Chapter 10 Lemon Shredded Chicken.

Xu Yue, Zheng Jiajia, and Zhou Huilin are students majoring in Cultural Industry Management at Jiangshi University. The past two weeks have been their practical courses.

Their group chose the former Jiangshi Brewery, now an industrial creative park, as their research subject. They came here to explore the traces of the former brewery, how the industrial creative park utilized industrial heritage to transform into the creative park it is today, and what aspects could be optimized and improved.

Their major is quite good. The teacher encourages them to go out more on weekends. Museums, art galleries, creative parks, popular photo spots, and even the old streets of Jiang City are all places to explore. They strive to learn something real while eating, drinking, and having fun.

This is their third visit to the industrial creative park, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, it will be their last.

Xu Yue and her two companions took photos of some key buildings, clarified the transformation history of the industrial creative park to ensure there were no errors, and interviewed the current manager of the industrial creative park's property management company, making it a very fruitful trip.

They then turned onto Surrey Street near the creative park, intending to find a restaurant to eat at.

The first two times they ate meat sauce noodles and Shaxian snacks here, the taste was quite good.

Xu Yue and the other two had previously found a restaurant to sit down and eat shortly after entering the end of Suli Street, but this time they planned to walk a little further in.

They walked and walked until they saw a peach tree ahead. A few pink and white petals drifted down in the wind. Under the tree was a restaurant with a natural wood color, which looked particularly eye-catching. There was a table of customers eating inside.

Gu's Private Kitchen – just from the name, you know this restaurant won't be cheap.

But since they were already there, the three of them exchanged a glance and decided to go in and take a look. They often ate at restaurants that cost seventy or eighty yuan, or even over a hundred yuan, per person when they went out.

As Xu Yue and her two companions entered the store, the cool air conditioning instantly made them feel refreshed, and they immediately decided to eat there.

The two small shops we ate at earlier didn't have air conditioning. In this weather, it's much more comfortable to eat with the air conditioning on.

Without asking any further questions, they had already seen today's menu on the wall and immediately began to discuss it.

Xu Yue: "The braised pork with preserved mustard greens looks pretty good. It's a real show dish. I wonder how good this restaurant is."

Zheng Jiajia sniffed the aroma wafting from the next table: "I think it'll be pretty good. Just smelling the meat from next door makes my mouth water. Look how tempting their braised pork with preserved vegetables looks. Let's order that."

Kelly Zhou nodded: "Okay, then let's order braised pork with preserved mustard greens, garlic shrimp, and lemon shredded chicken. Which would you like to eat?"

Xu Yue: "I feel that eating lemon shredded chicken would be more refreshing on such a hot day, and for garlic shrimp, you can get it from the school cafeteria."

Zheng Jiajia said disdainfully, "The garlic shrimp in our cafeteria is a complete misrepresentation; it should be garlic shrimp instead. But shrimp can be eaten anytime, so let's have lemon shredded shrimp for today."

Kelly Zhou agreed: "Okay, then let's add lemon shredded chicken. What about vegetables and soup?"

Xu Yue suggested, "How about we skip the vegetables and order a fish head and tofu soup instead? Even though we don't eat fish heads, we can still eat tofu and have soup. This soup is pretty good."

The three of them got along well as roommates. Their living expenses were neither a lot nor a little tight. They often ate out, and everyone knew they could afford it; it was just a matter of whether they were willing to spend the money.

Smelling the aroma wafting from the next table, Kelly Zhou nodded again: "Okay, I'll support ordering another fish head tofu soup."

Zheng Jiajia was also tempted: "Okay, let's do it that way then."

They waved to the owner, ordered the three dishes they had agreed on, plus a tea fee of 3 yuan, which came to an average of 61 yuan per person, which was perfectly acceptable.

While the owner was busy in the kitchen, Xu Yue exclaimed in surprise as she washed the dishes: "I never imagined that such a beautiful young lady is not only the owner of the restaurant, but also the chef!"

