Chapter 104 Three-Cup Chicken.
Wu Wensheng started peeling shrimp.
Just now, in order to serve Peiqi fish, his wife used chopsticks to move aside the swallowtail-shaped scallions sprinkled on the fish and shrimp, as well as the several shrimp that were cut in half but still attached and arranged nicely. Now, he immediately picked up these shrimp that had been moved aside.
Most of the shrimp had already been processed; the heads and legs were gone, and the veins had been removed cleanly. All Wu Wensheng needed to do now was twist off the shrimp tails and peel off the shells of the shrimp bodies that had been cut in half. He finished in just a few quick movements.
He put the shrimp meat into Peiqi's bowl: "Eat slowly." Then he picked up another shrimp from the plate and continued peeling it.
"Thank you, Dad."
Peiqi said with a smile that she had just eaten two large pieces of fish in her bowl, and her mouth was now filled with the fresh, salty and garlicky aroma of the fish. All the flavors blended together and filled her mouth, leaving a lingering aftertaste.
She was originally planning to finish the last piece of fish in her bowl, but then an orange-red shrimp appeared. The spoon that was already in the bowl immediately turned around, scooped up the shrimp, and brought it to her mouth to eat.
It still has that familiar and beloved garlic aroma. The shrimp meat is firm, sweet, and slightly chewy, with a delightful springiness in every bite. While not as smooth as fish dipped in sauce, it's still quite smooth, with a great texture and a hint of fish flavor.
Eating shrimp is a completely different experience from eating fish. Chewing on the shrimp meat, you can really enjoy its deliciousness. It's quite salty and savory, yet also very sweet. Peiqi squinted her eyes as she ate, and after swallowing, she immediately savored the taste, exclaiming, "This shrimp is so delicious! It's fragrant and sweet, with both garlic and fish flavors. It's better than any shrimp I've ever had before!"
Her eyes were fixed on the shrimp that her father was about to peel.
Wu Wensheng peeled another shrimp and put it in his wife's bowl: "Since shrimp is so delicious, you should try some first." He looked at his daughter, "Peggy, how about we wait for the next shrimp? Daddy can peel shrimp very quickly."
Before she could even reply, he had already picked up a new shrimp and started peeling it.
Zhang Danyan wanted to give the shrimp in the bowl to Peiqi first, but the child refused: "Mom, you eat first, I'll have some later. You should try it, it's delicious!"
As Peiqi spoke, her already round eyes shone even brighter, filled with anticipation to share the delicious shrimp with her mother.
"Okay, then I'll try it first." Zhang Danyan paused in her work, smiled and agreed, turning the shrimp she had already picked up with her chopsticks around to eat.
These shrimp are quite large. Even after removing the head, tail, and shell, it still feels a bit full when you put a whole one in your mouth. When you bite into it, you can feel the firm, chewy, and sweet shrimp meat.
The rich aroma of garlic permeates every bite of shrimp, accompanied by a slight spiciness and a fishy flavor.
After chewing and swallowing the whole shrimp, Zhang Danyan smiled and nodded at her daughter's expectant starry eyes, praising, "This shrimp is really delicious. The taste is no worse than the fish we just had. They each have their own unique flavor. The shrimp meat is quite firm and sweet, and it's full of garlic flavor, with a hint of fishy freshness. It's definitely better than the shrimp I've had before."
Peiqi was very happy to hear this and nodded repeatedly: "I knew the shrimp was delicious! The fish was also very fragrant!"
Seeing that her father had peeled another shrimp, she quickly said, "Dad, you eat it first and see if it's delicious. Give me the next shrimp."
A smile had already spread across Wu Wensheng's face, but he still asked, "Are you really going to let me eat first?"
Peiqi nodded emphatically: "Yes, you eat first, and we'll each have one first!" She then held up her left hand to make a "1" sign.
Wu Wensheng smiled and agreed: "Okay, then I'll listen to Peiqi and try one first."
He threw the shrimp in his hand directly into his mouth and took a big bite. After finishing, he shared, "Mmm, it's really delicious. The shrimp meat is very fresh, sweet and firm. The garlic flavor is strong, and the salty flavor elevates the taste of the shrimp several levels. Moreover, just by tasting the fish flavor attached to the shrimp, you can already guess how delicious the fish meat is."
Zhang Danyan had been watching the father and daughter interact with a smile, but now she couldn't help but say, "Then you should try the fish first. It's very fresh, sweet, and tender. It won't taste good if it gets cold."
