Chapter 65 Papaya and Bamboo Shoot Fish Fillet Soup, Steamed Pork Ribs with Taro...
Grandpa Lin and Grandma Lin chatted while drinking Pu'er tea. Looking at the other six tables full of customers in the shop, they recognized a few of them.
I don't actually know him; it's just that we often bump into each other when we eat at the restaurant, so he naturally looks familiar to me.
Before long, my son and his family arrived.
"Mom and Dad!"
"Grandpa and Grandma!"
Lin Zhongxuan and Xie Yun walked in, greeted each other with smiles, and then sat down at the dining table.
Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei were happy to see their grandparents and started chatting with them.
Grandpa Lin and Grandma Lin were happy to see their grandson and granddaughter. After exchanging a few words, they told them to sit down and not to tire themselves out.
The younger Mei said quickly, "Grandpa and Grandma, my mom promised us in the car that we can pick out drinks from the freezer in the store today. We're going to pick out our drinks before we come back to sit down."
Xiao Yuan nodded silently.
Grandpa and Grandma Lin were easygoing; it was fine for the child to drink a little beverage occasionally. Besides, they wouldn't stop their daughter-in-law from doing what she had promised. So they smiled and nodded, "Okay, you can go and choose."
Immediately, the brother and sister skipped and hopped over to the standing freezer to pick out drinks. They pointed at the drinks inside through the transparent freezer door and talked to each other. When they saw the drinks on the lower shelf, they put their hands on their knees, bent down, and leaned closer to take a look. Every now and then, they would turn their heads and whisper to each other, but it was unclear what they were saying.
Grandpa Lin looked at his son and said, "Luckily, your mother and I arrived early. When we got there, there were already customers who had ordered and were waiting to eat."
"Yes, it's good that you guys came and grabbed a table. There were already quite a few people waiting at the restaurant entrance when we came in," Lin Zhongxuan said. He was happy to go along with his father's wishes in this regard, and besides, it was the truth.
Grandma Lin smiled and said, "We just asked, and it's true that zongzi will be given out for free today based on the number of people. There are 150 zongzi available at noon. Xiao Zhou just asked us whether we should serve the zongzi now or later, saying that we can just wave and tell her if we want some. We were thinking of waiting for you to come before deciding."
Lin Zhongxuan replied, "We ordered a whole table of dishes. The zongzi are quite filling, so let's save them for later."
Xie Yun nodded: "I think that's a good idea. The meat dishes and soup we ordered are enough for us. We can save the zongzi for later. Otherwise, one zongzi will make us feel half full."
She smiled and said, "I've been looking forward to it ever since I found out that they were giving out zongzi today. I thought that the meat dishes at the restaurants here are usually so delicious, so the zongzi they make must be even better."
Grandma Lin smiled broadly: "The taste won't be bad. Huifen used to make zongzi all the time for the Dragon Boat Festival. Sometimes she would give some to your dad and me. They taste so much better than the ones sold outside. Xiaoqiu is such a good cook, and she used to make zongzi with her mother. Today's zongzi will definitely be especially delicious."
She started reminiscing about the taste of the zongzi she had years ago yesterday, and now that she's talking about it, she's getting a little hungry again.
Grandpa Lin smiled and nodded, indicating that it was delicious.
The elderly couple agreed with their son and daughter-in-law, deciding to save the zongzi for later, as today's dishes looked quite good.
As they were talking, Xiaoyuan and Xiaomei each grabbed a bottle of drink and ran back with smiles. They sat down at the table and carefully placed their chosen drinks on the table in front of them.
Xiao Yuan held a bottle of chocolate-flavored soy milk, while Xiao Mei held a bottle of classic milk tea.
Xie Yun chuckled and shook her head. These two loved drinking these kinds of things. Just then, she saw the shop assistant bringing over a large bowl of soup. She told them, "We'll open the shop later to drink. Let's have the soup for now."
Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei obediently agreed, showing no resistance and even looking forward to it. The siblings now love eating at this restaurant the most; not only are the meat dishes delicious, but the soup is also incredibly tasty.
The waiter brought over a large bowl of soup, and the family's eyes immediately fell on the papaya and fish fillet soup.
The soup looks milky white and fragrant. You have to look closely to see the equally white and tender fish slices that are half-hidden. The orange-yellow papaya chunks are quite eye-catching. A few red dates and goji berries are added to brighten the soup. The aroma of the soup wafting over with the steam is already quite sweet.
Lin Zhongxuan picked up the soup ladle that came with the large soup bowl, first serving a bowl of soup to his parents, then a bowl to his wife and himself, and finally a bowl to Xiaoyuan and Xiaomei.
When getting soup at home or in other restaurants, we usually have to ask if they want any soup base, especially since Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei always just drink the soup.
But it's very convenient at Gu's Private Kitchen; you don't even need to ask, everyone, young and old, loves to drink the soup and eat the soup base.
The two elders looked at the bowl of soup in front of them and were the first to taste it.
Grandma Lin scooped up a spoonful of soup, blew on it, and then tentatively took a sip.
The soup has a rich and mellow flavor, with the fresh taste of fish bones and fish meat, as well as the unique sweetness of papaya. It's sweet with a hint of freshness and saltiness, making it quite delicious.
She swallowed the first spoonful of soup before she could even savor its flavor. She then scooped up several more spoonfuls and drank them. The sweet and delicious taste lingered in her mouth, making her feel happy as well.
Of course, on such a wonderful day, sitting in the lively Gu's Private Kitchen is already quite enjoyable.
Grandpa Lin thought the soup tasted good. He didn't expect that papaya could be added to the fish soup. The sweetness of the fish soup was enhanced by the sweetness of the papaya, but it wasn't too sweet. It was very pleasant to drink.
He picked up the bowl directly to drink the soup, taking a sip, tasting it, swallowing it, and then taking another sip. Only when he had almost finished the soup did he put the bowl back on the table and pick up his chopsticks to eat the fish slices.
The fish slices were cut into double slices, neither too thin nor too thick, just right, and very tender and white. When Grandpa Lin put the fish slices in his mouth, he found them very fresh and tender. Unlike the sauerkraut fish, which was sour, spicy, salty, and oily, this fish slice was mainly sweet and tender, with a hint of papaya fragrance. The taste was unexpectedly good.
Lin Zhongxuan was also drinking soup. He felt that this papaya and fish soup was a bit like sweet soup. It tasted sweet and fresh, a rather novel combination, but he thought it was pretty good.
After finishing his soup, he started eating fish slices. They were fresh, tender, and smooth with a hint of sweetness. At first, he didn't notice anything unusual, but after eating a few slices, he felt a little tipsy and wanted to scoop some more fish slices from the large soup bowl.
In fact, he did just that. He placed the bowl in front of the large soup bowl, picked up the soup spoon and scooped some fish slices into the soup, put the spoon down, picked up the bowl, and continued eating.
Xie Yun really liked this soup. Just hearing the name "Papaya and Fish Fillet Soup" made her feel sweet and delicious. Plus, papaya is good for your skin, so she should drink more of it.
She drank a bowl of soup, savoring its sweet and fresh flavor. The fish slices were delicious, and she could taste the original freshness and aroma of the fish itself.
The papaya was also very good. It was cooked until it was soft and tender, with a smooth and creamy texture. It had a unique fragrance and absorbed the umami flavor of the fish. You could finish a piece of papaya in just a few bites.
Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei also enjoyed the soup. The sweet and slightly salty soup tasted just like sugar water, smooth and rich. The brother and sister would occasionally let out a satisfied sigh before burying their heads in the soup again.
They both love fish slices. After finishing the soup, they kept praising how delicious the fish slices were, saying they were smooth, tender, and had no fish bones at all.
