Chapter 60 Braised Pork Rice Is Very Different
As she was pondering this, the kitchen door was suddenly pushed open with a bang, and Wei Guangsheng poked his head in, urgently calling out to her, "Su Yingxue! Don't just stand there! Come over here quickly! Miss Ye and the others ordered braised pork rice and fried chicken, you...you come over and help keep an eye on the heat!"
Su Yingxue was taken aback and pointed to herself: "Me?" She had only been there for a few days and had not yet been in charge of the dishes for VIP guests.
Wei Guangsheng nodded impatiently, his tone urging, "Yes, it's you! You're new here, so this is a good opportunity to learn how to handle high-end clients and gain more experience. Sister Chen said that this deal can't afford any mistakes; if something goes wrong, no one can take the responsibility!"
Su Yingxue took a deep breath, suppressing her nervousness, and nodded in response, "Okay, I'll be right there."
She put down the rag in her hand and quickly followed Wei Guangsheng to the stove in the center of the kitchen. She could already smell the aroma of fried chicken coated in batter, while in the casserole on the other side, the sauce for braised pork rice was bubbling—but the aroma seemed a little weaker than the one she made yesterday.
Meanwhile, in the VIP room, Ye Feifei leaned back in her chair and said with a smile to her friends, "This restaurant is now under my management. Don't be shy, order whatever you want. It's on me today."
Of the four people she brought, there were two boys and two girls. The boy with long hair and a gentle demeanor behind her was Ye Bingbin, who had come to sample the dishes yesterday. The girl next to her, tugging at Ye Bingbin's sleeve with an impatient look, was Jin Xuan, dressed in designer clothes with a critical eye. The girl in the corner, wearing black casual clothes and constantly looking down at her phone, was Leng Yu, exuding a cold aura. The last one, sitting quietly and occasionally refilling everyone's water, was Zhao Yuxin, who seemed exceptionally quiet.
"What good food can you find at this kind of roadside stall?" Jin Xuan tugged at Ye Bingbin's sleeve, her voice full of disdain. "Brother Bing, why don't we go to Binghai's private restaurant? I ate there last week, and their Wellington steak was amazing."
Leng Yu didn't even look up, her finger swiping across her phone screen, her tone laced with sarcasm: "Feifei treated us, and she didn't say anything bad, but you, a freeloader, are already picking on us."
Jin Xuan was taken aback and was about to retort when Zhao Yuxin quickly smoothed things over, her voice soft: "Let's eat here. I heard from a friend that their braised pork rice is particularly authentic and tastes very good."
"What's so good about braised pork rice?" Jin Xuan pouted and yelled at the waiter, "Let me see the menu?! I want to see what this place actually has to offer!"
Ye Feifei was also a little annoyed by Jin Xuan's pickiness, but given Jin Xuan's family connections—they still needed her help with the subsequent promotions—she could only patiently pick up the menu and scroll through the dishes: "Let's order two servings of fried chicken and two bowls of braised pork rice first." When she flipped to the new dishes section, her eyes lit up, "Hey, there's a new dish here, spaghetti bolognese. I've never had it before, let's order one to try. And a big pot of passion fruit lemon tea, to cut through the richness, how about that?"
Leng Yu raised her head, glanced at the menu indifferently, and then lowered her head again: "No need to order mine, I had dinner on the way here."
Zhao Yuxin glanced at Leng Yu and whispered, "I... I'll just order one braised pork rice, nothing else."
Ye Feifei nodded and handed the menu to the waiter: "Let's bring these for now, and we can order more if we need more later."
Jin Xuan continued sarcastically from the side, "I told you there wasn't much good food, right? Your old man is so stingy. He has the nerve to leave such a run-down old shop for you to manage. It's embarrassing if word gets out."
Ye Feifei tightened her grip on the teacup, but her face didn't show any displeasure. She just smiled faintly—she wanted to see if this shop could shut Jin Xuan up.