Peiqi nodded in agreement: "Yes, Daddy, let's eat fish."
"No need, let me peel all the shrimp and wash my hands before we eat the fish. That way we won't have to go through all that trouble. You two eat the fish first, and eat as much as you like," Wu Wensheng said, picking up another shrimp and starting to peel it.
Zhang Danyan knew her husband wouldn't change his mind. The shrimp were quick to peel after processing, so she called to her daughter, "Alright, let's eat the fish first. Hurry up and finish the last piece of fish in your bowl, and Mom will get you some more."
Peiqi nodded in agreement, picked up her spoon and scooped up the last piece of fish to eat. Her mother immediately took the bowl and put more fish in it.
After she finished eating the tender and delicious fish, there were three more large pieces of fish in her bowl. At the same time, her father put a peeled shrimp into his own bowl.
Between the fish and the shrimp, Peiqi chose to eat the shrimp, which she had been waiting for, first. She scooped it up with a spoon and ate it while praising how delicious the shrimp was.
Zhang Danyan was also eating fish. She watched her husband peel shrimp, putting one in their daughter's bowl and one in hers, taking turns peeling them. After two rounds, she said, "Leave some shrimp for yourself. We'll eat them all."
Wu Wensheng smiled and agreed, occasionally putting a peeled shrimp into his own bowl.
This garlic-flavored sea bass is very generous in portion size, as you can tell just by looking at the huge, long plate. Not only is the sea bass large and meaty, but there are also twelve fresh shrimp on the plate.
Wu Wensheng focused intently on peeling the shrimp and quickly finished. He took the wet wipes his hands from his wife and dried them, then continued eating the meat with a clean and refreshed look.
He picked up some shrimp from his bowl and ate it, savoring the shrimp's fresh, sweet, salty, and savory flavors, feeling the firm and springy texture of the meat. The aroma of garlic lingered in his mouth, making it very delicious. Looking up at his wife and daughter across the table, who were eating with happy faces, Wu Wensheng felt very satisfied.
After finishing the shrimp in his bowl, Wu Wensheng, still thinking about the fish he hadn't had yet, immediately reached out with his chopsticks to smash the fish on the plate.
The sea bass meat was already cut into pieces and arranged on the plate with the fish body attached. You could easily pick up a large piece of fish meat by following the cut lines and immediately stuff it into your mouth to eat.
The fish is tender and savory, with smooth and delicate skin. The fish meat is just as delicious, and the sweet sauce adds a lot of flavor. The aroma of garlic and the spiciness of the chili peppers are also mixed into the texture of the fish, making it very flavorful to chew.
Wu Wensheng thought to himself, no wonder Peiqi and Danyan were praising the fish earlier. It was indeed fresh, tender, and delicious.
He nodded and praised, "This garlic-flavored perch is really good. The fish is fresh and fragrant, and the shrimp is sweet. It's like a dish with two flavors, both of which we love. The garlic and chili peppers are also a nice touch. Both the fish and shrimp are very savory and flavorful, just as good as the cabbage and pork stew with vermicelli we had earlier."
"Yes, we all think it's delicious. The fish and shrimp are very fresh. You should eat more," Zhang Danyan said with a smile. She had just eaten the shrimp her husband had peeled for her, and her mouth was full of sweetness.
Peiqi had no interest in responding to her father; she was only focused on scooping up shrimp and fish with a spoon and eating.
She likes to eat a shrimp and then a large piece of fish, and after finishing the fish, she will eat a shrimp again. By alternating between the two, she can fully appreciate the sweetness of the shrimp and the freshness of the fish. The delicious taste lingers in her mouth and never fades away.
For a moment, everyone was so focused on eating meat that no one mentioned asking the staff to bring some rice to go with it.
Before the stewed cabbage and pork with vermicelli was served, Zhang Danyan and Wu Wensheng were discussing having the staff bring out two bowls of rice.
She's alright, but Wu Wensheng has a big appetite and needs to eat one or two bowls of rice at every meal to fill his stomach, otherwise he gets hungry easily. Peiqi has a small appetite, but she should still eat some rice.
Once the dish of braised pork with cabbage and glass noodles was served, the family of three was so engrossed in eating the tender and savory pork belly, the sweet and crisp cabbage, and the smooth and chewy glass noodles. The glass noodles, in particular, were very flavorful and filling, so they naturally forgot about adding rice.
