Chapter 23 (Second Update): Braised Pork and the Gentleman's Sword
Chapter 23 Braised Pork and the Gentleman's Sword
"Just two and a half?" He Lin thought she had made a mistake.
Two and a half crabs make up only one whole crab! Such delicious scallion-flavored blue crab, and you only serve one to the old man?!
That's such a waste of resources...
"The old master definitely won't have enough to eat," He Lin muttered.
"I know," Wang Sumo said confidently. "It's good that there isn't enough to eat!"
He Lin: (⊙_⊙；)
Where, what's good about it?
Wang Sumo picked up a scallion and tapped He Qingque's head, saying leisurely, "It's because you can't get enough to eat that you think it tastes delicious, He Qingque~"
He Lin: (ΘェΘ)
Sigh, he's also called He Qingque!
But that's not the point.
He Qingque tacitly agreed.
The key point is that the old manor owner and a crab!
Wang Sumo moved the scallions aside. "Your old master has been suffering from a poor appetite for some time now, and he can't eat much at once. If you just put a bunch of big crabs in front of him, he can only eat one, so it's no different from just putting one out. But if you put one out, he'll feel unsatisfied; if you put a whole plate out, he'll feel like he can't eat the rest, and then he'll feel so full that he won't want to eat anything else. Then he'll go back to not wanting to eat anything at all. So why not just put one out from the beginning?"
He Lin: (⊙o⊙)…
What Miss Wang said does seem to make some sense!
He Lin blinked.
Wang Sumo continued leisurely, "Crabs are cooling in nature, and ordinary people can't eat too many at once, let alone the old master's stomach, which isn't very strong. Eating one or two is enough to satisfy his craving and whet his appetite. Unlike some big gluttons, if you give them a whole bowl, they can eat it all in one go, huh?"
Some of the "greedy cats" took the green onions she handed them, paused for a moment, and then, thanks to her final "ha" with its rising tone, suddenly realized that she was talking about them.
He Lin was exasperated. "Miss Wang!"
“Hey, the remaining two are yours~” Wang Sumo pouted.
Wow~
Yes, it's clearly blocked!
He Qingque was eager to try, and then felt that what Miss Wang said made a lot of sense, so she decided to give one to the old master first!
One is quite a lot!
If you want to eat it tomorrow, Miss Wang can make it again!
"Why aren't you going yet?" Wang Sumo urged.
He Qingque skipped and hopped out of the small kitchen with the plate in her hand. Before she even left the courtyard, she heard Wang Sumo's voice behind her reminding her, "Hold on tight, don't jump around. The crabs are slippery, if they fall on the ground, you'll have to take them out of your crabs!"
Immediately, He Qingque's back became "composed".
Fearing the crab in the fat man's mouth might slip, he suddenly became serious, his back resembling that of a porter carrying a sedan chair, and walked heavily out of the small kitchen courtyard.
Wang Sumo couldn't help but laugh.
Watching He Lin leave, Wang Sumo prepared the next dish—braised pork.
I previously made vegetarian braised pork with winter melon and tofu for Yun Qiao and her daughter in Ping'an Town.
But what we're going to make today is an authentic braised pork.
Moreover, star anise is also required.
Yesterday, Master He asked her for an octagonal coin, saying he wanted to take a look at it.
Even if Master He hadn't said it outright, she could have guessed it to some extent.
What Master He was interested in was not the octagonal coin itself, but rather the octagonal coin itself, which was a concrete representation of the old man's experience at the Eight Treasures Restaurant.
Looking at the octagonal piece, Master He would not only recall his childhood adventures with Master Qu, but also ponder and compare Master Qu's current amusing experiences at the Eight Treasures Pavilion, as well as his own experience of only being able to chatter to free-range chickens at Qingyun Manor.
Those who roam the world are not accustomed to a mundane life.
Especially when Master He heard that those who had adventured alongside him in their youth were still on the road...
Master He must have stayed up all night last night.
So, the scallion-flavored swimming crab we just had was the first dish; what Master He was waiting for was this braised pork.
The taste of this braised pork is as good as drinking water.
