Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City (Part 4 of 6) — Section 2 of 2 — Block 1 of 2
Reposted from the web
Summary: Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: East City:. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Muslim History, Northern Beijing, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source. This public article combines adjacent translated blocks from the same source section.
Block 1 of 2
When I was a teenager, I was an apprentice at Zengqingzhai near the Back Gate (Houmen, also known as Di'anmen)... What did we sell? They sold pastries, and in the summer, they sold river produce like lotus root, water caltrops, and eight-treasure lotus seed porridge (babao lianzi zhou). All this river food came from Zengqingzhai, and they also sold ice cream. That is what we made back home. Later, when I made ice cream in Jiuxianqiao, I used what I learned here. Where did we sell it? In the middle of Shichahai, they drove piles into the lake bed, laid down boards, and connected them to build several room-like structures. They sold everything there—all kinds of food like fried dough rings (youzhuozi), eight-treasure lotus seed porridge (babao lianzi zhou), fox nuts (jitoumi), gorgon fruit (qianshimi), lotus seed pods, and all sorts of lotus root, like white lotus root. It was all kinds of cold snacks, really: dried fruit (guozigan), sour plum drink (suanmeitang), ice cream, and shaved ice (xuehualao). I carried everything there on a shoulder pole and set up my stall.
Born in the South of the City: Businesses Run by Hui Muslims—as told by Man Hengliang. Written by Ding Yizhuang.
Xicheng District
1. Ruizhenhou inside Zhongshan Park
Century-old Ruizhenhou
Inside Zhongshan Park, there used to be an old antique shop called Ruizhenhou, which opened in 1917. The name Ruizhenhou has a specific meaning: Rui stands for good luck and the sweet olive flower (ruixiang). Zhen means rare treasures, pearls, jade, and gemstones. Hou means being tolerant and kind, and treating people with honesty. Business was very successful after it opened, and it quickly became famous throughout Beijing. To make it easier to host guests and discuss business, the owner added a tea area and served food in the shop. There is an accurate written record about this: In 1917, the Zhongshan Park Board of Directors built 18 high-ceilinged rooms between Chunming Hall and Shanglinchun, with corridors on the east and west sides, to rent out to shops. One of these was the Ruizhenhou antique shop, which was opened by Hui Muslims.
By 1950, this business was no longer doing well. Owner Ma You'an used his business sense to realize the park lacked a decent halal restaurant, so he turned his antique shop into one. He hired the famous chef Ma Deqi to run the kitchen, and his halal dishes, especially his braised beef (wei niurou), quickly became famous in Beijing. Ma Deqi learned from Chu Lianxiang (known in the industry as Chu Xiang), a master who pioneered Beijing halal cuisine. Chu Xiang was once a royal chef who combined traditional Hui Muslim stir-frying, roasting, and hot pot techniques with cooking styles from both northern and southern China to create a unique Beijing halal flavor. As the top student among Chu Xiang's eight main disciples, Ma Deqi mastered his teacher's skills. The grand banquets Ruizhenhou offered, such as the whole lamb feast (quanyang xi), fish maw feast (yudu xi), and shark fin feast (yuchi xi), were far beyond what ordinary restaurants could prepare. Soon after opening, the restaurant became as famous as the long-standing Han Chinese restaurant Laijinyuxuan, also located in Zhongshan Park, and was always packed with customers. Mr. Ma Lianliang's birthday was on the tenth day of the first lunar month. Every year on this day, he would visit Ruizhenhou. When he was happy, he would personally name his favorite dish 'duck paste bread' (ya ni mian bao) and always ordered it. Because of this, the reputation of Ruizhenhou restaurant grew stronger and stronger.
