Dayu Nan'an Pressed Duck Production Technique (the third batch of provincial level) Nan'an Pressed Duck is a popular traditional food in Dayu County, a famous and high-quality specialty product in Jiangxi Province and a traditional export agricultural and sideline product in Jiangxi Province. It was first produced during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty and was named after its place of production in Nan'an. It has a production and processing history of more than 500 years and a foreign trade export history of more than 100 years. It is produced using traditional and unique processing methods and is famous for its color, fragrance, taste and shape. It is well-known both at home and abroad. Nan'an Pressed Duck mainly uses Dayu's specialty "Da Li Mu duck" and "Dayu white duck" as the main raw materials and is pickled through a unique processing technique. The original processing method was to slaughter the self-raised ducks and pickle them with coarse salt, without using the shed to set the shape, and dry them naturally in the sun, commonly known as "pickled". "Pickled duck" has the characteristics of long storage time and convenient carrying. With the prosperity and development of Meiling Post Road, "pickled duck" has become a commodity, the production scale has gradually increased, and its pickling processing methods have been continuously improved, forming the traditional processing technology of selecting materials, fattening, slaughtering, artificial hair removal, disembowelment, taking out the internal organs and removing the five external parts, salting, rinsing, shaping, sun-drying, shaping and packaging products. "Pickled duck" has thus changed its name to "pressed duck". Nan'an pressed duck, which is processed by traditional technology, has a flat body and peach round shape, "eight" shaped ribs, a semicircular tail, cheese-colored skin, sauce-colored lean meat, distinct fat and lean meat, and plump tail oil without overflowing. It has the characteristics of crisp skin, tender meat, fragrant color, sweet taste, non-greasy, and appropriate saltiness. It has become a treasure among cured products and a delicacy in banquets, and is known as the "king of cured products". Dayu has a long history. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, it belonged to Nanlin County, one of the three ancient counties in Jiangxi. After Zhang Jiuling dug the Meiling Post Road in the fourth year of the Kaiyuan Period of the Tang Dynasty (716), the Mei Pass was established in the eighth year of the Jiayou Period of the Song Dynasty (1063). The Meiling Post Road gradually became an important land route connecting the Central Plains to Lingnan and overseas. The science, culture, products of the Central Plains and foreign civilizations and tributes were all gathered and exchanged here, creating a prosperous scene of "merchants like clouds, goods like rain, thousands of feet trampled, and no cold land in winter". Dayu is also one of the settlements of the Hakka people. Raising poultry and livestock and making folk snacks are the traditional life customs of the Hakka people. Dried radish, taro, tofu, etc. pickled with salt have always been the traditional foods loved by the Hakka people. During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the Deng family, who lived in Fangwutang outside the city of Nan'an, pickled fresh ducks with coarse salt and dried them. They thought they were fragrant and delicious, and they could be stored as easily as pickled radishes. During the Spring Festival, a plate of steamed ducks was used to entertain relatives and friends, which was unanimously praised by everyone. Everyone called this pickled duck "pickled". At that time, the post roads were busy, and merchants traveling from north to south would come to Deng's house in Fangwutang to eat a plate of "pickled duck". They would feel their appetites increase, and they would take a few back home to entertain guests. In this way, "pickled duck" crossed mountains and rivers, sailed across the oceans, and was brought to Guangzhou and Southeast Asian countries. By the middle and late Qing Dynasty, Nan'an pressed duck had evolved from a popular traditional folk food of the Hakka people to a delicacy for dignitaries to entertain guests during the Spring Festival and a gift for visiting guests.