Where is Chaos’ snack?

1. The origin of wontons:

1. Wontons (Chinese Pinyin: hún tún or hún tun softly; Cantonese: w?n3 t?n1, pronounced the same as "wonton" ; Shandong dialect: hún dùn; English name: wonton) is one of the traditional Chinese Han noodles. It is stuffed with thin dough and is usually cooked and eaten with soup. Originated from northern China.

So wontons are a traditional snack in northern China.

2. Historical evolution

In "Dialect" written by Yang Xiong of the Western Han Dynasty, it is mentioned that "cake is called wonton". Wonton is a kind of cake. The difference is that there is stuffing in it. It is eaten after steaming; if cooked in soup, it is called "soup cake".

The ancient Chinese believed that this was a sealed bun without seven orifices, so it was called "hunton". According to the rules of Chinese character creation, it was later called "wonton". At this point, there is no difference between wontons and dumplings.

Dumplings have not changed significantly for thousands of years, but wontons have been developed in the south and have an independent style. Starting from the Tang Dynasty, the names of wontons and dumplings were officially distinguished.

3. Origin

The theory of the Xiongnu in the Han Dynasty

In the past, there was a saying in old Beijing that "Winter Solstice wontons and Summer Solstice noodles" were said. According to legend, during the Han Dynasty, the Huns from the north often harassed the frontiers and the people had no peace. At that time, there were two leaders in the Xiongnu tribe, the Hun clan and the Tun clan, who were very ferocious. The people hated it so much that they used meat fillings to wrap it into wontons and called them "wontons" after taking the sounds of "hun" and "tun". He eats his hatred and hopes to quell the war and live a peaceful life. Since wontons were first made on the winter solstice, every household eats wontons on the winter solstice.

Since its development, wonton has become a famous snack with many names, different preparations, delicious flavor, spread all over the country, and deeply loved by people. Wonton has many names. Most places such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang call it wonton, while Guangdong calls it wonton, Hubei calls it Baomian, Jiangxi calls it Qingtang, Sichuan calls it Chaoshou, Xinjiang calls it Ququ, etc.

Taoist theory

There is another saying: On the day of the winter solstice, there are grand Dharma gatherings in various avenues in the capital. Taoist priests recited sutras and raised the table to celebrate the birthday of Yuanshi Tianzun. Taoism believes that Yuanshi Tianzun symbolizes the first century when chaos is not divided and Taoism is not manifested. Therefore, there is a folk custom of eating wontons. "Yanjing Chronicles" says: "The shape of husband's wonton is like a chicken egg, which is quite similar to the chaos of heaven and earth, so it is eaten during the winter solstice." In fact, "wonton" and "chaos" are homophonic, so people extend the idea of ??eating wonton. To break the chaos and open up the world. Later generations no longer explained its original meaning, and only spread the proverb "Winter Solstice Wonton and Summer Solstice Noodles", treating it simply as a seasonal diet.

Eating wontons in many places in my country has the custom of eating wontons during the winter solstice. During the Southern Song Dynasty, Lin'an (now Hangzhou) also had the custom of eating wontons every winter solstice. Zhou Mi from the Song Dynasty said that people in Lin'an eat wontons during the winter solstice to worship their ancestors. It was only in the Southern Song Dynasty that the custom of eating wontons to worship ancestors during the Winter Solstice became popular in my country.

Since its development, wontons have become a famous snack with many names, different preparations, and delicious flavor. They are spread all over the country and are loved by people. There are many special wontons in various places that are well received by diners. Famous ones include Chengdu Long Chao Shou Restaurant, which has a variety of varieties, thin skin, tender fillings, and delicious soup; Chongqing's Guoqiao Chao Shou, which is exquisitely wrapped and pinched, with a variety of seasonings, and can be eaten with seasonings; Shanghai's Old Town God's Temple Song Yunlou Sanxian Wonton has exquisite fillings, thin skin and delicious taste; Ququ from Urumqi, Xinjiang, has mutton as the filling, thin skin and tender filling, clear soup and delicious taste, etc.

