Mianyang Sanzi is a mature dish that was formed more than 600 years ago and has been continuously polished. It is a famous catering brand that is widely recognized and has driven an industry chain. It is a well-known farm dish in the Jianghan Plain and one of the top ten famous dishes in Hubei. It is an important part and representative work of Hubei cuisine. In October 2010, Mianyang Sanzi was entered into the Hubei Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage List, and is currently applying for a national geographical trademark.
Mianyang Sanzheng is a series of dishes made from aquatic products, poultry, and vegetables as the main raw materials, using powder steaming as the main technique, and using a variety of steaming techniques (steaming, steaming). The dish is named after its origin in Mianyang.
The so-called three steams are steamed pork, steamed fish and steamed vegetables. This was just an early classification. Later, it was divided into three major categories: 1. Aquatic products: represented by steamed catfish, steamed herring, and steamed eel; 2. Livestock and poultry: steamed pork and pearl balls. Representative; 3. Vegetables: represented by steamed snails with chrysanthemum, steamed double vegetables with Tai Chi, and steamed lotus root with powder.
Mianyang Sanzheng has its own distinctive characteristics: 1. It uses a wide range of materials, is simple to operate, and is suitable for mass production; 2. It integrates thin, rolled, rotten and light into one, integrating color, aroma, taste, Nurturing one body. The aroma is fragrant, the meat is fat but not greasy, the fish is tender but not fishy, ??and the vegetables are light but not too rich; 3. It has original flavor, does not compromise nutrition, and is in line with modern health concepts.
There are two main reasons why "Mianyang Three Steamed Dishes" is favored by diners from all over the world: first, its cooking technique coincides with the "rolling, bland, and rotten" principles of Chinese cuisine; second, its unique The irreplaceability of local ingredients. The delicacies steamed by "Mianyang Three Steamings" are first boiled hot due to the power of fierce fire and the breath of beautiful water. In addition, most of the ingredients used in the blending are mainly light. The intention is to be neutral and achieve the mean in water and fire. You can attack, retreat or defend, and because of the careful fire, the steamed things, no matter hard or soft, can be soft and soft, so you can speak comfortably. Because it is rolled, it can stimulate the blood vessels, because it is light, it can adjust the six flavors, and because it is rotten, its true color can be seen. From this, we can see the essence of "Mianyang Three Steams".
"Mianyang three steams" are also an indispensable part of Mianyang folk banquets, such as steamed pork ribs with rice flour, steamed beef with rice flour, steamed herring with rice flour, etc. Generally, when serving steamed vegetables, bowls are used to turn over the dishes, and the sauce is thickened, so there is a saying of "three steamings and nine steamings". Steamed vegetables at banquets are known for being thin, rolled, rotten and light. Rare mainly means that the steamed vegetables should be mixed with good soup, moderately thick and thin, and not too dry; rolling refers to the temperature requirement, "one roll, three delicacies"; rotten means The texture requirements of the finished dish; since the steamed rice dish is a mouth-filling dish, the taste should be light but not salty. The general characteristics of "Mianyang Sanzheng" are: fragrant powder, tender and glutinous, original flavor, and not greasy after eating.
Circle steamers are used in folk steaming dishes in Xiantao. This kind of steamer can not only steam rice, but also steam food together. With the firewood stove in rural areas, the steamed vegetables taste the most delicious. Most hotels use small steamers to serve meals. Traditional steamers are generally about 17 centimeters in diameter, small and refined, and are commonly known as "stack baskets." Restaurants in the streets and alleys of Mianyang cities and towns usually have a large steamer with a large wooden basin with three small round holes on top. Each small round steam hole has multiple layers of small steamers, commonly known as "鏂子 steaming". Steam rises and fragrance fills the streets. The so-called hoe is a round hole cut on the steam basin that is suitable for placing bamboo cages of various sizes. The cages can be stacked layer by layer on top. The diameter of the bamboo cages is four or six inches, and some stacking cages have more than ten layers.) It was about one meter long, and the scene was quite spectacular! At the beginning, the rice cooker was usually a single pot with a single hole, which had high firepower and sufficient steam, and the raw materials could be taken immediately after steaming. Later, as the business continued to improve, single pots with double holes and single pots with multiple holes were added, with a wide variety of meat and vegetable combinations. Affordable price, random selection, convenience and quickness are the biggest features of 齥子 dishes, which are very popular among the public, such as steamed radish with rice flour, steamed lotus root with rice flour, steamed eel with rice flour, steamed sausage with rice flour and so on.
Mianyang Sanzi only uses simple and plain seasonings to produce authentic flavor characteristics, which is in line with modern people's health concept of light diet. And advocating the use of steaming techniques as a cooking method to prevent the loss of nutrients and achieve the health-preserving purpose of dietary supplements is more suitable for the majority of people's life needs of "delicious food and healthy food". With the development of history to this day, Mianyang cuisine, as an important part of Hubei cuisine, plays an increasingly important role.
After continuous exploration and arrangement by Mianyang chefs of all generations, "Mianyang Three Steamed" has developed newer and faster on the basis of tradition. The "Steamed Dragon Boat Fish", "Steamed Phoenix Fish", "Steamed Squirrel Mandarin Fish" and other dishes with excellent color, aroma, taste and shape have stood out and won gold and silver in the province's cooking competitions many times. Dishes such as Tai Chi Steamed Vegetables, Steamed Catfish in Bamboo Tubes, Steamed Peacock Wuchang Fish with Rice Flour, and Steamed Hoof Flowers in Wooden Barrels, creatively produced by the chefs of Tianyi Hotel and Huayuan Hotel in Xiantao City, are more suitable for public consumption and are deeply loved by customers. From "steamed herring lips with flour" to "steamed herring belly with flour" and then to "steamed herring with flour and water". From freshwater fish steamed with rice flour to creative steamed seafood, such as: "Steamed Silver Cod", "Steamed Yangtze River Catfish", "Steamed Sturgeon", the "Mianyang Three Steamed" interpretations are endless and exciting!
"Mianyang Sanzheng" has gone through many hardships along the way. It has integrated the diligence and wisdom of the working people and created a catering brand. It originated from the folk and settled in hotels, becoming a restaurant suitable for all ages. of delicacies. Nowadays, there are restaurants and restaurants operating "Mianyang Three Steams" all over the province, and hotels and guesthouse industries from Wuhan, Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing and other places have also come to invite chefs to the "Mianyang Three Steams" Food Festival.