In Chinese history, the emperor's life was luxurious and wealthy, especially when it came to food. However, the memories of Zhao Renqi, the imperial chef of the late Qing Dynasty, reveal the inside story hidden beneath the superficial splendor of the imperial cuisine of the Qing court. Although the imperial meal is luxurious and extravagant, there is a rule that makes people laugh - the emperor cannot eat more than three bites, otherwise he will be forcibly withdrawn. What's even more bizarre is that sometimes the emperor actually eats a bad meal.
During the Qing Dynasty, the life of the emperor and his concubines was taken care of by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Imperial Dining Room under the Internal Affairs Office became the first imperial dining room in the world. In 1748, the Imperial Dining Room and the Imperial Tea Room were merged to form the "Imperial Tea Dining Room", attracting the best chefs in the country. The emperor's food ingredients were even more unusual, including spring water from Yuquan Mountain on the outskirts of Beijing, high-quality rice from all over the world, fresh meat from domestic animals, and delicacies from all directions.
The chefs of the Imperial Dining Room have to perform a series of elaborate rituals before serving the stove each day, from dusting off their bodies to washing their bodies with special rose pancreas and hot water, and then changing into new white clothes. The ingredients eaten by the emperor are even more staggering, rice, meat, mountain and sea delicacies are readily available, and the appetite of the nobles has been fully released here.
The etiquette of the court is strict and complicated, and the dishes in the imperial dining room are made with great attention to every detail. According to etiquette, each dish has a distinction between priority and monarch and minister, just like the monarch and minister in the concept of traditional Chinese medicine. The flavor of the dish must not overshadow the main course, otherwise it will be considered a big rebellion. The seasonings used in court dishes are even more simple, and mixing a variety of spices is regarded as "forming a party for personal gain" and will be severely punished.
Despite the grandeur of the Emperor's meal, the food prepared by the Imperial Dining Room the day in advance often had to be reheated repeatedly, and the taste was inevitably affected. What's even more ridiculous is that the emperor's rule that he cannot eat more than three bites, and the measure to prevent others from knowing the emperor's preferences and poisoning them, made the emperor's meals extremely restrictive. The emperor was sometimes able to eat only three bites of the food he wanted, and because the Forbidden City was a wooden structure and the use of fire was restricted, the meals delivered to the table were often cold and greasy.
The luxury and complexity of the Qing Imperial Dining Room seemed to be the care of the emperor on the surface, but many rules and etiquette inside made the emperor's dining extremely restrictive. The luxury of the ingredients does not necessarily guarantee deliciousness, and the constraints of rules make the emperor and his companions feel even more depressed when eating. In the long course of history, the memories of the Qing imperial chef reveal a surprising inside story of the royal family's diet.
The memories of the Qing Imperial Dining Room show the luxury and complexity of court life throughout history, especially the emperor's dining ceremonies. The article details the size of the imperial dining room, the elaborate rituals of the cooks, and the extreme restrictions on the emperor's diet. From it, we not only get a glimpse of the details of the life of the royal family in the historical period, but also feel the complexity of etiquette under the imperial power.
First of all, the size and system of the Imperial Dining Room are amazing. The article mentions that there are more than 300 chefs every day, and these chefs have to carry out a series of cleaning rituals before starting to cook, from dusting off their bodies to putting on brand new white clothes, all of which show the extreme attention to the palace diet. The water source came from Yuquan Mountain on the outskirts of Beijing, and the ingredients were all-encompassing, paying tribute from all over the world, providing the emperor with a rich choice of tastes.
Secondly, the description of court etiquette is even more eye-opening. Each dish has a distinction between primary and secondary, just like the monarch and the minister in traditional Chinese medicine, this nuanced combination not only reflects the unique use of ingredients, but also expresses the profound connotation of court culture. Before the dishes were delivered to the emperor, they were subjected to strict inspections to ensure their purity and safety, a meticulous precaution that added a sense of mystery to the royal table.
However, the most striking thing is the emperor's dining rule, which is quite strange that you cannot eat three bites of a dish. There may be deep historical reasons for the emergence of such regulations, but for modern people it seems to be an incomprehensible constraint. The emperor was confined to three bites of cold and greasy food, and even when he enjoyed the most luxurious ingredients, he could not help but feel a trace of sadness. Such a rule seems to be under the shackles of pampering and forbearance, which makes the emperor's diet extremely bitter.
Overall, this essay vividly outlines the prosperity of court life and the grievances of etiquette through the recollection of the imperial dining room of the Qing court. Under the dual constraints of extravagance and rules, the emperor's meal became a feast of ambivalence. This also makes us more curious about the various aspects of court life in history, and it also provokes us to think about the dilemmas of life under power.
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