Introducing Fengxian specialty: Dingfeng fermented bean curd

Speaking of Fengxian’s specialties, fermented bean curd is one of the most popular. Fermented bean curd is available everywhere, but why is Fengxian’s so special? Why is Fengxian fermented bean curd named "Jinjing"?

In fact, fermented bean curd is also called tofu, soybean curd, stinky tofu, etc. It is a kind of brewed food. Let’s talk about its history first. There is a record of the preparation of this food: "Dried tofu is added with salt and matured to become fermented bean curd." There is even a description in the "Compendium of Materia Medica" written by Li Shizhen in the Ming Dynasty: "Bean curd is also called fermented bean curd. It is made from pickled tofu and added with distiller's grains or sauce. It has a salty and sweet taste." These two paragraphs have clearly told us that fermented bean curd is What and how to make it.

In fact, this small fermented bean curd can also make a big deal, as is the case with Fengxian's Beijing fermented bean curd. The predecessor of Fengxian fermented bean curd is called "Xiao Dingfeng". It was founded in the third year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (1864 AD). It was a workshop opened by a man named Xiao Languo from Haiyan, Zhejiang. This man originally opened a shop in Xinzhuang, but later felt that the housing prices in Fengxian It was cheap, and it was close to my hometown of Haiyan, so I bought two storefronts at the entrance of Nanqiao East Street and opened a factory.

In fact, it was also by chance. Once, when Xiao Languo went to Fengxian Nanqiao "Dinghe" Sauce Garden to collect accounts, he found that Nanqiao's fermented bean curd business was booming, but his own business in Xinzhuang was always difficult to open. In this way, many factors combined, Xiao Languo moved "Xiao Dingfeng" to Nanqiao, but he was a migrant after all. After several negotiations, Xiao Languo absorbed the funds of three local wealthy men in Nanqiao, Zhang, Shen, and Bao, and established a joint venture to form a fermented bean curd factory. Since it was a joint venture between several people, the word "Xiao" was removed from the original name and simply It was called "Dingfeng", and the name Dingfeng Sauce Garden gradually spread.

In fact, there were four famous places where fermented bean curd was produced in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces during the Qing Dynasty: Pinghu, Suzhou, Shaoxing, and Fengxian. Fengxian fermented bean curd is particularly famous for its color, flavor, and flavor. The reason why Fengxian fermented bean curd is famous is not only its production process, but also there is an allusion among the people, which tells the story of a Beijing official who came to Nanqiao in the late Qing Dynasty. It is said that during the Guangxu period, a Beijing official who returned to his hometown to visit relatives came to the small town of Nanqiao. Because he came from the imperial city, local merchants did not dare to offend him and gave him gifts to show his respect. The boss Xiao mentioned before also sent a jar of home-brewed Dingfeng fermented bean curd. The capital official was also a tricky person. When he saw that other families were sending silks and satins or delicacies from the mountains and seas, Dingfeng Sauce Garden was the only one to send fermented bean curd for a small amount of a penny. He was very angry and thought that he was looking down on him, an official of the imperial court, so he asked him to do so. People poured all the fermented bean curd into the pig shed. A few days later, the Beijing official was going to entertain local celebrities. The unsophisticated Boss Xiao also came and brought another jar of fermented bean curd. As a result, the Beijing official was very angry and couldn't get angry, so he made this "not a big deal". The fermented bean curd from Yazhitang was poured into the manure pit. Unexpectedly, Boss Xiao was completely unaware of the two encounters with fermented bean curd. When he learned that Beijing officials were going to take his mother back to Beijing, he once again selected a jar of the best fermented bean curd for them to taste on the boat. This time, Jingguan couldn't stand it anymore. He personally picked up the jar containing fermented bean curd and was about to pour it into the river when his mother stopped him. Fortunately, this vat of fermented bean curd was brought to Beijing.

Perhaps due to the fatigue of the carriage or the acclimatization, as soon as she arrived in Beijing, the old lady began to feel unwell and tasteless in her mouth. No matter how delicious the food was, she could not arouse her appetite. The jar of fermented bean curd brought from Nanqiao, my hometown. After opening the lid of the jar, she only felt the aroma. She picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. It was so delicious that her appetite was greatly increased. She ate rice with fermented bean curd, which greatly increased her appetite, and her body recovered quickly. This really confused the Beijing official, but since Mother likes it, let's ask someone to buy it. But the old ladies in Beijing and other places just don't like the taste of fermented bean curd, so the Beijing official can only bite the bullet. He sent people back to his hometown to buy large quantities of fermented bean curd from Dingfeng Sauce Garden and transported it back to the capital, not only for his mother to eat, but also for his colleagues. Fellow officials didn't think it was strange at first, but after tasting it, they all praised it. From then on, Nanqiao Dingfeng fermented bean curd became famous in the capital. For a time, Nanqiao's fermented bean curd became a hot commodity, and those well-informed and smart businessmen came to Nanqiao to sell Dingfeng fermented bean curd. It is said that the profits were pretty good.

The above story is the origin of fermented bean curd in Beijing. In fact, there is another local version. It tells that during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, Chen Yanqing, a native of Nanqiao, Fengxian, passed the Hanlin exam and became an official in Shanxi Xuetai. .

Once he returned home from a visit to his relatives. After several days of banquets with local officials, country gentry and celebrities, he became tired of eating fish and meat, so he treated the guests with fermented bean curd, a famous specialty given by his colleagues in Beijing. When he opened the lid, everyone was surprised to find out that he had brought it all the way back. The Beijing fermented bean curd is actually made locally in Fengxian, which everyone finds interesting. It is equivalent to someone buying an American product in the United States and coming back. When he unpacks it, it says "Made

in

in

China". When the boss heard the news, he carefully made a large plaque with the name "Jinjing Fermented Bean Curd" and hung it high in the store. As a result, the reputation of "Jinjing Fermented Bean Curd" has been passed down to this day. There are slight discrepancies between the two versions, but it is probably true that the fermented bean curd worth one penny goes to Beijing, and some details are no longer so important.

It is said that the fermented bean curd sauce garden in Nanqiao attaches great importance to craftsmanship, product quality and honest management. The raw material rice is selected from the high-quality production areas of Jiashan. During peak seasons, festivals and other times when the products are in good demand, the ingredients are still good enough and the craftsmanship is authentic. , never resort to fraud. This is probably the real reason why this brand has remained standing for hundreds of years. In the twenty-sixth year of Guangxu (AD 1900), Boss Xiao died of a stroke. Several major shareholders signed a document and listed one share of the profits in Xiao's name every year as a reward for his achievements.