Chapter 57: Cheese. (Second update)...
When the three of them all turned to look, Chef Zhou suddenly woke up and thought to himself, "Oh no!" His thoughts raced through his mind, but he maintained a smile, nodded at the family, and walked over to them. "Sorry to interrupt your meal."
Lin Sen looked the visitor up and down with a wary look in his eyes, fearing he might be a "chaozhan." Chaozhan were the idle men and women who roamed restaurants and taverns. They looked like ordinary scoundrels, but they would often force their food onto customers' tables, forcing them to buy or sell. To avoid trouble, diners and diners would often give them some money to settle the matter.
Although Linzhiji's shop is small and this incident has not occurred, there are people like this hanging around in the nearby Dongji Restaurant, Furongzhuang and even Xieda Mutton Restaurant.
Only when he saw the man wearing a blue shirt and a headscarf with the name of Juyoulou embroidered on the edge did Lin Sen feel relieved: "Hello, are you——"
"I'm one of the chefs at Juyoulou. My last name is Zhou." Chef Zhou smiled and explained his purpose. "My head chef asked me to ask about the diners' experience and if anyone has any feedback."
"This is my first time doing this, so I'm a little uneasy. I never expected to scare the three guests. It's truly my fault."
"No big deal, no big deal." Lin Sen's last vestiges of doubt vanished upon hearing Chef Zhou's intentions. He smiled cheerfully, praising, "Your food is truly delicious! Especially that matsutake chicken soup. The broth is rich and fragrant, and the chicken is so tender and flavorful. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water."
Song Jiaoniang nodded: "This venison is also very delicious. It is the best venison I have ever eaten."
Chef Zhou nodded with a smile, and then set his eyes on Lin Zhi: "Young lady, what do you think?"
Lin Zhi smiled and said, "They are all good."
Even though Chef Zhou didn't get any more information, he wasn't discouraged. He continued, "Are you three from Bianjing? Is this your first time dining in our shop?"
Lin Sen smiled and said, "It's indeed my first time here. The shop happened to be closed for a day, so I took advantage of the break to come to the tile house to watch a play and have a meal."
Chef Zhou was surprised and asked, "So your family also runs a shop? What kind of shop is it?"
Lin Sen hesitated for a moment, then subconsciously looked at Lin Zhi. Lin Zhi smiled and said frankly, "My family runs a foot shop, not a very famous one."
My own food shop has no competitive relationship with the restaurant in front of me. I just come here to have a meal as usual - there is no rule that says people who run food shops cannot eat at other people's houses, right?
Chef Zhou was stunned at first, then he suppressed his joy. He asked a few questions out of curiosity, and when he heard the name of the shop, he secretly wrote it down, intending to ask someone about it later.
After asking all the questions, he returned to the kitchen and asked someone to send a dessert to Linzhi's family. Then he did not go to reply, but went to another table to ask similar questions and served food again.
Seeing this scene, the Linzhi family finally felt relieved. Song Jiaoniang couldn't help but whisper, "When I saw Chef Zhou so excited just now, I thought there was something going on."
Having met a frivolous man in front and a doting cook in the back, Song Jiaoniang almost suspected that she had been unlucky when she went out.
Fortunately, Chef Zhou continued to ask the people around him, and it seemed that what had just happened was just his illusion.
Song Jiaoniang took a bite of the cheese and was instantly captivated by its soft, sticky, sour, and sweet taste: "Jie Zhi, try it quickly! This cheese is delicious!"
Linzhi also picked up a ball, took a light bite, and with a little force, the soft, glutinous and stretchable outer skin stretched out like mozzarella cheese.
Tear open the skin, and the crispy cheese will flow out inside, which is sweet and sour, with a mellow frankincense. The sour, sweet and smooth taste is intertwined into a ball. When you swallow it, even your throat is filled with a refreshing sweetness.
Song Jiaoniang ate one and still felt unsatisfied. She lowered her voice and asked, "Sister Zhi, can you make this?"
