舌尖上的美食 第9期:青豆小糕 Rice Cake
Rice Cake
青豆小糕
Weishan has been a place of strategic importance along the Ancient Tea Horse Road since ancient times. Many local villagers in the town made a living by caravan carrying. Ma Guotou was the chief of one big caravan in the town. He had a sweet tooth especially for the rice cakes made locally.
自古以來，巍山一直是茶馬古道的重鎮，本地也有很多從事馬幫運輸的鄉民。城內一支大馬幫的馬鍋頭喜好甜食，尤其喜歡吃本地的米糕。But he was always on the go most of the times and didn’t have the luck in having rice cake. Besides, Zengzi, the earthen utensil for steaming rice cake was not portable, which was really something his wife always felt regrettable about. But this ingenious wife managed to invent a portable cooker which made it possible for her husband to enjoy rice cake of hometown taste in the journey.
可是平日裏走南闖北奔波在外，難以滿足口福，而製作米糕的圓甄攜帶也不方便，所以讓心疼丈夫的妻子很是遺憾。這位心靈手巧的年輕女子，爲了讓丈夫在路途的勞頓中品嚐到帶着家鄉味道的米糕，就想辦法制作了一套方便攜帶的甄糕的工具。She dug small holes in the pot cover and made many small containers of wood chip with a ventilate board to fit those holes. This way, these small containers can just be put in a position suitable for the holes of the pot cover. One can just put pot with water on stove and fill the small containers with mixed rice and paste to have rice cake done within a few minutes.
在鍋蓋上挖出小洞，用木片做成上圓下尖的小甄，中間用鐵皮鑿出有透氣小孔的隔板。這樣，小圓甄恰好放在鍋蓋的洞眼上，只需在鑼鍋中盛滿水，置於爐火上，在小甄內放上混合好的米麪，兩個小甄一起蒸，三五分鐘後，米糕就熟了。
This set of rice cake cooker was so easy to make and carry, which satisfied caravan guys with food full of homesickness and comfort on their arduous drudge. The rice cake brought them with deep love for their hometown and family relatives.
這樣一套甄糕工具，便於攜帶，製作也方便。讓遠行的馬幫漢子能在艱苦的長途跋涉中，享受到那份帶着濃濃思念的甜蜜和慰藉。一合小糕，帶來一份悠長的牽掛和潤澤心底的濃濃愛意。
