The legend of Yanshi silver bar

Legend has it that Yi Yin discovered this kind of rhizome plant, which looks like a vegetable and is as silver as silver, and made it into a world-famous dish. This Yi Yin has a good background. It is said that there was a woman named Caisang who found a baby among withered mulberries and gave it to her king. The king hired a chef to raise the baby and named him Yi Yin according to its origin. Later, Cheng Tang heard that Yi Yin was a great man, so he wanted it. He begged the king of Yi Yin first, but he couldn't bear it. Later, Cheng Tang proposed to the king's daughter. As soon as the king was happy, he married Yi Yin to the Shang Dynasty as a slave. Yi Yin can not only cook good food, but also explain current politics with delicious food. On one occasion, he made a bowl of soup for Shang Tang. Shang Tang said, "Your cooking is very good, and your soup is delicious. Tell me why you can make such a delicious soup. " Yi Yin said with a smile, "This soup tastes very ordinary. To be delicious and become the best soup in the world, you need a lot of spices. " Cheng Tang said, "Where is it? We can do it. " Yi Yin explained, "Your site is too small to own those things. If you become the son of heaven in the future, you can get those good things. For example, the five flavors in this soup and the seasonings used for seasoning are all available from far away. Water comes first, followed by meat, fish and birds, or in the west of quicksand, or in Shan Zhinan. In addition, seaweed in Kunlun Mountain, non-flowering vegetables in Huayang and celery in Yunmengze are all essential. Among seasonings, the best ginger is simple, and the best cinnamon is ostentatious ... Only when you become the son of heaven can you get these things at will and taste the delicious food in the world. However, the son of heaven can't take it by force. He needs to practice everything first and get the respect of the audience before he can become the son of heaven. In other words, when you are the son of heaven, you can enjoy good soup. " Hearing these words, Shang Tang was enlightened and full of confidence in conquering the brutal Xia Jie. In order to help Shang Tang defeat Xia Jie, Yi Yin took out the chef's housekeeping skills and sneaked into Xiadu (now Erlitou Village, yanshi city) for three times to make delicious food for Wang Xia Jie at that time, which won the trust of Xia Jie. Then, he won the favor of Xia Jie's favorite woman, Sister Xi, and made Xia Jie eat silver bars through Sister Xi. Sister Xi made up "If you want to live forever, white wine and Yin Yan" to coax Xia Jie into drinking silver bars. Xia Jie "can't bear to put down chopsticks, the more he drinks, the more fragrant he becomes." Since then, his drinking capacity has soared, and he has neglected state affairs. On the fifth day of the first month of this year, Shang Tang and Yi Yin cooperated with each other and finally overthrew the rule of Xia Dynasty.

It seems mysterious to seize a country with a small dish. But through this novel-sized legend, we can see the delicacy and refreshment of silver bars. If you don't believe me, look at this joke about the food in Heluo area again: "A thousand banquets are better than others, and you dare to boast with silver bars. It is the first bite of the table. " This grand banquet is about Shang Tang's destruction of Xia Hou in Bo (now Yanshi), and the gathering of thousands of rare old people to enjoy the state banquet and adopt the strategy of governing the country. The old man in the banquet was full of praise after tasting the silver bars, which led to the above words.

Yi Yin helped Shang Tang destroy Xia Hou and was made prime minister by Shang Tang. On the one hand, he educated people with wisdom, on the other hand, he taught people the skills and skills of production and life, encouraged farming and mulberry planting, and made people get more benefits. Yi Yin has mastered the growth habit of silver bars and needs the soil quality of "sand but not loose, water but not wet". Besides, he will teach you how to cook silver bars. The silver bars are white, crisp and tender. If you can make them, they are beautiful and delicious. Uncooked, or raw fishy, or cooked tasteless and shapeless. Therefore, the silver bar cooking ballad summarized by Yi Yin is still familiar to people, namely: "The pot is wider than clear water, so it is forbidden to rot; Like ginger and onion, hide the sauce and increase the acid. "That is to say, when ironing silver bars, the pot should be washed and more water should be put; When cooking, put ginger, no onions, more vinegar and no soy sauce. Putting soy sauce will make the white stripes black, and putting vinegar will make the white stripes brighter and whiter. ?

Later generations revered Yi Yin as the Kitchen God. Since the Xia Dynasty, human beings began to offer sacrifices to the ancestors of heaven and earth. When offering sacrifices, offerings should be placed to show piety. The color of dishes should be exquisite, such as Danyang red, golden yellow, emerald green and Jieyu white. Silver bars are indispensable as Chinese cabbage. It is said that this standard was given by Yi Yin in those days. Therefore, it can be said that China's food culture began in the Shang Dynasty in Yi Yin, and this experimental base is in Yanshi. After Shang Tang's death, Yi Yin tried his best to assist several Shang kings. He is a famous politician and a pioneer of China's food culture. After his death, he was buried under the shouyangshan as a gift from the emperor. There are many beautiful legends near Yi Yin's tomb: If there are weddings and funerals at home, go to Yi Yin's tomb and say a few words, and there will be enough tables and benches for you the next morning. As a result, the family often packed up four dishes and bowed down to the tomb of Yi Yin after the strike. I don't know when. Some people don't keep their promises. If they just borrow money and don't pay it back, their prayers are useless. Although there is no textual research on this matter, we can see people's nostalgia for Yi Yin.

Since Yi Yin cooked a dish into a delicious food in the world, the silver bar dish itself has become superior, and its value has doubled, becoming the favorite of emperors in past dynasties. "Yanshi County Records" records: "Silver bars are the tribute of the imperial courts in past dynasties, and the silver bars in Sizhuang area are the best". During the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, Xuanzang, a monk who came back from India to learn Buddhist scriptures (the prototype of Tang Priest in The Journey to the West), presented the silver bars of his hometown, Yanshi Michael Chen, as a tribute to Emperor Taizong Li Shimin. After Li Shimin tasted it, he was very happy. "Your brother and delicacies are wonders of the world, and Yan's family is really outstanding!" Therefore, "Di Ling" became another name for silver bars, and Emperor Taizong also gave the dishes made of "Yanshi Silver Bar" as "the treasure in the rice". Ganlong went to Yanshi Mountain to play and sang to the silver bars: "The southern buds are sharp, and there are few silver bars in the northern cuisine. The north and the south are unified, and the silver is passed down from generation to generation." In this way, the silver bar has the name "Yin Xun".