Chapter 67 (067) Stir-fried Spicy Chicken [Third Update]
The rich and elaborate presentation of the preceding dishes does not detract from the simplicity and profound essence of the final dish.
Or rather, after eating three dishes of fried, stir-fried, and stewed vegetables in a row, the last dish of fish soup noodles was a real breath of fresh air. The fish soup had no unnecessary seasonings, yet its fresh and fragrant flavor was incredibly addictive. The noodles were kneaded by Wen Fan himself and made extra thick. After being rolled around in the fish soup, the noodles were chewy and fragrant.
As the last main dish, many people forced themselves to eat it even when they were full.
"Waaaah, I should have eaten less rice earlier."
The person who said this had just eaten two bowls of rice in one go, and now, watching others eat, his heart was bleeding.
Almost all the guests at the three tables left the table, barely able to keep up with their hunger.
Although 300 yuan can buy several dishes outside, no one would complain that the owner only makes four dishes.
Four dishes were enough to make people so full they could barely walk; if two more were served, they would be dead.
After finishing their meal, none of the three tables of guests were in a hurry to leave. They leaned back on their small stools, secretly relieved that the stools had backrests, otherwise they would have been in big trouble.
The buttons on his pants were undone, his belly was spread out, and he felt dizzy and lightheaded.
Wen's mother whispered to Wen's father, "Luckily, they replaced the little stool."
The stools used to have no backrests, and a customer would habitually lean back after finishing their meal because they were too full...
That afternoon, Wen's mother replaced all the small stools.
The customers in the shop all looked on with envy and jealousy, and occasionally, those who didn't know the inside story would ask a few questions as they passed by.
These people were so full they could barely move, but they still had plenty of words to say. Before long, they were describing the four dishes as if they were the best in the world.
"Really?"
Looking at the empty plates on the table, I stroked my chin and wondered if I should try them too.
One hundred yuan per person is not expensive.
Wenmu's counter saw a second surge in customers, and this time, the next few days' orders were all booked.
After registering everyone, Wen's mother sighed.
She has never really promoted her private kitchen on weekends, not for any particular reason, but mainly because she feels her daughter's life is already busy enough.
Besides studying, I also have to attend extra classes in the evenings and even bring lunch to my classmates in the mornings.
She secretly hoped that business would be less on weekends so that her daughter could have a rest.
Otherwise, why wouldn't Yang Hong, with her regular customers, try to sell to them? She probably just doesn't care if there are fewer customers.
Although Wen's mother knew this day would come, she was still surprised that it came so quickly.
The limit of three tables a day is likely to become a weekly occurrence from now on.
Wen Fan accepted it well and even had the mood to tell his father that shrimp balls could be put on the restaurant's menu.
Father Wen: "It's possible to make it, but this is fried food."
Fried food tastes best when it's freshly fried.
Yao Qingqin spoke up at the opportune moment: "Boss, I think I can do it!"
Wen Fan shrugged, indicating that after he had mentioned it, Yao Qingqin had taken the initiative to take on the matter.
Yao Qingqin clenched her hands, and the thought that had been swirling in her mind for several days finally surfaced.
"Boss, boss lady, I'm actually not that busy right now. You could really add a fried food stall to your shop. The sesame seed cakes with fillings usually sell out in half an hour, and a lot of students come and go empty-handed. Besides, there aren't any fried chicken stalls on this street, so I think it would be good to add a fried food stall, I can even make fried skewers..."
Wen's mother frowned: "Fried skewers won't work. Just making skewers takes too much time, and then what rest time do you have afterwards?"
Making braised skewers every day is already very time-consuming, and sometimes Wen's mother even wonders if they should hire someone else to do the skewer-making work.
Yao Qingqin shrank back slightly, then said, "If skewers aren't convenient, how about fried chicken? With the boss's skills, it'll definitely be fine."
Wen Fan nodded. Fried chicken was simple to make; the only tricky part was controlling the heat. Yao Qingqin certainly couldn't judge the heat as well as she could. However, Wen Fan also knew that nowadays, fried chicken restaurants used special machines to control the oil temperature.
Yao Qingqin hesitated for a moment before finally stating her main point: "Boss lady, I will post videos. If you don't mind, I can create a social media account for the store!"
Wen's mother looked at Yao Qingqin with some surprise. Yao Qingqin's face was red, but she still took the initiative to explain that she really knew how.
"When I was at home taking care of my child, I learned a little bit online."
At that time, she thought that since her husband wouldn't give her money and she couldn't go out, she could learn to make short videos and make her own media content by filming her children.
But before she even started, her husband criticized her, saying that she would become stupid for three years after giving birth and that she wouldn't be able to learn anything.
"If you can learn it, all those people outside who specialize in this line of work will starve to death."
After feeling discouraged, Yao Qingqin stopped bringing it up. But a few days ago, when she saw Wen's mother say that she didn't know how to edit videos and therefore didn't dare to open an account, Yao Qingqin had an idea.
Lately, she has been trying to pick up what she learned back then every day when she goes home, and she has also watched a lot of videos made by restaurants.
