Chapter 52: Beer Duck, Spring Rolls, and Beef Brisket Stewed with White Radish (Part 2)
"What a nice smell!" Matilda's eyes widened as she sniffed hard. "Sweet, spicy, and a lot of stimulating but pleasant aromas!"
"Have you brought the beer?" asked Jiang You.
"Here I am!" Loris brought over a three-liter wooden barrel and patted it proudly. "This is our best dark beer! Is this enough? If not, I'll go get more!"
"Enough, enough." Jiang You smiled. Seeing that the duck meat in the pot was almost cooked, she poured out a glass of dark beer and poured it into the pot.
——Swish!
The bitter aroma of dark beer filled the air and spread throughout the kitchen. The witches and Aunt Wolf greedily inhaled the bitter and slightly burnt smell, and their spirits gradually became high.
Thanks to them, Jiang You also smelled the aroma of wine and meat that spread along with the emotions.
She stir-fried the duck meat, covered the pot and simmered it on low heat.
Next, it’s time to make the spring roll wrappers.
Mix flour and water in a ratio of 1:1, add fine salt for seasoning, first use 80% water to make a thin and soft dough, repeatedly knead it until it is slightly smooth, then let it stand for ten minutes to allow the gluten to gradually take shape.
Now you can prepare the bean sprouts and leeks for the spring roll fillings... By the way, pick a few white mushrooms hanging on the window, wash them and cut them into slices.
Wash the bean sprouts, trim the ends, wash the chives, and cut them into three-inch pieces. Then, take a sirloin and cut it into shreds. With all this done, the first round of resting is complete. Jiangyou then uses his fists with bone claws to knead and beat the water into the dough. This step should be repeated at least three times until all the water is absorbed, forming a soft, moist dough that gently falls when lifted.
By the time the dough was forming, the duck was ready to be served. Matilda had already brought out a ceramic dish, worthy of being called a basin, and Jiangyou's jaws clicked as he tried to suppress a smile. She took the basin and filled it to the brim.
The beer duck was enchanted to keep warm, covered, and placed on the side of the counter. Takumi cleaned the wok and began frying the spring roll filling.
First, put the ginger slices and pork tenderloin into the pan and stir-fry until they change color. Then add the sliced mushrooms and stir-fry until they are cooked. Then put in the leeks and bean sprouts, season with salt, and add a little sugar to enhance the flavor... After it is fully flavored, Jiangyou put the filling on a plate and pick out the ginger slices with bone chopsticks.
The ginger assassin, Mr. Jiang, has fully utilized his function, so there is no need to stay in the stuffing to murder the witches.
After washing the pot again and lowering the temperature, Jiangyou turned the stove to the lowest heat, picked up the dough and spread it on the pot, making a thin and silky-smooth spring roll skin. Then he lifted the dough and used chopsticks to scrape along the edge of the skin, and a round, thin and tender spring roll skin slid into the plate.
The spring roll wrappers just out of the pan are still a little crispy, but will soften again after cooling down. Jiang You makes them one after another, his movements so smooth that it seems as if he is performing acrobatics. Not only are the two witches and Aunt Wolf in the kitchen staring at them intently, but people are also gradually gathering outside the kitchen door, peeking in.
"What smells so good?"
"Has Cook Jasmine changed her mind today? Is she finally willing to make us some delicious food?"
"No, it's not Jasmine, the cook. It's a completely unfamiliar skeleton cooking."
"Hmm? A skeleton? Whose skeleton can cook after becoming a spirit?"
"It's too noisy!" Lolita slammed the kitchen door shut, trapping the crowd of onlookers behind it. "It's much quieter now."
Jiang You ignored the onlookers. She had already finished baking the dough and was turning the stack of dough over. At this time, the spring roll wrappers that were baked first had softened and the temperature had dropped, making them just right for wrapping the filling.
She baked more than fifty dough sheets, just enough for making original spring rolls and half for deep-frying.
Takumi personally prefers the original version: the soft, glutinous crust encasing the refreshing filling—it's a must-try springtime delicacy. But she suspects these foreign witches would prefer the deep-fried version: crispy and fragrant, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside... Who doesn't love fried food, no matter the world?
Two large plates of spring rolls with different flavors came out of the oven quickly. Jiang You covered the plain spring rolls with a clean cloth and asked the witches to cast two insulation spells: "Two more dishes will be ready!"
After cleaning the river prawns, trimming off the long whiskers and legs, and then removing the shrimp thread, Jiangyou heats the wok, pours in oil, sautés ginger, chili peppers, and garlic, adds sugar, and stir-fries until it turns brown. Then, he adds the river prawns, whose bluish-white color instantly turns reddish-brown, glistening and incredibly tempting.
Without soy sauce, sugar color can also bring a rich burnt flavor. It is an emergency solution for the problem of having no rice. It may not fool Chinese gourmets, but it can fool those Westerners who have been eating boiled white shrimp in salt water for a long time.
The spicy fried river shrimps are taken out of the pot and served on a plate. Jiangyou sprinkles chopped green onions on the plate and the dish is done. All that is left is to blanch the river clams in the broth.
The duck soup was already boiling in the French soup pot. Jiangyou removed the duck bones and foam from the soup, leaving only the clear broth. She first added shredded white radish, then rolled it into a ball. After it was cooked, she poured it into the small bowl that Matilda had found.
Each person is given a ball of shredded radish, a split and cleaned river clam, and a few shredded ginger strips, just the right amount.
The well-seasoned duck soup was brought to a scalding boil. The instant it was poured into the bowl, the clams were cooked to about 70% done. Jiang You covered the small bowl while it was still hot, and the remaining heat was enough to stew the clams. "Alright, it's ready to be served."
The two witches could no longer contain their excitement. They rushed back and forth like two happy and busy little bees, bringing the dishes upstairs one by one.
Jiang You extinguished the flame of the stove. At this time, the beef brisket stewed with white radish in the clay pot was cooked to just the right temperature. She adjusted the taste with the help of Aunt Wolf and happily brought the clay pot upstairs.
——Hey, the bone rack is not afraid of heat at all, it’s really useful!
Several witches in charge had long noticed the movement outside the kitchen downstairs, and the faint aroma wafting from downstairs had been tempting them. Impatient Lie Ya had already begun speculating about the lunch menu: "What ingredients has Chef Jasmine prepared today?"
"Let me think about it. Boli caught some river shrimp and clams today, and also caught a duck. So normally, we'd have saltwater shrimp and butter-fried duck breast... The other vegetables should be the same as usual, a leek and mushroom salad..."
"Yuck!" Polina retched in disgust. "No, I don't want to eat that!"
"I hope that Bone Lich can surprise us. If this lunch is amazing, I might make an exception and allow her to become an honorary member," Mana said. "However, we already have enough honorary members. We're not short of allies right now. If she's not very powerful and can contribute to the development of our Witch Forest Commune, there's no need to waste her honorary membership."
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