Lamb steamed buns
In the dietary system of Guanzhong people, steamed buns play a pivotal role. It is further divided into mutton steamed buns and beef steamed buns, among which mutton steamed buns are more popular. The reason for this is that Xi'an is close to the pastoral area in history, and the cattle and sheep trade is developed, especially for sheep. The history of mutton steamed buns is worth a book, and according to legend, it originated from the ceremonial dish "yokan" of dignitaries and dignitaries in the Western Zhou Dynasty. However, it is more credible to say that the production method of mixed cooking of noodles and sheep, which is directly related to it, did not take shape until the Sui and Tang dynasties.
The ingredients are heavy and mellow, and the thick meat soup is the biggest highlight of the mutton steamed bun. Fine mutton, well-defined steamed buns, and crystal clear vermicelli are the protagonists of this bowl of mutton bubbles, and the emerald green onions are embellished among them, plus a stack of sweet sweet garlic, which constitutes a meal that Xi'an people cannot miss every day. Newcomers may find it difficult for newcomers to accept the spices of mutton, but when a few mouthfuls of the creamy soup are accompanied by a strong steamed bun, they will gradually become familiar with the taste.
What creates the mellow flavor of mutton steamed buns is its rich spice ingredients and exquisite production process. It uses several spices such as pepper, cinnamon, star anise, cumin, etc., to create a very Western flavor aroma. The cooking of the soup base is very complicated, the mutton bones and mutton are soaked in water and then cooked in a fire, skimmed and foamed and then boiled together with spices, the soup base is the original soup, and finally mixed with water to become the mutton steamed bun soup base in the mouth of diners. Steamed buns pay attention to "nine deaths and one life", it uses ninety percent dead noodles and one leaven noodles, and is dried and seared until medium-cooked, so that it will not soften and become a paste after soaking in the high-temperature soup base.
The way to eat is also a must-have for mutton steamed buns. The most taboo of authentic "Lao Shaanxi" is to use chopsticks to stir repeatedly in the bowl, which will accelerate the dissolution of the steamed bun, and the correct way to eat is to gradually "nibble" from the edge of the bowl to ensure that the soup and steamed bun are always accompanied. There are also four mainstream ways to eat among the people: one is dry soaking, similar to small fried steamed buns, the soup completely penetrates into the steamed buns, and there is no drip left in the bowl after eating; the second is the soup, and there is only soup in the bowl after eating; the third is the water surrounding the city, the bun is in the middle, and the soup is in the periphery; The fourth is to go alone, that is, the steamed soup is separated, and the diners operate by themselves, which is very similar to the way of eating mutton in another snack basin in Xi'an.
