Manhan Quanxi

The Manchu Han banquet or Manhan Quanxi ( Chinese 滿漢全席 ), also known as Qing Han Banquet, was one of the most extensive feast of Chinese food. It consisted of at least 108 unique dishes from the Qing Dynasty , mainly dishes from the regional Manchu and Han cuisines . The enjoyment of a total of six banquets over a period of three days was reserved for the respective rulers. The cooking skills exhibited here included all preparation methods of the Chinese Empire.

The Emperor's Banquet

preparation

The celebratory meal was prepared to include six banquets over a period of three days, with 196 main courses and 124 snacks served. Depending on how the samples were counted among the dishes, at least 108 dishes were served. The banquet of the name-giving emperor was divided into two different banquets, a banquet outside the palace and one that took place inside the palace and was only held for the imperial family and the most deserving officials, including the Han Chinese, who were second highest in the Held a hierarchy of officials. In general, the Manchu dishes were tasted first, followed by the Han dishes.

The food

“Thirty-two delicacies”, consisting of exotic ingredients, have been handed down. The “Eight Delicacies of the Mountains” included, for example, dishes such as camel's humps, hog's claws, monkey brain, monkey lips, rhinoceros tails, deer tendons or the fetus of a leopard. The “Eight Delicacies of the Mainland” consisted of several fine varieties of poultry and mushrooms. The “Eight Delicacies of the Sea” consisted of dried sea cucumbers , shark fins , swallow's nest and other dishes.

A selection of these extraordinary dishes was:

Snowy hand: bear claw with sturgeon
Golden eyes and a burning brain: tofu braised in the brains of chicken, duck and cuckoo
Living monkey brain
Hot egg cake

kitchen utensils

The utensils were of a noble kind. Most of them were made of filigree bronze and the best Chinese porcelain and were modeled on the shape of various animals. The utensils had the function of keeping the food warm during the feast.

history

origin

When the Manchus, an ethnic minority of China, took control of the Chinese Empire and thus founded the Qing Dynasty, there was much resentment and unrest between the Manchu and the majority Han Chinese. Emperor Kangxi , second emperor of the Qing dynasty, wanted to put an end to these conflicts. On the occasion of the birthday celebrations for his sixty-sixth year of life, he arranged for a banquet to be held, which not only included dishes from both the Manchu and Han cultures, but also required the participation of high-ranking officials from both sides. After the Wuchang uprising , people from lower classes also learned of this emperor's banquet. The banquet in its original form was held in the Forbidden City of Beijing .

Cultural revolution

The Red Guards burned most of the books and other records related to the banquet during the Cultural Revolution. This caused great damage to the recipe and its tradition. Thanks to the memories of surviving Qing Dynasty officials, the recipe has largely been reconstructed, but it will never be recovered in its entirety. The current contents of the Manchu Han Banquet are only a collection of the more elaborate dishes and therefore cannot depict the banquet in its original entirety.

present

Nowadays, the term “Manhan Quanxi” is often used colloquially for an opulent, long banquet. Dinner galas and cooking competitions also make use of this old name without making any concrete reference to the historical and culinary background. In addition, the name is misappropriated by various food manufacturers for ready-made sauces and instant noodle dishes.

If this feast is offered in its true meaning, it is one of the most expensive in Chinese cuisine. However, the original ingredients are sometimes not used, as the original recipe uses endangered species . Another special feature is that the service staff, uniformly dressed in traditional Chinese clothing, gives the impression of a historical event.

Web links

Complete Manchu-Han Banquet bei English Online (Mandarin Chinese)