Hua jiao yan
Hua jiao yan
Lo Hua jiao yan (Simplified Chinese: 花 椒盐; pinyin: huājiāoyán) is a mixture of spices with Sichuan pepper and salt grains, roasted and browned in a wok and served as a condiment for white meats.
Origins and History –
The Hua jiao yan typical of Chinese and South Asian cuisine consisting of a mixture of Sichuan pepper and salt grains, roasted and browned in a wok and served as a condiment for white meats.
Like all spices born from the passing on of traditions in which it was necessary to give flavor to dishes, perhaps poorer, but which over time have become typical of local kitchens. Its origin is lost a little in the mists of time.
The wok (from Cantonese Chinese: 鑊) is a kind of pan (or pan) used in Chinese cuisine, with a hemispherical deep shape, originally without any flat bottom part, generally forged in iron or cast iron. It is rather heavy and allows, therefore, to maintain heat for a long time, while its flared shape also allows frying in immersion while using low doses of oil, considering that the terminal point is in direct contact with the flame.
Description –
The Hua Jiao Yan mixture is obtained by combining in equal parts salt (better Himalayan pink salt) and Szechuan pepper and placed in a particular pan (wok) dry over medium-high heat.
This mixture is stirred constantly until Szechuan pepper starts to smoke slightly.
Before the mixture cools, it is ground with a mortar and a pestle or a coffee grinder.
Active principles –
As is evident, the percentage of the various components of the Hua jiao yan mixture depends a lot on the starting raw materials, so there is no standard data sheet of the nutritional values and substances present in this spice.
This is due not so much to the variability of the components, which in the Hua jiao yan mixture are used in somewhat standard percentages, but for the variety of the ingredients and also for the difference in characteristics, often of the spices that make it up as they also come from somewhat different cultivation.
Obviously for the composition of the individual spices, please refer to the data sheet.
Properties and Uses –
Hua jiao yan is a mixture of spices which, unlike others in oriental cuisine, uses salt in addition to Sichuan pepper, while in oriental cuisine the presence of salt is normally marginal or even absent.
Due to its composition it is not suitable for those suffering from ulcerative states and high blood pressure.
In addition, this mixture is used as a real condiment that can be used as salt and pepper is used in the kitchen or at the table. It is particularly tasty on seafood.
Preparations –
Hua jiao yan, like all spice mix, is suitable for various dishes, both with vegetables and with meat or fish, especially fried.
One of the recipes in which the Hua jiao yan mixture is used is the Jab ba kwai, jab bart fie, that is, chicken marinated and fried in abundant oil, served with the aforementioned spice mixture. The chicken is cut into eight pieces, which is what gave it its name.
Guido Bissanti
Warning: The information shown is not medical advice and may not be accurate. The contents are for illustrative purposes only and do not replace medical advice.