Raw Vegetable Delicacies

By Chen Nianxuan

Raw Vegetable Delicacies

By Chen Nianxuan

I am quite certain that most Chinese people, with the notable exception of inhabitants of the freezing northernmost provinces, aren't used to eating vegetables raw (this is especially true in the south of China, where the climate is predominantly hot and humid). Vegetables in China are generally cooked or, alternatively, pickled. It was only after I travelled to Western countries that I gradually realized how satisfying eating raw vegetables could be. In cold, arid areas, sugar is plentiful in vegetables, making them sweet and delicious when eaten raw. On the other hand, according to traditional Chinese medicine, consuming raw vegetables and fruits in a hot, humid climate will increase their already significant negative impact on damp and cold body dispositions.

On my first visit to India, I remembered local people's astonishment when they saw me munching on a raw tomato. It turns out that in the cuisines of areas with a great abundance of food, such as the Mediterranean region or the Indian sub-continent, tomatoes are used mainly for seasoning and are in general not consumed directly (this is because tomatoes' nutritional value increases after being heated). I, on the other hand, was even more taken aback by the sight of Indians' snacking on huge cucumbers as if they were a piece of fruit. To me, a native Taiwanese, the only proper way to eat a cucumber is to cook it in soup.

As a child, I was horrified at the sight of someone eating raw garlic. It was the same feeling I had in the winter when I would observe my dad chopping radishes and sticking pieces of it into his mouth. He would even complain how tasteless Taiwanese radishes are, how their fibers are too thick, and how they are not sweet enough. In Taiwan, radish is cooked in soup and never eaten raw. In the simple world of a child, vegetables are just vegetables. Who would have known that there were such huge differences between a vegetable that is grown in different regions? In addition, seasonal variations in a particular region also affect the quality of the yield. Each time grown-ups took me shopping for groceries, I would get bored while they were choosing vegetables. Attempting to be helpful, I would grab a bunch of veggies and throw them into our shopping bag. Mom would then call me a good-for-nothing helper, as I wasn’t mindful of the condition or ripeness. One time my grandma saw me take a vegetable, lick it, and then throw it onto the ground—she shook her head and scolded me for being wasteful.

Later in life, I was stuck in the mountains overlooking Vancouver. A snowstorm was raging outside. Luckily, it was warm and dry indoors by the fireplace. Meals there consisted solely of raw vegetable, salads and bread. To my astonishment, I could not get enough of this kind of food. It was then that I realized that climate determined people's food preferences. That day I did away with my cultural prejudices against certain kinds of foods, especially raw vegetables. I now believe that with a slight adjustment, one can eat both raw and cooked food anytime, and in any place.

Leafy vegetables should not be eaten cooked. On the other hand, vegetables with thick fibers should not be consumed raw. I have learned to take some table salt, rub it in, and squeeze out the extra moisture, then chop the vegetables into small chunks for later use. That way, the vegetables remain soft and green for a long time and can be served with rice, noodles, or tofu. They can even be mixed with ground nuts or with chopped spring onions, then combined with dough and baked or shallow-fried to make pancakes. This method makes them more aromatic and tastier, sweeter, and more enticing than regular spring onions.

If a dish is to be tasty, with the leafy vegetables still retaining their nutrients, while at the same time not creating an unnecessary burden on people with damp and cold dispositions, some roasted vegetables can be added to the mix to make the meal more balanced. Roasted sweet peppers are extremely tasty with their skins removed. Likewise, roasting tomatoes, apples, pears and even grapes, will seriously increase their sweetness. Roasted product tastes great with leafy vegetables. If one adds roasted mushrooms and nuts, the dish will become even richer, more nutritious and delicious.

Sometimes, I store roasted vegetables or fruits in a cool place, soaking in rice or fruit vinegar. Product can be stored like this for long periods without becoming sour. They also acquire a great color and taste, and are great for decorating dishes and winning your guests' hearts.

One day, some friends came to visit from far away. My female guests talked incessantly and nobody would let me cook anything—they would say it was a waste of time. Since there were so many street peddlers and eateries in the neighborhood, there was no need for me to even enter the kitchen. Among my guests was an American who asked me to order scalded green vegetables at every meal. This unique Taiwanese way of eating green vegetables is a favorite among foreigners. Not only is it a way of avoiding eating raw vegetables in a hot and humid climate; it also helps meet the body's need for green vegetables. Scalded green vegetables are fresh and delicious, and a favorite during hot summers.