They even ate the papaya, which they rarely eat, with gusto. It was soft, creamy, and sweet, and they finished all the fish slices and papaya in the bowl in no time.
There was still some dried bean curd sticks in the bowl. Xiaomei picked one up, ate it, chewed it a few times, and then swallowed it. She then said, "Mom, this dried bean curd sticks are delicious!"
"It's really good, isn't it just as good as braised tofu skin?" Xie Yun said with a smile.
My family often makes braised pork belly with dried bean curd. The dried bean curd is always deep-fried first before being put into the pot to braise with the pork belly. That way, the dried bean curd tastes salty and savory and has a slightly chewy texture.
Another benefit is that fried tofu skin doesn't fall apart easily when braised, and its slightly darker color makes it look more appealing.
However, the dried bean curd in this soup tastes good too. It was obviously not fried and was put directly into the soup to cook. It looks lighter and brighter in color, and it is very soft and tender. It is smooth and has a bean flavor when you bite into it.
Xiaomei nodded: "It's delicious! This papaya and fish soup is so good. I didn't expect there to be dried bean curd sticks too!"
Xiao Yuan glanced at the menu on the wall and corrected, "This soup is called Papaya and Bamboo Shoot Fish Slice Soup, of course it has dried bean curd."
Xiao Mei looked at her brother in confusion: "Why does papaya and bamboo shoot fish soup naturally have dried bean curd?"
"We call dried bean curd sticks 'zhi zhu' here, it's the same ingredient, you idiot!" Xiao Yuan said irritably. "Didn't you see that the school cafeteria sometimes writes 'braised pork with dried bean curd sticks' on the menu?"
Xiaomei retorted irritably, "Brother, you're the stupid one. Just because your school has it doesn't mean our kindergarten does. We're not even in the same school."
The adults laughed out loud as they listened to the siblings arguing, but they also felt a little embarrassed.
I only caught a quick glance and for some reason kept thinking this soup was papaya and fish fillet soup. When I ate the dried bean curd sticks, I just thought they were an inconspicuous ingredient that added a bit of bean flavor to the soup. I never expected that this soup was actually called papaya, dried bean curd sticks, and fish fillet soup.
This bamboo shoot is part of the soup's name.
Grandma Lin laughed and said, "We do call dried bean curd sticks 'zhizhu' here. It's good that Xiaomei knows this today and remembers it. We've learned something new. Xiaoyuan, you know a lot. You can tell your sister more about these different things you've discovered. For example, dried bean curd sticks are actually written as 'zhizhu' on the cafeteria menu."
Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei then stopped arguing and obediently agreed.
Before the next dish arrived, Xie Yun couldn't resist getting herself another half bowl of soup and two pieces of papaya.
Xiao Yuan and Xiao Mei were no longer interested in the drinks they had excitedly picked out from the standing freezer, and both asked their mother to give them another half bowl of soup.
Zhu Shuangyi's family was the first to arrive today. They live nearby, so they had the advantage of being close to the source.
The family of three often comes to Gu's Private Kitchen for a treat, and they often exclaim, "Since Gu's Private Kitchen opened, our family's happiness index has skyrocketed!"
They had decided long ago to come to Gu's Private Kitchen for a meal on the Dragon Boat Festival. Zhu Shuangyi saw on Xiaohongshu that Gu's Private Kitchen was offering free zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) on that day, and when she told Zhang Hua and Lele about it, the whole family was extremely excited.
I started looking forward to lunch last night, and while eating bread and milk this morning, I was thinking about the delicious food I would have for lunch.
It goes without saying that the zongzi made by Gu's Private Kitchen will definitely be better than any zongzi I've ever eaten before.
Even though the place was quite close, the family was afraid of missing out on free zongzi if they arrived late. Besides, it would be such a disappointment to queue in front of a restaurant on such a festive day. Since they had nothing else to do, the family left home before 10:30 a.m. and walked over.
