What are the seven characteristics of Hunan cuisine?

Feature 1

There are many spicy dishes and the sauce is full of flavor

When it comes to spicy food, I have to say Sichuan cuisine, spicy and dry flavor can be summed up. The spiciness of Hunan cuisine is different from this. The numbness is reduced and the sauce is rich. It is spicy with a thick salty aroma. This taste has been accepted by various cuisines, and with slight modifications, it can be adapted to the local market.

Feature 2

Multiple containers, clever heat preservation

Most Hunan dishes can be divided into multiple series according to the containers, such as dry pot series, iron plate series, and sand pot series. Claypot series, casserole series, etc. Just looking at the containers, you can tell that Hunan Kitchen attaches great importance to maintaining the temperature of the dishes. Most of the dishes' utensils are served heated by a fire, which not only enlivens the atmosphere but also ensures the temperature of the dishes.

In addition to using containers to keep warm, Hunan cuisine also has many soup dishes. For example, when making baby cabbage, broth is used. The soup is rich and naturally plays a certain role in keeping warm.

Feature 3

Local seasonings account for 80%

When entering the Hunan cuisine kitchen, unlike other cuisines, there are a variety of seasonings on the stove, at least 20 There are many kinds, mainly local seasonings.

Liuyang’s fermented beans, Chaling’s garlic, Xiangtan’s soy sauce, Shuangfeng’s hot sauce, Changsha’s jade and vinegar, Liuyang River’s Xiaoqu, Liling’s old ginger, Lameizi chili sauce, etc., seasonings Using it is enough to show the personality of Hunan cuisine.

At the same time, you will also find the shadow of Cantonese seasonings. Soy sauce, XO sauce, oyster sauce, spare ribs sauce, etc. have completely penetrated into Hunan cuisine and deeply influenced it. Hunan cuisine uses a lot of seasonings, which is one of the reasons why its dishes have a rich and complex flavor.

Characteristic 4

Raw materials, earthy residues

One of the reasons why Hunan cuisine is so popular is that the raw materials are "earthy enough". It is this earthy aroma The color makes it interesting because it has a huge customer adaptability.

The raw materials in Hunan basically rely on local specialties to "support the noodles". For example, bacon is a specialty of Hunan. All meats such as poultry, livestock and aquatic products can be used for pickling. They are bright red in color and smokey. The fragrance is strong, fat but not greasy.

There are also air-dried vegetables that have become popular in Hunan raw material markets recently, such as air-dried kohlrabi, air-dried beans, air-dried cucumbers, etc. Fresh vegetables are dehydrated to make air-dried vegetables, which have a dry and fragrant taste.

Soften the air-dried vegetables in water before cooking. Keep turning the pot when frying to prevent them from being too tough to bite. Special ingredients include sauce-flavored duck, crystal vermicelli, laba beans, etc.

Feature 5

Cooked lard, spicy oil

Many chefs from other cuisines have been studying why Hunan cuisine has such a mellow aftertaste. In fact, the secret is On two big oils.

First, cooked lard

Hunan cuisine chefs are accustomed to using cooked lard when cooking, which is an important source of the unique flavor of Hunan cuisine. The dishes cooked with it should be eaten hot, otherwise there will be an oily smell after cooling, so Hunan cuisine often heats the dishes over a fire to keep the dishes warm. While using cooked lard, Hunan cuisine chefs will also add soybean oil, salad oil, sesame oil, and butter to mix appropriately.

Second, homemade spicy oil

It is different from Sichuan spicy oil. It does not have a strong flavor of spices, but has a unique fragrance. It is made from fresh vegetables and is served almost every time. Homemade spicy oil is often used in Taoist Hunan cuisine.

The preparation method is as follows:

1. Put 20 kilograms of soybean oil and 10 kilograms of lard oil into a pot, heat until 30% hot, then add celery cubes and carrots , 1 kilogram each of dried shallots, scallions, ginger, and coriander, and 250 grams of fresh perilla leaves (for coloring and flavoring), simmer over low heat for 40 minutes.

2. After taking out the above raw materials, add 10 kilograms of self-ground chili flakes, simmer over low heat for 40 minutes, and filter.

Note:

When adding the chili flakes, add them one by one, fry them slowly and do not let them boil.

Feature 6

Exquisite preparation of ingredients and fast delivery

One of the characteristics of Hunan cuisine is that the dishes are served very quickly. The reason for this is because of the preparation work. good.

Many foreign chefs went to Hunan to study and found that cooking in Hunan Kitchen is very simple. Just start the pot, grab a handful of ingredients, scoop a spoonful of seasoning, turn the pot and cook. It’s such a simple process, and it’s cooked. The dishes are unique.

Don’t underestimate a handful of ingredients and a spoonful of seasoning, there is a lot in it. The ingredients and seasonings are all pre-processed, such as fried garlic, soaked in ginger water, stir-fried minced meat, homemade spicy oil, etc. Each one is carefully made and plays a decisive role in the taste of the dishes.

Feature 7

Use soy sauce and put it in many times

The soy sauce used by Hunan Kitchen is very unique and very particular. It is not like some chefs who just pour it on when cooking. Spoon soy sauce. Xiangchu uses soy sauce to add N times to the dish, and each time the quantity, function, and type of soy sauce are different.

For example, Hunan stir-fried pork only uses three seasonings: salt, monosodium glutamate, and soy sauce, and the use of soy sauce to get the authentic flavor of Hunan cuisine is all in it.

When cooking, first marinate 200 grams of pork front leg meat with 20 grams of Maggi umami juice to remove the fishy smell and increase the base flavor without taking away from the raw materials themselves. the taste.

Put the marinated meat slices into a 50% hot oil pan and stir-fry. When the meat changes color (about eight times done), add 10 grams of soybean soy sauce to increase the color and make it red. It is better to be bright.

When this dish is about to be cooked in the pot, add 5 grams of soybean soy sauce at the end, use high heat to release the steam and cook out the aroma of the sauce. I used soy sauce three times with different effects.