A man and a woman walked into the store and were talking in low voices. The man said with concern, "I thought there were no decent restaurants in South City, but I didn't expect that I underestimated this place. Sister, you haven't eaten much for two days in a row. You must eat something today no matter what."
The woman covered her chest and nodded reluctantly: "Then eat a little."
The man walked closer and saw Lin Dan stirring a pot of braised meat. He couldn't help but reveal a surprised expression, "Hey, you can actually make Qianzhou-style braised meat. It just so happens that we are from Qianzhou. Give us some."
Lin Dan shook his head and said, "Sir, I'm sorry, the braised pork is sold out. Can you order something else? We also have noodles and porridge."
The man frowned, looking unhappy: "But I just want to eat braised meat, nothing else."
"Then I can only say sorry to you. If you want to eat, you can come early tomorrow." Lin Dan smiled faintly.
She didn't know who the man was, but Qin Er Niang knew, and quickly waved her hands and said, "It's okay, it's okay, I'll give him this plate of meat, I won't eat it." After she finished speaking, she wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, her expression very frightened. If I am not mistaken, these two siblings should be the legitimate son and daughter of the King of Dian and Qian. The King of Dian-Guizhou is the only king of a different surname in the Great Chu State. He is stationed in the Dian-Guizhou Plateau all year round and has an army of 800,000 under his command. Even the emperor is wary of him.
In order to show his loyalty, the King of Dianqian sent his legitimate son to the capital to study at an early age, and his treatment was not much different from that of the prince. The year before last, he also sent his fifteen-year-old legitimate daughter here, apparently to enter the palace as a queen. In short, these two brothers and sisters are both people on the top of the mountain, and we can't afford to offend them in the slightest.
The man's brows relaxed, and he seemed very satisfied with Qin Erniang's tact. However, Lin Dan said, "Everything should be based on first come first served. Erniang has been waiting for the whole morning, so this plate of braised meat should be hers."
Before the man showed an angry expression, Lin Dan raised his head and looked carefully at the pale girl, and continued: "Besides, I saw that this lady has been holding her chest and seems to be a little dizzy and nauseous. Maybe she can't adapt to the seasickness? You can't eat these greasy things when you feel nauseous. Can I make some refreshing food for you?"
The woman didn't really want to eat meat, so after hearing Lin Dan's words, she nodded quickly: "Okay, please help me make some refreshing side dishes. I really don't want to eat meat right now." After she finished speaking, she looked at her brother timidly.
The man thought of his sister's future fate and felt pity for her. How could he refute her words? So he nodded in agreement. When he turned around, he found Tang Jiu was there too. He couldn't help but wonder, "Prince Tang, you're also coming to this restaurant to eat? What a coincidence."
Tang Jiu nodded and said: "This store is opened by my friend, thank you for your honor, Your Highness." The subtext of his words was - you can act arrogantly anywhere, but please don't cause trouble in this store.
The man was granted the title of a prince by the emperor in his early years. Although his status seemed higher than that of a marquis, he actually had to restrain himself in front of a close minister of the emperor like Tang Jiu. His arrogant look immediately disappeared, and his smile seemed approachable.
Seeing that he had behaved himself, Tang Jiu handed ten copper coins to Lin Dan. When saying goodbye, he repeatedly told her to send him a message from the Ministry of War if she had anything to say.
Lin Dan agreed verbally, but in fact, she never thought of bothering Tang Jiu again. We are not from the same world, so why should we be forced together? She is the cook and he is the diner, the relationship is that simple. After handing the braised meat to the trembling Qin Erniang, she filled a casserole with porridge, heated it on the stove, and then took out a handful of green peppers and threw them into the fire.
The green peppers were roasted over the charcoal fire, making a crackling sound, and a pungent spicy smell quickly spread. Xiao Zhu and the others choked and sneezed repeatedly, but the handsome man and the petite woman showed an expression of half surprise and half nostalgia.
"Are you making roasted chili peppers?" The woman walked to the stove and stared at the green chili peppers that were gradually softening in the fire, her eyes filled with tears. "When I was in my hometown, my mother loved to make this dish for me and my brother. You probably don't know that when we were young, we were separated from our father. My mother took my brother and me to hide in the countryside. We had no money and couldn't eat meat. The most delicious dish in my memory was roasted chili peppers because they were strong in flavor and went well with rice, which made us full."
The mask on the man's face also cracked, and his eye sockets were slightly red.
Lin Dan looked up and smiled at the woman, his eyes full of comfort. Then he put the roasted peppers and a few garlic cloves into a bowl and pounded them, then poured soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, litsea cubeba oil and other seasonings on them.
"Try it, is it the taste of your hometown?" After the salad was ready, Lin Dan handed the bowl to the girl. The girl picked up a little roasted chili and tasted it carefully. She blinked and tears fell. "Yes, it tastes like this." She quickly wiped away her tears and smiled: "Brother, you can try it too."
Ever since she was taken back to the palace by her father, she has never eaten this dish again, because her mother had passed away long ago, and there was no place for them in the palace. She and her brother were just two objects that could be sacrificed and used at will.
The man took a bite of the dish and said in a hoarse voice: "The shopkeeper should have been to Qianzhou, right? This roasted chili is very authentic."
