Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Chapter 284 What I'm going to do today is to teach you how to cook this dish

The two arrived at the Song residence. Mother Feng was waiting at the small gate in the backyard. When she saw Shen Yu and Li coming, she brought them to see Old Madam Song.

After greeting and exchanging a few pleasantries with Old Madam Song, Shen Yu took out the piece of paper with the menu written yesterday and showed it to Old Madam Song.

Then he pointed to the pottery jar he brought and said, "Madam, this jar contains candied dates pickled with jujube honey that I ordered. I also wrote down the method of pickling on a piece of paper."

"My family's candied date cake is made with this kind of candied dates. Because candied dates need to be pickled for seven days before they can be used, they can't be eaten right away, so I brought a jar of pickled ones here today."

"The dates used in the fruit shop are the ordinary big red dates. The old lady eats them herself, so she pickles them with the small golden-threaded dates. They taste better and are more nutritious."

Old Madam Song looked carefully at the detailed methods written on the paper and nodded slightly as she listened to Shen Yu.

After reading the menu, she said with satisfaction: "Good boy, you are very careful. With this menu, even if you change the cook, you can still cook it according to the written method."

"It shows that you really want to teach them, and you are not someone who hides things."

After Old Madam Song finished speaking, she said to Mother Feng, "Ah Zhen, take Miss Shen and my wife over there."

"When the two cooks are learning, you should not come back, but follow them and learn. Once you learn, it will be a skill."

"You don't need to serve me today. Just stay in the kitchen."

Mother Feng quickly agreed, thinking to herself, "The old lady didn't ask me to learn, she asked me to watch the two cooks and make sure they don't do anything weird like they did yesterday."

Shen Yu and Li bowed to the old lady, walked out of the main room, and followed Mother Feng to the small kitchen.

The two cooks seemed to have been scolded today, so they didn't hold their heads high like yesterday. Although they didn't greet us with a smile, they were humble and pleasing to the eye.

Shen Yu saluted the two chefs gracefully and said sincerely, "The two chefs have been in the industry for many years. I think they are both very skilled in cooking and making snacks."

"Today, I will show off my skills and teach the chefs how to make fish balls and candied date cakes."

"After I teach you how to make these two dishes, if the old lady wants to eat them in the future, the chefs can make them anytime, and they won't have to bring me to their house anymore. What do you think, chefs?"

Chef Xin and Chef Liu felt that they had been in the industry for more than 20 years, but they had to learn cooking from a little girl. If this got out, they would be laughed at by their peers.

But since it was the old lady's instruction, and with Mother Feng watching nearby, they had no choice but to hum and haw in response and began to watch Shen Yu do it.

Candied date cake is a pastry that every noodle chef can make. There is nothing to teach the method. Shen Yu just carefully explained to Chef Liu the amount of sugar and date flower honey to use when pickling the candied dates, as well as the choice of red dates.

What I’m mainly going to teach you today is the fish ball dish.

Shen Yu and Li made fish balls according to the same method as yesterday.

And while doing it, Shen Yu carefully explained to Chef Xin beside him every step, how to do this step, to what extent, and why to do it this way.

Chef Xin looked disdainful at first, but after listening carefully, he discovered that although Miss Shen looked young, she was quite experienced in cooking and even had unique insights in some areas.

Gradually, he put away his frivolous attitude and became serious.

Even Chef Liu, who was in charge of the noodle making process nearby, listened carefully and a serious look appeared on his face.

When Shen Yu was making fish balls today, he deliberately made some extra. In addition to putting some into the big soup bowl, he also left some for Chef Xin and Chef Liu to taste, and even Mother Feng had a portion.

Mother Feng called the maid who had been waiting at the kitchen door, carefully placed the soup bowl in the food box, and asked her to take it to the old lady.

After the maid left with the food box, Mother Feng picked up the bowl of soup in front of her and started to taste it with Chef Xin and Chef Liu.

Three people each had a small bowl.

Chef Xin scooped up a fish ball with a spoon, took a bite, chewed it slowly, savored it carefully, and a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Originally, I had some admiration for Shen Yu while watching the show, but after eating the delicious fish balls, the last bit of thought that Shen Yu's pork dishes were inferior was thrown out of my mind.

He sincerely praised: "These fish balls made with pork and grass carp are really delicious. No wonder the old lady praised them so much after eating them."

"The soup is light in color, the fish meat is fresh and tender, and the meat filling in the middle is fresh and fragrant. The taste is indeed unique. Miss Shen, just based on this fish ball, I, Xin Datou, am convinced."

Shen Yu originally just kept smiling and listened carefully.

When she heard that Chef Xin was actually called Xin Datou, she couldn't help but burst out laughing, but then she quickly held it back and said modestly, "Master Xin, you are too kind. I don't deserve it."

Mother Feng finished the fish balls in her bowl, put down the bowl, wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, and asked with a smile: "Chef Xin, Chef Liu, how is it, have you learned it?"

"If I learn it, I will take Miss Shen and my wife back to the old lady to report."

Chef Liu nodded and said confidently: "My candied date cake is simple. I've noted down how much jujube nectar to use."

"After lunch, I will go to the fruit shop and pickle the best quality golden jujubes. After seven days, I will make sure the old lady can eat delicious candied date cakes."

After watching Shen Yu's entire production process and tasting the delicious fish balls, Chef Xin no longer had the same confidence as before.

He chuckled, and a sincere expression finally appeared on his chubby face: "Miss Shen, how about you just watch from the side while I do it again."

Shen Yu nodded without hesitation: "What's the trouble? This is what I should do. What I have to do today is to teach you this dish. When you have learned it, I will go back."

Mother Feng was also very patient today. She smiled and said, "Then why are you still standing there? Chef Xin, start cooking."

Chef Xin nodded, and he called Qin Ma, who was waiting on the side, and asked her to wait and boil water.

So, it was another round of making fish balls from scratch.

The fish ball dish looks easy to make, but it is not easy to make it well.

Just squeezing out round and complete fish balls from the tiger's mouth, this seemingly easy action, Chef Xin spent half a basin of fish paste before he could make it look like something.

By the time a bowl of snow-white, round, and fragrant fish balls was finally made, it was already noon, past lunchtime.

Shen Yu and Chef Xin taught carefully and learned seriously, but Mother Feng and Mrs. Li were already so hungry that their stomachs were growling.

Shen Yu tasted the fish balls that Chef Xin made for the third time, and finally nodded and said with a smile: "This taste is right."

Chef Xin took his own soup bowl, ate a fish ball, and said with a smile: "Oh my, I finally made it, and it tastes like this."