When we arrived at the restaurant, it was not yet eleven o'clock. The wooden door was open, and only the staff were busy. There were no customers yet.
Lele waved happily: "Great, we're the first customers!"
Once inside the shop, Zhu Shuangyi and her family found a small table and sat down. After ordering, they asked the staff if they could order the zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) later.
Although they were thinking about the zongzi for a day or two, once they got to the store and confirmed that they could get the zongzi, they weren't in a hurry anymore. The dishes today looked delicious, and the zongzi were too filling, so they had to save them for later.
The three of them were extremely satisfied as they drank the soup. It was sweet, fresh, delicious, and rich. The fish slices were tender and smooth, the papaya was soft and fluffy, and the tofu skin was smooth, tender, and had a bean flavor.
Zhu Shuangyi and Zhang Hua were addicted to eating papaya, and Lele also loved eating the papaya chunks. Usually, when he saw his mother making papaya soup, he would run as far away as possible because he always thought the papaya smelled strange. But now he had completely forgotten about that and all his senses were focused on enjoying the sweet taste in his mouth.
They ordered early, and the food came out quickly. They had just finished a bowl of soup when the waiter brought out a dish of steamed pork ribs with taro.
The ribs on the white porcelain plate are all uniform in size, coated with a rich, dark brown garlic sauce, and garnished with finely chopped scallions. Through the gaps between the ribs, you can see the taro at the bottom of the plate, also cut into rectangular pieces and somewhat stained with the garlic sauce.
Seeing the taro, the aroma of meat wafting in the air seemed to be mixed with the fragrance of taro.
Zhu Shuangyi was already tempted just looking at it, so she immediately reached out with her chopsticks and picked up a piece of rib to eat.
There's plenty of meat on the ribs, evenly distributed around the bones. When you bite into them, you're greeted with a rich, savory aroma of garlic and scallions. The meat is tender and juicy, perfectly seasoned and not tough at all.
After biting into the pork rib, gently push the bone with your tongue, and then use chopsticks to gently pull the rib outwards. The meat will then fall off easily. The more you chew, the more flavorful it becomes, and you can even feel some of the juices oozing out from the rib meat.
My mouth was filled with the salty and savory flavor of garlic, and it also tasted a bit like taro.
After finishing a piece of pork rib in a few bites and placing the bone on the bone plate, Zhu Shuangyi couldn't resist picking up another piece of pork rib and continuing to eat.
This time, I threw the whole rib into my mouth, rolled my tongue around to savor the salty and savory garlic sauce, and then bit into the rib meat. The meat was tender, juicy, and easy to chew.
By the end of the meal, she realized that the ribs from Gu's Private Kitchen had a unique characteristic: they didn't get stuck in her teeth, whether used in meat dishes or soups.
After eating two pieces of pork ribs, Zhu Shuangyi felt refreshed. Seeing the pieces of taro that were showing at the bottom of the plate because she and her husband Lele had been eating pork ribs, Zhu Shuangyi simply picked up a piece of taro and ate it.
The taro was steamed until it was quite soft and sticky. When she picked it up with chopsticks, she could feel that the two ends of the taro were slightly dented. Afraid of breaking it, she had to loosen her grip and carefully put it into the bowl.
With the bowl underneath, Zhu Shuangyi was much more at ease picking up the rectangular taro piece, about one centimeter thick, and taking a bite.
Taro has a soft, glutinous, and delicate texture, with a powdery appearance and a rich taro aroma. Perhaps because it was steamed with pork ribs, it absorbed their savory meaty flavor and the dripping oil, making it very fragrant and flavorful, even a bit appetizing.
If she weren't thinking about having zongzi later, she would have definitely asked the staff to bring her a bowl of rice. Whether it's taro with rice or pork ribs with rice, the taste is only better than eating them alone.
