China News Service, Urumqi, April 7 (Shi Yujiang, Tang Yongjian) For thousands of years, people have a special liking for tofu. Whether it is steamed, fried, boiled, stir-fried or stewed, it has a unique taste. In Gaoquan Town, the 124th Regiment of Huyanghe City, Xinjiang, why did the seemingly ordinary tofu become a gourmet business card of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and why was its production technique selected as an "intangible cultural heritage"?
The most commendable "Tofu Banquet" is an indispensable delicacy for locals during festivals, festive banquets and other occasions. Photo by Tang Yongjian
Qin'an Jianshui Lao Tofu, Anhui Hairy Tofu, Yunnan Shiping Bamboo Tofu... the tofu making techniques in various places have unique charm due to their regional characteristics and historical inheritance. The tofu in Gaoquan Town is known as the local specialty delicacy. It is famous in Huyanghe City, Kuitun City, Wusu City, Bole City and other surrounding counties and towns in northern Xinjiang. There is a saying among diners that "I have never tasted Gaoquan Tofu." , it’s like you haven’t been to Gaoquan”.
Gaoquan Tofu has become a local cultural card
As a traditional delicacy, tofu is an important part of Chinese food culture. It has a long history and rich cultural connotation.
From selecting the beans, cooking the soy milk, ordering the marinade to pressing and shaping, every step of making Gaoquan tofu is done by hand. Photo by Tang Yongjian
Gaoquan Tofu is named after "Gaoquan" in Gaoquan Town. This clear spring is located on a high hill at the foot of Tianshan Mountain. At its southern end, there is a spring that flows continuously all year round, called "Maotou Spring". Because the terrain is higher than the 124th Regiment, it was named "Gaoquan". In addition, the local weather is sunny and rainy all year round, and the temperature difference between day and night is large, so the soybeans produced have a unique taste. The combination of the two produces tofu with a unique flavor, which is called "Gaoquan Tofu" by the locals.
Wang Xiaoling, the person in charge of the Culture, Sports, Radio and Television Service Center of the 124th Regiment, told reporters that some people once came to the troupe to learn from it, but after going back and trying many times, they still couldn't make the taste of Gaoquan tofu.
Later, the local government tested the water from Maotou Spring and concluded that the water from Maotou Spring is first-class drinking water and is rich in trace elements such as zinc, iron, and selenium. "Gaoquan has a continental arid climate, with more sunshine and less rain all year round. The temperature difference between day and night is also large. The soil conditions are also different from other places. The soybeans produced have a rich taste." Wang Xiaoling said.
In 2021, "Gaoquan Tofu Making Technique" was selected into the first batch of the Seventh Division Huyanghe Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage List, becoming an important representative of local culture.
Wang Zhiyong, the inheritor of Gaoquan Tofu, has been in his family for two generations. Through continuous innovation and development, this delicacy has been passed down to this day.
Wang Zhiyong’s craftsmanship comes from his father Wang Honglu. In 1990, Wang Honglu came to Xinjiang from Jiangsu to his sister Wang Hongxiang's home, and learned to make handmade tofu from his sister. After several years of painstaking study, the tofu made by Wang Honglu has a place in the first, second and fourth groups.
Nowadays, Wang Zhiyong not only has a tofu shop, but also a tofu shop in the market, and his life is prosperous. "We plan to build a larger tofu workshop near Gaoquan Market to expand the scale of production and operation and promote Gaoquan Tofu to a larger market."
"The reason why Gaoquan tofu is widely praised is that on the one hand it uses high-quality local water sources and high-quality soybeans as raw materials, and on the other hand it maintains the tradition of hand-making and skillful techniques during the production process," Wang Xiaoling said.
Wang Zhiyong has always insisted on using traditional hand-made tofu, and his tofu is famous far and wide. Photo by Tang Yongjian
Always adhere to pure handcrafting
From selecting beans, cooking soy milk, ordering brine to pressing and molding, every step is made by hand. Wang Zhiyong, the inheritor of Gaoquan Tofu, has rich experience and skills. He said, especially the step of ordering the brine, directly affects the taste of the tofu.
