Jixi Tart Cake Making Technique

Anhui
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Taguo (dialect transliteration: taguo) is one of the oldest and most distinctive traditional foods in Jixi County, the "hometown of Chinese Anhui cuisine and the hometown of Chinese chefs". It has different common names depending on the occasions of use: if it is used as a daily food, it is generally called "taguo". If it is a convenient food that farmers bring with them when working in the mountains and fields, it is called "cold rice fruit". The food that Hui merchants bring with them when they go out to do business is also called "panchan fruit". The food that Hui merchants leave behind before going out is called "jijia fruit". Jixi Taguo is mainly concentrated in the north of the Ling Mountains, with Chang'an Town being the most prominent. In the 16th year of the Guangxu period (1890), the town head Wu Yongda opened a noodle shop in the town head, because the tea pavilion was a must-go place for business and work. Wu Yongda's Taguo was of good quality, fragrant and delicious, and passers-by rushed to buy it, thus becoming famous. In the early years of the Republic of China, Wu Zhengtai, Wu Yongda's younger brother, inherited the business. The tart cakes he made were thin-skinned, with lots of stuffing, and they didn't leak air. Their fragrance spread far and wide. After several generations of disciples passed on this craft, there are now four representative tart cake masters in Chang'an Town. Among them, the only one that makes tart cakes all year round is Chunde Tart Cake, which is located next to the Zhentou Village Station in Chang'an Town. The tart cakes here are full of ingredients and fragrant, and are the most representative "Jixi Tart Cake". The making of tart cakes requires a lot of skills. First of all, the dough must be kneaded very carefully. The dough cannot be kneaded too much. If it is kneaded too much, it will be too tough and difficult to make big. Moreover, the texture is too hard. If the dough is not kneaded enough, it will be too soft. After kneading the dough, wrap the stuffing in the dough, then use a special rolling pin to flatten it back and forth, and bake it in an iron pan for 2-3 minutes. The taste of tart cakes comes with the stuffing. There are all kinds of flavors. Toona sinensis, bean yellow, and locust flowers are fragrant; cowpea, leek, and radish have a full taste. Information source: Anhui Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center Information source: Anhui Provincial Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center

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