"Yes, we can do it. Let's go to the dairy and buy some milk and try it." Lin Zhi whispered.
Although there are no highly productive dairy cows nowadays, and milk mostly comes from ewes, cattle and buffaloes, the habit of consuming dairy products has extended from the royal family to the literati, and from the literati to the common people. This is especially true in Bianjing City, which is at the foot of the imperial city. There are many shops specializing in dairy products in Bianjing City, and fresh goat's and cow's milk can be delivered to people's doors every day.
Song Jiaoniang's eyes lit up, and she was immediately delighted. Unexpectedly, Chef Zhou, who had his back to the others, had been secretly observing them and had heard what the family had said.
When he heard the conversation between Lin Zhi and Song Jiaoniang, his scalp went numb with shock, because of the older lady's casual question and the younger lady's unhesitating affirmation.
The lady's question was casual and simple. The ordinary five words "Can this be done?" revealed another layer of meaning. That is, they must have imitated something before, and even succeeded, which made the lady ask so confidently.
The young lady's answer was very simple, just two words: "Yes, I can do it." She even suggested going to buy milk.
Chef Zhou was momentarily stunned, then his thoughts turned to a terrifying thought. Judging from the mother and daughter's conversation and reactions, this must be their first time eating this fruit. So, so, so that meant—she had tasted it and learned the recipe!?
Chef Zhou's pupils twitched as he thought of a possibility. He had heard of a white cook who could make any dish she'd ever tasted. Her cooking skills were so exquisite that she had been selected into the imperial court at a young age and was now a fifth-rank official in charge of food.
"Chef Zhou, Chef Zhou?"
"Oh... I'm sorry, I suddenly thought of something." Chef Zhou apologized to the diner in front of him. This time he really couldn't sit still, so he ran into the kitchen and reported the situation to Chef Cui.
Chef Cui was processing the ingredients. When she saw Chef Zhou in a hurry, she frowned and was about to scold him.
Before she could finish her words, she heard Chef Zhou trying to lower his voice and say, "Madam Cui! That young lady seems to have the talent of Chef Bai!"
Cui's hands made a mistake, and the knife slammed down onto the chopping board. The sudden noise startled several people, their eyes flicking between Cui and Zhou.
Many people noticed that Chef Zhou was acting unusually today. He went out to ask diners how the dishes were, and he frequently talked to Chef Cui. Now he made such a commotion.
Some people were simply curious, while others secretly went to find out a little and learned about what Ping Ge'er was complaining about.
By then, the Linzhi family had returned home with two jugs of milk. They were packing up while talking about the dishes they had at Juyoulou.
Madam Yu from next door heard the noise and happily pushed the door open and walked in: "Madam Song, you're back? I was waiting for you."
"Madam Yu." When Song Jiaoniang saw Madam Yu, she couldn't help but think of Madam Hua and her frivolous nephew, and even her smile became much fainter than usual.
"Come, come, come." However, Madam Yu hadn't noticed Song Jiaoniang's change. She was still enjoying herself as she brought in a basket of things. "My relatives came to my house and gave me a big basket of crabs. I thought I'd give you half."
"That's embarrassing."
"It's okay, they gave us a lot!" Shopkeeper Wu, who followed behind Madam Yu, also brought two baskets. Lin Zhi looked closely and saw that in addition to crabs, there were also cabbages, radishes, persimmons, chestnuts, hawthorns and other things, which were piled full.
"Madam Yu, what do these relatives of yours do?" Lin Zhi couldn't help but ask out of curiosity. If these crabs, fruits and vegetables in front of her were put on the market, the prices would not be cheap.
"They are all farmers working in the surrounding areas, not very capable people." Madam Yu was not actually from Bianjing City, but from a nearby village. She only lived in the city after getting married: "My family came to visit us and brought some local specialties."
Lin Sen was picking at a crab when he was nearly pinched by the giant one, waving its claws. Startled, he quickly pulled his hand back and asked, "Why don't you sell it at the market? Given the size of the crab, it could fetch a good price."
