Zhao Youming

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Zhao Youming, Male, Unspecified, from Shanghaigongdelinsushiyouxiangongsi, is a third-batch national representative bearer of Sushi Making Craftsmanship (Ⅷ-164). The tradition is documented in Shanghaigongdelinsushiyouxiangongsi. Within the regional tradition and school record of Sushi Making Craftsmanship in Shanghaigongdelinsushiyouxiangongsi: Gongdelin's vegetarian food flowed from temples into the marketplace; in 1922 disciples of Weijun, the scripture-lecturing Dharma master of Changji Temple, opened the Vegetable Food Place at the intersection of Beijing Road and Guizhou Road, later moving several times and now located on West Nanjing Road. Its style has never left the single line of Shanghai vegetarianism: using tofu, mushrooms, and vegetables as materials, hand-cooking fish, meat, and other dishes of lifelike form, it is the settled form of Jiangnan vegetarianism within the shikumen lanes and the treaty-port city. Its form also changed with the city's tastes. The temple vegetarian food of the late Qing and early Republic was on the plain side; after Gongdelin entered Shanghai, to please the local diners' heavier palate it produced meat-named vegetarian dishes with stronger flavors such as buttered crab roe, sizzling eel threads, wine-braised fish slices, and sweet-and-sour yellow croaker. In other words, though Gongdelin is vegetarian, what it makes is the Shanghai palate—this is its greatest divergence from the rural vegetarian fasting cuisine of Jiangnan. The origin of Gongdelin vegetarian cuisine making lies in temples. During the Tongzhi reign of the Qing dynasty, temple vegetarian food gradually flowed into society. In 1922, disciples of Weijun, a Dharma master who lectured on scriptures at Changji Temple on Chenghuang Hill in Hangzhou, with the aim of "propagating Buddhism, promoting vegetarianism, and releasing living beings from slaughter," opened the Gongdelin Vegetable Food Place at the intersection of Beijing Road and Guizhou Road in Shanghai. When first founded, the entire Gongdelin shop covered only 300 square meters; in 1927 it moved to No. 43 Huanghe Road, expanding to 1,000 square meters and dividing into three floors—the first floor a snack restaurant, the second floor private rooms, and the third floor a Buddhist hall. In 1997, owing to Shanghai's urban redevelopment, Gongdelin moved to West Nanjing Road, where its vegetarian cuisine making continued to develop and innovate, still attracting many consumers with its distinctive character.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, of Han ethnicity, born in September 1954, a native of Shanghai. He is a national representative bearer of vegetarian food making craftsmanship (the Gongdelin vegetarian cuisine making technique), a third-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. He is a senior technician. He entered Gongdelin in 1979 to learn the trade and, under the careful instruction of the second-generation master Luo Laiyao and several other senior figures, mastered a whole series of skills covering the selection of ingredients, preparation, cutting and portioning, carving and cooking. He became head chef at Gongdelin and was awarded the title of Famous Chinese Cuisine Master. His work is marked by meticulous ingredient selection, refined knife work, close attention to form and a strong artistic sensibility; his cooking methods are varied and his seasoning distinctive, and he constantly seeks novelty and change, devoting himself to carrying vegetarian food culture forward. Within the documented technical tradition of Sushi Making Craftsmanship in Shanghaigongdelinsushiyouxiangongsi: Using tofu, mushrooms, and vegetables as raw materials, it makes vegetarian dishes in the manner of meat—that is, hand-cooks "fish," "meat," and other dishes of lifelike form. Because the making is excellent and the taste unique, customers filled the door and business flourished. At this time Gongdelin began recruiting vegetarian chefs from temples across the country, and the business thrived, winning the praise of the broad Shanghai public with its unique vegetarian manual craft and cooking methods. Gongdelin has famous vegetarian dishes such as buttered crab roe, sizzling eel threads, wine-braised fish slices, sweet-and-sour yellow croaker, fragrant braised tender chicken, and crucian carp with winter bamboo shoots. These vegetarian dishes use refined ingredients and meticulous workmanship; their forms are lifelike, their varieties many, their flavors imitate meat, and their cooking methods diverse. Each dish is finely crafted, combining the dual functions of dining and artistic appreciation, so that customers can view and taste at the same time. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Vegetarian dishes cooked to look like meat and fish": Tofu, mushrooms and vegetables are cooked by hand into dishes that convincingly resemble fish and meat. "Choosing, carving and plating": Every dish is made to be looked at as much as eaten, so carving and arrangement form half of the craft. "Vegetarian dishes under seafood and meat names": Its famous dishes include crab roe, eel strips, fish slices and sweet-and-sour yellow croaker, all made without meat or fish. "Hiring vegetarian cooks from temples": Hiring vegetarian cooks from temples across the country brought many regional styles together in one Shanghai kitchen.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 1997 he took part in the first accreditation of Famous Chinese Snacks organised by the China Cuisine Association, at which the vegetarian ham he produced was granted an honorary title.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Zhao Youming · National Representative Bearer Archive