Su Qingluan looked a little guilty, but she quickly adjusted her attitude and pointed to the spoon used to drink the tofu soup: "The spoons in the kitchen are all this size. If you use it to eat crab stuffed with orange, it will seem a bit big."
Seeing Song Bo glance at the small spoon next to the orange, Su Qingluan explained, "I washed it carefully several times, so it won't taste weird."
As she said that, she turned to look at Mu Xingzhi: "If you don't believe me, try it."
Mu Xingzhi said nothing, simply picking up a spoonful of crab-stuffed orange and putting it in his mouth. As expected, compared to simply savoring the sweet and delicate crab meat, the crab-stuffed orange had the added sweet and sourness of the orange flesh and the seasonings to neutralize the greasy crab roe and paste, making it much lighter. Furthermore, the orange flesh replaced the crab vinegar, neutralizing the fishy aroma of the crab meat, yet it was even softer and richer than the crab vinegar.
"It's indeed Qingluan's craftsmanship, which is indeed extraordinary compared to ordinary people." Mu Xingzhi praised sincerely.
This made Su Qingluan lower her head in embarrassment: "It's not that exaggerated."
She really didn't dare to accept such praise and felt a little guilty. After all, although the dishes she made were innovative and unique in this era, they were actually widely circulated famous dishes in her previous life. She was also standing on the "shoulders of giants", so she felt a little guilty when she was praised as if she was the best in the world.
Song Bo disagreed: "Madam Su, you are too modest. To receive such praise from my boss shows that your cooking skills are extraordinary!"
Su Qingluan glanced at Mu Xingzhi after hearing this: Could he be a picky eater? It doesn't seem like it! In Su Qingluan's memory, no matter whether it was the food made by herself or Song Bo, no matter what it was, Mu Xingzhi never complained.
Half believing and half doubting, Song Bo asked curiously, "What is the biggest thing on this plate?" This was the only dish that Su Qingluan had said she couldn't prepare a separate portion for Song Bo. But on the whole table, this dish took up half of the table, making it particularly "outstanding", so Song Bo was particularly curious.
It just so happened that Su Qingluan had been introducing the dishes one by one before, so Song Bo had no time to interrupt and ask questions. Now he could finally ask.
Su Qingluan thought that there were only three dishes left, so it didn't matter which one she started first, so she planned to take off the lid on the largest plate - it was called a lid, but in fact it was just another slightly smaller plate turned upside down on top of it.
Su Qingluan tried, but her hands were a little short and she couldn't hold the bottom of the plate firmly in her hands. Also, because the plates and jars next to it blocked her view, it was not convenient for her to use both hands to pick it up.
At this time, Mu Xingzhi, who was closer, reached out and did it for him.
Only then did Su Qingluan notice that Mu Xingzhi's hands were white and slender, but they had an indescribable sense of strength like bamboo joints, which was very different from the hands of the frail and sickly young man in her impression.
But why does she think so?
Su Qingluan was a little confused.
Before she could figure out what this slightly awkward feeling was, Song Bo's exclamation interrupted her thoughts.
"Wow! Madam Su, are these bones removed from this fish head?"
Su Qingluan nodded. "I saw some fresh silver carp in the kitchen, so I made this dish of braised silver carp head. It's a pity that the silver carp is a little small. If it were a little bigger, the silver carp head would be more delicate and rich."
"It's really a brilliant idea to disassemble the bones inside the silver carp head one by one." Mu Xingzhi sighed as he stared at the silver carp skulls that Su Qingluan neatly placed in the outermost circle on the plate.
"Actually, I didn't arrange it this way on purpose for display," Su Qingluan explained, pointing to the circle of bones. "This is also to count the bones, so that I don't accidentally leave one or two behind. This way, the total number and shape can match, and it also allows me to check if there are any bones left behind."
Mu Xingzhi picked up a piece of silver carp meat with the serving chopsticks, and Su Qingluan also picked up a piece.
The silver carp head is thicker and more delicate and tender than the fish body. It is not the kind of stringy fish meat on the fish body. It melts in your mouth and has the smooth texture of fat but not the greasy taste of fat. It is very delicious.
The delicious taste of the meat in her mouth also made Su Qingluan secretly relieved: it seemed that although she hadn't made this dish for a few years, fortunately her skills had not been lost.
Although Su Qingluan handed Song Bo the serving chopsticks, he refused to eat anything. Instead, he suddenly seemed to remember something and asked, "Hey, where's the silver carp? Did it get thrown away?"
Su Qingluan was at a loss whether to laugh or cry: "Uncle Song, why would I throw away the fish meat?" She pointed to the broth under the fish head and said: "I used it to make the soup."
The soup in which the fish was soaked was indeed milky white and rich. The reason why it had such a rich aroma was not because Su Qingluan used the fish head to stew it, but because she first used the fish body to make the fish soup, and then added the fish head. This not only prevented the fish head from being overcooked and causing the meat to become tough, but also made the soup richer and more fragrant.
"This rich fish soup is delicious, but if you drink too much, you might get sick of it, right?"
After hearing what Song Bo said, Su Qingluan pushed the other three soup bowls and said, "There's something refreshing in here."
This time, the dishes were divided into three portions, so Song Bo took his portion without any hesitation, opened the lid, and looked up curiously, "Just this...boiled cabbage? Even if it's for a refreshing taste, isn't this a bit too casual?"
Su Qingluan smiled and said, "Song Bo, you're right—this dish is really called 'Boiled Cabbage'."
On the other side, Mu Xingzhi also opened his own cup. The moment he lifted the lid, a rich aroma filled his nose - the aroma of meat.
But when Mu Xingzhi lowered his eyes, he saw the cabbage heart standing like a lotus in the light golden clear soup, with its "petals" slowly blooming. He could only smell the rich fragrance, but there was no sign of any meat.
"Qingluan's 'boiled water' is different from what I've seen before. It smells particularly fresh and fragrant." He said with a smile.
Song Bo was just a bit straightforward, but he wasn't stupid. After hearing Mu Xingzhi's words, he thought of the scene of Su Qingluan sweeping the soup in the kitchen. He suddenly realized, "No wonder Madam Su wanted to make that meat-stuffed soup. It turns out it's useful here!"
"Sweeping the soup?" Mu Xingzhi didn't know what sweeping the soup was, so Su Qingluan explained it again.
"The soup is clear and transparent, and it is indeed not as thick and turbid as the broth in the past." Mu Xingzhi said, picking up a "petal" with chopsticks and putting it into his mouth - the shape of the choy sum had been processed by Su Qingluan in advance. Not only would it slowly unfold like a flower when poured with broth, but she also added a few cuts to the "base" to make it more convenient to eat.
This not only makes it more beautiful, but also makes the "petals" easier to fall off and easier to eat.
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