"Wait a few months." Lin Dan put the clay pot porridge and the small stove on the table and said softly, "The appetizer is a bit spicy, so it's better to eat less. I cut some raw meat and pork liver for you, and also added some leafy vegetables. You can put them directly in the porridge. Cook it now and eat it now, it will taste better."
"Thank you, shopkeeper." After crying, the woman felt much better. She picked up the roasted chili peppers with chopsticks and ate them slowly, bit by bit, her eyes full of cherishment. I never expected that I could eat such authentic hometown dishes in such a remote place like Beijing.
The brother and sister sat opposite each other and ate without saying a word for a long time, but their eyes were red. In order to avoid embarrassment, Lin Dan and Xiao Zhu retreated to the kitchen. Qin Erniang did not dare to be in the same room with the nobleman. She followed Lin Dan with a plate of braised meat, chattering about all kinds of gossip in the capital. She now particularly likes Shopkeeper Lin, not only because of her good craftsmanship, but also because she is a good person. When you are with her, you can feel her peace and tolerance everywhere, which is the most comfortable thing.
When he came out after a quarter of an hour, the brother and sister had left, but there was a piece of shiny gold leaf on the table. Qin Erniang swallowed hard and sighed sincerely: "My goodness, it's good to have good skills. Shopkeeper Lin, I'm afraid your shop will make a fortune!"
From that day on, Tang Jiu, Weiyuan Hou, Dianqian Junwang and others became loyal fans of their hometown restaurant. Not only did they eat the food themselves, they also often packed up for their relatives and friends. With these living signs, Lin Dan's business is getting better and better. Not only do people from South City come here, but even dignitaries from West City and East City will put on the most ordinary clothes and come quietly to enjoy a delicious meal. No matter how many delicacies I have eaten, what I love most and miss the most is still a plate of hometown food like this.
…………
Two months later, Lin Dan had completely established herself in the capital. She was busy with her own store business in the morning, and taught Chef Qiu how to cook in the afternoon. Chef Qiu only learned cooking from his father for three years and he hasn’t even mastered knife skills, let alone cooking. But he was very intelligent and willing to study hard. As he taught, Lin Dan became interested and formally accepted Chef Qiu as his apprentice.
That day, Tang Jiu invited several Mongolian princes to have dinner in his restaurant. Lin Dan cooked a large pot of hand-pulled lamb with almond milk, and made a sauce with salted grass and chives, and served it directly to the guests for them to enjoy. Xiao Zhu wanted to prepare chopsticks, bowls and dishes, but she shook her head and refused.
How can guests eat without tableware? The official who came with Tang Jiu immediately turned his face away, and a young man who looked quite similar to Tang Jiu shouted and scolded: "You are such a tactless person. There are so many of us here to eat, and you only bring out a big basin. Where are the bowls? Where are the chopsticks? Are you asking us to eat with our hands? Brother Jiu, this restaurant is too unreliable. Let's go to Yan's Restaurant. Sister Yan is out of the palace today, so she should be in the restaurant. She is a good cook, and the customers will definitely be satisfied."
The man's name is Tang Peng, he is Tang Jiu's cousin and now also works in the Ministry of War. He has a crush on Yan Langqing and naturally strongly advocates going to Yan's Restaurant. It was a pity that his proposal was rejected by his cousin. Now that he saw Lin Dan causing such a big mistake, he had to give her a good scolding.
"If you have no insight, just keep your mouth shut to avoid embarrassment." Tang Jiu said in a cold tone with an unhappy look on his face.
"Ninth brother, I am also trying to entertain distinguished guests. They have come all the way to Da Chu with great difficulty, and you take them to eat this? Don't you even look at the faces of the princes..." As he spoke, he turned his head to look at the princes. He intended to explain in a nice tone and then ask them to move on, but he saw them reaching their hands into the big basin, grabbing a piece of mutton with bones, and began to eat it ravenously. While eating, they were chattering about something, with admiration on their faces.
An aide who knew Mongolian translated, "The princes were very satisfied with the meal. This dish is called hand-pulled mutton, which is eaten directly with the hands."
Another prince beside him raised his voice and said something. The aide's face became more pleasing and continued, "Several princes said that the mutton in the Central Plains is too smelly and they can't get used to it. They have lost several pounds of weight in the two months since they came to the capital. Today they can finally eat their fill. The mutton cooked by this chef is very fresh and tender. It doesn't have the stinky smell of the mutton in the Central Plains at all. It is exactly the same as the mutton they eat on the grassland. The hometown restaurant is worthy of being the hometown restaurant. It really lives up to its reputation!"
Tang Jiu said a few humble words, then grabbed the mutton and started eating. Several officials wanted to crawl under the table, thinking in their hearts that it was a good thing that the princes did not understand Chinese, otherwise they would have been so embarrassed today. Tang Peng's cheeks turned red with embarrassment and he was speechless for a long time. He was shouting and cursing there, accusing the shopkeeper Lin of being ignorant. However, it turned out that this dish was a specialty of Mongolia and was eaten with hands. This made him look short-sighted and not even as good as a chef.
Xiao Zhu and the others were a little nervous at first, but they almost laughed out loud when they saw this scene. Pooh! What a dignitary, you really have no knowledge at all!
Lin Dan didn't care about the farce in the front hall. He washed his hands and got on the carriage to West City. In order to compete with the suddenly rising Qiaoyuan Restaurant, Yan's Restaurant has launched two signature dishes in two months. I heard that the third dish will be launched today, so she has to go and take a look.
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