Heat a pan, then place a whole piece of pork belly in the pan without adding oil or water, skin side down. Use the heat from the pan to scald the pork skin and remove any unpleasant smell. Then remove the pork belly and soak it in warm water for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn (3-5 minutes). Finally, use a knife to scrape off any remaining dirt from the surface.
Place the cleaned pork belly in a pot of cold water, add Shaoxing wine, chopped scallions, and ginger, and bring to a boil over high heat. Use the flavors of the scallions and ginger to remove the pork's fishy and gamey smell. After boiling for about an incense stick's time, the blood foam will gradually rise to the surface. At this point, remove the whole piece of pork belly and rinse it briefly in clean water.
Next, just like with the previous braised pork belly with winter melon and tofu, remove the edges from the whole piece of braised pork belly and cut the rest into equal cubes. You need to be skilled with your knife to make sure the cubes are all the same size. This will ensure that the braised pork belly has a uniform texture and tastes better.
This is much easier than slicing and stacking winter melon and firm tofu into uniform pieces.
Place the diced pieces into the oil and fry over low heat.
Pork belly is already quite oily, and when cooked over high heat, the pieces of meat can easily burn.
When pan-frying over low heat, use chopsticks to flip each piece one by one in time to ensure that each side is fried until golden brown, but without overcooking any side. This results in a much more delicate texture than putting everything into the pan at once, shaking it to distribute it evenly, flipping it all at once, and then removing it from the pan.
The oil from frying the pork belly carries a rich meaty aroma. Remove the pork belly pieces, leaving enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan, and add rock sugar using the heat from the pan.
Ordinary families mostly use maltose, but Qingyun Manor has both white granulated sugar and rock sugar.
Using rock sugar to make braised pork sauce not only makes it flavorful, but also prevents it from being too sweet and masking other flavors.
Continue simmering over low heat, stirring constantly until the rock sugar melts and slowly turns a beautiful golden color. The caramel aroma of the syrup gradually wafts out from between stirs, creating a delightful fragrance. Once the golden broth begins to bubble evenly, return the previously removed pork belly pieces to the pot and stir-fry with the golden syrup.
Once the caramel flavor evenly coats the pork belly, it feels as if every stir of the large spoon at the bottom of the pot brings out the rich aroma of the sauce, a blend of meat and caramel.
Add a small bowl of Shaoxing wine to further enhance the aroma and color of the pork belly pieces marinated in the sauce.
Not only braised pork, but many dishes can be made with Shaoxing wine. Shaoxing wine itself is a flavor enhancer, it's just that it's in the form of Shaoxing wine in a wine pot, but it doesn't affect the aroma of the Shaoxing wine infusion.
At this point, add the fermented soybean paste, a little bit of fermented black bean sauce, and a tiny bit of vinegar.
You must add vinegar; vinegar can cut through the greasiness.
Vinegar evaporates quickly in the pot. When making home-style fish, the vinegar should be added later so that the vinegar flavor stays in the broth and pot. However, in braised pork, after using vinegar to cut through the greasiness, it is not necessary to retain the vinegar flavor fully. Therefore, it is added to the pot along with the fermented bean paste and stir-fried.
Compared to braised pork belly made with winter melon and tofu, pork belly doesn't have to worry about falling apart. You can stir-fry it a little longer to allow the sauce to fully blend with the meat pieces, so that every piece of braised pork belly will be deeply flavorful.
After about half an incense stick's time, the pork belly pieces are almost cooked. To prevent the meat from becoming too tough, you can add scallion segments, ginger slices, cinnamon, hawthorn, etc.
Of course, there's also the star anise that Master He has been looking forward to for a long time.
Not many chefs use star anise as a spice, so if you savor this braised pork, you're sure to be pleasantly surprised!
Pour the prepared boiling water into the pot and simmer over low heat. This will take a little longer, and the pork belly will become soft, tender, and smooth, with the fat melting in your mouth and the lean meat having a slight chewiness.
Dishes with rich textures and flavors will satisfy every part of your taste buds.
For example, in a fleeting moment, happiness reaches its peak, so eating too much can easily lead to cravings. Master He's appetite isn't great, so he should eat even less. Just plate four pieces later, as long as they're presented nicely.