Zheng Jiajia nodded excitedly and said, "As expected, we strong women are really powerful!"

Kelly Zhou expressed her high hopes: "I hope this young lady's cooking skills are absolutely amazing, and she won't let us down~"

After washing the dishes, they chatted and scrolled through their phones, occasionally sipping the monk fruit water provided by the restaurant, which was sweet and quite thirst-quenching.

Soon the braised pork with preserved mustard greens was served, and the three of them immediately forgot about their phones, their attention drawn to the glistening, reddish-brown dish.

The braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens is neatly arranged in a deep white porcelain dish, revealing beautiful tiger-skin patterns and three distinct layers of fat and lean meat. Surrounded and at the bottom are clusters of equally glistening preserved mustard greens, which smell wonderful.

Zheng Jiajia and Zhou Huilin picked up their chopsticks, ready to taste the delicious food, but Xu Yue stopped them in time: "Wait! I suddenly remembered that we are still running a restaurant review account, right? The meat dishes at this restaurant look very tempting. We can do a review video for it. Let me take some pictures first before we eat."

As she spoke, she took out her phone, turned on the camera mode, slightly adjusted the arrangement of the plate of braised pork with preserved vegetables, and found a suitable angle to start filming.

This semester, they have a Media and Operations course. In addition to attending classes on campus, they also need to work in groups to manage an account on a social media platform, and the results of the operation will be included in the course grade.

Because the three of them love to find food on campus, they started a food exploration account to discover hidden gem restaurants.

On weekends or when they don't have classes, the three of them usually go out of school to reward themselves with their mouths and also update their accounts twice a week. The accounts are doing well so far, with several hundred likes, and one post even broke a thousand likes by some incredible luck.

Having been running the account for almost two months, it has accumulated over 600 followers.

Xu Yue took a few photos, flipped through the album to make sure they were good enough to be edited, and then said, "Okay, let's eat."

She put her phone aside, picked up a slice of braised pork with preserved mustard greens with her chopsticks, and placed it in front of her. The slice was neither too thin nor too thick, and it trembled slightly.

Xu Yue put the top layer of lean meat in her mouth and bit into it. The lean meat was salty and savory, with the unique fragrance of preserved mustard greens. It was not dry at all and tasted very good.

She didn't originally want to eat the fatty part, thinking it was too greasy, but she accidentally bit too much and ate some of the fatty part as well. The oiliness mixed with the lean meat neutralized the original dryness of the lean meat, so it wasn't too greasy.

Even so, she still avoided the fatty parts and ate the remaining lean meat along with the tiger skin.

The braised pork belly was soft and tender without being greasy, and the savory and delicious flavor seemed to still linger in her mouth. Xu Yue couldn't help but pick up another piece to eat, this time with some preserved mustard greens mixed in.

The preserved mustard greens share the same salty and savory flavor as the braised pork belly, while also possessing their own delicate fragrance and a touch of sweet and salty. They are especially delicious when eaten together with the lean meat of the braised pork belly.

Zheng Jiajia has always liked braised pork with preserved mustard greens, and she doesn't have any aversion to fatty meat. She knows that if braised pork with preserved mustard greens is cooked well, the fatty meat is not greasy at all and is very fragrant. Moreover, eating it with the fatty meat will prevent it from being too dry.

She folded a slice of braised pork twice in the bowl, so that the fat and lean meat overlapped, making it easier to bite into.

The braised pork belly is tender and juicy, with a savory and salty flavor. The lean meat is steamed until very soft and easily breaks into shreds with a satisfying texture, while the fatty meat is mixed in with a little bit of oil, making it very delicious.

This was the first time Zhou Huilin had ever found braised pork with preserved mustard greens so delicious. The salty and savory flavor of the pork and the sweet aroma of the preserved mustard greens blended together, and she couldn't help but swallow it after just a few chews.

After eating two pieces, she couldn't help but ask the owner for a bowl of rice. Such delicious braised pork with preserved mustard greens must be eaten with white rice!

