杭州不是東坡肉發明地

文/司馬一民

東坡肉是杭州的一道傳統名菜，可謂家喻戶曉。杭州大大小小做杭幫菜的餐館里，東坡肉是必備的菜之一，也是杭州人招待外地客人的必選菜之一。

如果我告訴你，東坡肉發明地不在杭州，你信不信？

宋神宗元豐三年(1080年)二月，蘇東坡被貶到黃州任團練副使，一家人生活困苦，他率家人在城東坡地開荒種地，自號“東坡居士”。當時的黃州，有錢人喜歡吃羊肉而不屑于吃豬肉，老百姓又不知道豬肉怎么做好吃，蘇東坡就研制出了獨門的“東坡肉”，既改善了自家的生活，又給黃州百姓創造了一道美味佳肴。蘇軾還專門寫了一首《食豬肉》詩，算是烹飪紀實吧。

這首詩的大意為：把鍋子洗得干干凈凈，放入切塊的豬肉，少放水，燃上柴木、雜草，抑制火勢，用不冒火苗的虛火來煨燉。等待它自己慢慢地熟，不要用旺火催熟它，煨燉的時間夠足，它自然會滋味極美。黃州有這樣好的豬肉，價錢賤得像泥土一樣；富貴人家不肯吃，貧困人家又不會煮。我早上起來打上兩碗，自己吃飽了您莫要理會。

這幾乎與菜譜差不多了。

以蘇東坡的名氣，以及他在黃州與百姓的交往，這道菜廣為傳播、仿效，完全有可能。據傳，黃州百姓把這道菜稱為“東坡肉”。

不過，東坡肉真正被叫響并聞名全國的起始卻是在杭州。

宋哲宗元祐四年（1089年）一月，蘇東坡來到闊別十五年的杭州任知州。四月二十九日，蘇東坡在上奏朝廷的《乞開杭州西湖狀》中說：“熙寧中，臣通判本州，則湖之葑合蓋十二三耳。至今才十六七年之間，遂堙塞其半。父老皆言十年以來，水淺葑橫，如云翳空，倏忽便滿，更二十年，無西湖矣。使杭州而無西湖，如人去其眉目，豈復為人乎？”

緊接著，他在奏章中列出了疏浚西湖的五條理由：保障市民飲用水，農田灌溉，生態保護，疏浚河道，保護官營釀酒業發展（朝廷重要的稅收來源）。朝廷同意了蘇東坡的奏請，他組織民工疏浚西湖，使西湖舊貌變新顏，達到了上述五個目標。

東坡肉。The Dongpo Pork.

至于在疏浚西湖的過程中，利用挖出的葑泥構筑長堤，南起南屏山麓，北到棲霞嶺下，全長近三公里，連接了西湖南山與北山，給西湖增添了一道亮麗的風景線，那完全是疏浚西湖的“副產品”，只能說明蘇東坡才情豐富、心胸曠達，特別善于治理城市。

據傳，杭州的老百姓很感謝蘇東坡為杭州做的這件好事，都夸他是個賢明的父母官。聽說他在黃州時最喜歡吃豬肉（其實是吃不起羊肉），于是到過年的時候，大家就抬著豬肉挑著酒擔去給他拜年。蘇東坡收到后，便指導家人將肉切成方塊，加入酒和佐料，燉得酥酥的，然后分送給參加疏浚西湖的民工們吃，大家吃后無不稱奇，就這樣一傳十十傳百，在杭州城里傳開了。有個精明的杭幫菜餐館老板，也做了這道菜，并且取名“東坡肉”，很受客人青睞，生意出奇的好，其他杭幫菜餐館也紛紛做起了東坡肉。南來北往的客人到杭州，杭幫菜餐館都會向他們推薦東坡肉，東坡肉漸漸名滿天下，成為杭州傳統名菜中的第一。

再來說幾句蘇東坡與烹飪的趣事。蘇東坡一家在黃州的日子比較艱難，他寫了一篇《節飲食說》貼在墻上自勉：“東坡居士自今日以往,早晚飲食,不過一爵一肉。有尊客盛饌則三之,可損不可增。有召我者,預以此告之,主人不從而過是,乃止。一曰安分以養福。二曰寬胃以養氣。三曰省費以養財。”

雖然生活困苦,但蘇東坡善于苦中作樂，這位天才的美食家總有辦法就地取材，做一些美味給家人改善一下伙食。他做的東坡羹，吃過的人都覺得味道十分鮮美，紛紛向他請教。為此,蘇東坡寫了一篇《東坡羹頌》,詳述做法。

此文大意為：將大白菜、大頭菜、大蘿卜、野薺菜反復揉洗干凈，意在除去菜蔬中的苦汁兒；用少許生油涂抹在大鍋四壁、大瓷碗上；將切碎的白菜、蘿卜、薺菜及少許生姜放入鍋中煮菜羹，用油碗覆蓋但不觸碰菜羹，不然會有生油味；將盛滿米的蒸屜放在鍋上，等到菜完全煮熟后再蓋上屜蓋。