Taking advantage of the break, Wang Sumo took out a plate and then roughly measured it with chopsticks.
Is this how you pretend?
Add some osmanthus seeds here...
Still pretending?
Place some mint leaves on the side...
Or, you could arrange it like this, with two sour plums around the edge to cut through the richness?
...
While Wang Sumo was busy getting ready, He Lingyun sat on a tree trunk outside the small kitchen, his head in his hands, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth. He tilted his head and watched Wang Sumo's busy work in the small kitchen with a slight frown.
He could understand it before, but after seeing this part, he couldn't understand what she was doing anymore.
There's no physical object, and it's all very mystical, but it looks really impressive...
He Lingyun stared at her from afar with a world-weary expression.
The old man doesn't like braised pork!
I don't like it when I have a good appetite!
The cook in the small kitchen had prepared it early in the morning, but the old man refused to taste it, saying it didn't look appetizing.
He had clearly told her beforehand that the old man loved lamb the most, and he seemed quite clever, mistaking it for beef liver and lungs...
On the very first day, he went to the main kitchen and made a dish of stir-fried lamb liver. The news spread throughout the entire Qingyun Manor, and several disciples ate several bowls of rice with the broth from the stir-fried lamb liver.
He thought she did it on purpose.
The old man really likes mutton; just hearing about it might make his mouth water.
But she was different; she only cooked mutton that one time, and never cooked mutton again, not even lamb liver.
Yesterday, he heard that she made a plate of scallion and tofu salad, and he didn't know why the old man finished it all in one bite.
The old man isn't a three-year-old child; if he doesn't want to eat, no amount of coaxing will work.
He underestimated her before.
She has her own methods.
He also went to the dungeon and told Lu Wenqu about Wang Sumo's activities at Qingyun Manor these past two days. He then remarked that she was quite capable, as even the old man was willing to use a spoon to eat the scallion tofu she made.
Lu Wenqu smiled and said, "Let's wait and see."
He believed it.
I heard that He Lin sent someone to the dock at the foot of the mountain to bring back swimming crabs today.
He didn't know if the old man liked swimming crabs, but he was indeed curious. Lu Wenqu told him to wait and see, so he simply came here early to squat on the tree. Anyway, watching from afar was also a way of waiting and seeing.
It's because he has good eyesight; he can see clearly even sitting in a tree.
But He Lin's triangular kung fu skills wouldn't be able to detect him, and the others who could detect him wouldn't make a fuss.
That scallion-flavored blue crab dish was indeed very tempting; he could almost smell it from this distance!
He even swallowed.
I've never seen anything like this before!
No wonder the old man devoured a whole plate of scallion and tofu salad.
But after all, scallion and tofu is an appetizer, and the old man hadn't eaten scallion and ginger crab much before, so he must have found it novel. He even drooled as he looked at it. There was only a tiny bit in front of the old man, and he could finish it in two bites. The old man liked to gnaw on chicken feet, so gnawing on crab claws was just another way of eating them, a variation to suit his taste.
But this braised pork dish will most likely be a flop.
He Lingyun continued watching her from the tree, staring at an empty plate, seemingly lost in thought. He lost patience and turned his head away, leaning back against the tree trunk with his hands behind his head, lazily hanging from a blade of grass and spacing out.
Nearby, a bluebird chirped and chattered. He looked over and saw a wide expanse on the other side.
That place is the medicine room.
He Huai'an, surrounded by people, emerged from the alchemy room. Without pausing, he continued explaining things to those around him. One thing after another, as soon as he finished explaining, someone would leave; then another would arrive to take his place, and so on…
Looking at He Huai'an's busy figure, compared to him, he was just a person who was so idle that he could take a nap in every tree on Qingyun Mountain, and a "troublemaker" who couldn't stay idle and would leave Qingyun Manor to cause trouble everywhere!
But Huo Lianchi still couldn't stand to see him doing well. Every time, she would have He Ping drag him back, making him a laughingstock in the eyes of others!
Qingyun Manor belonged to the old man, who then handed it over to Huo Lianchi. He and He Huai'an were simply superfluous.