In the kitchen's wok, tomato meat sauce was bubbling away, the thick sauce coating chopped tomatoes and marbled minced meat, glistening with oil as it simmered over the fire. The sweet and sour aroma mingled with the meaty fragrance, like an invisible hook, making one's tongue tremble. Su Yingxue held the spatula, and with a light twist of her wrist, the sauce evenly coated the perfectly cooked spaghetti—every strand of spaghetti was covered in sauce, the minced meat clinging firmly to the pasta.
She then sprinkled a handful of fresh Parmesan cheese shreds on top. The cheese melted slightly upon contact with the heat, releasing a creamy aroma that mingled with the sweet and sour taste of the tomatoes, filling the air with a rich, creamy fragrance. Garnished with a few bright green basil leaves, the red sauce, yellow noodles, white cheese, and green leaves—just looking at it made one's mouth water.
Wei Guangsheng stood to the side, his eyes filled with admiration as he stared at the plate of pasta, but his brows remained furrowed. He had been in a rush and had cooked the sauce for the braised pork rice too hastily, adding half a spoonful too much sugar and forgetting to add the last spoonful of lard for aroma. Now, the braised pork rice in the bowl had a cloyingly sweet sheen, a far cry from its usual signature flavor.
"Hurry up and serve it, don't keep the customers waiting," Wei Guangsheng urged, his tone full of uncertainty. Su Yingxue nodded, first placing the pasta and fried chicken onto a tray. As she passed the braised pork rice, she paused, looking at the two bowls of rice, a slight tightness in her heart: This is their signature dish, it wouldn't be good if it were ruined.
As soon as the door to the VIP room opened, Jin Xuan's voice drifted over: "Why are you so late? I'm starving." She reached out and poked the fried chicken skin, her tone critical, but when her fingertips touched the crispy shell, she couldn't help but press it a couple more times.
Ye Feifei simply greeted her.
Su Yingxue placed the dishes on the table one by one and was about to leave when Ye Bingbin suddenly looked up at her, his eyes filled with confirmation: "Did you make the braised pork rice yesterday?" He still remembered the taste of that bowl of rice; the sauce was savory and slightly sweet, and he could easily eat two large bowls of rice with it. Su Yingxue was stunned for a moment, and before she could answer, Jin Xuan had already picked up a piece of fried chicken and stuffed it into her mouth—the outer skin made a crisp "crunch," and the meat inside was so tender it seemed to burst with juice. Her eyes instantly lit up: "Hey, this chicken is pretty good! Much better than the trendy restaurant I ate at last time."
Leng Yu, who had been leaning back in his chair without moving, reached out and picked up a small piece upon hearing this. The chicken was tender, the skin crispy, and the aroma of spices subtle. He didn't speak, but his furrowed brows relaxed slightly. Zhao Yuxin picked up her fork and took a small bite of pasta—the pasta had just the right chewiness, the sweet and sour tomatoes combined with the rich meat sauce, and the creamy cheese slowly spread in her mouth. It wasn't greasy at all, and she couldn't help but eat a few more bites, her voice softening: "This pasta is so delicious, even more flavorful than what I've had in Western restaurants, and the sauce is so generous."
Ye Feifei also tried a bite of the pasta. The moment the sauce melted on her tongue, her eyes lit up: "It's really good. It seems our shop has some hidden masters." As she spoke, she picked up a spoon and scooped up a mouthful of braised pork rice. After chewing it a couple of times, her brows furrowed—it was cloyingly sweet, and the rice was mushy and lifeless, completely different from what Ye Bingbin had described yesterday. "This braised pork rice... how come it's so different from what Bingbin described yesterday? It's a bit too sweet."
Ye Bingbin quickly took a bite, and his expression immediately changed: "This is not the taste of yesterday! Yesterday's sauce was not this sweet, and it had the aroma of lard. Today's taste is too bland."
Jin Xuan slammed down her chopsticks, curling her lip in mockery: "I told you, this kind of small shop is unreliable, they can't even make a proper braised pork rice. I should have gone to Binghai's private restaurant, their braised pork rice is the real deal."
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