這道菜,不用魚肉五味,而以諸如蔓菁、薺菜、瓜、茄和赤豆、粳米等常見的廉價原料烹調而成，特別適合窮人和素食者食用。

蘇東坡與街坊鄰居的關系非常好,其中有幾家開店的鄰居請客時總會請蘇東坡參加。有一次,他在劉家吃到一種煎米粉做成的糕餅,十分酥脆。他問主人：“這餅叫什么名字？”主人說沒有名字。蘇東坡說:“那就叫‘為甚酥’吧。”后來就叫出名了。

還有一次，蘇東坡在潘家喝到一種酒,味道很酸,他說:“莫不是做醋時放錯了水吧？”此后,潘家便將這種酒叫做“錯著水”。

有一天,他帶領全家去郊外踏青，忽然想起劉家的煎餅，于是戲作小詩一首，叫僮仆拿著詩去求取餐食:

野飲花間百物無，

杖頭唯掛一葫蘆。

已傾潘子“錯著水”,

更覓君家“為甚酥”。

回家后，蘇東坡在這首小詩后面寫下了注解：“劉監倉家煎米粉作餅子,余云為甚酥。潘攽老家造逡巡酒,余飲之,云,莫作醋,錯著水來否？后數日,攜家飲郊外,因作小詩戲劉公,求之。”

西湖蘇堤。肖奕叁 / 攝The Su Causeway on the West Lake in Hangzhou city. Photo by Xiao Yisan.

Dongpo Pork Wasn’t Invented in Hangzhou

By Sima Yimin

Dongpo Pork is a famous traditional dish in Hangzhou, known by almost everyone in the city. It is one of the must-have dishes in local restaurants, both large and small. It is also one of the top dishes when Hangzhou people entertain guests from other places.

Would you believe it if you are told that the dish Dongpo Pork was not invented in Hangzhou at all?

In the year 1080, Su Dongpo (aka Su Shi, 1037-1101) was banished to Huangzhou (in present-day Huanggang city, Hubei province) as the deputy envoy of the regiment, a post without any payment. Living in poverty, Su led his family to cultivate land on the slope of the east of the city and gave himself the art name“Dongpo Jushi” (or Resident of the Eastern Slope). At the time, the rich preferred lamb to pork, and the common people did not know how to eat pork properly. Therefore, Su developed his own “Dongpo Pork”, which not only improved the wellbeing of his family, but also created a delicious dish for the people of Huangzhou. Su even wrote a poem about it, which is essentially a recipe.

In it, he wrote: you should wash the pot clean and put in the cut pork with some water before lighting the fire and letting it simmer. Then wait for it to cook slowly, and do not use high heat,for enough simmering time will naturally make the meat delicious.Huangzhou boasts of such good pork, whose price is cheap as dirt.Rich people won’t eat it, and poor people can’t cook it. I get up in the morning to eat two bowls tofill my belly, without any care.

With Su Dongpo’s fame and his close relationship with the local people, it is very probable that this dish was widely spread and imitated in Huangzhou, where it was said to be called “Dongpo Pork”.

But it was in Hangzhou that Dongpo pork truly made its name and became famous across the country.

In January 1089, Su Dongpo, who served as Hangzhou’s assistant prefect, came to the place for a second time to take up the post as its prefect. Three months later, he submitted a memorial to the emperor, calling for the dredging of the West Lake.

In the memorial he presented five reasons: to ensure the supply of drinking water for residents, to help irrigate farmlands,to protect the ecology, to dredge the rivers, and to foster the development of official brewing industry (an important source of tax revenue for the court), to which the emperor agreed.He quickly organized laborers for the task and, achieving thefive goals, gave the lake a brand-new look.

為甚酥。Weishen Cake (literally “why so crispy”).

As for the three-kilometer causeway that was built during the dredging process and connected the North Mountain with the South Mountain, it was more a “by-product” making the lake even more attractive.

It is said that to thank Su Dongpo for what he had done for Hangzhou, local people not only lavished praise on him but also sent Su a special “gift”. Since they heard that when he was in Huangzhou, he liked to eat pork most (because he couldn’t afford lamb), when the Chinese New Year approached, people would carry pork and wine to visit him.

Upon receiving these “goods”, Su would instruct his family to cut the meat into square pieces, adding some wine and seasonings,before stewing them crispy and chewy. He would then share the cooked meat with those laborers dredging the West Lake.Unsurprisingly, those who had tasted the dish were all amazed how delectable it was. Before long, word began to spread and the whole city knew of the dish. Soon after, a business-savvy restaurant owner also started to cook the dish, and named it “Dongpo Pork”, which became very popular with customers. Other restaurants quickly followed suit.

Later, when visitors came to Hangzhou from all over the country, local restaurants would recommend Dongpo Pork to them. By and by, the reputation of Dongpo Pork would travel not only throughout China but all over the world and turn into one of Hangzhou’s most celebrated dishes.