In the early 1960s, due to a shortage of beef and mutton, Ruizhenhou was forced to become a halal snack shop. Parents visiting Zhongshan Park would always stop by the snack bar to buy something for their children, even if it was just a piece of fried cake (zhagao). When the Cultural Revolution began, the halal snack shops closed down. In the early 1980s, to support ethnic policies, the former Dongcheng Catering Company worked to bring back the famous old brand Ruizhenhou Restaurant. They reopened it at its current location at 1 South Dongsisi Street in 1982 and renamed the halal shop Ruizhenhou Restaurant. Today, third-generation chefs continue to carry on the unique halal flavors of Ruizhenhou.
The restaurant has a professionally trained lamb slicer named Master Zhao Delu, who is nicknamed Zhao the One-Knife. He started at the shop in 1981 to learn how to debone, select, and slice lamb, and he has been doing this for over 20 years. He has his own unique skills. He chooses tender young lambs weighing 35 jin, then removes the thin membrane and tendons. After cooling the meat (known in the trade as cold-setting), the blood and meat blend together, making the red and white parts distinct before it can be used. Finally, he slices it into thin, even pieces that look beautiful with their alternating red and white colors. Dip thin slices of meat into a charcoal hot pot (huoguo) that smells of wood, letting the woody scent blend with the meat. The meat stays tender even after long cooking, and the thin slices do not break. Served with carefully prepared seasonings, friends and family sit around the table to enjoy the lively and grand atmosphere. The taste is fresh, fragrant, and wonderful. This is the traditional Beijing-style mutton hot pot (shuan yangrou) from Ruizhenhou.
The Sina blog "A Century of Ruizhenhou" by ruiren491112. The blogger, Chen Junyuan, was born in Beijing in 1949 and has lived there for generations.
One day, Lin Kaimo (noted by Wang Dongsi as a master of Go during the Republic of China era) and Xia Renhu (noted by Wang Dongsi as a famous scholar) were playing Go at Chunming Pavilion in Zhongshan Park. They played for so long that they missed dinner. When the game ended, they had to order a bowl of beef noodles at Ruizhenhou, located north of Chunming Pavilion, to satisfy their hunger. At that time, Ruizhenhou was quite famous and had a branch in Zhongshan Park that sold various noodles and snacks. Back then, the noodles at Ruizhenhou were much better than the California beef noodles popular today. They were hand-pulled noodles (chentiaomian) served hot, with a rich, thick broth and plenty of tender, fragrant meat. I don't remember the exact price per bowl, maybe 70 or 80 cents, but it was very popular.
Ruizhenhou is a halal restaurant that still exists today, located at the Dongsi intersection. In the past, it was famous for its deep-fried lamb tails (zha yangwei), crispy stir-fried mung bean jelly (jiao liu geza), braised meat strips (ba routiao), and stewed beef (men niurou).
Lingering Fragrance: Memories of the Capital by Zhou Shaoliang.
2. Kaorouwan inside Xuanwumen
Kaorouwan as described by Zhang Zhongxing.
I forget who I was with, but it was summer, and we went to Kaorouwan to try the grilled beef. The storefront was very simple, just one large room. To the south is the barbecue area with two grills side by side. They look like millstones, featuring a round platform about the size of a dining table with a foot-high iron ring in the center. A slightly raised iron grate sits on top of the ring. The grate is made of iron strips about a centimeter wide placed side by side. The gaps between them are packed with beef fat from constant use. Four rough benches are placed around the round platform for customers to stand at. To the north is a table holding bowls, chopsticks, chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, sesame paste (majiang), soy sauce, and other seasonings. There is also a cutting board for the beef, which holds the meat, knives, and plates. The man cutting the meat is a big guy around fifty years old, likely the shop owner, Mr. Wan. He is quite heavy and wears only a pair of thin trousers, which sit about an inch below his navel. The owner is very capable. Aside from a teenage boy who helps deliver meat and seasonings, he does everything himself, including seating customers and handling the bills. The meat is said to be hand-picked at the meat market early in the morning, and it is sliced well, thin and even.