The recipe is extremely simple. First, heating half a pot of water to boil. Then add some oil and salt. Briefly dip a handful of spinach, sweet potato leaves, Chinese broccoli, Chinese cabbage, or crown daisy in the boiling water, then remove the vegetables, arrange them on a plate and add a unique sauce.

Usually, in small eateries, scalded green vegetables come with a simple garlic sauce and sesame oil. The sauce my mother used to make was slightly more complex. She would use onions, ginger, and garlic powder, as well as her favorite type of basil, coriander, and celery. She sometimes adds ketchup, mayonnaise, and a bit of mustard, as well. I, on the other hand, prefer the taste of sesame sauce, yellow mustard, and almond sauce mixed together. Recently, I

have also become fond of mixing Italian red wine vinegar and olive oil. Fruit sauces made of mixed lemons, oranges, and other citrus are a tasty and refreshing way to flavor dishes in the summer.

During a whiskey tasting at a famous distillery in Ireland, filled with the scent of the finest alcohol, a wild idea suddenly dawned on me. I told the master chef—right there and then—to try adding a bit of the spirits to the salad dressing on the table. It turned out to be the tastiest vegetable salad I had ever had, and I remember it fondly to this day.

Similarly, it was only after I visited Japan for the first time that I encountered the simple way Japanese housewives rub salt into vegetables, intensifying their natural sweetness and fresh color. From that moment on, I would often apply this simple method to my own dishes, especially to gherkins, a food so popular in Japanese kitchens. After this, gherkins can be stored for quite a long time. They can be eaten any time or used for decoration. This kind of simplicity strongly reminds me of Sen no Rikyuu, a Japanese sage who exerted a profound influence on tea ceremonies, and was a champion of simple aesthetics. This simplicity, I think, is the true meaning of life. It is the realization that comes directly from experiencing such bliss.

(From Worldview, Issue 15, 2016. Translated: Trans）

除了天寒地凍的北方外，我相信大部分的中國(guó)人都不習(xí)慣生吃蔬菜，尤其是濕熱的南方。即便是生吃，也要吃腌制過(guò)的泡菜，而非直接生吃。旅行到西方國(guó)家后，才逐漸明白，寒冷地區(qū)氣候干燥，蔬菜的糖分較高，生吃鮮美甘甜，且因干冷，吃生菜反而舒服；濕熱地區(qū)若生吃蔬果，反易加重濕寒體質(zhì)的負(fù)擔(dān)。

記得剛?cè)ビ《葧r(shí)，當(dāng)?shù)厝丝次疑晕骷t柿很驚訝，而我看他們把大黃瓜當(dāng)水果吃，更吃驚。在波斯帝國(guó)飲食泛濫過(guò)的地中海與印度地區(qū)，西紅柿是烹飪調(diào)味料，不能直接拿來(lái)吃（過(guò)油加熱后的西紅柿才有營(yíng)養(yǎng)價(jià)值），而對(duì)我這臺(tái)灣地區(qū)來(lái)的人來(lái)說(shuō)，大黃瓜是燉湯用的，別無(wú)其他用途。

小時(shí)候看人生吃大蒜都會(huì)嚇一跳，然后就是冬天看到老爸邊切蘿卜邊往嘴里塞，還挑剔：“臺(tái)灣的蘿卜真難吃，纖維粗又不甜，味如嚼蠟?！痹谂_(tái)灣，蘿卜是燉湯的附屬品，沒(méi)有人生吃。以幼童的概念來(lái)說(shuō)，天下的蔬菜不都一回事嗎？哪曉得同樣的蔬菜，每個(gè)地區(qū)的質(zhì)量天差地遠(yuǎn)，甚至，在同產(chǎn)區(qū)的不同季節(jié)，也會(huì)有相當(dāng)大的差異。每次跟大人去買菜，都會(huì)很不耐煩大人的挑三揀四，偷偷地假裝幫忙挑選，隨手亂抓一大把便往袋子里扔。老媽經(jīng)常說(shuō)我：“敗家子?！蓖馄趴粗夷靡粋€(gè)舔一下便往地上扔，搖頭罵：“討債鬼！”

有一年在溫哥華山區(qū)閉關(guān)，室外大雪紛飛，屋里炭火燥熱，餐餐都是生菜色拉與干面包，竟從未吃膩，反而對(duì)生鮮蔬果有種饑渴式的貪婪，才恍然大悟：氣候，決定了人類的飲食傾向。從此掃除了對(duì)某些飲食慣性的偏見，只需略微調(diào)整，生熟食，在任何時(shí)間地點(diǎn)，都不會(huì)成為問(wèn)題。

