Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Madam Shaocai also said that you are the master...
After arriving home, Sun told Xiao Dashi about her plan to go to the chief clerk's house for a banquet.
Xiao Dashi went to the fields to weed today. He looked darker, but his teeth looked even whiter when he grinned. "That's great. When do you want to go? I'll go and help too."
Lin Qiuran said, "The 27th, but I have to go there a day in advance to prepare, and I also have to take a day to decide on the menu. The sooner the better. I'll go there the day after tomorrow."
Lin Qiuran had been thinking about the menu for the past two days. If the dishes at the birthday banquet satisfied the head clerk's family and both the host and the guests were happy, there would be plenty of business in the future. After all, he was an official, and perhaps he could become the county magistrate or even a wealthy family in Yu'an County.
Xiao Dashi asked, "Qiu Ran, are you still cooking fish tomorrow? I caught a few."
Coincidentally, Xiao Dashi didn't catch any fish yesterday and had not planned to go to the river. However, when he came back from the fields, it was noon, the hottest time of the day. He was so hot that he wanted to wash his face, and he saw fish in the river.
There was no one in the fields or by the river at that time, so he hurried home to get something and caught eight big carp.
Lin Qiuran's eyes lit up, "Do it!"
There was also a carp yesterday, but since we had the meat for lunch, Lin Qiuran didn’t want to cook it in the evening, so he would cook it all together and sell it tomorrow.
It was getting dark soon. Lin Qiuran asked Sun to prepare dinner. He found a stone mortar and ground all the spices into powder. According to the ratio he had memorized before, he made thirteen spices and mushrooms, put them in jars respectively, and then sealed them with cloth.
In the future, when going out to cook, in addition to dried hawthorns, you have to bring these two cans of things. Lin Qiuran just put them in the cloth bag he carried when he went out.
Sun watched Lin Qiuran busying himself, doing one thing after another, and it took him quite a while to finish them. To be honest, she was a little confused. She didn't know what Lin Qiuran was doing this for, and why he put it in the bag. Was he going to take it out with him?
When I go out to cook for other people’s families, I always prepare the food ready-made. I just ask them to prepare whatever I need, and there is no need to buy it myself.
These things cost a lot of money. According to her, it would be better to buy some food for Lin Qiuran.
Sun couldn't help but ask what these were. "Qiuran, the Wang family has prepared everything, why do you still need to worry about it?"
Lin Qiuran saw her expression and understood what Sun meant. She patiently explained, "Mom, these are just spices. They make the dishes taste better. I could make them at other people's houses, but they have cooks too. I'm afraid someone might see me and learn from them, so I might as well make them myself."
They're all cooking, so whoever makes the best dish will definitely be the one preferred for a banquet. But the dishes are pretty much the same, and the cooking methods, such as boiling, steaming, and stir-frying, are pretty much the same. To make them taste even better, you have to pay attention to every aspect: knife skills, heat control, and seasoning.
Lin Qiuran had practiced knife skills and heat control for years, but a large pot was not as easy to control as a small one, so there was no room for improvement. And he needed money to buy a pair of knives that were suitable for him, so there was no rush.
So she wanted to work hard on the seasoning first. Everything requires investment. This can be regarded as her initial investment as a banquet chef. If others ask, she will say it is a family secret recipe.
Sun thought Lin Qiuran was right. No wonder the food was so delicious. She thought it must have been passed down from the Lin family, or perhaps she had come up with it herself.
The next morning, Lin Qiuran finished cooking the fish and asked Sun and Xiao Dashi to sell it. He found a piece of charcoal and some waste paper for wrapping snacks, and sat in the house writing, drawing, and thinking about the recipe.
There should be four cold dishes, preferably two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, or one meat dish and three vegetable dishes. They should never be all vegetarian dishes.
Vegetarian dishes are easy to make, such as smashed cucumber, spinach and nuts... If time is tight, you can also put vermicelli in the spinach and nuts, which tastes sour and spicy and is very refreshing.
Meat naturally needs to be braised. When you cut it into a dish, as long as the flavor is strong enough, you don’t even need a dipping sauce. The presentation will also look good. If you braise it the day before, you can save a lot of effort the next day.
As for what to braise, you can braise pig ears. If it's autumn or winter, you can make pig skin jelly, but it's probably not suitable for summer. Pig ears are fine for display, but I'm not sure if you can buy that many. The average butcher only kills one a day, so I'd probably have to ask around at every butcher in the city.
There are sixteen tables in total, and sixteen plates of pig ears require eight pigs. Lin Qiuran was afraid that even if he asked, it might not be enough. If that was not enough, he would just mix it together and braise some pig liver or something, and arrange it half and half.
For example, there was no braised beef that is common in modern times. This dynasty prohibited the slaughter of working oxen, and anything related to cattle was not allowed.
