A plate of shrimp and leek fried eggs, fried for spring freshness and homely warmth

I am Thea Grace Bennett. My friends around me like to call me Thea. I am 32 years old this year. I have been focusing on sharing seasonal food at home for just five years. I am not a professional food creator, nor have I systematically learned cooking techniques. I just grew up in the old city alley in the south of the Yangtze River and was fed by my grandmother's stove fireworks to the big life recorder. I have always preferred those home-cooked dishes that are born in the season and can be cooked at will. I do not pursue the value of the ingredients or the delicacy of the dishes. Instead, I cling to a mouthful of seasonal fresh air. I think the most touching appearance of food is never a big banquet dish that enters the house, but a fireworks taste that conforms to the season and takes root in the daily life. Spring in the south of the Yangtze River is gentle, and the wind is wrapped with the aroma of grass and tender buds. Shrimp and leek omelette is a seasonal dish that Grandma must make after spring every year. There is no complicated process and no fancy matching. Only by matching the tender leeks and the freshest small river shrimps in spring with ordinary eggs, I can fry out the fresh flavor of the whole spring. It is also where I am when I grow up, no matter where I am, can instantly pull back to the healing taste of childhood spring. I always follow the season in cooking and follow my memory. I am not bound by rigid recipes. I always feel that the soul of home-cooked dishes is seasonal, casual and warm. This fried egg with shrimp and leeks is the most straightforward proof. It is ordinary to the extreme and gentle to the extreme.

My memory of fried eggs with shrimps and leeks has been firmly bound to the spring days in the south of the Yangtze River since I can remember. In spring in the south of the Yangtze River, the temperature slowly warms up. After a winter's dormancy, leeks on the edge of the ridge and in the vegetable garden are the first to emerge fresh and tender buds. The leaves are thick, crisp and tender, with unique spicy flavor. It is the most grounded seasonal vegetable in spring. The shrimps in the riverside shoals also become fresh and fat with the spring water. They are small in size, sweet and fresh without the thick and clear water, A fresh and tender collocation, can be called the spring home gold combination. When I was a child, every early March, my grandmother would carry a small bamboo basket to the vegetable garden to cut leeks, only cutting the top tender tip, leaving no old leaves. On the way back, she picked a small pot of lively shrimp from the aquatic product stall at the entrance of the alley. She didn't have to pick it up. It was good to wash it with clear water. She went home and put it by the hearth. Looking at these two fresh ingredients alone, she felt that spring was really came.

At that time, the kitchen in the family used an old-fashioned coal stove. The stove was not big, but it was cleaned up by my grandmother. The fried eggs were made of a thin pig iron pan. After more than ten years of use, the surface of the pan was polished brightly. The edge of the fried egg cake was burnt and fragrant, and the inside was soft and tender, which was the exclusive homely taste. I always like to move a small bench to sit by the hearth and watch my grandmother busy. She never uses extra seasonings to cut the tender leeks into fine pieces. The shrimp simply drains the water. The eggs are knocked into a coarse porcelain bowl. The egg liquid is quickly stirred with chopsticks. The egg liquid is filled with fine foam. Then the chopped leeks and shrimp are poured into the egg liquid. Only a small pinch of fine salt is added to flavor, grandma always said that the fresh air in spring is the most precious, and the extra seasoning will only cover up the taste of the ingredients themselves. Only when it is simple can you taste the taste of spring best.

The process of omelette is the most healing scene in childhood spring. Grandma sat the pan on the coal stove, burned it until it was slightly hot, poured a little rapeseed oil, and when the oil star smoked slightly, quickly poured the mixed egg liquid, leek and shrimp powder into the pan. The egg liquid solidified instantly when heated, and the edge slowly turned golden coke. The shrimp slowly turned red in the egg liquid. The fresh fragrance of leeks, the egg fragrance of eggs and the sweet fragrance of shrimp slowly came out of the small kitchen with the oil temperature. Grandma held the pan handle and gently shook the pan to heat the egg cake evenly. There was no need to stir-fry it repeatedly. Slowly fry it over a small fire. Wait until one side is fried until golden and crisp, then carefully turn over the surface and fry the other side. The whole process lasted only a few minutes. A plate of complete shrimp and leek fried eggs was out of the pan. There is no delicate plate, it is directly placed in the white porcelain plate. The edge of the egg cake is crisp, the middle is soft and fluffy, and the bright red shrimps are dotted with it. The emerald green leek powder is looming and the three colors are intertwined. It looks very appetizing. The hot air is wrapped with fresh air, and even the spring breeze outside the window becomes sweet.

