Yi Yin, Yi Ya, and Peng Zu are all ancient cooking gods, and they all made great contributions to the ancient cooking industry.

1. Peng Zu

According to legend, during the period of Emperor Yao among the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, floods occurred in the Central Plains. As the leader of the tribe at that time, Emperor Yao directed flood control. Because he had long been concerned about the safety of his tribe and people, Emperor Yao became ill from overwork and was bedridden. There was no water for several days and his life was in danger.

At this critical moment, Peng Zu immediately cooked a pheasant soup based on his own health regimen. Before the soup was brought to him, Emperor Yao smelled the aroma from a distance. He jumped up, moved his index finger, and drank it all in one gulp. His face was radiant the next day. From then on, Emperor Yao would eat this chicken soup every day. Although he took care of everything every day, he never got sick. It became a good talk for a while and has been passed down.

Afterwards, Yao granted Pengcheng to him, so later generations called him Peng Zu. Peng Zu's "Way of Pheasant Soup" gradually developed into "The Way of Cooking". Pheasant Soup is the earliest famous dish recorded in Chinese classics and is known as "the best soup in the world".

In A Brief History of Chinese Cooking 9, Peng Zu is said to be "the first famous professional chef in our country" and "the longest-lived chef". He is still revered as the founder of the kitchen industry.

2. Yi Yin

There are not many records of Yi Yin's cooking practice. It is only said that when he went to see Shang Tang, he cooked a swan soup that was very popular. But judging from what Yi Yin said about soup and its flavor in "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals: Original Flavors", it can be seen that his cooking theory level is definitely first-rate.

Yi Yin is unique in cooking techniques and cooking theories. Cooking is just one of Yi Yin's many abilities. Yi Yin is the sage of Chinese cooking. Nowadays, Chinese cooking colleagues in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and other places also regard Yi Yin as China's "Saint of Cooking" and "Saint of Cooking".

3. Yi Ya

Yi Ya was the first chef to use blending in cooking. He was good at seasoning and was good at cooking. Because he was a chef and had very high cooking skills, and he was the first person to open a private restaurant, so he was called the ancestor by the chefs.

Once Duke Huan said to Yi Ya: "I have tasted all the delicacies in the world, but I have never eaten human flesh, which is a pity." Duke Huan's words were an unintentional joke, but Yi Ya kept them in mind. , thinking only of showing off his abilities so as to win the favor of Duke Huan. The king is so noble that he must not eat the flesh of prisoners on death row or civilians. Later, he saw his 4-year-old son and chose to use his own son's meat.

During a lunch, Duke Huan drank a small golden cauldron of extremely tender broth that he had never tasted before. He asked Yi Ya: "What kind of meat is this?" Yi Ya cried and said it belonged to his son. The meat is used to pray for the health of the king, and the son is sacrificed to the lord. When Duke Huan learned that this was the flesh of Yi Ya's son, he felt very uncomfortable. However, he was moved by Yi Ya's act of killing his son to eat for himself. He believed that Yi Ya loved him more than his own flesh and blood. From then on, Duke Huan favored Yi Ya.

Extended information

In addition to these three, there are two other people revered as kitchen gods. One is Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, known as the "Cake God". The industry must be respected. Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty was named Liu Xun. He was the emperor of the Western Han Dynasty and reigned from 74 to 49 BC. He was the great-grandson of Liu Che, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. During the "Witch Rebellion", Liu Xun concealed his name and fled among the people.

"Book of Han. Chronicles of Emperor Xuan" records that the emperor suffered a disaster due to witchcraft when he was young. "When he grew older, he liked to travel around Guanzhong." At that time, Liu Xun did not know how to make cakes, but he only When he was in trouble, he liked to eat cakes and often went to the cake shop to buy cakes. The business of this cake shop was particularly prosperous, even he himself was surprised. After Emperor Zhao died, he was appointed by the general Huo Guang. After becoming emperor, the cooking industry in Guanzhong actually regarded him as the ancestor. Later, in "Painting Jue", the founder's divine horse was mentioned in the title, and the bakery used his divine horse.

Volume 6 of "Tieweishan Congtan" written by Cai Sui of the Song Dynasty: "When Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty was in Qiwei, there was a difference in selling cakes, which can be seen in "Hanshu. The pastry chef, who often has a portrait of Emperor Xuan in his shop, is now almost a custom."

The other one is the legendary King Zhan, who is said to be the imperial cook of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. Once, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty asked King Zhan what was the most delicious thing. His answer was salt. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty killed him for playing the king.

After that, the imperial chefs were so frightened that they did not dare to add salt to the dishes. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty realized that the dishes tasted tasteless and he named Chef Zhan King Zhan.

Since then, the culinary industry has regarded King Zhan as its ancestor and respected him as "Emperor King Zhan". Another theory is that King Zhan was a homeless man named Zhan Shu, not an imperial cook at all. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty killed many chefs because the food was not delicious, so no one dared to cook, so he had to post a list to recruit talents. Zhan Shu mistakenly posted the imperial list and was summoned to the palace.

Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty asked him: "What is the most delicious?" He said: "Hungry" is the most delicious. Then he led Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty out of the city to look for "hungry". When Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty was really hungry, he took out green onion pancakes and gave them to Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. Later, there was a custom among the people to worship King Zhan. Guorongzhou's "Allusions to Food Accompaniments" says: Sichuan chefs worship King Zhan, the "Chef Bodhisattva", and there is a temple fair for King Zhan on the 17th day of the eighth lunar month.

According to "Caifeng Lu", every year on the 13th day of the eighth lunar month, the "King Zhan Hui" is held, which is celebrated for forty-eight days. During this period, food is sold, and it is also a day for chefs to accept apprentices and thank their teachers. .

Different times, different regions, and different ancestors in the kitchen industry. Emperor Lei Zu, Guan Gong, Zhuge Liang, and Mei Weng were all the founders of the cooking industry.

Reference materials: Baidu Encyclopedia-Peng Zu

Baidu Encyclopedia-Yi Yin

Baidu Encyclopedia-Yi Ya