Two Famous Dishes

A. BeijingRoast Duck

It would be a shame to leave Beijing without trying Beijing Roast duck. It's Beijing 's most famous dish and its taste is unique. Now let me tell you a bit about how it became a popular dish and how it is prepared and served.

The recipe for roasting ducks was first developed by a chef in the service of a Ming emperor. Later, the method was passed down to the common folk by the old chefs who had retired from the royal kitchen.

In 1835,a man from Hebei Province called Yang Quanren came to Beijing and began selling cooked chickens and ducks. Thirty years later in 1864,he opened a roast duck restaurant outside the Qianmen Gate and named it Quanjude.

His ducks sold well because he used the recipe once used by royal chefs. Later, he began to use a new breed of ducks known as Beijing duck. This sort of duck grew fast with thin skin and tender flesh.

Now ,let's come to the method of roasting ducks.First,ducks must be split open, dressed, scalded, and dried. When roasting, it's better to use fruit tree branches as firewood to lend more flavor to the duck.

A steady temperature must be maintained in the oven. Ducks must be rotated so that they can be evenly roasted. It takes about 50 minutes to roast. when the skin turns crisp and golden brown, the duck is done.

When serving, the chef brings the whole duck to the table to let the guests have a look, then takes it away and cuts it into about 120 thin pieces, each with both skin and meat.

Diners dip each piece of duck meat into the sweet soybean paste placed in front of them, then wrap the meat together with stalks of shallots in a sheet of pancake and eat the roll with the hands.

Well, eating is believing. The taste of the roast duck is in the eating. Try and judge for yourselves.

B. The Beggar's Chicken

The chicken you're now eating is Hangzhou Roast chicken.It is a speciality of Hangzhou.It is also called the Beggar's Chicken,Would you like to know the story behind it ?

One day a Qing Dynasty emperor took a ride out in the country.There was a high party with him .They feasted their eyes on the beauty of nature,and somehow the emperor smelled something delicious.It came on the wind."Well,well"the emperor exclaimed.Saying this he ordered his men to track the smell,and they found a beggar eating a chicken by the roadsie.It was fresh from a fire.How the beggar came to have a chicken,whether he had bought it or stolen it ,I don't know,but.he did enjoy the chicken.The mouths of the emperor's men watered.They asked the bagger how he had prepared the chicken."It's simple enough"the beggar said,"All you to do is to clean it,cover it with a kind of mud and then roast it ."

The men reported this to the emperor.He ordered a chicken to be done in the beggar's way, and it turned out to be the best chicken the emperor had ever enjoyed.

Is the dish still done in the beggar's way? Yes and no. yes, because clay is still used to cover the chicken. No, because there is cellophane and lotus leaves in between the chicken and clay. And the chicken is stuffed with filet and covered first with lard.

A chicken roasted this way is full in taste, and golden-looking ,It takes four hours or so to do the roasting. We should all express our gratitude to the beggar for the wonderful chicken we are enjoying.