Eating the tender fish and sweet shrimp is so satisfying that no one even thinks about adding rice to go with it.
With the combined efforts of the two adults and the child, all twelve fresh shrimp were eaten, and the meat on both sides of the large sea bass was also completely eaten. Only the head and tail of the sea bass, which required chopsticks to pick up and eat, were left for Wu Wensheng to slowly eat.
Zhang Danyan remembered that she hadn't eaten rice yet. She didn't need to eat any herself, so she asked the father and daughter, "Would you like a bowl of rice? It should be quite delicious with the braised pork and cabbage with vermicelli or the three-cup chicken that hasn't been served yet."
Wu Wensheng shook his head: "I don't need rice. This is enough to fill me up. The dishes at the beginning are quite plentiful. I'll just have some soup later."
Zhang Danyan agreed and looked at Peiqi.
Peiqi shook her head: "Mom, I don't want to eat rice either. I want to eat chicken later, and I can eat glass noodles. Glass noodles are similar to rice."
“Okay, then let’s skip the rice and have meat and vegetables to our hearts’ content today!” Zhang Danyan readily agreed.
Just a few seconds after I finished speaking, the waiter came over and served a Three Cup Chicken.
On the white porcelain plate are neatly cut pieces of chicken, surrounded by chicken legs and wings. The skin is a rich, dark brown color, and you can already imagine the savory flavor when you bite into it.
Peiqi has a keen sense of smell. She originally wanted to smell the aroma of chicken, but after sniffing, she asked in confusion, "Mom, why do I smell a hint of alcohol in this chicken? And why is it called Three Cup Chicken?"
Fortunately, Zhang Danyan knew the answer to this question, so she calmly explained to her daughter: "The wine flavor in the chicken is also a characteristic of this Three Cup Chicken, which is related to its name."
"Three-cup chicken is made by first pouring a cup of peanut oil into the pot, sautéing scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant, then adding a whole chicken for deep-frying. During the cooking process, a cup of soy sauce is added to the chicken to add saltiness and color. Just before it's done, a cup of rice wine is poured in and simmered to remove any fishy smell and enhance the aroma. Of course, if you want it to look even better when the whole chicken is almost done cooking, you can turn up the heat to reduce the sauce while using a spoon to scoop the sauce over the whole chicken, which will make it even more colorful."
Looking at the Three Cup Chicken in front of her, Zhang Danyan praised, "I think the chicken meat is very well colored, it looks beautiful and appetizing. The dishes at this restaurant are indeed very good."
Peiqi nodded after hearing her mother's words, indicating that she understood, and then concluded, "So the three cups in Three Cup Chicken refer to one cup of peanut oil, one cup of soy sauce, and one cup of rice wine, right?"
Zhang Danyan nodded: "That's right, Peiqi is great, she remembered it so quickly!"
Wu Wensheng smiled and chimed in, "Peggy's memory is always good. Hurry up and eat. Try the Three Cup Chicken first."
Even though Peiqi was sick, she didn't have any dietary restrictions. Although children shouldn't drink alcohol, the cup of rice wine used to cook this Three Cup Chicken wasn't much. Some of it evaporated during the cooking process, and the remaining essence permeated the chicken. The rest was in the sauce on the plate. However, eating too much of it wouldn't be a problem.
Zhang Danyan picked out a piece of boneless chicken for her daughter and put it in her bowl, then picked up a piece of chicken for herself and started eating.
The chicken skin is crisp and savory when you bite into it, and the chicken meat is tender and juicy with a stronger savory flavor. The more you chew, the more you can taste the salty and savory flavor hidden in the chicken. You can swallow it after a few chews.
Zhang Danyan couldn't help but savor the lingering fresh and salty aroma in her mouth, and she seemed to vaguely sense a hint of sweetness.
She thought the sweet aroma might come from the rice wine. She had already noticed a faint wine aroma when eating the chicken, though it wasn't very strong. But with that added aroma, the chicken tasted much better.
Moreover, the faint aroma of the wine reassured her. She smiled as she glanced at her daughter, who was happily munching on chicken beside her, and then continued eating the piece of chicken on her chopsticks.
The chicken was tender enough on its own, and after cooking it became slightly soft and mushy. She took a bite of the chicken and with a little force from her teeth, she could tear off a piece of chicken along the grain and swallow it.
