The "flag" of local snacks
In the past, scraps that ordinary people bought to satisfy their cravings have now become the "flag" of local snacks in our province.
At 1:30 every afternoon, the small restaurant opened by Lu Shuixiang on Rende Road will be a little empty. What she has to do at this time is to marinate the rabbit heads, duck heads, duck paws, etc. that will be used in the evening and the next day. "It takes about three hours to braise it. Almost every restaurant has these things, and many customers come here just for the 'three heads and one palm'." On the afternoon of December 14, she looked at the duck heads in the stainless steel braised pot. He told reporters about the marinating situation. As soon as the lid of the pot is opened, a rich aroma of braised food comes out. "What makes duck heads and rabbit heads pay attention to the ingredients is the ingredients, including good fennel, orange peel, pepper, cinnamon, rice wine and other auxiliary ingredients, and the 'old soup' is used to simmer for a long time. The method of making fish heads is a little different, usually Chop the peppers or braise them," Lu Shuixiang said.
Lu Shuixiang’s small restaurant is called "Daoxiang Pai Dong" and has a history of 10 years. "The busiest time is at night, and sometimes hundreds of duck heads are sold a day." Lu Shuixiang said that some customers even drive here from Shanghai. When the New Year comes, more people from Quzhou who work in other places return to their hometowns. The small restaurant is often packed to the brim.
Although the weather is a bit cold, Lu Shuixiang still prepares these special snacks as usual and waits for the guests to arrive. The mist from the stainless steel pot bypasses the sign at the entrance of the store and brings the aroma to the street. "The old soup I use has been used for 10 years. Every time the soup is low, I add some rice wine, but I have never changed the recipe. As long as it can attract customers, I will not change this special taste." Lu Shuixiang said.
There are more than 7,000 catering units of various sizes in Quzhou. Walking on the streets of Qucheng, you will see scenes similar to Lu Shuixiang’s shop in many small restaurants and food stalls. There is a stove in front of the door, with a large iron pot on it, red pepper floating on the surface, thick old soup in the pot, rabbit heads, duck heads, duck paws, etc. lined up in the pot, giving off a unique and rich aroma. Flowing on the streets.
How did the originally unknown "Three Heads and One Palm" come to be known step by step and become famous all over the world? Its origin is actually not glamorous, but was born out of people's poor life at that time.
Starting in the 1950s, there was a freezing factory in Shuangshuiqiao, Qucheng, specializing in killing rabbits. Residents would buy rabbit heads for 3 cents per catty and burn them to eat. After eating the rabbit heads, they would dry the bones and sell them for 7 cents per catty. The money from selling the bones would be used to buy rabbit heads to eat. Since then, the custom of eating rabbit heads has become popular in Quzhou. "'Three heads and one palm' is a unique element and symbol of Quzhou. Quzhou people's habit of eating 'three heads and one palm' was formed at that time. First there were braised rabbit heads, and later there were duck heads and duck heads. Mao Xianlong, deputy general manager of Yilizhi Food Co., Ltd.
With the improvement of people's living standards, in the 1980s and 1990s, the number of food stalls and small restaurants in the streets and alleys of Qucheng gradually increased, and the "leftovers" that residents originally bought for home cooking began to Become the flagship brand of late night snacks.
Since the late 1990s, "Three Heads and One Palm" has blossomed everywhere in Quzhou and has really become "popular". On summer nights, the food stalls in Qucheng are always more popular than big hotels. Ordering a few side dishes, a few rabbit heads, and drinking cold beer, customers go to these places to enjoy the hearty feeling brought by tasting "three heads and one palm".
As more and more people from Quzhou traveled north and south, Quzhou’s “three heads and one palm” were brought outside to take root. Coupled with the high pressure of modern urban life, a trend of eating spicy food has gradually emerged in the north and south of the country. "Three Heads and One Palm" has also taken advantage of this spicy trend to become popular in large and small cities. Especially in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou and other places where Quzhou has a large number of people, there are many restaurants with Quzhou's signature. Walking in the streets and alleys of Hangzhou, if you are not careful, you will come across a small restaurant owned by Quzhou people. It is not large in area, but because it serves "three heads and one palm", it is often crowded with customers who come here for it.
Neither the nobility of local cuisine nor the fashion of Western catering, Quzhou's "three heads and one palm" has its own world. Today, "Quzhou Rabbit Head" is on par with famous products such as "Jinhua Ham" and "Jiaxing Wufangzhai Zongzi", and is included in the "Top Ten Famous Snacks in Zhejiang".
The "ugly duckling" has made a beautiful turn
On the basis of retaining the original flavor as much as possible, the city's catering institutions and production enterprises have made innovative articles on the "three heads and one palm" .
Once upon a time, "three heads and one palm" was just an "ugly duckling" on the dining table of ordinary people's homes. With the development of the catering industry, Quzhou's "three heads and one palm" now has not only improved in terms of intrinsic quality A new leap forward, becoming more elegant. Snacks that were originally unappreciated have not only become special dishes for guests, but also become gifts for people visiting relatives and friends.
The Oriental Hotel is a place visited by many guests from other places in Quzhou. Mr. Zhang, the hotel's executive chef, said: "At Oriental Hotel, 'Three Heads and One Palm' is mainly ordered by customers from out of town. In order to promote Quzhou's special snacks, we removed the rabbit head from 'Three Heads and One Palm' , duck head and duck feet are combined together to become a special dish called 'Nankong Special Braised Three Pieces'."
At the same time, some restaurants and food companies with vision and brand awareness began. Make your own brand and develop packaging products.
"Yi Li Zhi" was born in 1989 and began to sell "Three Heads and One Palm" in the 1990s. Since 2003, the "three heads and one palm" vacuum packaging has been launched to make it easier for customers to carry. Starting in 2008, "Yi Li Zhi" established its own production base and began to produce "three heads and one palm" single product packaging, gift box packaging and other products. "Now the output of 'Three Heads and One Palm' reaches about 15 tons per month, which is several times higher than when it was first started. In addition to being sold all over the country, the products have also gone abroad and entered the markets of Japan, South Korea, Singapore and other countries." Mao Xianlong said At present, the company's scale is still expanding, transforming from a single "three heads and one palm" product to a variety of braised products. At this year's Zhejiang Provincial Agricultural Expo, Quzhou Yilizhi Food Co., Ltd.'s sales reached more than 3,000 yuan in two hours at the merchant special session the day before the opening. It took several times to replenish the goods, which shows that Quzhou's "three heads" One Palm” popularity.
Zhang Guoliang, who started from a food stall on Xinqiao Street, now not only owns restaurants, but also sets his sights on packaged products that can be sold in supermarkets. "Last year we registered a trademark and started producing rabbit heads, duck heads and other foods. Now the products are sold in local supermarkets in Jinhua and Quzhou." Zhang Guoliang said.
Bu Laoshen Company, which originally focused on chicken products, solved the problem of difficult packaging of fish heads. Last year, it began to combine the "three heads and one palm" into the "pintoulunzhang" brand. Hundreds of gift boxes are sold every week. "Our rabbit heads, duck heads, and duck paws continue Quzhou's traditional marinating process, and add 28 unique Chinese herbal medicines for both food and medicine." Zheng Huiwen, manager of the company's standards department, said, "Three heads and one palm" are generally It is sold by soaking in soup. The company's production technology makes the taste of the packaged products closer to freshly made. Fu Lao Shen plans to open stores in major tourist attractions in Quzhou in the future and gradually expand to other places.