After saying this, the old man then lectured his two apprentices, saying, "Whether a chef puts his heart into his work or not will be reflected directly in the dishes he makes; you two never bother to knock off the edges and corners after you finish cooking, leaving fish bones and fins sticking out, which looks very unsightly!"
His two apprentices quickly bowed to the fat man.
Now that we've talked about the presentation, it's time to taste it. The old man picked up a spoon and tasted some of the sauce first.
After tasting it carefully, he said to the fat man, "There's nothing wrong with this sauce. It's good enough as it is. If I had to say something, it's that you're too focused on balance."
Upon hearing this, Fatty Lima felt a deep respect for the old man. This was an expert, an expert in Shandong cuisine!
Why do I say that? Do you remember what Fatty said when he was instructing Sha Zhu on how to make Nine-Turned Intestines during the Spring Festival of 1978?
If any one flavor becomes too prominent, it will affect the overall flavor profile of the dish; Fatty followed this principle thoroughly when making this sweet and sour carp.
The sweetness and sourness are well balanced, with neither overpowering the other.
But the old man said to the fat man, "You understand very well, but you've overlooked the audience itself. What you're doing is fine in Jinan, and gourmets will even praise you, but it's a bit problematic in the capital."
The old man observed the fat man's expression and saw that he was receptive to different opinions and very humble. Satisfied, he continued, "People in the capital like their food to be a little sweeter, so you can make it a little sweeter and a little less sour. This will cater to the tastes of most people. We chefs should adapt our cooking to local conditions."
After saying that, he picked up the spoon and poured the sauce over the fish. While doing this, he said to the fat man, "And this sauce, make it a little thicker, be a little bolder, and make it look like icicles hanging from the eaves in winter when it flows down the fish. That would be beautiful."
After thinking it over carefully, the fat man realized it really worked! This would improve the overall appearance of the dish by another seven or eight points (out of 100). Now the fat man was even more certain that the old man's identity was not simple.
After saying all that, the old man finally picked up his chopsticks with satisfaction: "Eat fish, eat fish, everyone pick up your chopsticks."
Old Wang and his apprentice then picked up their chopsticks, took a piece of meat from the fish, dipped it in the sauce like the old man, and then crunched it.
The first impression upon tasting it is its crispiness. It's truly crispy; the batter and the frying temperature are just right, leaving no room for criticism.
However, once you bite through the skin, the fish meat is incredibly tender, and when mixed with the sweet and sour sauce, it gives you a truly enjoyable experience.
The old man ate several bites of fish before finally putting down his chopsticks, satisfied.
This left his apprentice, whom he had previously tested, completely dumbfounded; the teacher rarely eats food from outside anymore, even when he's in the kitchen or serving as a judge, he only takes a small bite...
He found it incredible that he ate several bites in a row like today!
I've already reviewed the appearance and sauce, so there's no reason not to review the fish itself.
This time, the old man didn't start by talking about how good the fish was. Instead, he first gave everyone a lesson: "My teacher taught me that the tip of the tongue is particularly sensitive to sweetness. So, the moment the fish enters your mouth, you can clearly taste its sweetness, and that's what makes it a success."
No one else spoke. Everyone knew he had more to say, so they listened attentively, even the fat man.
"But correspondingly, our tongues are also extremely sensitive to bitterness. Can you understand? We can taste even the slightest bit of bitterness immediately."
The fat man was the first to understand. In other words, if the sweet and sour sauce wasn't mixed properly, it would taste bitter as soon as you tasted it, just like the Nine-Turned Intestines that Sha Zhu made, because the caramel flavor was too strong.
After discussing the taste buds, the old man continued, "The edges of our tongues are extremely sensitive to saltiness. Whether a dish is too salty or too bland, we can tell entirely from this area. The fish I'm talking about is just the right amount of saltiness, which is quite remarkable!"
The fat man was almost caught off guard by the praise and quickly thanked him, saying, "You flatter me, you're too kind..."
To everyone's surprise, he shook his head: "I'm not just being polite. Sweet and sour carp isn't marinated, there's no salt in the batter or the oil, its flavor comes entirely from the sauce. Many people, including my two apprentices, can't do that now."
After saying that, he turned to his two apprentices and said, "Are you convinced today? You need to work harder when you get back."
"..."
Having discussed sweet and salty flavors, it was time to talk about sour flavors. To make sure everyone understood, he had his apprentice stick out his tongue and point to the back of the table, saying:
"This corresponds to the sour taste. There are many kinds of sour taste, especially after sweet and salty tastes, the sour taste blossoms in our mouths, which is very good."
Why do some chefs' dishes taste extremely sour the first bite? It's because they haven't mastered this point! If the sourness comes out too prominent, it's like the bitterness coming out too prominent; the order is messed up, and it overpowers the other flavors.
Our chefs emphasize the balance of sweet, salty, bitter, spicy, and sour flavors. The sourness must be the last flavor—that's what life is all about, the five flavors and six tastes!
The fat man spoke first: "What a wonderful blend of flavors! Sir, you truly are an expert. May I ask who you are?"
The old man didn't answer. Instead, he pulled up a chair, sat down, and asked the fat man in a swagger, "Would you be willing to become my apprentice?"
Huh? Becoming an apprentice?? Even Old Wang was stunned, let alone his two apprentices. They hadn't mentioned this when he came with him today!
But this is great news, fantastic news!
Before the fat man could refuse, Old Wang hurriedly said, "Hey kid, you're in luck! Do you know who this gentleman is? He's one of the first batch of top-level chefs, a master of Shandong cuisine, Lu Xingbang, Master Lu!" (Parallel world, the master's name is a pseudonym, please don't argue.)
The fat man gasped. Lu Xingbang? This old man is Lu Xingbang!
The old man was not only a master of Shandong cuisine, but also a senior national culinary technician. He was later selected for the National Master Chefs Encyclopedia and is a well-deserved grandmaster of Shandong cuisine.
He once served as the head chef at three famous restaurants in Jinan: Jufengde, Huiquanlou and Yanxitang.
Grandpa Lu has a profound skill, pays attention to the control of heat, is skilled in seasoning and making broth, and his braising technique is particularly unique.
One of the old man's signature dishes is sweet and sour carp, so it's not surprising that he specifically asked Fatty to make this dish today.
Master Lu's dishes are fragrant, tender, mellow, and rich, which are favored by guests from all walks of life. He single-handedly created the reputation of Shandong cuisine as "one dish, one flavor, and no two dishes are the same".
No wonder I warned the fat man earlier that a chef cannot stick to the rules when cooking. It is important to insist on authenticity, but the phrase "adapt to local conditions" is even more important!
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