The chicken is tender, savory, and slightly chewy. Upon closer inspection, you can taste the savory and sweet flavors that blend together to create a delicious taste. The savory aroma of the chicken lingers in your mouth, making it a particularly enjoyable meal.
Peiqi also loves this Three Cup Chicken. She never expected that chicken cooked with rice wine would taste so good.
She bit into the chicken, expecting it to have a strong alcoholic flavor, like the taste she used to secretly tasting from her father's wine glass when eating with her grandparents and uncles. But it didn't; she only tasted a faint sweet aroma.
The chicken is tender and fragrant with every bite, savory and flavorful, and the more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes. Even after you've almost finished chewing and swallowed, you can't help but savor the salty and sweet taste in your mouth.
Peiqi took another bite of chicken and ate it slowly. The chicken skin was crispy, and the chicken meat was tender and chewy. As she chewed, she gradually tasted the rich salty flavor, and she could also faintly taste a sweet flavor in her mouth. It tasted a bit like wine and a bit like rice. It was very fragrant when it was mixed with the freshness of the chicken.
The chicken was savory and flavorful, with every bite delicious, but not so salty that you needed to eat it with rice or drink water from time to time to balance it out. So Peggy just ate the chicken, enjoying its delicious flavor without ever asking for rice.
Zhang Danyan and Wu Wensheng didn't mention it; they were both focused on eating chicken. Zhang Danyan ate her chicken with gusto, and Wu Wensheng wasn't going to be outdone.
He had to admit that Rao Xiaoqing from the patient support group had recommended a good restaurant. Even without the miraculous effects that sounded unbelievable and unrealistic, just the fact that the family of three enjoyed such a delicious meal made the trip worthwhile.
It's often said that good food soothes the soul, and that's certainly true. Looking at the satisfied and happy smiles on Danyan and Peiqi's faces, Wu Wensheng felt that life was infinitely wonderful.
Moreover, the mobile ramp provided by the staff when we entered the store was a very thoughtful touch.
This is a rare privilege they've enjoyed since Peggy got a little older and started using a special stroller. They thought they were used to being lifted up whenever they encountered a step, but now there's a restaurant that's willing to bring out a ramp just to remove any obstacles they encounter. It feels really good to have their needs recognized.
From the moment he entered the restaurant, Wu Wensheng's fondness for Gu's Private Kitchen increased dramatically.
Having tasted the delicious meat dishes, he directly listed Gu's Private Kitchen as the best restaurant he had eaten at in recent years. Whether in terms of the taste of the dishes or the service attitude, it is the best, without exception.
Their family will come to Gu's Private Kitchen for meals often in the future.
Wu Wensheng had many feelings, but it didn't affect his chewing at all. He finished one piece of chicken and then picked up another and ate it.
Zhang Danyan had already eaten two rather large pieces of chicken. Seeing that her daughter had finished the chicken, she asked, "Do you want to eat more of this kind of chicken, or would you like a chicken leg or a chicken wing?"
Peiqi thought the chicken she had just eaten was very salty and flavorful, tender and chewy, and she wanted to eat more, but she also wanted to eat her favorite chicken leg. After hesitating for a while, she chose the latter: "Mom, I'll have a chicken leg."
"Okay, then I'll get you a chicken leg." Zhang Danyan agreed with a smile.
Because the chicken leg was quite large, a spoon was definitely not needed; she could only eat it with her hands. Zhang Danyan was well-prepared. She took out a bag of disposable gloves from her bag, put one on Peiqi's right hand, and then used chopsticks to pick up a chicken leg and stuff it into her hand: "Okay, eat it."
"Okay, thank you, Mom."
Peiqi is a polite child. Perhaps it's because her mother taught her to say thank you to the doctors and nurses during her hospital stays and recovery from a young age. She also has many opportunities to thank her friends and uncles and aunts for their help in her daily life, and she often says thank you to her parents as well.
Now, with her gloved right hand gripping a large, deep brown chicken leg, she eagerly took a bite.
The chicken thigh skin was even crisper than the skin on the chicken meat itself, with a slightly chewy texture. Perhaps because it was dipped in sauce on the plate, it tasted even more savory and flavorful.
Chicken thigh meat is firmer, but it still can't hide its freshness and tenderness. Every bite is a delicious blend of salty and sweet flavors, and the more you eat, the more fragrant it becomes.