The fried eggs with shrimps and leeks that have just come out of the pan must be eaten while they are hot, and the taste will be discounted when they are cold. I always can't wait to pick up chopsticks and put a small piece into my mouth. The first bite is wrapped in the fresh air of spring. The egg skin on the edge is burnt and crisp, and the dregs fall off with a light bite. The egg inside is soft and tender, and melts in the mouth. The fresh spice of leeks completely fades away, leaving only a soft and tender fragrance, without any pungent feeling, and perfectly blended with the mellow fragrance of eggs. The shrimp is crispy, even the shrimp shell becomes soft, without spitting the shell, bite down, full of clear water shrimp sweet, fresh but not fishy, sweet but not greasy, the taste of the three ingredients set off each other, without a trace of disobedience, simple seasoning instead highlights the most authentic fresh gas. At that time, breakfast or ordinary meals, a bowl of white porridge and a plate of shrimp, leek and fried eggs were the most comfortable match. The warmth of the porridge neutralized the burnt fragrance of the egg cake, and the fresh air slipped into the stomach along the throat. The whole person was wrapped in the tenderness of spring, and even the steps on the way to school became brisk. It was a simple and practical happiness that belonged to childhood and was incomparable to delicacies.

Later, when I grew up slowly, I understood this seemingly insignificant shrimp, leek and omelette, which hides the folk people's dietary wisdom of "not eating from time to time", and it is also a spring delicacy shared by the north and south domestic dining tables. Since ancient times, leeks have been said to be "the first freshness of spring vegetables". In traditional Chinese medicine, it is also often said that leeks are eaten in spring, conform to the season, moisten and nourish people. The nutritional value and taste of leeks nourished by cold winter are the best in a year. The old generation often said that "leeks in spring are fragrant and leeks in summer", which is the best price of fresh water, with eggs, a home-cooked ingredient, you can make a fresh, fragrant and beautiful dish without spending too much. It is a spring ceremony that ordinary people can easily have.

This dish is not a classic dish of any cuisine. There is no fixed method and strict rules. It is a home-cooked dish of folk fast hands all over the country, but there are slight taste differences in different places. Jiangnan area to do shrimp leek omelette, the main light flavor, only salt seasoning, the pursuit of food itself fresh gas, taste soft and tender burnt fragrance, suitable for Jiangnan warm diet style; Some families in the north will add a little white pepper to the egg liquid to remove fishy flavor and taste a little heavier. The coastal areas will use sea shrimp instead of small river shrimp, which has a stronger flavor, but still retains the core of simple and quick hand and fresh. Its affinity for the people lies in the fact that food materials are available everywhere, and the method is simple and casual. It does not require professional cooking skills, complicated kitchen utensils, and a pan. In a few minutes, you can make a dish that is suitable for meals, porridge, and meals. Whether it is the elderly or children, they all love to eat, do not choose taste, do not choose occasions, and are truly rooted in the daily taste of fireworks.

In the logic of folk diet, shrimp, leek and omelette can become a spring dish handed down from generation to generation, but also because it hides the simple truth of living. Without expensive ingredients, without tedious processes, with the most common ingredients, to adapt to the changes of the season, to make the warmest taste, this is the diet philosophy of ordinary people. For the older generation, this dish is a money-saving delicacy in spring. It is a self-produced vegetable in the vegetable garden with cheap river fresh, which makes it easy to get a meal. For children, this dish is the exclusive taste of spring and a small reason to look forward to the arrival of spring. For people far away from home, this dish is the sustenance of homesickness. If you eat it, you can think of the kitchen garden in your hometown and your grandmother's kitchen, think of the spring breeze in the south of the Yangtze River, this is the power of home-cooked food, ordinary but powerful, simple but can poke the softest place at the bottom of the center.

