Cracking a classic culinary code
Food historian attempts to re-create old recipes described in Cao Xueqin's book, only to discover that there is more to the story, Xu Fan reports.
"After all, Cao Xueqin was the young master of the Cao family, not its chef. The eggplant relish that Granny Liu enjoyed was a literary embellishment by Cao Xueqin. If one were to strictly follow the description in the book, the flavors would fail to penetrate the eggplant, and the result would likely be bland and unappetizing," explains Lu.
Yet, this is also the most meticulously described dish in the novel, which has "misled" the fans who attempt to re-create it.
Lu's approach was more academic. He discovered a recipe collection created during the era of Emperor Qianlong, grandson of Kangxi, which contains instructions for making eggplant relish. Although the method differed from the description in Cao Xueqin's novel, the taste was much better.
By cross-referencing historical texts with the help of a renowned Hangzhou chef, in Zhejiang province, Lu and his team from Tencent News' Ideas program successfully re-created nine dishes, debuting them at a late-September banquet in the Unique Dream of Red Mansion theatrical complex in Langfang, Hebei province. A dancer wearing ancient Chinese attire performed a graceful routine to a live pipa (four-stringed Chinese lute) melody, enriching the cultural atmosphere of the banquet.
