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“Round like the moon, dotted with sesame stars, the stars, the moon and the puff pastry come together with delectable finesse. When talking about cookies in Shandong Province, it is inevitable to think of the famous “Zhoucun cookies”, whose fame extends far beyond the borders. Their artisanal manufacturing technique has been selected to be included in the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in China.
Its history has its roots 1800 years ago, on the “Silk Road”. Zhoucun cookies, whose origin dates back to the time of the Han Dynasty, were directly influenced by the gastronomic cultures of Central Asia brought by the Maritime Silk Road to Zibo, thus merging with the culinary traditions to give birth to new flavours.
It was not until the end of the Guangxu era, in the period of the Qing dynasty, that the Zhoucun pastry named “Juhezhai” made improvements in the technique of making Central Asian pancakes. This is how the large and delicate puff pastry biscuits were born, renowned for their delicacy, their fragrance, their crispness and their crunch. Their fame then spread rapidly among the population. Due to their exquisite thinness and delicate crispness, they were affectionately dubbed the “Leaves of Autumn (Guala Yezi)” by foodies.
In 1904, Zhoucun was upgraded to a commercial city, and with the inauguration of the Qingdao-Jinan railway line, “Autumn Leaves (Guala Yezi)” became a prized gift for family visits and must-have treats for business travellers. Their fame thus reached new heights.
Overnight, more than ten pastry shops sprang up in Zhoucun, making large puff pastry pancakes the instrument of prosperity for the locals. In the 1950s, in order to promote the development of large puff pastry in Zhoucun, the small pastries were consolidated into the Zhoucun State Food Factory (now Shandong Zhoucun Biscuits Co., Ltd.). In 1961, the trademark “Zhoucun” was registered for large puff pastry. From then on, the large puff pastry, fine, fragrant, crispy and crunchy, offered a new reputation: Zhoucun biscuits.
Handed down for more than a century, the manufacturing process requires nine steps. Zhoucun biscuit making involves nine steps: selecting materials, mixing ingredients, forming dough pieces, kneading, extending, sprinkling sesame seeds, baking, and wrapping. Among these, crucial steps such as kneading and extending have been passed down for more than a century in the traditional master-apprentice mode, where knowledge is transmitted from master to disciple, hand to hand. In 2008, Zhoucun’s biscuit-making craft was honored on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in China.
“Coming out of noble homes, biscuits reflect people’s feelings. The popularity of Zhoucun biscuits, which won the poet Zhan Ruoshui’s enthusiastic praise, is due not only to adherence to traditional techniques and exquisite craftsmanship, but also to the importance given to the choice of raw materials. All the ingredients needed to make Zhoucun cookies, such as wheat flour, sesame seeds, cane sugar and salt, are made from pure natural resources.
Since ancient times, scholars have praised these large, flaky, thin and crispy pancakes, describing them as “Round like the full moon, thin like autumn leaves”. According to Zhang Junjie, the fifth inheritor of Zhoucun biscuit craftsmanship, “a quality Zhoucun biscuit is about two millimeters thick.”
After carefully selecting the ingredients, the master pastry chefs shape small cookie doughs which are then baked in a high temperature oven of 240°C. Finally, a freshly baked biscuit, topped with almost 3000 sesame seeds, is obtained. “The characteristics of Zhoucun cookies, crispy, fragrant, thin and crunchy, are summed up in the expression Dropped pearls, burst into jade fragments, providing endless taste experience adds Zhang Junjie. “A cookie maker in Zhoucun can make about 3,000 cookies a day. »
“Zhoucun biscuit craftsmen of the modern era should always remember that finesse lies in the biscuit, and integrity in the sincere conscience says Zhang Zhaohai, the senior manager of Zhoucun biscuits. “We have a heavy responsibility to preserve and develop this tradition. We must ensure the preservation and flourishing development of the Zhoucun biscuit enterprise, making the brand Zhoucun an undisputed reference in our region. »
L’article Zibo Food, Shandong: The Fine Art of Zhoucun Biscuits appeared first on Midi Madagasikara.
