Make "fried fruits" and enjoy the fireworks in the world

Make "fried fruits" and enjoy the fireworks in the world

Text: Bo Hailan

(1)

"Fried fruits" is a noun. "Fruit" is pronounced softly. It is a traditional and very special fried noodle dish in Junan. It is actually very simple and ordinary. It is made of glutinous rice noodles or wheat flour and fried in the shape of noodles or strips. But looking at simple things, everyone's taste will be slightly different when making them.

The special thing about it is the word "happy". Its appearance is indispensable during festive times. Especially during weddings, this is the first snack when guests come. It is also indispensable for relatives and friends who come to congratulate a wife or daughter as a gift in return. It is called "happy fruit."

When I was a child, when there was a happy event in a family, the villagers would dig up a scoop of wheat flour as a gift, and the return gift would be a Put the "fried fruit". Children often take a bite of the fried fruit claws as if they have found a treasure, which makes a crunching sound and a sweet taste on their lips and teeth.

In this way, the most solemn scene before a wedding is to fry "fruit". The courtyard of Xi Zhu's house is full of villagers who help make "fruit". The yard is covered with white raw fruits to dry. The fruits must be made with several large bamboo baskets or several large wooden strips on the cart. The baskets are filled. It looks like a lively and joyful scene.

So when someone marries a daughter-in-law, the way they treat guests is: "I'll eat the wedding fruits when you come home!" When asking about the wedding date, they ask: "When will you eat your wedding fruits?"

< p>With the accelerated pace of people's lives and the improvement of living standards, this custom has changed when holding weddings. When attending a wedding, cash is given, and the return gifts are ready-made snack gift boxes. Who would waste time and effort to fry "fruits"? .

When I was a child, I could eat "fried fruits" not only for happy events, but also for the Chinese New Year.

We also have a custom in Dongxiang. During the Chinese New Year, relatives will serve "Migangzi" and "fried fruit" soaked in poached eggs as the first meal when they come in. "Migangzi" is porridge cooked with fried yellow rice. When I was a kid, I was looking forward to visiting my aunt's house during the Chinese New Year. In the cold weather, I was looking forward to eating a bowl like this, which made my whole body feel warm.

Now, this custom has gone away. It seems that children nowadays are not so eager to visit relatives. It's probably the Chinese New Year now, and there is no food that people look forward to.

However, "Fried New Year fruits" are still indispensable for older people to buy New Year's goods. Probably because it still has a festive meaning in my heart.

(2)

The child has finished the exam, and suddenly feels that the new year is approaching. Every year when I go back to my hometown, my mother-in-law always buys "fried New Year fruits", as if not having fried fruits is not enough to express the solemnity of welcoming the new year. Thinking that this year her waist was not as big as before and she couldn't bear the hard work of rolling noodles, so she wanted to make "fried fruits" with her children at home and take them back to her hometown, so that she wouldn't have to be in such a hurry when she went back to celebrate the New Year.

I also followed my mother-in-law's example, mixing eggs with dough, rolling it into dough, then cutting it into strips, and then I called my children to help.

My daughter learns to make "flowers". This "flower" is the pattern that the "happy fruit" must be fried in the past. My son learned to make strips, which should look like the simple snacks he usually eats.

Looking at their crooked finished products, I remembered that when I was making fruit with my mother-in-law, the fruit claws she made must be cut into moderate thicknesses and neat sizes, and the fried fruit claws ( That is, the flowers) are twisted full and round, with uniform intervals, and the tips of the petals are very much like the lotus petals in the painting. If there are any irregularities in what I do, she must correct them later. Even if the fruits are placed on the roof, they must be lined up neatly.

It doesn’t matter if it looks irregular, as long as it tastes good. I comforted myself, feeling that doing it too meticulously was a waste of time.

It’s finally done, and it’s filled with several roofs. Looking at it, you can feel a lively and peaceful New Year atmosphere. The next step is to fry it.

I remember that my mother-in-law always used a briquette stove when frying, and she fried them when the heat was not too hot. I turned on the gas, also on medium heat. Looking at the pot, I felt that after a long time, the oil still didn't move much, so I became a little anxious and turned it on the fire. The oil started to boil, and I poured half the lid on it. After rolling the "fruit" in hot oil for a while, it turned from white to yellow and then black again. I suddenly became anxious and hurriedly went out to salvage it.

The first pot was dark.

I remembered that my mother-in-law would put the fruits into the oil pan one by one without any rush or slowness. This is very good for keeping the original shape of the fruits. You shouldn't use such an urgent fire either. So I adjusted the firepower and put it in slowly. When they were fished out this time, they were half yellow and half white. This should be due to the wrong frequency of flipping.

While frying, sum up experience. The daughter took a bite and asked: "Mom, why are the fruits you fried not as delicious as grandma's fried fruits?"

My sister came and made the following comments: Some fried fruits were lightly fried, while others were fried hard.

Although today’s children have such picky tastes, everyone will still be full of praise for the fried fruits made by my mother-in-law. Why do the same ingredients produce different tastes?

The first thing should be kneading the noodles. My mother-in-law is a very meticulous person, so the fried fruits and noodles should be moderately soft and hard. I knew the noodles were a little soft, so that was fine.

If my mother-in-law takes a long time to pick up the noodles, the noodles will become chewier. I probably don't have the patience to spend a long time picking up the noodles. These seemingly insignificant details actually have a great impact on the taste.

Furthermore, the frying temperature and the frequency of flipping will affect the color and taste. The fruit fried by my mother-in-law is bright yellow all over, neither old nor tender, just like the color painted in a dye vat. The resulting fruit is extremely delicious in terms of shape, color and taste. This is because the heat is well controlled, and the frequency of flipping is just right. In this way, the fried fruits will be uniform throughout and there will never be any phenomenon of being fried too old or too tender.

Just right is not easy to achieve.

During the Chinese New Year, it is a kind of pride to serve guests with this kind of just-right fruit: "Come on, how about you try the fried fruit I made?"

"Like this Can you bring back the fried fruits for the New Year?” I looked at these messy finished products again and again, feeling a little embarrassed to take action.

"It's okay!" My daughter was trying to comfort me.

Everyone in my circle of friends says I am clever, but I feel that this skill cannot be learned.

I remember my mother-in-law making fruit, not in a hurry, not too slow, but steadily, putting her heart into whatever she was doing, and doing everything to the best of her ability. But I am always too impetuous and eager for success. He even works absent-mindedly and checks his cell phone from time to time. Therefore, doing things cannot be learned by learning. This is how you do things and how you behave. Her old lady's stoic and calm character, her extremely hard-working and extremely simple attitude towards life are something I cannot learn from.

No matter how fried the fruit is, it can still be regarded as an experience, a kind of nostalgia, and a reflection.

In this noisy and impetuous era, we should really calm down, appreciate the traditional things, and reflect on our attitude towards life and work.