Walking into the tofu shop, amidst the buzzing sound of the machine, round soybeans are tumbling in the machine. The feed port is connected to the local spring water in Gaoquan. The machine rotated, and the milky white soy milk slowly flowed out from the electric stone mill and gathered into an oversized iron pot.
"Soak the soybeans in advance, usually at 24:00 the day before, and grind them best around 14:00." Wang Zhiyong told reporters that to make tofu taste better, there are key points in selecting beans.
"The materials used to make tofu at home are all local soybeans, and the growth period is about 120 days." Wang Zhiyong poured the bean dregs into the electric stone mill for regrinding. "Regrinding is to retain the nutrients in the tofu. The tofu made in this way More fragrant.”
When cooking soy milk, an iron pot that can be filled with 200 kilograms of soy milk is filled little by little, and the dense foam overflows the entire iron pot. The firewood in the stove emits a unique fragrance through burning.
After the fragrant soy milk boiled and came out of the pot, white mist suddenly filled the room. Wang Zhiyong quickly poured out the soy milk from the pot and set it aside to cool down naturally.
Wang Zhiyong said that ordering brine directly affects the taste of tofu. With many years of experience, you can grasp the timing of stewing the soy milk by tapping the surface of the soy milk with your fingers. "When ordering the tofu, you should use the method of naturally cooling down and ordering the tofu multiple times to make the tofu fragrant, tender and chewy."
When soy milk and gypsum meet, and after a chemical reaction, the fragrance of soy lingers on the tip of the nose and fills the air. At this time, Wang Zhiyong covered the wooden plate with even gaps and pressed it on the stone piers, allowing the moisture in the tofu brain to flow away through the holes in the cage cloth and cover, and waited for the tofu to be pressed and formed.
"The cut pieces of tofu should not be scattered or broken. Take a bite and it will be mellow, soft and slightly sweet." Wang Zhiyong said that to evaluate the quality of a piece of tofu, you need to look at it, touch it twice, smell it three times and taste it four times.
"Because of making tofu, my family bought a building and a car. In a plain but fulfilling life, the taste of seemingly ordinary tofu can only be known to those who have experienced it." Wang Zhiyong's wife told reporters that his family's handmade tofu is one or two The restaurants in the Fourth Regiment are in short supply.
The most commendable thing is the "Tofu Feast"
In the local area, diners come and go, and the constant star on the table is tofu. Photo by Tang Yongjian
Here, the most commendable "Tofu Feast" is an indispensable delicacy for locals during festivals, festive banquets and other occasions.
Night has not yet fallen, but the restaurants on the streets of Gaoquan Town are already busy. The reporter noticed at Wankoufu Restaurant that diners came and went, but the constant star on the table was still tofu.
"For the tofu banquet, our chefs have introduced many new and unique dishes to meet the taste needs of different diners." The owner of the restaurant, surnamed Zhang, told reporters that the most representative local dish is Gaoquan braised tofu, which almost everyone Everyone ordered.
Gaoquan's braised tofu is pure white with a few green onions embedded in it, with a faint hint of green. It has an elegant fragrance and a smooth mouthfeel, making it unforgettable. Photo by Tang Yongjian
The reporter noticed that the tofu at the banquet was skillfully mixed into various dishes. Such as tofu stewed fish head, tofu stir-fried with minced meat, tofu steamed egg custard, as well as meatballs, dumplings and pancakes, etc., each dish shows the plasticity of tofu.
Wang Tingxiang, who lives in Gaoquan Town, ordered a tofu feast at Wankoufu Restaurant with her relatives and friends from out of town.
"My friend has eaten many kinds of tofu in different places, but he still wants to eat Gaoquan tofu." Wang Tingxiang said that there are various delicacies made with Gaoquan tofu, such as meatballs, dumplings, stuffed buns, pancakes, cakes, and baked goods. Tofu, soup...the taste and shape are very distinctive. Through word of mouth, Gaoquan Tofu’s reputation is getting better and better.
"When tourists come to Gaoquan Town of the 124th Regiment, they will taste the Gaoquan Tofu Banquet and buy a large piece of tofu to take back." Wang Xiaoling said that by tasting the Gaoquan Tofu Banquet, people can feel the unique flavor and flavor of the Corps. Cultural charm. (over)