Zhang Hua ate piece after piece of pork rib meat, and after finishing a piece of taro, he exclaimed, "This taro is so fragrant. I didn't expect steamed pork ribs to be so delicious. We can cook this dish at home sometime."
"But I don't think our family can cook it this delicious." Lele couldn't help but say after swallowing a piece of pork rib.
The owner is a great cook; every dish she makes here is delicious.
My parents love eating here, and occasionally they'll feel like cooking a few simple dishes at home that they've had at the restaurant before. The taste is indeed better than usual, but it's still not as good as what they eat at the restaurant.
Of course, Lele always graciously eats it; after all, it's the fruit of her parents' labor, and it tastes quite delicious.
This was purely because I was so engrossed in eating pork ribs that I blurted out my thoughts before my brain could process it.
Zhang Hua wasn't angry. Admitting that her cooking skills were inferior to those of the owner of Gu's Private Kitchen was nothing to be ashamed of.
He said in a serious tone, "It's certain that it won't taste this good, but this dish isn't that difficult to make. As long as we prepare and marinate the ribs properly beforehand, put the taro at the bottom and the ribs on top, steam them together, and then sprinkle with chopped green onions before taking them out of the pot. Do you want to eat the dishes you usually make at home, or do you want to eat the steamed ribs with taro that I made by learning from Gu's private recipe?"
Lele, being quite perceptive, flashed her dad a perfect eight-tooth smile: "Then it'll definitely be the taro and pork ribs you learned to make. I'm already looking forward to it."
Zhu Shuangyi sat to the side with a smile, watching the father and son goofing around. When she heard Lele's answer, she couldn't help but laugh out loud and chimed in, "I'm also waiting for your taro and pork rib steamed dish."
"Alright, let's go back and wait for me to show off my skills. For now, let's focus on enjoying our food," Zhang Hua said with a smile, quickly stopping the conversation to avoid being laughed at by the mother and son later for bragging too much.
When Lele saw that his parents were eating taro, he also picked up a piece of taro and tried it. He then discovered that the taro tasted just as good as the pork ribs!
Taro has a smooth and delicate texture, almost melting in your mouth. Its fragrance and sweetness spread subtly as you chew, bringing you immense satisfaction.
Because it's steamed together with the ribs, it retains the meaty aroma and saltiness of the ribs, making it very flavorful. It's not dry at all, and you can finish a piece very quickly.
After the family of three devoured most of the plate of steamed taro and pork ribs, the staff brought over another dish: steamed loofah and beef.
It's rather unusual today, as the menu features two steamed dishes in a row, but Zhu Shuangyi and her family are really looking forward to both of them.
The steamed pork ribs with taro was already delicious, and this steamed beef with loofah looks quite tempting too.
On a white porcelain plate are slices of light brown beef, steamed until slightly curled, glistening with a sheen. Garnished with a few scallions, the plate is topped with chunks of green loofah, which look incredibly tender from steaming.
Perhaps it was the juice that seeped out of the loofah during the steaming process that mixed with the oil that seeped out of the beef, leaving a lot of pale yellow and clear juice on the plate, which looked delicious.
Zhu Shuangyi urged the father and son, "Eat up and try this dish."
“That must be really good!” Lele replied, and immediately picked up her chopsticks and ate a slice of beef.
The beef was tender and flavorful, with a slight chewiness, and a savory taste as you chewed it, along with the sweetness of the loofah. After eating three slices of beef, he picked up a piece of loofah and ate it.
The loofah pieces were undoubtedly steamed until very soft. When you first touched them with chopsticks, you felt that you could easily pierce them with a little force. When you picked them up and put them in your mouth, the first thing you felt was the smoothness of the loofah flesh. You even had the illusion that it might slip out of your mouth if you weren't careful.
Lele took a bite of the loofah flesh and immediately felt the sweet juice filling her mouth, mixed with the fresh aroma of beef.