Xu Yue was also a little tempted and asked Zheng Jiajia, "Jiajia, how about we share a bowl?"

They both have small appetites, and they can't finish a bowl of rice, so it's better to share it.

"Okay, then let's have another bowl of rice." Zheng Jiajia nodded in agreement, feeling that it would be a waste to eat braised pork with preserved vegetables without rice.

When the owner brought over two bowls of rice, Zhou Huilin immediately picked up the bowl of white rice and ate it with braised pork belly and preserved vegetables.

Xu Yue and Zhou Huilin each shared half a bowl of rice and then ate it separately.

They all simultaneously placed a slice of braised pork and some preserved mustard greens on their rice, letting the almost invisible dark brown sauce drip onto the glistening white rice. Then they picked up the braised pork and tasted its salty flavor. When they had almost finished chewing, they scooped a mouthful of rice into their mouths and swallowed it in one gulp, barely needing to chew it anymore.

Soon the lemon shredded chicken was served.

This dish looks quite oily and spicy. The tender white chicken is covered with red sauce, and red chilies are everywhere. Yellow lemon slices mixed in add a touch of freshness and are also stained with red chilies. Onions are also mixed in. The aroma is not overpowering, but rather sweet with a hint of spiciness and the unique freshness of chicken.

Looking at the lemon shredded chicken, Xu Yue couldn't help but pick up a piece of chicken with her chopsticks and eat it.

The chicken is shredded into strips, each one just the right size, thickness, and texture. Each bite is infused with the unique spicy and savory flavor of the sauce, along with the sweet and sour aroma of lemon. It's incredibly tender, without any fishy taste or dryness—just the right amount of flavor, making it a very appetizing dish.

She can handle spicy food and thought the spiciness was just right. The aroma of lemon and shredded chicken intertwined, making it appetizing and perfect with rice. One bite of chicken could be mixed with two bites of rice.

After finishing the meal, Xu Yue realized she hadn't taken any photos yet. Fortunately, the small piece of chicken didn't affect the appearance of the lemon shredded chicken, so she quickly picked up her phone and took photos from different angles.

"Okay, we're done filming. Everyone, let's eat!"

Zheng Jiajia and Zhou Huilin couldn't wait any longer. They endured letting the camera eat first, but now they reached for their chopsticks without hesitation.

Zheng Jiajia thought the lemon shredded chicken was delicious. The shredded chicken was tender and savory, and the lemon flavor added a refreshing touch, making it less greasy.

It was too spicy. On a whim, she ate several pieces of chicken and accidentally bit into a red chili pepper. Her tongue immediately felt hot and numb, and even her lips turned red and hot.

The luo han guo water was warm and didn't relieve the spiciness, so she simply stood up and went to the refrigerator where various drinks and beers were clearly displayed. After looking it over, she took a bottle of zero-calorie jasmine tea.

Even before she could return to her seat, Zheng Jiajia immediately unscrewed the bottle cap and gulped down several mouthfuls.

The chilled jasmine tea is refreshingly cool when you put it in your mouth. The jasmine fragrance, along with the tea aroma, spreads across your tongue, and before you can even savor it, it's already gone.

The continuous coolness instantly relieved the spiciness of the lemon shredded chicken, and she walked back to her seat.

With this bottle of jasmine tea, Zheng Jiajia seemed to have gained confidence and began to eat the spicy shredded chicken even more recklessly, alternating between spicy and icy bites—a typical stomach-burning behavior, but she felt particularly good about it this time.

Xu Yue can eat spicy food without drinking iced beverages. Occasionally, when the spiciness becomes too intense, she drinks monk fruit that has already cooled down.

Kelly Zhou's ability to handle spicy food is only so-so, slightly better than Zheng Jiajia's. In the end, she couldn't resist grabbing a bottle of chilled winter melon tea from the freezer. From then on, she ate lemon shredded chicken without fear and went for it without hesitation.