Chinese people are very familiar with cabbage. They can be cooked in vinegar, stir-fried, stewed, steamed, pickled, etc. The natural flavors of cabbage are also different in different geographical environments. , but in the eyes of literati, cabbage also has a new term—song. Li Shizhen’s "Compendium of Materia Medica" said: "Song of the south is classified for winter. Those from the north are mostly kept in cellars." As Li Shizhen said, the weather in the south is slightly warmer, and Chinese cabbage is grown in fields over the winter. However, in the north, the temperature is very low in winter, and even the cold-resistant Chinese cabbage will be frozen, so the north has the habit of storing Chinese cabbage. .
Chinese cabbage
Chinese cabbage also has a small and elegant title - "Mr. Curling". During the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty, a gourmet named Su Yijian talked about food with Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty. Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty asked: "Foods are said to be precious, which one is the most delicious?" Su Yijian replied: "Food has no fixed taste. Those that are palatable are rare. I know in my heart that the juice of the glutinous rice is delicious." So Taizong asked why "the juice of the glutinous rice" is the most delicious. Something, Su Yijian told the reason. It turned out that one winter, the weather was very cold, Su Yijian drank alone around the stove, got drunk and fell asleep. After waking up in the middle of the night, he felt very thirsty, so he walked alone In the courtyard, he saw a jar under the residual snow. He knew it was pickled cabbage at home, so he washed his hands in the snow without having time to call the servants, opened the jar, swallowed the salted cabbage, and drank the salted cabbage juice. Only then did he really feel This salted cabbage is the most delicious thing in the world.
Pickled cabbage
After that, the story of him bragging to Taizong about spicy cabbage spread quickly, but people didn’t know how to cook or eat the pickled cabbage, so someone asked Su Yijian The servant inquired, but the servant was also cunning and replied: "This is not simple. Just soak salted cabbage in noodle soup. It is a good medicine to quench thirst and sober up. If you don't believe it, just ask Mr. Curling directly." "After that, the title of "Mr. Curling" not only refers to Su Yijian, but also refers to salted cabbage.