Back then, he and He Huai'an were both young and desperate. They had only heard of their great-uncle's Qingyun Manor, and after a long and arduous journey, they finally arrived at Qingyun Mountain on empty stomachs. No one told them that their great-uncle was the owner of Qingyun Manor.
It would have been better if he hadn't come with He Huai'an back then...
He's still free and independent; why would so many people care about him?
In Huo Lianchi's eyes, they were outsiders, but since the old man was still alive, Huo Lianchi couldn't say anything. He Huai'an was single-mindedly devoted to Huo Lianchi, wanting to be her right-hand man, but Qingyun Manor already had a young master!
He didn't want to stay at the villa at all; if it weren't for the old man...
A bluebird flew past, chirping away, and He Lingyun recalled the first time she met the old man.
There was a hint of fear, but mostly warmth. "Child, come to your great-uncle."
They no longer had to suffer from hunger and cold, sleeping on the streets; but he would always remember Huo Ling's cold question to him when he was a child: Where did you wild children come from, and why did you come to my house?
Ha! Wild child!
To outsiders, he and He Huai'an were always wild children, but He Huai'an himself didn't think so!
He Lingyun looked away and turned to look at the small kitchen, just in time to see Wang Sumo looking up at him.
He Lingyun was startled!
He nearly fell from the tree.
The sun was quite strong today, and the sunlight was a bit dazzling when you looked up. Wang Sumo raised her hand to shield her forehead and asked He Lingyun, "Aren't you hot up there?"
It was blazing under the sun; it was midday in July, no matter what.
But some stubbornly insist, "Don't worry about it. It's cold at the top, and it's nice and cool here."
“Okay, go wherever it’s cool.” Wang Sumo readily agreed.
He Lingyun: "..."
This statement sounded awkward no matter how you looked at it, but people still went along with what he said, so he couldn't really refute it.
He Lingyun originally didn't want to get down, but the more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
Wang Sumo had just returned to the small kitchen when someone came down from the tree. Wang Sumo thought to himself, "This guy's lightness skill is so good."
He Lingyun crossed his arms and leaned against the door of the small kitchen, saying slowly, "Lu Wenqu didn't mention anything about being 'sharp-tongued'."
Just then, Wang Sumo picked up the last crab claw he had left, and with a "snap," it caught right on He Lingyun's line, "sharp-tongued."
Wang Sumo: "..."
[They actually launched a personal attack on her!]
He Lingyun: "..."
Who knew she'd be so cooperative!
Wang Sumo: →_→
He Lingyun: ←_←
"Such good teeth." He Lingyun spoke first, feeling guilty, intending to soften the tone, but his mouth turned into a dog's mouth.
Wang Sumo said leisurely, "It's alright. I like to practice my teeth on crabs that walk sideways when I have nothing to do."
"The crab that walks sideways": "..."
Changing the subject from "crabs that walk sideways," we say, "the old man doesn't eat braised pork."
"This is the braised pork that Master He ordered himself," Wang Sumo said, lifting the pot lid to show him.
Originally, He Lingyun wanted to explain things to her, but when he saw the braised pork cooking in the broth, he suddenly swallowed hard and didn't want to argue anymore.
When he was a child, he and He Huai'an wandered the streets and suffered a lot. Being chased by people and dogs was okay, but what they couldn't stand the most was being hungry. When they were hungry, their stomachs would growl loudly and everything smelled delicious!
He and his brother became refugees because their hometown was hit by a disaster.
After their grandfather passed away, the two of them depended on each other for survival. When their grandfather passed away, he only told them to go to Tingshui to find their great-uncle. They were completely confused, and because they were young, they did not know how difficult it would be to get to Tingshui. But in the end, they still wandered there.
He remembers the feeling of hunger, and he also remembers being so cold in winter that he crawled through the dog hole of a wealthy family's house to warm up, and just then he saw the family eating braised pork.
He still remembers the aroma of that braised pork!
They were bright red, in chunks, soft and tender. The children ate them, and their faces lit up with smiles.
There was still sauce smeared on the corners of his mouth, and he didn't wipe it off.
He was so hungry for it that he thought that when he saw his great-uncle, he would tell him that he wanted to eat braised pork!