葉菜類的蔬菜不適宜熟食，但纖維較粗者，又不宜生食。我會(huì)先抓鹽搓揉出水?dāng)Q干，再切成細(xì)末備用，能長(zhǎng)期維持柔軟翠綠，可拌飯、拌干面、拌豆腐，甚至直接與各種磨碎的堅(jiān)果攪拌在一起，或像蔥花那樣，卷進(jìn)面團(tuán)里搟成面皮，干烙或油煎成餅，即芳香可口，比蔥花還甘甜迷人。

若想維持葉菜的養(yǎng)分，又要容易入口，且不造成濕寒體質(zhì)的負(fù)累，可添加幾種烤菜攪拌在一起，便能平衡。且烤過(guò)的甜椒去皮后，口感細(xì)膩如蜜桃，而西紅柿、蘋果、梨甚至葡萄，烤干軟后，香甜度提高好幾倍，跟葉菜類一起進(jìn)食，氣味豐富，若再加上烤菇與烤堅(jiān)果，便更豐盛健康，養(yǎng)生又美味了。

有時(shí)，我也會(huì)將烤過(guò)的蔬果，放進(jìn)米醋或水果醋里裝罐冷藏，可以保存長(zhǎng)久而不易變酸，隨時(shí)取用，都能討好食客，味美而色佳，也是裝飾餐點(diǎn)的好幫手。

有一回家中寄宿好幾位遠(yuǎn)方來(lái)客，女人聚集在一起嘰嘰喳喳，誰(shuí)都不許我去做飯，說(shuō)是浪費(fèi)時(shí)間，尤其家附近有許多攤販與小館，吃喝異常便利，便更沒(méi)有理由讓我進(jìn)廚房了。其中有位老美竟餐餐跟我要求：“點(diǎn)燙青菜?！边@道臺(tái)灣島獨(dú)有的吃青菜方式，深獲老外青睞，既避免在濕熱地區(qū)吃生冷蔬菜，又能兼顧人體對(duì)綠色蔬菜的需求，同時(shí)又清爽可口，是炎炎夏日最受歡迎的家常菜肴。

做法非常簡(jiǎn)單，煮滾半鍋熱水，添加油鹽，將整把清洗過(guò)的菠菜、青江菜、地瓜葉、芥藍(lán)、小白菜或茼蒿，下鍋涮兩下便取出，整齊擺盤后，淋上獨(dú)門醬汁即成。

一般小店里的燙青菜醬汁，多半是簡(jiǎn)單的蒜蓉醬油與麻油。家母做的醬汁略微復(fù)雜，除蔥姜蒜末外，還有她最愛的九層塔與芫荽或芹菜末，至于醬油膏，有時(shí)會(huì)加入番茄醬與油蛋清打成的美乃滋和少許的芥末醬。而我則喜歡芝麻醬、黃芥末與杏仁醬混合而成的口感。意大利紅酒醋與橄欖油混合的簡(jiǎn)易生菜醬汁，也是我近來(lái)喜愛的口味之一。此外，將檸檬、香橙等果汁混合而成的醬汁，也是夏天的爽口調(diào)料選擇。

受邀參加愛爾蘭著名酒莊的品酒會(huì)，12年與18年的醇厚酒香，讓我突發(fā)異想，便在餐宴上提議，讓大廚當(dāng)場(chǎng)用威士忌調(diào)出大受歡迎的意大利生菜醬汁，那大概是我至今吃過(guò)的最好吃的一次生菜沙拉，有如吃進(jìn)了整座花園的芬芳，至今仍畫面繽紛。

直到去日本古城居游，才見識(shí)了日本主婦簡(jiǎn)簡(jiǎn)單單用鹽搓揉，便能讓蔬菜呈現(xiàn)自然甘甜與鮮脆的色澤。自此，我便常用這簡(jiǎn)易舒心的方式處理菜肴，尤其是日本廚房經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)的小黃瓜，整條過(guò)鹽搓揉后，可冷藏相當(dāng)久，隨時(shí)取用，既下飯，又能裝飾任何菜肴。想起茶圣千利休的簡(jiǎn)潔美學(xué)，真是生活中的真諦。這大概是歷盡繁華后，最直接的體悟吧。

（摘自《看世界》2014年第15期）

生菜美食

文|陳念萱