yam eggs have different names in different regions of China. They are called potatoes in Northeast China, Hebei and Northwest Hubei, yam eggs in North China, yams in Southwest China and Hubei, yams or yams in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, yams in Guangdong, Dutch yams in East Fujian.
According to the data, yam eggs originated in the Andes of South America, and the history of artificial cultivation can be traced back to the southern part of Peru from about 8 BC to 5 BC. It is only 3 years since yam eggs were introduced into China.
The original yield of yam eggs was not high, and they could only grow in the alpine region where naked oats (naked oats) were grown. After being introduced to China, they were quickly popularized in the temperate regions such as Inner Mongolia, Hebei, Shanxi, and northwestern Shaanxi, so the yield increased greatly. Yam eggs, corn, sweet potato and other high-yield crops imported from America became the main food of the poor class of human beings, which played an important role in maintaining the rapid increase of population in China. Because yam eggs are easy to grow, preserve and transport, which is very suitable for China's national conditions, they quickly became popular in China and became one of the main vegetables in people's lives.
The main producing areas of China yam eggs are Dingxi City, Southwest China, Inner Mongolia and Northeast China. In 212, "Dingxi Potato" has won the well-known trademark of China.
yam likes cold eggs, and it is a crop that likes low temperature. The formation and growth of underground potato blocks need a loose, breathable, cool and humid soil environment.
the average elevation of heshun county is 13m, with complex terrain and high mountains and strong winds. Spring is as cold as winter, summer is not full of heat, autumn is frosty, and snow falls in early winter. The frost-free period is only 119 days. Therefore, Heshun's geographical conditions and climate conditions are particularly suitable for planting yam eggs, and the yam eggs produced are large oval, smooth, free from pests and diseases, natural green, good in appearance and taste, and are well received by the masses.
Spring is the season of sowing, so it is natural to start the first process of planting yam eggs, that is, to prepare the seeds of yam eggs, which is called "carving yam seeds" by shunren. Try to choose a big and full yam egg and cut it into small pieces with a knife to ensure that there is at least one bud on each piece, because yam eggs are asexual and can be planted directly in the ground.
It takes about 2-3 days from sowing to emergence of yam eggs. During this period, special management is not needed, and the labor of thinning and weeding is not too large, but the process of applying farmyard manure (or chemical fertilizer) is essential. Yam eggs are not afraid of drought. If it is not a year when rain and waterlogging are a disaster, then farmers can wait for the autumn harvest.
"The yam egg is a treasure in the treasure, and a meal is indispensable", which is the most true portrayal for the Shun people before 197s and 198s. The breakfast "San Mian porridge" is served with shredded yam egg with sauerkraut, and the yam egg pieces are also cooked in the San Mian porridge, and the dry food for lunch is corn noodles or millet noodles, and soup rice.
yam eggs are both vegetables and grains, which are unique and rare among human edible crops. Because yam eggs are omnipotent, there are countless cooking methods. The methods of yam eggs are simple and varied, such as shredding, slicing, slicing and dicing, roasting, boiling, steaming, rinsing, frying and frying, braising in soy sauce, stir-frying in a dry pan, drawing silk and cold salad, cooking with Chinese cabbage, beans, green peppers, eggplant and eggs, matching with braised pork, beef, mutton, spareribs, chicken nuggets and fish, and curry.
I remember that during the commune period, when the members were harvesting autumn, they took a break and baked yam eggs in the fields with Hosta stalks and other firewood. Shunren also called them "baked yam eggs" (it is often "baked" in the fire at home). When the fragrant smell of yam eggs was mixed with firewood and scattered in the fields, people could not wait to shine from Mars. It's a long story. In my father-in-law's boyhood (195s), due to his poor family, he was short of food and drink. In summer and autumn, when the crops were not mature, he went to the field to dig some yam eggs or break off a few spikes of Hosta, and then cooked them with fire. When he was a child, he ate too much of this half-baked yam egg Hosta, which gave birth to stomach trouble, stomachache and sour water. Later, he could not eat too much for the rest of his life.
In the 196s and 197s in Heshun, the simplest and most representative way to eat yam eggs was to steam yam eggs (preferably "yellow inside and outside" varieties) in a steamer or bake them by a high fire, then put two or three of them in a bowl (depending on the size of yam eggs), cut them into pieces with chopsticks, and eat them with seasonings such as salty salt, chopped green onion, Chili noodles and sesame oil. Now some restaurants have mashed potatoes, which can be regarded as inheriting the food culture of yam eggs. Besides, this way of eating also preserves the nutritional value of yam eggs to the greatest extent.
in the early 197s, when I was a preschool child, I followed my adults to attend my grandfather's funeral activities. All the filial sons and daughters contributed sacrificial meals, which were called "serving meals". When a dish of golden fried meatballs reached me, I couldn't stand the temptation of the tangy smell, so I stole one, tasted it carefully, and realized that it was made of mashed yam eggs. Later, I asked my mother to fry the mountain with salt and pepper.
