After Qin Yi finished making the cold dishes, she moved on to making the main dishes.
The first dish is an auspicious Eight Treasures Gourd Duck.
The most difficult part of this dish is actually removing the bones.
First, cut the duck neck, but don't break the skin.
Make a seven- or eight-centimeter incision in the neck, and start disassembling the bone from there.
Carefully peel the skin and flesh off the bone, using kitchen scissors to slowly shave along the chest cavity, separating the flesh from the bone.
The deboning process requires great care; you must not tear the duck skin.
When she learned to make this dish in her dream, she practiced deboning ten ducks. Fortunately, the ingredients in the dream were all fictional, otherwise it would have been quite a waste.
After blanching the deboned duck, use a needle and cotton thread to sew up all the holes on its body, including the abdomen, and then marinate it with seasonings to remove the fishy smell and enhance the flavor.
Next, we'll make the filling ingredients—the eight-treasure filling.
As the name suggests, eight ingredients are diced, such as green peas, ham, lotus seeds, shiitake mushrooms, tendons, and dried longan.
Heat oil in a pot, add scallions and ginger and stir-fry until fragrant. Add various diced ingredients, soy sauce for flavor, and a little water. Simmer for a while.
Finally, add diced ham and dried scallops, pour into a large bowl, and mix well with the stir-fried glutinous rice. The eight-treasure filling is now ready.
Then insert it into the deepest part of the duck's body through the neck, filling the entire body, and then sew the opening closed.
Continue making the duck's "gourd shape".
It's basically about tightly tying cotton thread around the middle of the duck to give it a waist-like shape, resembling a "gourd".
Then tuck its head back into its neck, leaving only its beak sticking out; this is what is meant by "the mouth of a gourd."
Place the gourd in hot water to set its shape, then brush it with two layers of light honey water.
After the entire shape is prepared, fry it in oil until the duck skin turns golden brown.
The final step is to caramelize the sugar in a large pot, then add the seasonings and start simmering.
While waiting for the Eight Treasure Duck, Qin Yi quickly prepared several other dishes.
Grandpa Yu tried to run away several times during this process.
He wanted to see what kind of delicious dishes Qin Yi was preparing, and why they smelled so good.
But before they could even step out the door, Mrs. Li and Sister Ju pulled them back.
Everyone says he was so greedy that he had to hold back his desire.
At 8 p.m., Qin Yi and the housekeeper served the dishes on time.
The first dishes served were two cold dishes, one red and one green.
"Osmanthus-flavored lotus root and sesame-sauce phoenix tail: the red lotus root symbolizes a sweet life, while the green phoenix tail represents the old man's vitality."
Qin Yi served the dishes while introducing them.
She brought out a plate of neatly arranged poached chicken pieces.
Sprinkle a generous amount of chopped green onions on top, then take the auntie's hot sesame oil and pour it over the top, making a crackling sound like firecrackers.
"Scallion oil chicken, good luck and prosperity."
Li Beiyang: "Let's eat chicken tonight!"
Mrs. Li quickly covered the child's mouth.
"Braised pork hock, I'm quite adept at it."
"White broth mutton, a joyous occasion."
"Hibiscus and broad beans, happiness lasts forever."
"Clams and egg stew, a perfect and complete meal."
"May your family's fortunes rise steadily."
"Mao Xue Wang, so spicy and delicious."
"Next up is tonight's main event: Eight Treasure Gourd Duck."
Qin Yi brought out a large clay pot, opened the lid, and the complex aroma of eight-treasure rice mixed with duck meat instantly assaulted the noses of everyone present.
Grandpa Yu's eyes widened, bursting with boundless joy: "I've only ever seen this dish in books before. I've eaten at every hotel in Zicheng and never seen it before. Today, I've truly broadened my horizons!"
Qin Yi smiled and said, "The production process is indeed quite complicated. I need to pour the sauce one last time before it's finished."
"Wait a minute," Grandpa Yu said again, "Let me start a multi-person video call so my buddies can be envious."
After saying that, he pointed the camera at the delicious food on the table, his face beaming with pride.
Qin Yi picked up a bowl of sauce and poured the bright red sauce over the gourd-shaped body of the Eight Treasure Duck.
"This tenth dish uses the word 'gourd' to symbolize both good fortune and prosperity. The eight-treasure gourd also symbolizes perfection."
[What's going on, Lao Yu? Where did you eat that they had Hongli's Eight Treasure Gourd Duck?]
[This background is definitely at Old Yu's house! Old Yu, have you changed chefs again? This dish is exactly what I like!]
[Brother, what's the occasion? So many delicious dishes, and so many people sitting around?]
Upon hearing this, Qin Yi presented the two grand finale dishes of the evening, which were also special birthday dishes she had prepared for Grandpa Yu.
The golden dragon's body meanders and coils on the white longevity bun, its scales stacked and covering its entire body. A red vein runs from the dragon's head to its tail, and its eyes are like those of a god.
The longevity buns also had several large red lanterns made of red dough, with the character "福" (fortune) written on them.
This is a birthday bun that Qin Yi spent a long time making. She asked the aunt in charge and found out that Grandpa Yu didn't like cake, so she came up with the idea of making this golden "dragon" bun.
There was also a sweet and sour fish dish with a curved shape set in the plate.
The fish's head is facing upwards, with a red bead in its mouth and its tail also pointing upwards, making it look particularly festive.
"The last two dishes are called 'Dragon Fish Playing with a Pearl,' wishing Grandpa Yu a prosperous future and a life filled with good fortune!"
"Good! Good! Good!"
Grandpa Yu stood up excitedly. The delicious dishes on the table today clearly showed the chef's dedication.
Not a single dish was a perfunctory attempt to get by. He had only known this young girl for a few days, and they were barely acquaintances. He never expected her to go to such lengths for him.
At his age, money is easy to come by, but friendship is priceless, which truly moved me.
Hey bro! I completely forgot your birthday, I'm so sorry! I'll definitely come over to apologize when I get back and we'll have a big drink and party!
Grandpa Yu waved his hand: "I'm already very happy to have these friends and this new chef friend with me today! I know my brothers are all busy, what grown man would remember his brother's birthday? Don't worry about it! Come back and let's get together!"
Hey bro, stop talking and just eat a few bites for us! Even though I can't see you guys, just watching you eat makes my mouth water!
Grandpa Yu laughed heartily: "Haha! Everyone, don't be shy, let's eat!"
When the two little children heard that they could start eating, they picked up their chopsticks and attacked their favorite plates.
Li Nansang picked up a piece of sweet osmanthus lotus root, first licked the sauce on it with her tongue, then put the lotus root slice in her mouth and sucked on it, and then took a bite. "Mmm...so delicious."
Watching a little girl eat is a real treat. The lotus root slices are soft and tender, and the girl is sweet and lovely. Her chubby cheeks seem to be chewing the most delicious food in the world.
Li Beiyang spotted the braised pork knuckle on the table. He picked up a large piece with his chopsticks, put it in his bowl, and then stuffed it into his mouth.
His mouth was greasy, and because it was too big to hold, the reddish-brown, savory meat juices dripped from the corners of his mouth. "Sss...ha...so hot and delicious."
Sigh! Watching boys eat isn't so pleasant to watch anymore. I guess that pig deserved to die!
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