that modern Northeastern people, composed of immigrants from Guandong, have actually inherited the long-standing pig-eating culture of the indigenous people of this land.

In fact, contrary to the stereotype that Northeasterners are careless, rough and generous, they are more meticulous and particular than anyone else when it comes to eating pork.

Among all the parts of the pig, the Northeastern people's favorite is the diaphragm, which is called "heart-protecting meat" in Northeastern dialect, and "oil edge" in Shenyang.

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As the name suggests, this part is wrapped by a layer of elastic and crispy fascia, and the lean meat is filled with rich fat texture, which is first-class in both chewiness and flavor.

For those who understand Northeastern cuisine, when they go out to a restaurant and have a drink, one dish that is absolutely indispensable is pork heart with spicy peppers. The aroma of soy sauce cooked over high heat and the stir-fried pork heart with a slightly crispy texture blend perfectly, which is a great choice for both wine and rice.

Heart meat can also be used for barbecue. A major feature of Liaoning barbecue is the grilled oil edges. The large skewers of oil edges are grilled with a sizzling sound, and are crispy and delicious when bitten, which is very satisfying.

In the Xita BBQ restaurants in Shenyang that incorporate Korean style, the whole edge of the barbecue will be fried on a plate. When it is almost cooked, it will be cut with large scissors and dipped in barbecue sauce, which has another flavor.

Speaking of barbecue, Hegang barbecue, which has been popular in the north in recent years, is actually very good at the fine cutting of pork.

When local people in Hegang eat barbecue, they must order not only the timeless classic "Fat and Lean" (with sugar), but also the soft and glutinous skin, tender pork belly, chewy raw and cooked tendons, and bone marrow.

The bone marrow is particularly worth mentioning. It is almost never seen in barbecues other places. The chefs use some unknown method to extract the bone marrow and roast it in a solidified state until it is charred and fragrant. It really melts in your mouth and is full of fatty aroma.

In some Jinzhou barbecue restaurants, the store will provide a whole roasted pig (pig spleen).

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The long and narrow piece is put on a trident-shaped steel skewer, roasted until it oozes oil, sprinkled with barbecue seasoning and salt, and small cuts are made around it. People in Jinzhou call it the "big sword", and it tastes crispy and fragrant.

It is not easy to bake conjoined food, as there is only a fine line between undercooked and burnt.

When pigs are slaughtered in rural Northeast China, the conjoined pigs are usually taken away by children, buried in the ashes under the stove, roasted until hard and crispy, and then taken out, the ashes are blown off, and the children run to share the pigs with their friends.

This is a very secret and precious memory for children in rural Northeast China, but it has probably been lost long ago.

Siamese fried dumplings are also an indispensable dish among the three fried dishes that are served with drinks in the old-fashioned Northeast.

The so-called three fried things, namely cockscomb oil, pork loin and pork kidney, are fried in cockscomb oil in a very precise proportion until crispy, and then served on a plate.

At this time, the oil residue is crispy with a little softening of the fat inside. The pork loin is responsible for balancing the taste of the oil residue, while the pork kidney is responsible for providing a rich flavor.

No one knows who first came up with this wonderful combination, but there is no doubt that among the many snacks to go with alcohol in Northeast China, the fried three dishes still rank among the top three.

02

From the big iron pot to the western food table:

Northeastern people's pork dishes span the entire Eurasian continent

When it comes to Northeastern people’s cooking of pork, the most classic scene is a big iron pot bubbling with steam. After clearing away the steam, you can see a lot of sauerkraut, meat, bones and blood sausage stewed inside...

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In Northeastern dialect, there is a verb called "烀".

"烀" and "汤" are similar in meaning, but the actual linguistic connotations are different:

Stewing is just boiling, while braising has to be done over high heat and for a long time. For example, boiled potatoes must be boiled until they are soft and tender, and boiled pork elbows must be extremely soft.

A pot of stew can only be called "boiled" when it is stewed to a sticky and unrecognizable "overcooked" state (that's why people in Northeast China always say stewed fish instead of boiled fish).

When it comes to pork, stewing is obviously the safest choice for old-fashioned Northeasterners. The ancient Jurchens also liked to stew pork the most.

After the Qing Dynasty entered the Central Plains, in order to express respect for ancestors, during sacrifices, they had to use a large iron pot to boil pork without adding salt.

After the crucial sacrifice, the pork had to be eaten by those who participated in the sacrifice. The princes and ministers at that time were miserable, and some even secretly smeared salt, white soy sauce, etc. on the pork. Some people were even punished for this.

The old Beijing restaurant "Shaguoju" is famous in the capital for its casserole pork dish. The ingredient is pork boiled in large amounts of water that flows from the palace and royal palaces.

