A plate of scallion fried beef, hiding the most ironed fireworks

I am Eleanor Mae Bennett, and my familiar friends like to call me Ellie. I am 34 years old this year. I have been sharing home-cooked food for six years. I am not a professional food blogger, but more like a life recorder who is obsessed with keeping the smell of fireworks. I grew up in the alleys of the old city in the north, and grew up with my grandmother guarding a black and bright iron pot. In my bones, I prefer those home-cooked stir-fry that do not need complicated ingredients and fancy techniques, but can warm my heart, especially for the taste of scallion and meat. I never like to abide by the rigid ratio in cooking. I pay more attention to the temperature and the freshness of the ingredients themselves. I always feel that the best taste is never the hard dishes on delicate plates in the restaurant, but the home-made taste of steaming and pot in the kitchen. Beef with scallion is the most irreplaceable one engraved in my taste memory.

The first time I really remembered the taste of fried beef with onions was one winter night when I was in junior high school. At that time, my parents were busy with work. I stayed at my grandmother's house every day after school, waiting for her to cook dinner in a different way. The winter in the north is very cold. In the evening, the alley is full of fireworks from all families cooking. Grandma's kitchen is always the warmest place. The pig iron pot, which has been used for more than 20 years, is polished and burnished with the strongest aroma every time it is fired. On the night of school that day, when I entered the door, I saw grandma standing in front of the stove with a shovel in her hand. the pan was sizzling. the large scallion white was slightly soft with hot oil. the beef slices wrapped in sauce were quickly stir-fried in the pan. however, for tens of seconds, a stream of scallion fragrance straight into the nasal cavity mixed with the freshness of beef filled the whole small kitchen. even the ice on the window seemed to be slowly smoked by the heat.

It was the first time that I seriously stared at the birth of a dish. There were no complicated spices and no complicated pretreatment. Grandma only pickled the beef slices cut evenly thick and thin, grabbed a little starch to lock in the water, then cut the thick and strong green onions unique to the north into long sections, took only the freshest and tender parts of the scallion, heated the oil until smoking, first fried the scallion sections into fragrant, then slid into the beef slices, and fried a few times, pour on a little raw soy sauce and cooking wine, sprinkle a little salt to improve the taste. After only two minutes, a plate of steaming scallion fried beef will be out of the pot. When loading the plate, the scallion segment is light amber and the beef slice is tender red and brown. The two ingredients are tangled together, shiny but not greasy. Before moving the chopsticks, just smelling the burnt scallion flavor and tender meat flavor, I feel tired all day long. After that bite, the beef was smooth and tender, and every trace of texture was filled with scallion and sauce. The scallion white had no spicy taste at all, but became soft and sweet, wrapped in the aroma of gravy, and matched with the freshly steamed white rice. I ate two large bowls at one go, and even the little soup left on the plate was mixed with me. The steady and satisfying taste started from that winter night, it has never disappeared from my memory.

Later, I slowly learned that scallion-fried beef seems to be a home-cooked fast-food that can be seen everywhere, but it actually hides the fireworks wisdom of northern food. It belongs to the classic category of Shandong cuisine stir-fry, and is also a "universal meal" on the dining table of the folk people. It has no high-end food positioning, but with its extreme taste matching and minimalist cooking logic, it has become a home-cooked explosion that spans across regions and is suitable for all. The core essence of this dish is all in the four words of "quick stir-fry". This is also the soul of the northern common stir-fry. It pays attention to the full atmosphere and fierce temperature of the pan. The ingredients mature quickly after entering the pan. It can not only keep the fresh and tender taste of beef, but also release the aroma of scallion completely, press off the slight fishy smell of beef, and make the two flavors perfectly blend.

Speaking of the regional characteristics of this dish, there are subtle differences in the practice of different places, but each has its own flavor. In the north, when making fried beef with scallion, it is necessary to choose thick scallion, only the white part of scallion is taken, and the segments are cut generously. It pursues strong scallion fragrance, soft and waxy taste, salty and fresh taste. It is brought out by soy sauce and salt, without adding extra seasonings, and the main flavor is original. In some areas in the south, the scallion segments will be cut finer and refreshing, with a little sugar, highlight fresh and sweet, adapt to the southern light food taste. However, no matter how the practice changes, the core has not changed: scallion is the dominant factor and beef is the base. The two complement each other and are indispensable. Without scallion, scallion-fried beef will appear dull and tasteless. Without beef, scallion will also lack mellow meat flavor. This simple collocation just confirms the true meaning of folk diet-good taste is never a pile of ingredients, but a proper fusion.