When it comes to Heshun's traditional meals, almost all of them are closely related to yam eggs. Not to mention shredded Chinese sauerkraut and yam eggs, shredded fried yam, toppings of various wheaten foods, steamed vegetables, shredded yam, and noodle tea soup are all inseparable from it, but many staple foods, such as paste du (it is available in both noodles with jade and oat), stir-fried seeds, pancakes with jade noodles, and stuffing of yellow wheat vegetable cakes, are all closely related to yam eggs.
In the last century, every household in Heshun rural area had to prepare two or three vats (vats) of pickled cabbage and a cellar full of yam eggs in autumn. As an important dish in the daily diet for a year, they were eaten from August in autumn (the lunar calendar) to May, July and June in the next year. At this time, yam eggs in the cellar germinated vigorously with the rapid warming of the weather, and hardworking mothers. All the remaining yam eggs in the cellar are carried to the ground with a basket, the buds are cleaned up, the rotten ones are picked out, the small yam eggs are made into rotten seeds, and the big ones are put back in the vegetable cellar for storage, and the new yam eggs are grafted until June of the lunar calendar.
Heshun people love to eat yam eggs, and they can't live without them almost every day. Yam eggs have no slim figure, bright appearance and beautiful shape. When "beans are fun for you", "garlic is cruel for you" and "ginger is army for you" come one after another, the prices of mung beans, garlic and ginger have skyrocketed by ten times or even dozens of times in different years and at different times, far exceeding the price of meat. However, yam eggs rely on its all-inclusive characteristics and the prices of civilians.
according to research, yam eggs are rich in vitamin c and trace elements of potassium and manganese. Moreover, protein has high nutritional value, its quality is equivalent to protein of eggs, and it is easy to digest and absorb, which is superior to protein of other crops. Moreover, protein contains 18 kinds of amino acids, including various essential amino acids that the human body cannot synthesize. Among them, mucilage is decomposed into nourishing protein and carbohydrate in the body, and amylase can hydrolyze starch into glucose, which is one of the sources of energy needed by the body.
yam egg tuber is rich in dietary fiber and potassium salt, which belongs to alkaline food. According to some data, its content is as much as that of apples. Therefore, the gastrointestinal tract absorbs potatoes slowly. After eating potatoes, it stays in the intestines for much longer than rice, so it is more full, and it can also help take away some oil and garbage, which has a certain laxative and detoxification effect.
in Yunnan, China, yam eggs are more popular. Yunnan calls the yam egg "potato", which is a rare red-skinned variety. In Kunming dialect, there is a saying: Eat potato, eldest children (meaning eat potato more, men are handsome and women are beautiful). People in Yunnan have a special affection for potato. There are many ways to make potato in Yunnan, and there are many vendors selling potato in the streets. Many wanderers who go back to Yunnan eat potato the most besides rice noodles. Such as fried potato, old milk potato, potato Baba, steamed potato, baked potato, stewed rice in copper pot, potato chips for children, potato with cow excrement, flowering potato, spicy potato strips, dry-baked potato shreds, etc. Yunnan can be described as a place where yam eggs are eaten.
yam eggs are also very valuable abroad, and they are known as "underground apples", "local pears", "second bread" and "perfect food". American agricultural experts believe that potatoes have more advantages than rice and noodles. Eating only potatoes and whole milk at every meal can get all the food elements needed by the human body.
French fries and potato chips, which are popular all over the world, should be attributed to global fast food chain enterprises such as McDonald's and KFC, which have brought the dietary function of yam eggs to the extreme, allowing people to enjoy various flavors of French fries and chips while reading books, watching TV and playing games. It is said that the origin of potato chips of McDonald's enterprises in China is Inner Mongolia.
yam eggs not only lead the food culture, but also have a school of modern novels in China called "yam egg school", which was formed from 195s to mid-196s. They are writers born and raised in Shanxi rural areas, represented by Zhao Shuli, and have a deep foundation of rural life. This is probably the only literary school named after vegetables in the world.
Like Mr. Zhao Shuli, Yam Egg and Yam Egg School belong not only to Shanxi and China, but also to all mankind!
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