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Buddha Jumps Over The Wall
By Peace | May 9, 2006
“Buddha jumps over the wall” (佛跳牆 fó tiào qiáng) is an umbrella term for a type of highly-complex Chinese soup or stew consisting of many ingredients of non-vegetar
ian origins and requiring one to two days to create. The name reflects the appeal of the soup: it is said to be so enticing that even a vegetarian monk (Buddha) himself could not restrain himself and would sneak out of the monastery (jump over the wall) to steal a taste.
A typical recipe includes many ingredients including quail eggs, bamboo shoots, scallop, abalone, shark fin, chicken, ginseng, mushrooms, and taro. When served in restaurants, the more expensive ingredients are emphasized to justify the lofty price normally charged for this soup.
It was only recently we found out that “Buddha” is a famous Fujian cuisine which costs a bomb. The ingredients list (more th
an 30 kinds) sounded like a pot-luck of leftovers - shark’s fin, sea slug, chicken breast, duck, dried scallop, mushroom, fish maw, squid, sea cucumber, pork tripe, pork leg, minced ham, mutton elbow, winter bamboo shoots, pigeon eggs and abalone. These are seasoned and steamed separately and then put into a clay jar, mixed with cooking wine and put over intense heat followed by low heat. Four or five ounces of liquor is then added while the ingredients are kept simmering for another five minutes. Now you understand why it costs a bomb!
But why the “Buddha jumps over the Wall” name? Our first theory was that the dish was too sin-ful for Buddha that he had to jump over the wall to escape! After further inquiries, we found out that our theory was totally incorrect!
Legend has it that a Fuzhou scholar went picnicking with friends. He had put all the ingredients he had with him in a wine jar, which he heated over a charcoal flame. The tantalizing smell spread all the way to a nearby temple and was so inviting that the monks could not resist and jumped over the wall to partake in the hearty dish. A poem in praise of the delicious dish was rendered, in which one line read: “Even Buddha himself would jump over the wall to taste this dish”.
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January 31st, 2008 at 4:55 am
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