When I grew up, I left a small town in the south of the Yangtze River and went to work in a big city. The fast-paced life often made me have no time to eat well. I ate too much take-out food and fast food. I always felt that my mouth was weak and less fresh. Every spring day, I especially missed my grandmother's shrimp, leek and omelette, and the simple and pure flavor of spring. When I first tried to make this dish myself, I took many detours, either the leeks were cut too thick and the taste was hard. Either the fire is too big and the egg cake is fried and bitter. Either the shrimp did not drain the water, the fried egg cake was loose and did not take shape, and the taste was very different from that made by grandma. eating it in the mouth was full of loss. At one time, I felt that it was because I didn't master my grandmother's skills that I couldn't remember the taste of childhood. Until I called my grandmother, she said with a smile, there is no need to worry about omelettes, the fire should be small, the egg liquid should be stirred evenly, and the ingredients should be fresh, so it will not be bad. Home-made dishes are casual and do not need to pursue perfection.

According to my grandmother's words, I put down my impatience and specially selected the tender spring leeks and fresh shrimps every spring day. I slowly fried them over a small fire and slowly groped for the temperature. I stopped worrying about the so-called "authentic method" and followed my own taste. Finally, I fried shrimp and leek eggs with similar taste to my grandmother. When the pan was fragrant with eggs and the fresh air filled the rental house, I seemed to be back in the kitchen of my hometown in the south of the Yangtze River. My grandmother was standing beside me. The spring breeze blew in from the window, with the fragrance of flowers. At that moment, all the fatigue in the workplace and the loneliness in a foreign land were healed by this fresh air. It turns out that the soul of this dish has never been a technique, but the freshness of the ingredients, the thoughts from the bottom of my heart, and the homely memories engraved in my bones.

Nowadays, every spring day, frying a plate of shrimp and leek fried eggs has become my regular ritual. Sometimes with a bowl of rice congee, simply eat a meal, feel the joy of spring; sometimes with rice, make a common meal, fresh gas meal, appetite; sometimes invite friends to come home, make a plate, everyone said, this dish looks ordinary, but it tastes very fresh, is a surprise hidden in daily life. I also often share these seasonal home-cooked dishes in the howcooks, passing on the freshness of spring and the warmth of home to more people. I always feel that food sharing should not be a cold tutorial, but the beauty of the season, the happiness of life and the love of family members, through words, so that more people can stop and feel a mouthful of seasonal freshness in the fast-paced life, have a simple meal.

I always feel that the most touching thing about shrimp and leek omelette is never how amazing it tastes, but its ordinary, gentle and healing. It is a small poem written to the dining table in spring, a gentleness left to the years, an antidote to the homesickness of foreigners, and a small beauty in the life of ordinary people. It has no gorgeous appearance, no resounding name, but it can use a breath of fresh air every spring day to remind us of the change of seasons, to remind us to cherish our daily life, to remind us of the fireworks in the world, and to touch our hearts most. It taught me that the beauty of life is never in vigorous events, but in the ordinary of a meal, in the seasonal ingredients, in the patience of slow frying over a small fire, in a simple but warm taste.

We are always chasing expensive food and exquisite life, but we often ignore the most common beauty around us, the freshness given by the season, and the warmth of home-cooked dishes. Spring is short, fresh and perishable, while a plate of shrimp and leek fried eggs can firmly lock the beauty of spring, keep it on the tip of the tongue and hide it in the bottom of my heart. It does not need complicated collocation, does not need to deliberately create, as long as the ingredients are fresh and cooked carefully, you can reap a full sense of happiness, which is the most precious place of home-cooked food.

In fact, in everyone's memory, there is such a seemingly ordinary, but carrying time and emotion of the home dish, it may not be expensive, may not be amazing, but in a specific season, evoke the warmest memories in the bottom of my heart, cure all the uneasiness and fatigue. To me, shrimp and leek omelette is the spring breeze in the south of the Yangtze River, the love of my grandmother, the happiness of childhood, the comfort of a foreign land, and the memory of spring engraved in the depths of taste buds. No matter how far you go, as long as you eat this fresh food, it is as if you have returned to your hometown and returned to the hearth full of fireworks in spring.

Another year of spring leek green, river shrimp fat, might as well also go into the kitchen, fry a plate of shrimp leek fried eggs, while hot to eat, feel the fresh air of spring, aftertaste the warmth of home. I wonder if your spring table has such a seasonal home-cooked dish? Is there a simple taste that can instantly remind you of your childhood, your family, and those gentle and beautiful spring days? If you also have a story about shrimp, leek and egg omelette, or your own spring day home-cooked taste, you might as well share it with me, so that this spring freshness and home warmth will continue.