Summary: Beijing Muslim History: Old Halal Notes from the Northern City is presented here as a firsthand travel account in clear English, beginning with this scene: East City:. The account keeps its focus on Beijing Muslim History, Northern Beijing, Hui Muslims while preserving the names, places, food, and historical details from the Chinese source. This public article combines adjacent translated blocks from the same source section.
Block 1 of 2
When I was a teenager, I was an apprentice at Zengqingzhai near the Back Gate (Houmen, also known as Di'anmen)... What did we sell? They sold pastries, and in the summer, they sold river produce like lotus root, water caltrops, and eight-treasure lotus seed porridge (babao lianzi zhou). All this river food came from Zengqingzhai, and they also sold ice cream. That is what we made back home. Later, when I made ice cream in Jiuxianqiao, I used what I learned here. Where did we sell it? In the middle of Shichahai, they drove piles into the lake bed, laid down boards, and connected them to build several room-like structures. They sold everything there—all kinds of food like fried dough rings (youzhuozi), eight-treasure lotus seed porridge (babao lianzi zhou), fox nuts (jitoumi), gorgon fruit (qianshimi), lotus seed pods, and all sorts of lotus root, like white lotus root. It was all kinds of cold snacks, really: dried fruit (guozigan), sour plum drink (suanmeitang), ice cream, and shaved ice (xuehualao). I carried everything there on a shoulder pole and set up my stall.
Born in the South of the City: Businesses Run by Hui Muslims—as told by Man Hengliang. Written by Ding Yizhuang.
Xicheng District
1. Ruizhenhou inside Zhongshan Park
Century-old Ruizhenhou
Inside Zhongshan Park, there used to be an old antique shop called Ruizhenhou, which opened in 1917. The name Ruizhenhou has a specific meaning: Rui stands for good luck and the sweet olive flower (ruixiang). Zhen means rare treasures, pearls, jade, and gemstones. Hou means being tolerant and kind, and treating people with honesty. Business was very successful after it opened, and it quickly became famous throughout Beijing. To make it easier to host guests and discuss business, the owner added a tea area and served food in the shop. There is an accurate written record about this: In 1917, the Zhongshan Park Board of Directors built 18 high-ceilinged rooms between Chunming Hall and Shanglinchun, with corridors on the east and west sides, to rent out to shops. One of these was the Ruizhenhou antique shop, which was opened by Hui Muslims.
By 1950, this business was no longer doing well. Owner Ma You'an used his business sense to realize the park lacked a decent halal restaurant, so he turned his antique shop into one. He hired the famous chef Ma Deqi to run the kitchen, and his halal dishes, especially his braised beef (wei niurou), quickly became famous in Beijing. Ma Deqi learned from Chu Lianxiang (known in the industry as Chu Xiang), a master who pioneered Beijing halal cuisine. Chu Xiang was once a royal chef who combined traditional Hui Muslim stir-frying, roasting, and hot pot techniques with cooking styles from both northern and southern China to create a unique Beijing halal flavor. As the top student among Chu Xiang's eight main disciples, Ma Deqi mastered his teacher's skills. The grand banquets Ruizhenhou offered, such as the whole lamb feast (quanyang xi), fish maw feast (yudu xi), and shark fin feast (yuchi xi), were far beyond what ordinary restaurants could prepare. Soon after opening, the restaurant became as famous as the long-standing Han Chinese restaurant Laijinyuxuan, also located in Zhongshan Park, and was always packed with customers. Mr. Ma Lianliang's birthday was on the tenth day of the first lunar month. Every year on this day, he would visit Ruizhenhou. When he was happy, he would personally name his favorite dish 'duck paste bread' (ya ni mian bao) and always ordered it. Because of this, the reputation of Ruizhenhou restaurant grew stronger and stronger.
