Hunan Cuisine · FFET10163
La Wei He Zheng (Hunan steamed assorted cured meats)
A Hunan dish of cured pork, chicken and fish steamed together in one bowl and turned out to serve.
A deep white porcelain plate holds three heaps of sliced cured pork, chicken and fish in glossy dark brown sauce, scattered with minced garlic, red chili pieces and black fermented beans, with a pair of wooden chopsticks.
The regional cooking of Hunan, leaning to sour and hot flavours, skilled with cured meats, simmering and stewing.
La wei he zheng is a Hunan dish of cured pork, cured chicken and cured fish, sometimes with sausage or cured pork tongue, steamed together in one bowl and turned out onto a plate. It grew from home cooking and became popular in Hunan from the Qing dynasty (2015 account), then entered Changsha restaurants as mining, trade and transport grew (2017 report). No year of creation was found, and the available accounts do not name its city of origin.
What
La wei he zheng is a Hunan dish of cured pork, cured chicken and cured fish steamed together in one bowl. Other ingredients include cured pork tongue (2015 description) and sausage (2024 recipe); the dish can be eaten with rice (2018 description).1,3,4
When
The dish grew from home cooking and became popular in Hunan from the Qing dynasty; Hunan cured meats date to the Han dynasty (2015 account). It entered Changsha restaurants as mining, trade and transport grew (2017 report). No dated record of the dish was found, and no year is given for its arrival in restaurants.1,2
Where
La wei he zheng is a traditional Hunan dish. Along with Dong'an chicken, it entered Changsha restaurants as a local Hunan specialty (2017 report). It is also common on Chinese New Year tables in Hunan and neighboring areas. The available accounts do not name its city of origin.1,2,4
How
Rinse the cured pork, chicken and fish in warm water, boil or steam until cooked, cool and slice, then steam again with seasonings. One version boils the meats for 10 to 15 minutes, slices them, adds garlic, chili, fermented black beans, soy sauce and wine, then steams for about 20 minutes. Another steams the meats until cooked, slices them, adds wine, steams for about 1 hour and finishes with sesame oil.1,4
Why
The dish grew from home cooking and is eaten with rice. The available accounts give no further reason for its development.1,3
Impact and influence
La wei he zheng is among the local Hunan dishes brought into Changsha restaurants (2017 report) and is common on Chinese New Year tables in Hunan and neighboring areas. No intangible heritage or time-honored-brand listing was found for the dish.2,4
No tale about this food has been found.
Grandma Li
This is a simplified home version, not the traditional restaurant method.
This is the simpler way I make it at home. Cured meat is already salty, so I add no salt: I boil it briefly, slice it into a deep plate, spread a garlic, chili and fermented black bean sauce over it and steam. I read two published recipes that give amounts and steps; one boils and then steams about 20 minutes, the other steams, slices and steams again for about an hour, and I took a time in between, which is my own choice. I leave out the stir-frying step and the pork tongue, and the amounts below are my own choices at home.
Ingredients
- Cured pork 150 g
- Cured chicken 150 g
- Cured fish 150 g
- Ginger 3 slices, cut into thin strips
- Garlic 4 cloves, minced
- Dried chili, chopped fine 2 tablespoons
- Fermented black beans (douchi) 2 tablespoons
- Light soy sauce half a tablespoon (about 7 ml)
- Cooking wine 1 tablespoon (about 15 ml)
- Sesame oil 1 teaspoon (about 5 ml)
Steps
- Rinse the cured pork, chicken and fish in warm water, put them in a pot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil over high heat, then turn to medium and cook for about 10 minutes.
- Lift them out and let them cool until you can hold them. Slice the pork and fish about 0.6 cm thick and cut the chicken into strips; I take out the large bones as I go.
- Arrange the three meats in groups in a deep plate with a rim, without piling them too thick.
- Mix the ginger, garlic, dried chili, fermented black beans, soy sauce and wine in a small bowl and spread it over the meat.
- Bring the water in the steamer to a boil, set the plate in and steam over high heat for about 30 minutes, a time that is my own choice. Taste the thickest piece: it is done when it is hot all the way through and the meat is tender.
- Turn off the heat, drizzle on the sesame oil, and serve hot with rice.
Tips
- Before steaming I taste a small slice, and if it is too salty I boil the meat a few minutes longer; this is my own way.
- I use a deep plate with a rim so the juices do not run over; this is my habit.
Allergens: soy, wheat, fish, sesame