The Grand Banquet of Three Snakes, Dragon, Tiger, and Phoenix

The Grand Banquet of Three Snakes, Dragon, Tiger, and Phoenix

　　The Grand Banquet of Three Snakes, Dragon, Tiger, and Phoenix

　　The tradition of eating snakes among the people of Xinxing started at the grassroots level. It was said that snake meat could cure night sweats in children and improve their skin complexion. In fact, snake is a high-protein food, and consuming it for fairer skin is not unreasonable. Later, as its therapeutic effects became more evident and the variety of snake-based dishes in Guangzhou, Nanhai, and other places continued to expand, the custom of eating snakes gradually emerged in Xinxing. The first restaurant to serve snake dishes was the Phoenix Sluice Snake Restaurant in present-day Taiping Town.

　　Initially, the dish was made by deboning the snake, shredding the meat, and cooking it with shredded chicken, ham, pork, mushrooms, wood ear fungus, and other ingredients to make a snake soup, specially prepared for customers to taste. Later, it evolved into "Three Snakes, Dragon, and Tiger Battle" and "The Grand Banquet of Three Snakes, Dragon, Tiger, and Phoenix." These dishes are currently popular in major hotels and restaurants, but the best version is still served by Snake King Wang at the original Phoenix Sluice. The original location has now moved next to Xianhe Bridge, while the old site retains its original name but is run by someone else. At the Xianhe Bridge Snake Restaurant, they typically use three types of venomous snakes—cobra, hat-snake, golden-footed snake, and tree-climbing fig snake—to make the soup. The version with civet cat added is called "Three Snakes, Dragon, and Tiger Battle," and the one with an old cat added is known as "The Grand Banquet of Three Snakes, Dragon, Tiger, and Phoenix."

　　Nowadays, the way people in Xinxing eat snakes has developed significantly compared to the past. In addition to snake soup, there are also stir-fried shredded snake, braised snake meat, stir-fried snake skin, snake soup, stewed snake pot, baked snake with venison, steamed snake with venison, and nearly a hundred other varieties. When paired with various wild delicacies such as cat, chicken, abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, fish maw, and soft-shelled turtle, they can create a diverse and ever-changing snake feast. One of the most astonishing sights in current snake restaurants is the live preparation of three snakes paired with wine. During the meal, the chef will bring out a hat-snake (cobra), a golden ring snake, and a tree-climbing fig snake for the guests to see. Then, holding the snake’s head with the left hand and stepping on its tail with a foot, the chef presses down on the snake’s belly, makes a small incision with a knife, and carefully squeezes out a gallbladder about the size of a grape seed, placing it on a white saucer. Next, three emerald-green, warm snake gallbladders are slit open and poured into a bottle containing rice wine, which is then mixed well and shared among the diners in small half-cups. Snake gallbladder wine is cool and sweet, without any bitterness, and is believed to have effects such as dispelling wind, invigorating circulation, promoting blood flow, relieving coughs, and calming wheezing.