The Theory of Xi Shi

According to legend, during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, King Wu Fu Chai defeated the State of Yue and captured King Gou Jian of Yue alive. He obtained many gold and silver treasures, especially after acquiring the peerless beauty Xi Shi, he became even more proud. He indulges in singing, dancing and drinking all day long and does not care about state affairs. When the Winter Solstice came this year, the King of Wu accepted the worship of hundreds of officials as usual, and there was singing and dancing inside and outside the palace. Unexpectedly, during the banquet, he was tired of eating delicacies from mountains and seas, and he felt unhappy and refused to eat. Xi Shi saw all this, and she took the opportunity to run into the imperial kitchen, kneading the dough and rolling out the dough, hoping to make a new type of snack to express her feelings. After turning the leather in her hands a few times, she finally made a dustpan-style snack.

Put it into boiling water for a moment, and the snacks will float to the surface one by one. She put it into a bowl, added fresh soup, sprinkled onions, garlic, pepper, dripped with sesame oil, and presented it to King Wu. When King Wu tasted it, he found it extremely delicious. He ate a large bowl in one go and asked repeatedly: "What kind of snack is this?" When asked, she responded casually: "wontons." From then on, this kind of snack became popular among the people under the name of "wontons". People in Wuyue not only love to eat wontons on weekdays, but in order to commemorate Xi Shi’s wisdom and creation, they also set it as a special delicacy during the Winter Solstice Festival.

2. Wontons

1. Features

If we compare wontons with dumplings, the wonton skin is a square with a side length of about 6 cm, or the top edge It is an isosceles trapezoid with a length of about 5 cm and a base of about 7 cm; the dumpling wrapper is a circle with a diameter of about 7 cm.

The wonton skin is thin and becomes transparent after cooking. Because of this difference in thickness, equal amounts of wontons and dumplings are boiled in boiling water. It takes less time to cook the wontons. In the process of cooking the dumplings, cold water needs to be added three times, and the so-called "three sinks and three floats" can be ensured to be cooked.

Wontons focus on soup, while dumplings focus on dipping.

2. Production: Northern practice

Stuffing: Buy fresh vegetables, which can be celery, cabbage, etc. Celery needs stems, cabbage needs help. One green onion should be big enough. Fresh meat, including cattle, sheep, and pigs will do. However, specifically, pork should be fat or thin by 3:7. The ratio of vegetables to meat is also 3:7. Only in this way will it taste delicious. The meat should be finely minced, and the vegetables should also be finely minced. Stir in one direction until all the fat can be seen turning into threads. As for the ingredients, most of them are of your own choice, including appropriate amounts of chicken essence, sesame oil, oyster sauce, five-spice powder, and salt. Be careful not to add water.

How to wrap: Wrapping methods vary from place to place, just buy wonton wrappers sold in the market. Usually it’s 1 pound of skin and half a pound of filling. Of course, if the quality is good, you can increase the filling amount appropriately. However, 6 to 7 taels is enough. The most convenient way to wrap is to put the filling in the center, roll it into two rolls, then fold the two wings toward the middle, and place them upside down. Usually put it in the quick-frozen layer of the refrigerator and save it for breakfast. Generally, one and a half kilograms of wontons will fill one layer, about 40 wontons. Be sure to put a plastic sheet underneath to prevent sticking to the bottom.

Soup: Simple ones are generally best for breakfast. Those with a large appetite can lay 15, and for most people, 8 to 10 is enough. Put it under boiling water and take it out for about 3 to 5 minutes. Now put down the soup ingredients, now add more soup. In a large bowl, use a few small pieces of seaweed and about 10 dried shrimps. The authentic one is seasoned with a small amount of white pepper and a small amount of salt. You can add a drop of sesame oil, a drop of oyster sauce, or not. If you like vegetables, you can add less green vegetable leaves, but not too much. There is no bone soup, and the thick chicken soup is replaced with chicken essence, but it is still ok for breakfast.