"Brother Lin, you don't know." Shopkeeper Wu shook his head. "There are only two or three donkey carts in the village. The rest are ox carts. These oxen and donkeys have to pull mills and plow the fields every day, or transport firewood, fish, and grain. No one wants to come to Bianjing."
Most people in the village will never leave the village in their entire life, at most they will go to the market for a stroll.
"It's not that we haven't thought about helping, but it's not easy." Madam Yu and Shopkeeper Wu also wanted to buy one or two donkey carts to help deliver goods to the city for sale. However, buying donkey carts and stalls, hiring people to watch the store, and even collecting the goods, each link requires funds and manpower. It would be useless if they relied on just a few people.
Besides, the villagers are not easy to deal with. If they sell more or less, or the price is high or low, they may have other ideas.
As a daughter-in-law who married out, Madam Yu saw that she couldn't even persuade her own family members, let alone encourage others.
Lin Sen sighed inwardly, feeling what a pity, while Lin Zhi quickly grabbed two crabs. Looking at the river crabs in front of him that were so fat that their lids were about to burst open, he had already thought of several ways to eat them.
"Uncle Wu and Aunt Yu, do you have anything to do tonight?" Lin Zhi asked.
"It's okay. I just sent him to the door..." Madam Yu answered casually, and then her eyes lit up: "Wait? Sister Zhi, is she going to make something to eat?"
"Well, if you two are free, why not have dinner at my house? It would be bad if such good crabs were left to die. We need to eat them quickly!"
Shopkeeper Wu was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling. Ever since he had eaten the duck blood rice noodle soup last time, he had been drooling over the food from next door. How could he not agree now? Not only did he agree repeatedly, he also looked at his wife anxiously.
Madam Yu rolled her eyes at him. "Look how impatient you are!" Then she smiled at Lin Zhi and said, "Of course no problem. By the way, Auntie, please ask your uncle to bring the other crabs as well!"
Without Madam Yu saying anything more, Shopkeeper Wu had already gone back happily, and soon he happily brought back the remaining half basket of crabs.
At this time, Linzhi carried two pots of milk into the kitchen, and Song Jiaoniang also pulled Yu Niangzi to follow behind and went in together.
She didn't mention Lady Hua, but excitedly recounted what the family had just seen and heard in the tile house. Finally, she pointed to two cans of milk and said, "Sister Zhi saw that cheese and said she'd make some for me when she gets back!"
"Hey—what you said makes me curious."
"Aunt Yu, try it later. It's delicious." Lin Zhi said with a smile as she took the milk and poured it into the pot. She boiled it over high heat first, then moved the pot away. She waited until the milk cooled down to a slightly hot temperature before she scooped a spoonful of white vinegar into it.
Soon, a lot of milky white flocs began to float in the pot. Linzhi took a spoon and scooped up all the flocs into a bowl. Then, she covered it with gauze and squeezed it with both hands. Soon, the whey dripped through the gaps in the gauze into the bowl, and the flocs in her palm gradually shrank until she could squeeze them into a ball.
It was the first time for Song Jiaoniang and Yu Niangzi to see this scene. They watched helplessly as the milk turned into something like tofu pudding and then was twisted into a solid ball. They were so shocked that they were speechless for a long time.
Linzhi's actions have not stopped yet. She then put the cooked glutinous rice flour, the cheese, sugar, a little salt and whey into the pot, and repeatedly stirred and pressed until all the ingredients were integrated into a tightly connected ball.
She fished out the dumplings and placed them on a plate. Then she washed her hands and kneaded the dumplings again and again, until they were smooth and even.
Madam Yu was so stunned by what she saw. When she saw Lin Zhi stop, she whispered, "Is this all right?"
Song Jiaonian also felt that it was exactly the same as what she saw in the morning, so she reached out to take it, but Lin Zhi quickly moved it away.
"Mom, why are you in such a hurry?" Lin Zhi glanced at her. "It's only half done. There's still stuffing!"
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