Chapter 378 Reunion Dinner
Just as everyone from the Zhou family and the Shen family was surprised, the maid brought hot water and poured it into the basin containing the blood clams.
Everyone's eyes widened. What kind of operation is this? ?
Do you cook it directly with boiling water?
Oddly enough, when boiling water was poured over the blood clams, they did not move at all.
But not long after, small bubbles emerged from the cracks in the shells, and the clam shells that were originally tightly closed opened their small mouths, revealing the blood-red clam meat inside.
Chen Keheng couldn't help but ask: "Zheng'er, can it be cooked like this?"
I always feel that the clam meat is still raw.
Chen Huazheng nodded, and quickly asked the maid to take the blood clams out of the basin, drain them, and put them in a clean basin.
In the past, she would eat blood clams during the Chinese New Year. The older generation said that breaking clams is like counting money, and eating clams can help you hide your money.
When the shells collide, they make a sound similar to the sound of copper coins, which indicates that one will make a lot of money in the new year.
This kind of good-looking food must of course appear at the family reunion dinner during the New Year.
So the first dish that Shen Huazheng arranged was blood clams.
Cooking bloody clams is a technical job that requires quick eyes and hands.
Pour boiling water in, and as soon as bubbles appear, pick up the blood clams and drain them.
The time must not exceed fifteen seconds, otherwise it will be too cooked.
Zhou Zeyan looked at the slightly opened clam shell and said, "Zheng'er, is this all right?"
What other steps did he expect?
Shen Huazheng nodded: "Yes, you can eat it after breaking the shell like this."
Some people eat blood clams by blanching the shells and then marinating them with salt, soy sauce, garlic cloves, and chili peppers before eating.
That way of eating it is called pickled blood clams, but Shen Huazheng prefers the original taste.
At this time, the blood clams have just been poured with boiling water, the clam shells are slightly opened, and the clam meat is the most tender and sweet.
Dip it in the prepared garlic and white vinegar, it tastes unique.
Shen Huazheng broke open a blood clam for Grand Tutor Zhou and Old Madam Zhou respectively, and demonstrated to everyone: “That’s it, just break the shell and you can eat it.”
The rhythm of boiling water was just right. Although the blood clams were only slightly cracked by the boiling water, the shells were easy to peel off.
After peeling it, it is juicy and the meat is not overcooked, which is the most perfect state.
Everyone followed Shen Huazheng's example and picked up the blood clams and peeled off their shells.
As soon as the clam shell was opened, the bright red and plump clam meat inside immediately appeared before our eyes, a sea of crimson.
It looks like a bloody mouth, which is a bit creepy.
Zhou Chengxuan hesitated: "Zheng'er, can this really be eaten?"
It’s red and I always feel like it’s not ripe yet.
Chen Huazheng smiled and said, "Uncle, feel free to eat it. The blood clams are more delicious if you eat them with the blood."
Zhou Zeyan: "Dad, if you don't dare to eat it, just eat something else."
Zhou Chengxuan glared at him: "Who said I dare not eat it."
Isn't he worried that it's not cooked yet?
Zhou Zeyan ignored his old father's contempt and picked up one carelessly. He gently broke the shell along the slightly opened mouth in the middle, and the shell was opened, revealing the bright red clam meat inside.
As long as Zheng'er says it's edible, it's edible.
She said to eat it with the blood, so he ate it with the blood.
Zhou Chengan couldn't help laughing. Among the three brothers, the eldest brother was the most timid.
Oh no, it should be called cautious.
Master Zhou coughed lightly and put the clam meat into his mouth.
This is Zheng'er's wish. No matter what, she can't lose face in front of so many people.
As soon as Master Zhou put the clam meat in his mouth, he was stunned.
The taste of blood cockles is very special, the meat is tender and slightly sweet.
If you savor it carefully, it feels like the sea breeze gently brushing across the tip of your tongue.
Clear but not bland, fresh but not fishy.
Master Zhou swallowed the clam meat in his mouth and said, "It's delicious. Let's eat."
Just now, when Grand Tutor Zhou was eating blood clams, everyone at the table was observing his expression.
As soon as I saw his expression, I knew that blood clams must be delicious.
Hearing this, everyone immediately put the broken clam meat into their mouths.
This time, everyone was amazed.
As you chew, the delicious juice in the meat splashes out, bringing with it a faint scent of the ocean.
It’s sweet yet salty and fresh, so delicious that it makes your heart tremble.
“It’s really sweet.”
This blood clam looks bloody and is indeed a bit scary.
But only when you put it in your mouth and taste it, you will know how sweet it is.
This is so delicious!!!
Everyone had washed their hands before eating, and now they simply threw away their chopsticks, peeled the blood clams with their hands, and ate them with relish.