From the perspective of food culture, fried beef with onions can become a home-cooked dish that has been circulated for many years, and there are very real reasons for life. In the past, when materials were not abundant, beef was not a daily food. Occasionally, buying one piece and stir-frying it with the most common green onions could not only maximize the fragrance of the limited ingredients, but also make a hard dish that could support the scene. Whether eating at home or entertaining relatives and friends, serving a plate of fried beef with green onions was fast and decent, did not need to be stewed for a long time or complicated procedures, it can be out of the pot in a few minutes, which adapts to the fast-paced life of ordinary people, and also hides the people's intentions for three meals a day. It does not pay attention to ostastity like banquet dishes, nor does it pay attention to color value like exquisite desserts. It is the most down-to-earth taste and the most ordinary and warm existence in the kitchen fireworks.

When I grew up, I left my hometown to work in other places. In the days when I was working outside alone, I was too busy to eat well. I ate too much takeout and always felt a little less temperature. Whenever I missed the taste of home, I would get into the kitchen and make a plate of fried beef with green onions. At the beginning of my own cooking, I was completely unable to touch the temperature, or the fire was too low, and the fried beef was old and firewood, without any smooth and tender taste. Either the scallion section is put into the pot too early, and the stir-frying is pasty and bitter, which destroys the taste of the whole dish. There are also times when the time for pickling beef is not well controlled, either it is not tasty or it tastes tight. I have tried several times, but I can't make the taste of grandma. I even felt that this dish seems simple, but it actually hides a skill that is difficult to handle.

Later, I slowly calmed down and recalled the way grandma cooked. she never weighed the seasoning in the kitchen. she only relied on her hand feeling. when firing, she must burn until the pan is hot and smoke. when stir-frying, she must act quickly and never procrastinate. the order in which scallion segments and beef are put into the pan and the duration of stir-frying are all exquisite. I tried again and again, adjusted the temperature, adjusted the pickling method, and slowly found my own home practice. I no longer pursued the so-called "authentic formula", but only followed my own taste, just like grandma, in the most simple way, to make the most desirable taste. Now, every time I make beef with onions, I can skillfully control the temperature. I watch the beef and onions in the pot roll in the fire and smell the familiar aroma. It seems that I have returned to grandma's small kitchen. The sense of security wrapped in fireworks cannot be replaced by any delicious food.

I always feel that the most touching thing about onion-fried beef is never how amazing its taste is, but its own sense of healing. It is a warm-hearted dish that can be served as soon as possible when you return from work late. It is a simple replica of the taste of home in your spare time on weekends. It is a dish for friends to get together and eat together. It can instantly smooth the lonely taste comfort when wandering in a foreign land. It has no sense of distance. Whether it is a person with excellent cooking skills or a novice who has just learned to cook, they can try to make their own version. Everyone's fried beef with onions carries their own imprints of life, or the company of their family. Or a time alone, or a certain unforgettable memory.

I also often record these home-cooked tastes hidden with fireworks in my aifoodnews. I always feel that food sharing should not be cold technique teaching or rigid food matching, but the story, emotion and temperature behind the food should be passed on, so that every ordinary home-cooked dish can be seen and remembered, so that more people are willing to stop and cook a hot meal for themselves in a busy life, feel the beauty of a meal. This is the case with onion-fried beef. It is so ordinary that it can no longer be ordinary, but it can give people the most practical comfort in every ordinary day. It is a delicious taste, a full memory, and the most precious in the world. Fireworks warmth.

Today, I still keep the habit of making beef with scallion once a week. Sometimes I eat it myself, sometimes I invite friends to my home. A plate of steaming beef with scallion, accompanied by white rice and a simple stir-fry of green vegetables is the most comfortable meal. There is no exquisite plate, no expensive ingredients, but it can always make people feel warm. When eating, chat and talk about daily trivia. All the troubles and pressures seem to be slowly dissipated in this fireworks. This is the power of home-cooked food. It is not public and deliberate, but it can quietly heal life and let us feel the beauty of life in ordinary meals.

In fact, in our life, we have eaten countless big meals and tasted all kinds of delicacies. In the end, what we miss most is often the home-cooked dishes we had when we were young. For me, fried beef with onions is not just a dish, it is the love of my grandmother, the warmth of childhood, the comfort of a foreign land, the homesickness engraved in my bones, and the taste that can hold people's hearts no matter how far I go. It taught me that the best life is never vigorous, but hidden in the ordinary of a porridge and a meal, hidden in the fireworks in the kitchen, hidden in every mouthful of food cooked with care.

I don't know if there is such a seemingly ordinary but meaningful home-cooked dish in your memory? Is there a dish that can remind you of your family, a warm moment and a carefree time? If you also like to eat fried beef with onions, or have your own homely taste story, you might as well share it with me, so that these ordinary fireworks taste become the gentlest light in our lives.