History and culture of Wula Street hot pot

Wula Street was called "Hongniluo" city in ancient times. As early as 5,000 years ago in the Neolithic Age, the Sushen people, the ancestors of the Manchu people, lived here. In 1613, Nurhachi led a heavy army to break through the city and destroy the Ula Kingdom. With this place, he strengthened his troops and horses, which laid a solid foundation for his troops to move south and take over the Central Plains. Therefore, Wula Street was revered as the "Longxing Place" by the Qing Dynasty. According to local records, 5 of the 12 emperors of the Qing Dynasty visited here.

The living customs and food culture of Wula Street Manchu Town have a strong ethnic flavor, among which the Manchu traditional hot pot is the most representative. It is recorded that when the Manchus raised troops outside the Pass, the Manchu army had a war with the Yuan Dynasty army. The army needed to eat, and time was tight, so they came up with a way: set up a shelf, put water in a large pot or your own helmet, cut the prey into slices, and boil it in it. This way of eating is very convenient. It not only saves time but also makes it easier to quickly start marching and fighting. This is the prototype of Manchu hot pot. By the middle of the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Qianlong was particularly fond of hot pot. During his reign, he made six southern tours and once visited Ula. Eating hot pot has become popular. Later, this delicacy discovered during marches and battles gradually evolved into the Manchu tradition of "flying forward (fowl meat), walking behind (animal meat), left fish (fish meat), right shrimp (shrimp meat), and spreading green onions in circles" hot pot.