Zheng'er was right, the blood clam should be eaten with the blood.
Not only is the meat delicious, but even the blood is tasty.
Chen Huazheng also ate the blood clams happily, feeling very satisfied.
This batch of blood clams are very fresh, and once the shells are peeled open, they are all full of "blood water".
The soaking time is just right, the meat inside is very tender, not overcooked, and full of flavor.
What’s even better is that the taste of blood clams is different when they are boiled and eaten directly, and another when they are pickled.
It has a different taste when dipped in mashed garlic and white vinegar.
Chen Huazheng peeled another blood clam, dipped it in mashed garlic and white vinegar, and put it into her mouth.
The sour taste of mashed garlic and white vinegar enhances the salty and fresh taste experience, bringing out the deliciousness of blood clams to the extreme.
Although it is a little bit choking when you first take a sip, once the choking feeling wears off, only the rich fragrance remains between your lips and teeth.
Shen Huazheng narrowed her eyes slightly, it was really delicious.
Shen Keheng couldn't help but praise: "I thought this way of eating was a bit strange, but I didn't expect it to be so delicious."
This blood cockle is so delicious that it makes your tongue lick.
Zhou Chengxuan also agreed, "It's really delicious. Just now I thought these blood clams looked like bloody mouths, which was a bit creepy. I didn't expect them to be so delicious."
It is true that you cannot judge a book by its cover, and the same goes for food.
Zhou Zeyan looked at Zhou Chengxuan and suddenly laughed: "Dad, you still have the nerve to say that blood clams have a bloody mouth. Now you yourself have become a bloody mouth. Hahaha~!!"
When everyone heard this, they looked up at each other and started laughing.
It turns out that everyone's mouths turned red after eating blood clams.
Master Zhou savored the sweet taste in his mouth, looked at the dishes on the table, and started laughing too.
It finally feels like the new year.
Although the food is usually good, the atmosphere today is completely different.
After finishing the first course, the maids brought warm water and wet towels.
Everyone washed their hands, wiped their mouths with wet towels, and then picked up their chopsticks... and looked at the large yellow croaker soup on the table in tacit understanding.
When it was first served, Shen Kesi was very interested in the large yellow croaker in soup.
He knew that it was made from large yellow croaker sent from Mianzhou.
When they saw the golden fish, Shen Kesi and Shen Keheng were both shocked.
They had never seen a golden fish before, so they thought it was a fish spirit.
Later I found out that it was caught by fishermen from Mianzhou and given to Chen Huazheng.
As early as when Shen Huazheng introduced the name of the dish, the others had already focused their attention on the large yellow croaker in soup.
The color is golden and the aroma is tempting.
Wow, just look at the appearance and you’ll know it’s incredible.
When they heard the word "Guan Tang", they thought of soup dumplings.
I always feel like there's something hidden inside the fish.
Could it be that there is something fishy going on? ?
However, looking at it this way, I can’t tell the size difference between this fish and other fish.
Could there really be something hidden in here?
Just when everyone was confused, Shen Huazheng's voice rang out——
“This needs to be cut first.”
As she spoke, she asked someone to bring a knife and slowly cut open the fish from the belly.
When she saw the big yellow croaker for the first time, Shen Huazheng's eyes lit up.
This big yellow croaker is golden all over, with a small belly, long tail and bright red mouth. It is definitely a treasure among yellow croakers.
The large yellow croaker appears golden in color due to its golden skin glands, but it is easily decomposed and faded by ultraviolet rays.
Therefore it is silvery white during the day and golden at night.
Also because of the different colors, the meanings are also different.
The same yellow croaker has two different prices if caught during the day and at night.
The fisherman specially fished at night and gave her a big golden yellow croaker.
Shen Huazheng naturally couldn't waste such good ingredients.
She thought about it and decided to make yellow croaker soup for today's family reunion dinner.
The large yellow croaker in soup is the finale of the Manchu-Han banquet, and the preparation requires a lot of effort.
Not only does it require exquisite knife skills, but the fish scales must be scraped off and the fish bones must be removed cleanly.
It is also necessary to ensure that the fish body is not damaged in the process, so that the fish skin and meat remain intact.
Then the routine cleaning and deodorizing steps are carried out, the material is filled, and then the mouth is sealed and fired.
The essence of this dish lies in the deliciousness of the soup base and the taste of the yellow croaker. Shen Huazheng first boils abalone, sea cucumber, scallop, bird's nest, mushroom, flower mushroom, shark fin, lobster, fish maw and deer tendon into the soup.
Then freeze it into a jelly state, stuff it into the fish's belly, seal it and cook it.
Everyone stared at the movements of Shen Huazheng's hands intently, their hearts leaping with joy.
There is something hidden in here!!
