China's Shandong Zibo Boshan Tofu Box, also known as "Unpacking Treasure", is a classic representative of Shandong branch Boshan cuisine. Its origin can be traced back to the Qing Dynasty. It is said that famous chef Zhang Dengke, in order to entertain distinguished guests, used tofu as the material and dug up the pulp and filled it into box-shaped dishes, which unexpectedly made delicious. This home-cooked dish was not only praised by Emperor Qianlong, but also included in the nine white banquets of the Manchu and Han dynasties. It was also included in the menu of the state banquet in the Great Hall of the People. In 2010, it was awarded the intangible cultural heritage of Boshan District and became a food legend across the market and halls.
The essence of the tofu box lies in the blending of the ingenuity of "vegetarian dishes and meat" and the meaning of the ingredients. The main ingredients are Boshan local handmade tofu, which is compact in texture and mellow in bean flavor. The stuffing hides the universe. The classic "three fresh fillings" are matched with sea cucumber, sea rice and tenderloin. The delicacies of the mountains and seas come together to symbolize the "acacia of the mountains and seas". The homely version is filled with mushrooms, agaric and bamboo shoots, each with the surprise of "unpacking the box and taking the treasure. The tower-like "Water Man Jinshan" on the banquet and the "Jiuzi Dengke" necessary for the wedding banquet make this dish a cultural symbol of reunion and celebration.
Making tofu boxes is a model of "kung fu cuisine" in Shandong cuisine. Tofu is cut into pieces, blanched and shaped, cut into loose leaves, dig out the pulp and leave the shell, fill in the stuffing pickled with cooking wine and stir-fried to enhance fragrance, and stick it with starch paste after covering to prevent it from falling off. Hang the egg paste and fry it until it is golden and crisp, then use soy sauce to enhance freshness, white sugar to neutralize, and vinegar to enhance flavor, and simmer over a small fire to allow the sauce to penetrate each layer of texture. From food processing to temperature control, from paste frying to thickening and juice harvesting, more than ten processes are carried out step by step to achieve the authentic flavor of "crisp outside and tender inside, filling with enough juice.
Just out of the pot of tofu box, golden yellow oil as bright as a gold box, bite the moment will play a taste symphony. The crispy outer belt is fragrant with eggs, the inner tofu is soft, tender and juicy, the meat flavor and bacteria in the stuffing blend, and the sauce is just right in balance of sour, sweet, salty and fresh. The fish stuffing is tender and not broken, the pork stuffing is fat but not greasy, the vegetarian stuffing is fresh and sweet, and different stuffing deduce the unique scene of "a hundred families and a hundred flavors. When hot food, the sauce is mellow, warming the body and heart. After cold food, the taste is firm and sour. With rice and wine, it is a good product.
For Zibo people, tofu boxes have long gone beyond the dishes themselves. It is the reunion ceremony of "opening the Fugai to eat the Fuzi" on the New Year's Eve dinner table, the childhood fun for children to guess the stuffing, and the warmest nostalgic memory in the hearts of wanderers. Today, this traditional famous dish not only retains the ancient techniques of the old "Qinghe Juhe" shop, but also integrates modern innovative practices, becoming an online celebrity food on major platforms. Regardless of the changes of the times, the taste of crisp outside and tender inside, full of smoke and fire, has always been the cultural root that Zibo people cannot give up.