Her husband was still the same, no, he was even worse. He would mock her whenever he saw her learning how to make short videos.
"He thinks he can fly just because he works as a waiter."
Yao Qingqin didn't understand. She couldn't understand why her husband disliked her so much but refused to divorce her.
Hearing this made me furious. I thought to myself, so what if I'm going to heaven?
Having mustered the courage to speak out today, Yao Qingqin stated that she would absolutely not take up her work time.
"I can cut it after get off work!"
Wen's mother: "No, that's not it... I was just thinking about how much extra money I'd give you for taking on this job."
Yao Qingqin was stunned; she never expected Wen's mother to react this way.
"No, no need! That's not why..."
She really didn't think that much about it.
She just felt... she just felt that her husband's words were too harsh. Lately, he always had a cold face and implied in his words that she was just a waitress.
Yao Qingqin didn't think there was anything wrong with working as a waitress; the Wen couple were the best bosses she had ever met.
She just wanted to try again.
I want to see if I can learn anything else besides wiping tables, washing dishes, and helping out.
Mother Wen waved her hand: "Okay, you do it first, try it for half a month and see, don't put too much pressure on yourself. Add a fried food stall in the shop, you can manage both of them. I'll give you an extra 500 first, and if the account improves later, I'll give you more."
Wen's mother said thankfully, "If you had told me you could do it, I wouldn't have had to worry."
Wen's mother also wanted to learn, but she really wasn't interested in these things.
Yao Qingqin's eyes sparkled, and she blinked rapidly a few times, filled with gratitude: "I will definitely do my best!"
Wen's mother smiled and said, "Alright, I'll leave all of these to you."
Yao Qingqin is a diligent person. Diligent people don't need to be taught; they are motivated on their own.
The next day, Wen's mother took Wen Fan to the secondhand market again. Compared to a few months ago, there were even more things here...
The secondhand dealer chatted with Wen's mother amidst a high pile of tables, chairs, and benches.
"Around the National Day holiday, restaurants were the most frequently vandalized."
The period from May Day to National Day is considered the peak season every year, but once September arrives, countless restaurants close down as the autumn wind blows.
When asked again, Wen's mother said that this time she wanted to buy a deep fryer.
"...Your business is booming."
They even add more items when they're clearing out their stock, which shows the business is doing well.
The secondhand dealer showed Wen's mother the deep fryer: "It can control the temperature, is easy to learn, and easy to clean. It's practically brand new. This is a snack shop that opened in the new district, and it only operated for half a month."
The schools in the new district were originally intended to reduce student visitor numbers, but they were all closed this year, and students could only go home on weekends, so all the investment went down the drain.
Wen's mother thought it looked good and offered a very low price.
The secondhand dealer was heartbroken: "You really know how to bargain."
He only earned a hundred or two from that one cut.
However, after thinking about it, I decided to sell it. After all, if I don't sell it now, I'll have to wait until the second half of the year to find a suitable buyer. If I wait until next year to sell it, the time it will be held up will be too long.
Having successfully acquired a deep fryer, Wen's mother cleared out a table next to her original stall and placed the deep fryer on the table.
Wen Fan made the seasoning powder for his dishes.
The whole family, including Yao Qingqin, ate fried chicken for lunch.
While fried chicken is generally similar across different brands, Wenfan's success lies in its excellent oil temperature control, resulting in chicken that doesn't turn black and remains tender.
Another standout feature is the Wen Fan Tiao sauce.
Knowing that these sauces would be essential for the business going forward, Wen Fan drew on a variety of options and chose garlic, spicy, and cumin-flavored sauces.
It sounded the same, but Wen Fan suggested that Yao Qingqin set up a wok next to them.
"Stir-frying the fried meat in the pan makes it even tastier."
Take shrimp balls for example. After frying them, put them in a pot, add some garlic seasoning, stir-fry evenly, and then put them into a disposable lunch box. They are fragrant, spicy, and flavorful.
Wen Fan made it once, and everyone said it was delicious.
A college student who came to the store asked if he could try some, and after tasting it, he wanted to buy some on the spot.
While Yao Qingqin was still confused, she saw a queue forming in front of her.
Wow, they just opened a fried shrimp ball shop here!
"I want to post this on my WeChat Moments!"
"La la la, I'm so lucky!"
"I'd like a large portion of fried shrimp balls, and another portion of dry-fried spicy chicken."
Wen Fan nudged Yao Qingqin, who snapped out of her daze and quickly greeted the others.
"Stir-fried spicy chicken, right?"
Fry the seasoned chicken pieces in oil at the temperature Wen Fan instructed, then remove them and drain the oil. Put them in a wok, add a large bowl of various chili peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, and spices, and the aroma of numbing spiciness and sweetness is irresistible even before it's fully cooked.
"Wow, it smells so good."
"Queue up, queue up."
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Author's note: Going to sleep now, going to sleep now, love you all... The typhoon will pass through tomorrow, friends in Guangdong, please be careful.
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