When the two chefs saw the manager order someone to bring over a half-basket of spare ribs, they were about to explode with anger.
"Manager Liao, what are we going to do with this?" Chef Liu asked incredulously. Was this something to be cooked and eaten?
Manager Liao glanced at him indifferently, "The two of you will learn this dish from her. This girl will only teach you once."
Although he wasn't sure if Li Mai could really do it well, Li Mai's confident expression and the unconscious swallowing motion when she talked about the dish attracted him. He wanted to give it a try, since at most it would just be a waste of half a basket of bones.
As a foodie, he was willing to take the risk, since the owner was his brother-in-law and he had made the decision.
The two chefs wanted to say something, but ultimately held back. They also wanted to see what delicious food they could make with the stuff they always wanted to feed to the dogs.
Li Mai turned up the fire herself, added water to the pot, and put in half a pot of smaller pork rib pieces. She also asked the chef for a spoonful of wine and poured it in. She found a scallion, washed it, and threw it into the pot. First, she had to blanch the ribs to remove the blood and fishy smell.
Seeing her cover the pot and prepare something else, the two chefs stared wide-eyed in disbelief, instinctively asking, "Is that all? Aren't you going to wash the ribs?"
Li Mai nodded, "I know how to wash it, don't rush, this step is called blanching."
After that, she prepared ginger slices, sauces, etc. And you know what? This pig farm has no shortage of pork to eat. They must often stew meat to eat, so they have a full range of seasonings.
"Do you have any sugar?" She didn't see any sugar.
"Yes, there is, but why use white sugar to make this? Isn't that a waste?" another chef said in a low voice.
Chef Liu frowned. "Go get it!"
Another chef quickly went to another room and brought over a jar. He always felt that if he put white sugar in this pot, it would still be edible.
Or is it to make caramelized sugar?
Isn't that something only chefs in ordinary restaurants would do?
This girl can do that too?
With everything ready, Li Mai lifted the lid of the pot and saw that it was already boiling. She used a spoon to turn the ribs over and over twice, and then slowly skimmed off the foam floating on top.
After cooking for a while longer, making sure that each piece was thoroughly cooked and that the blood foam had been cooked out, Li Mai scooped the ribs into a large bowl on the side.
Pour out the water from the pot, wash the pot, then pour in the oil and prepare to caramelize the sugar.
After the ribs had been air-dried for a while, Li Mai scooped water and washed them twice, scrubbing each rib until it was clean, and then placed them in a basket to drain.
The heat of the caramelizing sugar in the pot increased, and small bubbles slowly appeared. Li Mai told the two of them, "When the small bubbles turn into big bubbles, add the ribs and stir-fry."
As she spoke, her hands didn't stop moving. Once the ribs in the pot were caramelized with sugar, Li Mai added scallions, ginger, and garlic, stir-fried them until fragrant, added water, and then added the sauce and the seasoning packet she had just prepared.
"Simmering this for an hour will allow the flavors to meld and become most fragrant. Add the salt later, don't add it at the beginning."
The two chefs looked on and said, "Is that all? This is different from how you make braised pork. Braised pork needs to be sautéed for a while to render out the fat so it's more fragrant and the meat won't be too greasy when it's cooked."
"Yes, that's the difference between braised pork ribs and braised pork belly. Pork ribs have little or no fat, so you need to caramelize the sugar with oil at the beginning. This makes the stir-fried pork ribs more fragrant when they are stewed."
"Furthermore, to ensure that the cooked ribs are flavorful and aromatic, when reducing the sauce at the end, do not cover the pot and wait for the sauce to evaporate. Instead, uncover the pot and stir-fry slowly to allow the sauce to evenly coat each piece of rib."
Li Mai didn't care whether they could remember it or wanted to remember it; she explained it to them clearly and seriously.
To make sure the pot of ribs wouldn't be wasted, Li Mai stayed there for an hour after preparing the ribs, and then personally demonstrated how to reduce the sauce.
Finally, when a large pot of braised pork ribs was placed on the table that everyone had already set out in the courtyard, the aroma had already attracted everyone who was still there.
"This is the braised pork ribs? It smells so good!" Manager Liao and the others swallowed hard, unable to believe it.
Chef Liu was also craving this flavor. The recipe didn't look difficult, but the taste was simply amazing. After he personally brought out the large basin, another chef, Chef Qin, brought out a basin of clear water.
"Wash your hands, Miss Li said it tastes best when eaten with your hands."
Upon hearing this, everyone didn't stand on ceremony and quickly went to wash their hands, ready to start eating.
"Miss Li, please give some to your family members as well." Manager Liao saw that Li Mai had been busy for an hour, so he told her to give some to Old Man Zhou and the others who were waiting by the oxcart on the other side.
Li Mai smiled, thinking that this person was not bad. She thanked him, took a bowl, put four pieces in it, and prepared water for Old Man Zhou, Zhou Lei, and Zhou Quan to wash their hands. Each of them took a piece to taste.
"Dad, the steward let us try it. I'll make some for our family tomorrow too," Li Mai said with a smile.
Old Zhou nodded silently, then turned to look at the basket of bones that the people had just brought to the car. They said it was payment for Li Mai to teach them how to cook, and that it was free. He just felt that the bones could taste good.
Seeing Li Mai's smiling face, he took a piece and ate it. He didn't expect it to taste so delicious, and mumbled a compliment: "Delicious!"
Zhou Quan and Zhou Lei accepted the food without hesitation and started eating it, because it was made with quinoa, and they thought it would definitely taste good.
Sure enough, after finishing a bone, they felt they hadn't had enough.
Li Mai didn't eat her own piece, but handed it to Zhou Lei.
Zhou Lei was taken aback, feeling embarrassed to eat, "Sister-in-law, aren't you going to eat? You should eat?"
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