Eat lots and lots of braised dishes...
Suddenly, the wooden pot lid was put on, and the scene of braised pork disappeared.
He Lingyun: "!!!"
Wang Sumo looked at him, and he silently looked away, annoyed, wanting to look at him again.
Suddenly, Wang Sumo lifted the pot lid again, and He Lingyun was shocked: !!
"Didn't you want to take one more look?" Wang Sumo asked back.
He Lingyun's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Then, he lowered his voice and looked at her with a mixture of wariness and curiosity, "What kind of sorcery are you using?"
Maybe she used some kind of sorcery to get the old man to eat that whole plate of scallion and tofu.
Wang Sumo paused slightly, almost dropping the spoon in his hand. He was both amused and exasperated. Sorcery?!
Wang Sumo almost handed him a mirror. "Your drool is practically dripping into the pot. I put the lid on, and you stare at me with those big, fierce eyes. What else do you want me to do but open the lid and take a look?"
He Lingyun: ? ? ?
He Lingyun suddenly realized what was happening, and her face flushed red and then turned pale.
Wang Sumo leaned closer, probing, "Were you afraid of ghosts or monsters when you were little?"
He Lingyun: "..."
Wang Sumo continued, "Could it be that you're still scared?"
He Lingyun was slightly annoyed, and left with a "boring" in his hand.
Wang Sumo blinked, looking sullen.
As soon as the sullen girl left, He Qingque returned happily. Compared to the sullen girl, He Qingque was much cuter!
"It's all gone! It's all gone! The old master ate it all, and then asked if there was any left!" He Lin couldn't help but cheer with joy.
"So what did you say?" Wang Sumo asked casually.
“I told you I had one, but Miss Wang said you can only have one~” He Lin said with a “hehe” sound. Wang Sumo immediately stopped heheing. He Qingque was cute, but she was a bit silly.
"The old master asked about the braised pork!" He Lin looked at her expectantly.
Wang Sumo lifted the lid of the pot again. The heat was almost right. Normally, braised pork would take about half an hour to cook at this stage, but Master He's appetite wasn't suited to eating something too soft and tender, so it was ready for now.
Wang Sumo added a little salt, and after tasting it and finding it suitable, he moved the pot to the side over a high flame.
Once the heat is high, the sauce begins to reduce. At this point, the pork is repeatedly stirred in the wok until the sauce thickens and coats every piece of braised pork. This is how this fragrant and mouthwatering pot of braised pork is made.
Compared to the braised pork with winter melon and tofu, the rich aroma of meat collides with the caramelized and savory sauce, making every bite seem to be marinated and infused with flavor.
"Try one." Wang Sumo handed him chopsticks.
He Lin took it, of course he had to try it.
The braised pork at the restaurant is rarely made; he'd only had it once before, and that was it...
He Lin took a bite, and the thought from before was immediately dispelled.
First comes the smooth texture, then the melt-in-your-mouth softness, followed by a touch of firm lean meat. It's sweet with a hint of saltiness, and the saltiness cuts through the richness. It doesn't have the cloying feeling of pork belly, but rather a perfect balance of caramelized aroma and sweetness.
He can eat several bowls of rice just by mixing the soup with it.
So delicious~
He Lin chuckled, and Wang Sumo had already started plating.
She studied it for a long time and decided to use osmanthus flowers for decoration.
He Lin leaned closer and said, "The old master shouldn't eat too much of this, right?"
How thoughtful of me! Wang Sumo smiled. "I'll tell the old master how much braised pork and swimming crab you ate, and I'll deduct it from your little treasury."
He Lin's eyes widened. "Huh?"
Wang Sumo argued logically, "He Qingque, when the old master ate your candied ginkgo nuts yesterday, he also returned the favor with white sugar. Shouldn't you repay the favor?"
However, He Qingque sighed, "Miss Wang is right. We can't take advantage of the old master."
He really is a fool...
Wang Sumo chuckled to herself, then said seriously, "Go and take it over quickly."
"Okay~" He Qingque immediately forgot about the empty pockets of her savings.
...
In the outer room of the main house of Nanshan Garden, He Lin carried in the plate of braised pork and saw the Second Young Master with the Old Master. He Lin respectfully said, "Old Master, Second Young Master, the braised pork is here."