The loofah flesh is so tender and smooth that after a few bites you're mainly chewing on the seeds hidden inside, and then swallowing it along with the broth in one gulp, which is especially refreshing.
He looked at his parents and asked proudly, "How about it? I told you this dish tasted great, didn't I?"
Zhang Hua nodded: "It is indeed very good. The beef is tender and not tough, yet has a bit of chewiness. It was marinated well before steaming and tastes a bit salty and fragrant. The loofah is very sweet and soft. It is a very good steamed dish."
Zhu Shuangyi had just eaten two slices of beef and three pieces of loofah. Now she directly used a spoon to scoop up a spoonful of soup from the plate and drank it. The soup was infused with the essence of the loofah and beef slices, and it was sweet and delicious. It made people almost swallow their tongues. After swallowing it, they couldn't help but savor the aftertaste.
She scooped up two spoonfuls of soup and drank them before saying, "The beef is delicious, the loofah is delicious, and the soup inside is even better. You two should try some too."
Upon hearing this, the father and son simultaneously reached for their spoons from different directions to scoop up the soup from the plate and drink it. Then, they smacked their lips in unison and exclaimed, "Delicious! Absolutely delicious!"
The two steamed dishes were praised by Zhu Shuangyi and her family of three. Zhang Hua even said that he would try to make steamed beef with loofah when he got home. He also said that steamed dishes require less cooking skills, and that he would try to buy some fresh ingredients to make them. Maybe the taste could be two-thirds as good as what they ate today.
Zhu Shuangyi and Lele exchanged a glance and smiled, expressing their anticipation. They were just waiting to go back and taste the taro steamed pork ribs and loofah steamed beef he made.
Lele noticed that some people around her were already eating zongzi and suddenly felt a little envious: "Mom and Dad, why don't we get some zongzi to eat first? I see that some people have already finished eating and left. There are so many people queuing outside. If all the zongzi are gone later, we'll have nowhere to cry."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Hua's lips twitched. He thought to himself, "Son, you're exaggerating. A hundred rice dumplings can't possibly be claimed so quickly."
He glanced at the people at the next table who were enjoying their zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) so much, and it looked delicious. Suddenly, he was a little tempted.
Zhang Hua looked to his wife for her opinion.
Zhu Shuangyi nodded in agreement, "Okay, let's take three zongzi first. We've already eaten two dishes. Besides, we've been looking forward to zongzi for so long, we've really reached our limit, let's eat them."
Lele nodded and grinned: "Yay!"
Zhu Shuangyi waved to the shop assistant: "Hello, please bring me some zongzi, thank you."
Sister Zhou smiled and agreed. She went to the cutlery cabinet, took a plate, and then went to the thermos by the glass window to take three zongzi (sticky rice dumplings). She put them on the plate and brought them over: "Hello, these are our complimentary salted egg yolk and pork zongzi. We wish you a pleasant meal and a happy Dragon Boat Festival!"
Zhu Shuangyi and Zhang Hua both smiled and nodded their thanks.
Lele sweetly replied, "Thank you, I wish the restaurant great success, and I wish Auntie and the owner a happy Dragon Boat Festival!"
Sister Zhou beamed with joy: "Thank you, thank you, I'll pass it on to the boss. Would you like me to cut the string?"
She always carries a pair of scissors when serving zongzi to customers. Some customers ask her to cut the string binding the zongzi, while others enjoy the fun of untying the zongzi and slowly untie the knots themselves.
Zhu Shuangyi nodded: "Okay, thank you."
Sister Zhou agreed, deftly cut the reeds binding the three rice dumplings, and said, "Please enjoy."
When they left, they also took three stalks of iris grass with them.
Zhu Shuangyi and the other two unfolded the bamboo leaves wrapping the rice dumplings in front of them. When they saw the oily, dark brown rice dumplings inside, they couldn't help but swallow and began to eat them.
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