SMA is a disease that affects the whole body, and Peggy's mouth opening is somewhat limited. At this moment, she tries to open her mouth as wide as possible, attempting to tear off the most chicken meat from the chicken leg in one bite, put it in her mouth and chew it, savoring its salty, sweet and savory flavor.
She was undoubtedly good at eating chicken legs. Although she was slower than the average child, she was meticulous and always managed to finish the chicken leg completely, leaving only the whole bone.
This time, Peiqi ate all the meat on the chicken leg, bite by bite, not even letting go of a single shred of chicken meat, until only a beautiful, complete chicken leg bone remained.
Because the chicken leg was especially delicious today, Peiqi felt even more accomplished after finishing it. She placed the chicken leg bone on the table next to her bowl, smiled at her parents, and proudly said, "Mom and Dad, I finished the chicken leg!"
Wu Wensheng and Zhang Danyan, who were focused on eating chicken, looked at their daughter upon hearing this and saw the particularly clean chicken leg bone in the direction she was pointing.
Wu Wensheng swallowed the chicken he had almost finished chewing and exclaimed, "Wow, Peiqi is amazing! She actually finished such a big chicken leg and ate it all so cleanly!"
He said this with a face full of pride, as if to say, "My Peiqi is the best," and he was very sincere.
Peiqi was overjoyed to hear her father's words and sensed his happiness: "Hehe, this chicken leg is really delicious! I wanted to finish it all so as not to waste a single bit, so I ate it all up!"
Besides the chicken, Zhang Danyan also ate a chicken wing. The chicken wing meat was very salty and fragrant, with a hint of sweetness from the rice wine, and its own natural savory aroma. The three flavors blended together and it was incredibly delicious.
Chicken wings are so delicious, chicken legs must be even better. No wonder Peiqi ate them so happily, and even more cleanly than usual.
She smiled and praised, "Peggy eats very well. Whether it's chicken legs, chicken wings, or anything else, she eats it all very cleanly. When we were in the hospital, Junjun in the next bed also loved to eat chicken legs, but she would often only eat half of them and then stop."
Peiqi nodded in agreement and said to her father, "Yes, Junjun is good in every way, except for this one thing: he can't finish his chicken legs, so he has to leave them for his mother. His mother always scolds him and says she has to clean up his mess."
After saying that, she laughed and said, "I'm different. I ate everything clean, so you don't have to help me clean up the mess."
Wu Wensheng knew Junjun, a child with SMA type 3, who was also hospitalized for long-term rehabilitation. She often shared a ward with Peiqi, and the two children were good friends.
He saw the child quite a few times at the hospital, but he had never actually seen the child eat.
It's normal for children to get bored with food after a while, or to feel full. Of course, compared to that, my daughter Peiqi can finish her food completely, leaving nothing behind, which is truly commendable.
Wu Wensheng praised his daughter a few more times, making her beam with joy.
Zhang Danyan watched the interaction between the father and daughter with amusement, and felt that this kind of time was not bad. The fatigue of taking care of her daughter in the rehabilitation hospital for more than half a month had almost dissipated after this meal.
She asked her daughter, "Peggy, do you want another chicken wing, or would you like to take off your gloves and eat the chicken with a spoon?"
Without hesitation, Peiqi replied, "I'll have another chicken wing and see how it tastes."
Zhang Danyan followed her lead, picked up her chopsticks, placed a chicken wing in Peiqi's hand, and let her eat it.
Chicken wings are delicious, of course. Although they are all chicken meat, they are different parts of the Sanhuang chicken, so the texture is different from the previous chunks of chicken meat and chicken legs. However, they are just as tender, savory and delicious.
Even at the very end, Peiqi didn't leave a single piece of chicken behind, gnawing until only the bare skeleton remained of the chicken wing before reluctantly putting it down.
She had an amazing appetite today. She drank a bowl of soup and ate three pieces of pork ribs, then ate a lot of cabbage and pork stew with vermicelli, followed by several pieces of fish and four shrimp. Just now, she even ate a piece of chicken, a chicken leg, and a chicken wing.
Without even taking a break after finishing her meal, Peiqi asked her mother to put a piece of chicken in her bowl.
Zhang Danyan was worried that she would overeat, so she tried to dissuade her, but when she saw that she insisted, she picked up the smallest piece of chicken with her chopsticks and put it in her bowl.
With her mother's help, Peiqi took off her right disposable glove and picked up the spoon again to scoop up some chicken from the bowl.
While she was eating chicken, the waiter came over and served the last dish—crispy pickled cucumbers.
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