State banquet and family banquet

Author: Wang Xuanyi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-02-01
Features: This book is a recollection of childhood, a longing for those bygone days (apologies, the author is unwilling to say it is a fondness for his mother; how could he use such meager writing to honor her?). The nostalgia centered around a kitchen or a dining table is essentially the atmosphere of a typical Chinese family, isn’t it? We discuss the dishes his mother cooked, we reminisce about the numerous feasts she hosted, big or small, Chinese or Western. The dishes may not have been outstanding in every way, but the atmosphere never wavered. Whenever his mother was present, guests and hosts alike were delighted, and that joy and warmth were never hollow social rituals—rather, they were relaxed, ordinary, and full of happiness. Wang Xuanyi wrote a column titled "State Banquets and Family Feasts" for a supplement, weaving together many people’s memories through the Jiangsu and Zhejiang cuisine. The piece received constant praise. Starting from his mother and family stories, Wang Xuanyi wrote not just about food but also about the human world, much like reading Lin Wen Yue’s Notes on Dining. After the series was serialized in the newspaper, the author received numerous letters and calls from friends and readers, some asking for secret recipes or wanting to try the dishes, while others, who shared similar backgrounds with the author, discussed the many familiar scenes from their family dining tables. When the column was compiled into a book, it included illustrations by the seasoned advertiser Zhu Shougu, and a recipe for eleven dishes from "State Banquets and Family Feasts" was appended at the end.