Seeing the indescribable expression on Manager Qian's face, the others couldn't help but feel curious and quickly picked up their cups and took a sip.
In an instant, they understood why Manager Qian had that expression.
This lychee drink is so delicious!
......
Pei Yao first found some scallions, ginger, garlic, and dried chili peppers that she had brought from home in the back kitchen and handed them to Niu Qingshan, who was standing next to her: "Brother Qingshan, could you please wash these for me, then slice the ginger and garlic, and cut the dried chili peppers into sections?"
"Okay." Niu Qingshan took the things from Pei Yao's hands and started cutting them.
Pei Yao didn't sit idle either. She went straight to the back kitchen where meat was kept, picked out a piece of pork belly with thin skin, thick meat, and a good balance of fat and lean, and also found half a chicken.
These are all ingredients that the restaurant just bought this morning, and they are still very fresh.
Pei Yao used to light fires. The restaurant's kitchen had a special small stove, which was usually used to simmer broths over low heat.
Pei Yao used to make the fire in the small stove burn brightly, and then used fire tongs to hold the pork belly and put it on the fire to roast.
This step is to burn off any remaining hairs on the pork that weren't scraped off properly, and it also makes the meat taste better. She doesn't know the principle behind it, but once when she made Dongpo pork, because the skin of the pork belly was very clean, she was lazy and didn't burn the skin. As a result, the taste was far inferior to that of pork with burnt skin.
Once the pork skin turns black, you can use a knife to scrape off the black layer.
While washing, Pei Yao asked Niu Qingshan to boil a pot of water.
That way, by the time she finishes washing, the water will be boiling, and then the whole pork belly can be put into the hot water to set its shape.
Unlike blanching meat in cold water, putting it in hot water is mainly to set its shape.
Once the pork is cooked through, take it out and rinse it with cold water, then wash away any scum that rises to the surface.
Then you can change the shape and cut it into small squares. Trim any excess parts to make them look nicer. One piece of pork belly can make four complete and beautiful squares.
After slicing, make a cross-shaped cut on the skin of the pork. Originally, it was supposed to be tied with hemp rope to form a cross, which is a characteristic of Dongpo pork, but Pei Yao couldn't find hemp rope, so she gave up on that idea.
Caramelize rock sugar and set aside.
Pei Yao found a clay pot, placed a bamboo steamer at the bottom of the pot, and then added a layer of unchopped scallions as a base to prevent the meat from burning if it was cooked for too long. She then placed a few slices of ginger on top and arranged the meat pieces neatly inside.
Then I poured in the caramelized sugar that I had prepared earlier, and also added some soy sauce. Since the soy sauce at this point is mainly salty, there's no need to add any more salt.
There's another very important ingredient for making Dongpo pork, but Pei Yao couldn't find it anywhere in the kitchen.
Pei Yao had no choice but to go to the side room to find Manager Qian. Manager Qian was currently enjoying his lychee drink and asked when he saw Pei Yao, "Miss Pei, what's wrong?"
"Uncle Qian, do you have any Shaoxing wine?"
Pei Yao didn't have high hopes. If there really wasn't any, she would just use ordinary rice wine as a substitute for now.
As luck would have it, Manager Qian did have it, but he had left it in the front hall. When he heard that Pei Yao needed it, he hurriedly went to get it for her.
After Pei Yao got the Shaoxing wine, she poured some into the meat, and that was about it. She covered it and put it in the small stove next to her to simmer over high heat for half an hour.
Don't let the small size of this stove fool you, the fire is huge.
Pei Yao continued to busy herself cutting the half chicken into small pieces, then adding a little salt, a little soy sauce, a little Shaoxing wine, an egg white, and a spoonful of starch, and marinating it by hand.
Then, she mixed starch, salt, and dark soy sauce to make a sauce and set it aside for later use. Because the ingredients for this era were not complete, Pei Yao could only use what she had on hand.
Then peel and dice the potatoes and set them aside.
Once the oil in the pan is hot, sauté the scallions, ginger, garlic, and dried chili peppers until fragrant, then immediately add the pre-marinated chicken pieces and stir-fry over high heat.
Once the diced chicken changes color, you can add the diced potatoes and then pour in the prepared sauce.
Stir-fry over high heat until evenly cooked. It needs to be stir-fried for a while to ensure that the potatoes and chicken are cooked through. Just before taking it off the heat, add a handful of peanuts, stir-fry a couple of times, and then it's ready to serve.
Pei Yao was worried that these people wouldn't be able to handle spicy food, so she didn't add too many dried chilies.
The next dish is "Three Treasures of the Earth".
Niu Qingshan had already washed all the necessary ingredients.
Pei Yao cut the potatoes into chunks, the green beans into strips, and the eggplant into strips as well.
Then heat oil in a wok. When the oil is hot, fry the potatoes until golden brown and remove them from the oil. Fry the green beans briefly as well. For the eggplant, squeeze out the water first, add starch, mix well, squeeze out the water again, and then fry until golden brown.
After frying, Pei Yao went to prepare the sauce with salt, soy sauce, cornstarch, and water.
Once everything is ready, you can start stir-frying the three delicacies from the ground.
Heat the oil, then sauté minced garlic and chili peppers until fragrant. Add green beans, potatoes, and eggplant and stir-fry for a short while. Pour in the prepared sauce and stir-fry until the sauce thickens.
Pei Yao served the three delicacies from the earth, and the Dongpo pork next to it was almost done stewing, just needing to be reduced in the sauce.
After the Dongpo pork had reduced in sauce, the meat was already incredibly tender from being stewed for so long, and Pei Yao carefully ladled it out.
There was a small piece of scrap she had deliberately placed next to her. She picked it up and tasted it. It tasted very good. Although there wasn't enough seasoning, it didn't affect the taste at all.
"Alright, all three dishes are ready." Pei Yao picked up two plates, and Niu Qingshan helped carry a Kung Pao Chicken to the private room where Manager Qian and the others were.
"Sorry to keep you all waiting." Pei Yao said in a light voice as she carried the dishes inside.
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the Dongpo pork and Kung Pao chicken in Pei Yao's hands.
Pei Yao placed the dishes on the table in front of them and, with a bright smile, gestured to introduce the three dishes: "This bright red dish is Dongpo Pork, this is Kung Pao Chicken, and this is Three Treasures of the Earth."
The group looked at the three tempting dishes in front of them and exchanged bewildered glances. The impatient Chef Qin couldn't contain his curiosity any longer and asked, "Sister Pei, is this Dongpo pork made from pork belly?"
Chef Qin, as expected of an experienced chef, recognized at a glance that the tempting Dongpo pork was made from pork belly. However, he couldn't understand how the pork belly could be made to have such a bright and appealing color.
Pei Yao smiled and said, "Master Qin guessed correctly. This Dongpo pork is indeed made from pork belly. Everyone, please try these three dishes first."
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