健康又原汁原味的清蒸菜品 - 2019年01月18日

Steaming food is quick, healthy and flexible.

Around the world, people have been cooking food with steam for thousands of years. Delicious dishes can be made with minimum preparation and attention.

Unlike boiling or frying, which can result in the loss of juices and moisture, steaming food can best preserve the original, umami flavor as well as the nutrients.

In ancient China, steaming was a very common method of cooking meat. In the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) there was a wintertime favorite called zhanzhengyang, mutton steamed in a bowl.

Preparation was simple: Fresh mutton is first steamed with scallion, ginger, salt and water, and the bowl is covered and steamed until the meat turned slightly white. A sauce of yellow wine, vinegar and fermented soy bean paste was added, then it is steamed on low heat for two hours.

The mutton cooked in sealed containers could keep all the juices and flavors, the vinegar helped the meat to soften and yellow wine removed the mutton smell and taste.

Because the steam can cook food thoroughly and no turning or stirring is required during the process, the shape and integrity of delicate ingredients can be kept.