Zhou Ying also looked at Shen Huazheng tenderly, with a gentle curve at the corner of her lips.
She also participated in the preparation process of this dish, so she naturally knew how rare this dish was.
During the cooking process, the huge and intact yellow croaker rolls in the oil pan.
Under high temperature, the smell of the yellow croaker itself and the aroma emitted by the food wrapped in its belly float together, releasing incomparable deliciousness.
The whole kitchen was filled with a charming aroma, which was so strong that it almost blew the roof off.
After cooking, when the fish is poured with the sauce made from broth, it becomes even more delicate, like a gorgeous painting.
Zhou Ying also wanted to know how delicious this dish would taste.
The moment the fish belly was cut open, a rich and fresh fragrance seemed to have finally broken free from its confinement, bursting out with amazing energy.
At the same time, the various delicacies that were originally tightly wrapped inside could no longer be hidden and slowly flowed out.
The delicate and tender fish meat, accompanied by various sea and land delicacies, slowly flows out on the plate and appears before everyone's eyes.
Everyone opened their mouths slightly in surprise. It was incredible that so many things could be hidden in the body of this fish.
The maid used a spoon to scoop some fish meat into a bowl for each person, along with the ingredients and soup that flowed out of the fish's belly.
Master Zhou picked up the spoon in front of him and tasted the soup first.
After a long period of steaming, the gelatinous substances in fish maw, scallops and deer tendons are integrated into the soup.
The soup base is thick but not greasy at all.
The essence of other ingredients is also melted into the soup. After taking a sip, your mouth is filled with rich fragrance.
The thick soup slides into the throat with an extreme sweetness. It is salty and fresh, with a slight sweetness.
When you taste it carefully, the sweet taste seems to linger on the tip of your tongue, unwilling to dissipate for a long time.
After swallowing the soup in his mouth, Grand Tutor Zhou felt completely lost.
So delicious!!
I didn’t expect that the soup hidden in the fish’s belly could be so sweet and delicious.
Old Madam Zhou picked up the fish in the bowl with chopsticks and put it into her mouth.
The fish meat is extremely tender and smooth, and you don’t even need to chew it. It seems to melt in your mouth with just a slight bite.
Just like whipped egg whites.
Before she could react, the tender fish meat disappeared without a trace.
Only the delicious flavor that is hard to ignore rises in the mouth, lingering on the tip of the tongue like a wonderful melody.
It's an unforgettable taste.
Shen Huazheng also immediately picked up the fish with chopsticks and tasted it carefully.
The most wonderful thing about stewed yellow croaker is that it contains the delicacies of land and sea, yet not a drop of soup leaks out.
Even the fish's mouth is sealed with fish meat. The fish meat and the ingredients in the fish's belly not only do not compete with each other's flavor, but can also stimulate each other to bring out a deeper level of deliciousness.
Wild yellow croaker has a natural fragrance without any peculiar smell, and the fish meat is distinct, plump and sweet.
During the cooking process, the aroma of various ingredients hidden in the fish's belly gently permeates into the fish meat.
The fresh fragrance from the mountains and the freshness from the ocean collide with each other and blend with the fresh fragrance of the fish, creating an unexpected harmony.
It's a perfect match.
The yellow croaker meat is delicate and smooth, and goes down the throat in a flash.
There is no fishy smell at all, only the delicious taste jumping happily between the lips and teeth.
Shen Huazheng felt the wonderful taste in her mouth and was completely speechless.
I just felt like I fell into a vortex of deliciousness and was so happy that I couldn't extricate myself.
The rest of the people were also immersed in the shock and excitement of the delicious food, and they all buried their heads in eating.
I didn't expect that just one dish could contain so many delicacies from land and sea.
In addition to the incredibly tender fish meat, the rest of the ingredients are also delicious in their own way.
Their tastes have long been spoiled, and they can tell from the taste that the ingredients wrapped in the fish's belly have also been carefully cooked.
The fish maw is thick and chewy, full of gelatin.
The sea cucumber is stewed until it is tender and has a soft and glutinous texture.
The deer tendons are crystal clear, extremely crispy and chewy.
Abalone is crispy, tender and smooth, with a sweet taste.
The flower mushrooms are sweet, tender and have no residue.
The mushrooms are also full of juice and have a smooth and mellow taste.
The delicate and smooth texture of the fish meat and the aroma of the other ingredients are intertwined in the mouth. The charming aroma rises and falls on the tip of the tongue, and the taste buds are instantly amazed by this rich taste.
Grand Tutor Zhou raised his head in the midst of his busy schedule, looked at the younger generations who were so engrossed in eating that they forgot everything else, and a smile appeared in his eyes.
At the beginning of the new year, everyone was immersed in joy, which was a good start.
In the days to come, all kinds of good luck will surely come one after another.
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