Why do you eat new rice in summer?

Eating new rice in summer means that farmers grind the newly cut rice into rice to worship the grain gods and ancestors and express their desire for a bumper harvest.

In the past, there was a folk custom of "eating new things in summer", that is, after the summer heat, farmers tasted new rice, ground the newly cut rice into rice, and prepared to worship the food of the five grain gods and ancestors, and then everyone tasted new wine.

It is said that "eating new things" means "eating new things", which is the first new day after the summer festival. Cities generally buy a small amount of new rice for cooking in old rice, plus newly listed vegetables. Therefore, there is a folk saying that millet is eaten in summer and grain is eaten in summer.

Evolution of "Eating Novelty": Millet, Millet, Wheat and Rice

Professor Shen Zhizhong, who has been engaged in agricultural archaeology for many years in the School of Humanities and Social Development of Nanjing Agricultural University, believes that the "rice" used in "novelty" has changed many times in different historical periods, and the custom itself has been evolving.

The earliest "fresh food" is millet and millet, that is, rhubarb rice and millet in the north. To this day, there is still a saying among the northern people that "millet is eaten in summer and grain is eaten in summer". Wheat comes from West Asia. Archaeological findings show that it was introduced into Chinese mainland from the Western Regions (now Xinjiang) along the Central Asia and Hexi Corridor in prehistoric times.

In contrast, millet is the easiest to preserve. According to the historical documents of the Tang Dynasty, 20 years after the collapse of the Sui Dynasty, the millet stored in Chang 'an can still be eaten. But the earliest millet, millet and wheat were all eaten in granules, and wheat was called "wheat rice", which had a poor taste.

Yan Shigu's notes on "Urgent Chapter", Volume II, "Cake Bait Wheat Rice Sweet Bean Soup" said: Wheat rice is also made by grinding wheat and peeling it. That is to say, only the bran is removed and directly made into wheat grains without grinding.

According to legend, the stone mill was invented by Lu Ban in the Warring States Period and was widely used in the Western Han Dynasty. However, considering that grinding into flour will cause some losses, wheat rice is still a common food for working people.

"Said the article? "The Food Department" records that "Chen Chu is increasingly eating wheat and rice", saying that kanto region basically relies on eating wheat and rice. Because of the advantages of wheat in yield and planting area, since the Han Dynasty, the term "eating fresh" in "Little Book" refers to the new wheat harvested that year.

The nationwide popularization of rice is relatively late. Recently, a 4,500-year-old paddy field site was discovered at Baodun site in Chengdu, which confirmed that rice was planted in the south. It was not until the Warring States, Qin and Han Dynasties that a small amount of rice cultivation was recorded in the north. During the Three Kingdoms, the Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties, rice was planted in a certain area of the Yellow River basin.

Shen Zhizhong found traces of rice popularization and cultivation in Old Tang Book. According to records, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, Zhang Jiuling, who later became prime minister, was sent to Henan to grow rice. At the same time, it is also planted in the northwest and northeast. In addition, the New Tang Book records that Governor Liangzhou sent Governor Ganzhou to reclaim land and harvest rice. There are even documents showing that the double cropping system of rice and wheat appeared in Yunnan in the Tang Dynasty, and double cropping rice appeared in Lingnan as early as the Eastern Han Dynasty.

In the light summer season, early rice is in the late filling stage (mature before summer), and middle rice has been jointing into booting stage. With the spread of rice cultivation to the north, the custom of "eating fresh" has also developed from eating wheat rice to rice, and the soft and delicious rice is dedicated to the five grain gods and ancestors. The change of the custom of "eating fresh" also reflects the changing track of crops.

Sichuan News-"Fresh Food" Will you eat these "meals" in summer?

Refer to the above contents: China Civilization Network-Xiaoshu: Try new rice to eat noodles.