Black-boned chicken is usually used for soup. Because it contains bamboo fungus, you can't make two chicken soups; you have to discard one of them.

Fresh bamboo fungus can be stir-fried, while dried bamboo fungus is better suited for soups.

Don't ask why she didn't use bamboo fungus to stew black-boned chicken. It's because there aren't many vegetables available this season. Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice; she couldn't come up with more dishes and couldn't combine the two.

The method for making bamboo fungus chicken soup is no different from that for regular chicken soup. Cut off the pheasant's head, feet, and tail, remove excess fat, and chop it into small pieces.

Blanch the vegetables in boiling water for five minutes, then rinse them with water. Place them in a clay pot, add enough water to cover them, bring to a boil over high heat, and skim off any foam.

Add scallion segments, ginger slices, and an appropriate amount of cooking wine, then simmer over low heat for about half an hour.

While the soup is simmering, cut off the head and tail of the bamboo fungus, which has been soaked in warm water for about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea and has softened.

Blanch the bamboo fungus in boiling water for 20 seconds to remove its raw taste, then rinse it with cold water.

Bamboo fungus cooks quickly. Add bamboo fungus and goji berries 20 minutes before turning off the heat, and season with salt before serving.

"Girl, the meat filling is done."

"Help me process the black-boned chicken. Cut off the head, tail, feet, and fat inside, and chop it into small pieces."

Farmers don't have many rules when it comes to cooking. They're not only reluctant to part with chicken heads and feet, but some families even keep the chicken's tail and cook it together.

When cooking for wealthy people who don't care about money, it's essential that the food is visually appealing, delicious, and fragrant.

Chicken heads and feet are considered by many to be as vulgar as pig offal, something that cannot be served in a respectable manner.

Xiao Yunying didn't know if they would mind, so the best option was to offer it but not make it.

He added enough firewood to the small stove under the casserole dish and walked to the long table.

After checking that the meat filling was properly stuffed and the tofu shell was intact, Xiao Yunying set it aside and would start cooking when the guests arrived.

The kitchen helper collected the chopped black-boned chicken into a basin: "Miss, is there anything else you need to do?"

"Let's wait for the rest of the ingredients to arrive."

With ingredients unavailable, she was unable to assign tasks.

"Then I'll go and urge them."

"Go."

Xiao Yunying asked another kitchen helper to wait a moment, and then put the scooped-out tofu cores into the remaining minced meat, adding various seasonings:

"Help me mix this meat filling well, give it to the chef who makes noodles, and tell him to wrap it into small willow leaf-shaped dumplings. Steam them when the guests arrive. If he doesn't know how, come over and I'll teach him. Then I'll ask for another portion of this meat filling."

"yes."

As soon as the kitchen helper left, the older kitchen helper brought over the rest of the ingredients with other people, filling the table.

"Is there anything else you need, young lady?"

"Let's leave it at that for now. I'll ask you for help if I need anything else. You stay here to help me, and two other people can wait outside for a bit. The rest of you, take the pot from Chef Li's spot, light the fire in the stove, and wait. I'll take it over to stew in a little while, and you guys keep an eye on the fire for me."

Xiao Yunying handed her the peeled water chestnuts: "Cut them into small cubes, wash them after cutting, and drain them."

The water chestnuts were very fresh; she had never seen them at the market before. They must have been brought from somewhere else by Chen Yuancheng, or perhaps they were grown on his own estate.

Another cook returned with a bowl of minced meat and said, "Miss, Chef Sun said he can make it. You can rest assured leaving it to him."

"Okay, come over here and help me change the water in this pot, clean it and put in clean water."

She added the seasonings to the minced meat and placed it next to the kitchen helper who was chopping water chestnuts: "Wash the water chestnuts once, drain them, put them into the minced meat, mix well, and call me."

"Understood, young lady."

Xiao Yunying and the kitchen helper, who had just finished washing the pot, put another large iron pot into the stove: "Go and beat five eggs. Make sure to use a clean, dry, and oil-free porcelain bowl. If you're not sure, wash it again. Separate the yolks and whites, and use clean, oil-free chopsticks to beat the egg whites."

With the menu finalized, dessert was a must, and she decided to make the simplest cake.

"Please wait a moment, young lady. I'll go get a new porcelain basin and chopsticks first, and then I'll check and confirm before cracking the eggs."

When the kitchen helper brought over the porcelain basin and chopsticks that had been washed twice and wiped clean with a clean cotton cloth, Xiao Yunying first divided an egg and used the chopsticks to beat the egg white.

"Shoot in one direction. Call me when a lot of white foam comes out. My arm is a little tired. Take a break when you're tired. There's no rush."

She made braised black-boned chicken with shiitake mushrooms herself, using the same method as regular braised chicken: blanched black-boned chicken pieces, various seasonings, and shiitake mushrooms, then braised in a large iron pot.

He told the two kitchen helpers waiting at the door to carry the pot away: "Be careful, don't get burned. Tell them to keep a close eye on things. If anything else happens, your boss won't be lenient."

The kitchen helper, chopping horseshoes, said, "Don't worry, young lady. Apart from the apprentices who have flexible contracts, everyone else in the kitchen, whether it's the head chef or us kitchen helpers, has a fixed contract. Most of them came back from the capital with the master, and they wouldn't dare to betray him and wouldn't betray the master."

"That's good."

Xiao Yunying started stewing the rabbit meat. Since it was also braised, the flavor was a bit similar to that of stewed black-boned chicken with mushrooms. She secretly added two dried chili peppers to the pot.

She had someone carry the pot to the main kitchen to stew it, and then placed the original small iron pot on top.

"This one doesn't need to be taken back. All that's left is to cook. You can all watch the fire together, or help the other chefs prepare the ingredients."

The water in the pot next to her had already boiled. Xiao Yunying blanched the washed and soaked daylily buds, took them out to cool, squeezed out the water, and set them aside.

Pretend to take two small red chilies out of the basket, wash and cut them into sections, put them in a bowl, add appropriate amounts of sesame oil, salt, sugar, soy sauce, chicken essence, and vinegar, dilute the sauce with a little water, and pour it over the daylily buds.

Add chopped green onions and cilantro, mix well, and serve.

Cold dishes can be prepared in advance and served directly to guests, saving time and preventing them from becoming unpalatable when cold, unlike hot dishes.

Xiao Yunying mentally reviewed the recipe, then unconsciously read it aloud while scrolling through her fingers: "Main course: steamed dumplings with tofu and pork filling; dessert: cake."

The twelve dishes are: Bamboo Fungus and Pheasant Soup, Braised Black-boned Chicken with Mushrooms, Stuffed Tofu, Braised Rabbit, Four Happiness Meatballs, Stir-fried Pork Slices, Braised Sea Cucumber with Scallions, Deep-fried Pigeon, Cold Mixed Daylily, Cabbage Dumplings, and Candied Yam.

After counting, I paused for a moment: "Huh? How come there are only eleven? I just counted twelve, but I forgot which one."

The kitchen helper, who had already diced the water chestnuts and was mixing the minced meat, smiled and said, "Miss, you seem to have forgotten that there's also a braised bear paw dish in the main kitchen."

Xiao Yunying remembered: "Ah, right, there's also a bear paw dish."

Because she resisted cooking the bear paws, she unknowingly forgot about them.