In the early 1960s, due to a shortage of beef and mutton, Ruizhenhou was forced to become a halal snack shop. Parents visiting Zhongshan Park would always stop by the snack bar to buy something for their children, even if it was just a piece of fried cake (zhagao). When the Cultural Revolution began, the halal snack shops closed down. In the early 1980s, to support ethnic policies, the former Dongcheng Catering Company worked to bring back the famous old brand Ruizhenhou Restaurant. They reopened it at its current location at 1 South Dongsisi Street in 1982 and renamed the halal shop Ruizhenhou Restaurant. Today, third-generation chefs continue to carry on the unique halal flavors of Ruizhenhou.
The restaurant has a professionally trained lamb slicer named Master Zhao Delu, who is nicknamed Zhao the One-Knife. He started at the shop in 1981 to learn how to debone, select, and slice lamb, and he has been doing this for over 20 years. He has his own unique skills. He chooses tender young lambs weighing 35 jin, then removes the thin membrane and tendons. After cooling the meat (known in the trade as cold-setting), the blood and meat blend together, making the red and white parts distinct before it can be used. Finally, he slices it into thin, even pieces that look beautiful with their alternating red and white colors. Dip thin slices of meat into a charcoal hot pot (huoguo) that smells of wood, letting the woody scent blend with the meat. The meat stays tender even after long cooking, and the thin slices do not break. Served with carefully prepared seasonings, friends and family sit around the table to enjoy the lively and grand atmosphere. The taste is fresh, fragrant, and wonderful. This is the traditional Beijing-style mutton hot pot (shuan yangrou) from Ruizhenhou.
The Sina blog "A Century of Ruizhenhou" by ruiren491112. The blogger, Chen Junyuan, was born in Beijing in 1949 and has lived there for generations.
One day, Lin Kaimo (noted by Wang Dongsi as a master of Go during the Republic of China era) and Xia Renhu (noted by Wang Dongsi as a famous scholar) were playing Go at Chunming Pavilion in Zhongshan Park. They played for so long that they missed dinner. When the game ended, they had to order a bowl of beef noodles at Ruizhenhou, located north of Chunming Pavilion, to satisfy their hunger. At that time, Ruizhenhou was quite famous and had a branch in Zhongshan Park that sold various noodles and snacks. Back then, the noodles at Ruizhenhou were much better than the California beef noodles popular today. They were hand-pulled noodles (chentiaomian) served hot, with a rich, thick broth and plenty of tender, fragrant meat. I don't remember the exact price per bowl, maybe 70 or 80 cents, but it was very popular.
Ruizhenhou is a halal restaurant that still exists today, located at the Dongsi intersection. In the past, it was famous for its deep-fried lamb tails (zha yangwei), crispy stir-fried mung bean jelly (jiao liu geza), braised meat strips (ba routiao), and stewed beef (men niurou).
Lingering Fragrance: Memories of the Capital by Zhou Shaoliang.
2. Kaorouwan inside Xuanwumen
Kaorouwan as described by Zhang Zhongxing.
I forget who I was with, but it was summer, and we went to Kaorouwan to try the grilled beef. The storefront was very simple, just one large room. To the south is the barbecue area with two grills side by side. They look like millstones, featuring a round platform about the size of a dining table with a foot-high iron ring in the center. A slightly raised iron grate sits on top of the ring. The grate is made of iron strips about a centimeter wide placed side by side. The gaps between them are packed with beef fat from constant use. Four rough benches are placed around the round platform for customers to stand at. To the north is a table holding bowls, chopsticks, chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, sesame paste (majiang), soy sauce, and other seasonings. There is also a cutting board for the beef, which holds the meat, knives, and plates. The man cutting the meat is a big guy around fifty years old, likely the shop owner, Mr. Wan. He is quite heavy and wears only a pair of thin trousers, which sit about an inch below his navel. The owner is very capable. Aside from a teenage boy who helps deliver meat and seasonings, he does everything himself, including seating customers and handling the bills. The meat is said to be hand-picked at the meat market early in the morning, and it is sliced well, thin and even.