Master He smiled.
He Lingyun hadn't originally planned to be so obvious, but when he saw that there were only four small pieces of braised pork on such a large plate, he felt a little uncomfortable. However, he said calmly, "A big piece of pork belly, and you only serve four pieces like this. Did the rats in the manor steal the rest?"
[Give her the talent!]
[They must have done this on purpose because they saw me staring intently at that pot of braised pork.]
He Lin froze, quickly tucking in his large rat ears and tail. Before the old master and the second young master could speak, he cautiously turned around and tiptoed out, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, afraid of being discovered.
But he was still discovered, "He Lin".
He Lin turned around with a wronged look on his face and saw the old master of the manor just putting down his chopsticks. His gentle eyes were filled with depth and tranquility as he said softly, "Tell Miss Wang that it was delicious."
He Lin was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh.
Master He said gently, "There's no need to cook the rest of the dishes, I've finished eating."
He Lingyun and He Lin both looked at the old manor lord in surprise, but the old manor lord stood up, put his hands behind his back, and walked out with a smile.
"Old..." He Lin hesitated, looking at the second young master in a daze.
He Lingyun frowned slightly as he watched the old man suddenly draw the Qingyun Sword, which he hadn't used in a long time, in the garden.
He Lingyun lowered his head thoughtfully.
"Lingyun!" the old man called out to him.
He got up and went to the garden.
The old man pointed to the weapon rack on one side, indicating that he should pick one.
He Lingyun frowned, hesitated slightly on the weapon rack, and then chose a sword similar to the Qingyun Sword. Since healing Huo Ling, the old man had suffered a loss of vital energy and hadn't used a sword for a long time. He was afraid that the old man might have injured his bones and muscles, so he chose the sword that the old man was most familiar with.
He Lin also chased out of the garden, watching excitedly; it had been a long time since he had seen the old master use a sword.
Such a scene is quite rare!
Master He said gently, "The Longevity Gentleman's Sword is a sword that reflects the man himself. Lingyun, here you go."
After speaking, Master He suddenly threw out the Qingyun Sword in his hand.
Although surprised, He Lingyun caught it in mid-air, then looked at the old man in astonishment, "Old man?"
[Author's Note]
He Qingque: You scared me to death!
He sulked: Hmph!
Master He: Happy~
——————————
Still the first 100 red envelopes, I'll send them all out together after downloading the clip~
My darlings, here's a pre-order for "Grandmaster Aunt Can't Just Lie Down!" If you're interested, please check out my author page and add it to your favorites! [Thumbs up]
[A heartwarming and slightly cheesy story about a bootleg grandmaster and her sprouting bean sprouts!]
The great demon Ning Ran has transmigrated into a book!
He transmigrated into a cannon fodder immortal sect in a traditional cultivation novel. Right at the beginning, the pillars of the immortal sect perished together with the evil forces.
In the next scene, the future hope of the immortal sects also perished for the sake of the common people;
All that remained in the immortal realm were a bunch of bean sprouts waiting to sprout, but clearly malnourished.
The little sprouts cried as they were driven to the brink of despair, their noses running, and they said in their childish voices that they would defend the immortal sect to the death!
Ning Ran frowned as she watched...
*
Get up and cultivate! Otherwise, your entire family will be wiped out tomorrow!
Bean Sprout No. 1: Grandmaster Uncle, is it really necessary for a marginal sect like ours to be so entangled?
Bean Sprout #2: Grandmaster Uncle, lack of sleep will affect my growth!
Bean Sprout No. 3: Grandmaster Uncle, I'm hungry. Can I have a steamed bun first? I won't have any energy if I'm not full...
Bean Sprout No. 4: Grandmaster Uncle, I'm so tired my head is buzzing. Can I lie down for a bit?
Bean sprout No. 5, Bean sprout No. 6...
Pirated Grandmaster Uncle, Real Great Demon: Lying down? Didn't you see that everyone who was lying down before has completely 'lyed down'?
In my view, other sects are merely peripheral sects!
The bean sprouts nodded like little chicks pecking at rice.
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