In the pig-killing banquets in Northeast China, all parts of the pig can be braised.

That’s right, even pork liver, which has always been praised by Chinese people for its smoothness and tenderness, will be boiled in a big pot until it becomes hard first and then soft, and finally broken or sliced ​​by hand.

Although it has lost its tenderness, the pork liver at this time has acquired a magical texture and an extremely rich aroma. Break off a large piece and chew it until your mouth is full of fragrance. Pair it with a bite of the big fat meat dipped in garlic sauce, and you will instantly feel like heaven.

In addition to braising, steaming is also a relatively primitive way of cooking pigs used by people in Northeast China.

In addition to steaming the marinated lean meat and eating it with rice, the most classic dish is steamed pig blood.

When slaughtering a pig, a large basin of fresh pig blood is prepared with seasonings, and a large amount of soybean oil and eggs are poured into it. The steamed pig blood will have a honeycomb-like structure in some areas inside, indicating a successful production.

This kind of pig blood is extremely tender, and the aroma of chopped green onions, pig blood and cooked soybean oil are indistinguishable. It is one of the most popular dishes at the pig-killing banquet.

Steamed pig blood is as smooth and tender as steamed egg cake.

In addition to these relatively rough and primitive pork cooking techniques, Northeastern people have actually introduced a lot of refined Shandong cuisine elements into their pork dishes.

You should know that Shandong people, as the main component of the immigrants who went to Guandong, brought a lot of classic Shandong cuisine techniques to the foundation of Northeastern cuisine. The most common Northeastern dishes in restaurants, such as braised pork slices and dry-fried (soft-fried) pork tenderloin, actually make full use of the Shandong cuisine's technique of "coating with batter and frying twice in high and low oil temperatures".

However, when these dishes were introduced to Northeast China, the pieces of meat and vegetables became larger and the flavors became wilder, and slowly they became independent Shandong cuisine and established their own school.

There is also a more extreme Shandong cuisine dish in Northeastern restaurants - crispy white meat.

The so-called crispy white meat, in simple terms, is fat meat that has been sugar-coated.

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Strips of fresh fat meat (note: it must be pure fat meat, not a bit lean) are treated like sweet potatoes, fried in a pan until they are shaped, then rolled repeatedly and coated with syrup.

Later chefs also liked to sprinkle colorful cheap chocolate crumbs on the dish before serving, which was so addictive that it could be called the number one "dark dish" in Northeast China.

This dish actually requires a lot of effort to prepare, and was very popular during difficult times. However, as people became more and more hungry, this dish gradually faded out of history.

When it comes to processing pig offal, Northeastern cuisine also has the essence of Shandong cuisine.

For example, the selection of ingredients and seasoning of stir-fried pork intestines, stir-fried tripe slices, stir-fried liver tips, stir-fried three kinds of pork, and stir-fried kidney are bolder than traditional Shandong cuisine. Dry-fried dishes such as dry-fried lungs and dry-fried tripe strips seem to have borrowed techniques from Sichuan cuisine.

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In short, they all bring the irresistible aroma of pig offal to a critical point, and every northeastern city has several restaurants specializing in pig offal.

These small shops are all doing surprisingly good business and are packed every day, which shows the Northeastern people's love for pig offal.

In addition to the local traditional stewing, frying and sautéing techniques of traditional Chinese cuisine, due to the existence of Harbin, a special large city in the Northeast, the way Northeastern people cook pork has also been strongly influenced by Europeans.

The most typical "Russian fusion Northeastern dish" is sweet and sour pork . The frying technique of the meat is naturally based on Shandong cuisine, but its flavor was actually improved by the master chef at that time to suit the tastes of Russian guests.

Large slices of fried meat are coated with sweet sauce and finally cooked with coriander, garlic slices and vinegar to create a wonderful sweet and sour taste. It is a perfect example of Chinese and Western fusion cuisine.

This dish has now become No. 1 in the popularity ranking of Northeastern cuisine. Behind it, it actually integrates the very unique geographical and historical background of the Northeast.

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Making sausages is an ancient custom of Europeans eating pork. Today, this eating custom has been deeply integrated into the life of many northeastern cities, represented by Harbin.

Harbin red sausage, a European-style sausage with garlic and pork as main ingredients, is now undoubtedly a "Northeast specialty".

Walk into any Northeastern delicatessen and you will see, on the iron plates on the counter, large pork elbows and pork heads that have been boiled until soft and smoked with tea, as well as mountains of sausages.

When these things are placed together, they are all bright red in color and there is no sense of incongruity. However, few people know that their place of origin actually spans the entire Eurasian continent.

Source: Authentic Scenery

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