With one dish left, Lin Qiuran could make preserved eggs with pounded peppers, which would be delicious and easy to make. She decided on these cold dishes for now and started thinking about the hot dishes: the lucky bag and the braised pork, which would leave her with nine dishes and a soup.
Fish was a must. This time, she planned to make squirrel mandarin fish. She always braised fish so that others wouldn't notice her cooking skills. She'd ask tomorrow. If the Wang family requested two fish dishes, she could also make steamed sea bass.
The rest of the dishes can be a combination of meat and vegetables, lotus leaf rice or lotus leaf rice will do. We will decide on the soup when the time comes. If we have fish, we can make fish soup, and if we have chicken, we can make chicken soup.
For the rest, make some vegetarian dishes. Lin Qiuran plans to go to Wang's house tomorrow to decide on the menu first and ask Wang's family to prepare the necessary things in advance.
In the afternoon, Sun and Xiao Dashi came back. Sun bought some meat again. She didn't understand anything else, but she knew that Lin Qiuran worked hard, so it would be good for him to eat more meat.
Lin Qiuran helped unload the things. She said, "Mom, I've already decided on the menu. Tomorrow, after we cook the fish, I'll take the ox cart over."
Xiao Dashi had caught some more crucian carp this morning and could sell them tomorrow. She would go to Wang's house first and then return with Sun and Xiao Dashi in the afternoon. She wouldn't take the oxcart, but would walk for a while, then let Sun and Xiao Dashi push it when she got tired.
Sun: "Okay, you can go to the Wang family alone, or how about I go with you?"
Lin Qiuran: "Just order a menu, I can do it alone."
Sun hesitated and said, "Otherwise, I won't sell fish tomorrow. You have to go to the city."
Lin Qiuran shook his head. "It's okay. I'll prepare the things for tomorrow. Don't worry, I know I'm taking care of myself."
Seeing Lin Qiuran about to go to the garden, Sun stopped him and said, "Don't move. I'll prepare whatever you need tomorrow."
It was just some onions, ginger, garlic, and sauces. Sun went to peel the garlic, but there wasn't much left at home, so she had to buy more from someone else. She would go to Aunt Yu's house instead; she didn't want to go to Aunt Li's.
The next day, after Lin Qiuran had cooked the crucian carp, he headed off to ride the oxcart. Aunt Li wasn't there today, and there were four of them. They even let Lin Qiuran ride inside, which was quite easy to talk to.
After arriving at the county town, Lin Qiuran found the Wang family according to his memory from last time, knocked on the door and explained his purpose, and then was brought in by the servant.
However, the one who met her this time was not Madam Yu, but the eldest lady in the mansion, whose surname was Zhao. She looked older than Madam Yu, and her clothes were clean and without any embroidery patterns on them. She looked dignified and simple.
He didn't like to laugh, so when he saw Lin Qiuran, he asked directly, "You are the noodle chef, right?"
Lin Qiuran nodded, "Yes, I agreed with Madam Yu that day to set the menu for today."
Madam Zhao said, "I'll take care of the birthday banquet. Just tell me."
Lin Qiuran didn't know why someone changed. Maybe it was because the eldest daughter-in-law was in charge of all the household affairs. She was just the cook, and everything else was none of her business. While she was saying the names of the dishes, she explained what they were made of, how much food the mansion needed to prepare, and what the flavors were. She couldn't write, but Madam Zhao wrote it down.
Sometimes Madam Zhao was slow to remember, so Lin Qiuran would wait. When she finally finished, she reviewed it again. "Sixteen dishes, four cold, and twelve hot. The cold dishes include salad cucumber, spinach and nuts, double-mixed braised food, and preserved eggs with green peppers. The hot dishes include braised pork, lucky bag, chicken in lotus leaves, squirrel fish, garlic-flavored crucian carp, eight-treasure rice… braised tofu, minced meat and tofu, and stir-fried mixed vegetables. The hot soup is crucian carp and tofu soup. Madam, please take a look. If there's anything wrong, you can change it."
Madam Zhao said, "My sister-in-law strongly recommends you. Let's follow your menu. I will do my best to prepare the dishes."
Lin Qiuran lowered his head slightly, "Well, it's getting late, I'll go back first."
Madam Zhao kept a calm expression while she spoke. When Lin Qiuran left the main hall, Madam Yu came over to see her off.
Madam Yu asked, "Is the menu ready?"
Lin Qiuran repeated the menu to Madam Yu, "We've decided on these, and Madam Yu has agreed."
Madam Yu said, "Thank you for coming here so early."
Lin Qiuran: "It's my job. I'll come back on the 26th. I'm afraid it won't be convenient to go back that night. I wonder if there's an empty room in the mansion."
This is the disadvantage of living in the village. If you live in the county town, it is not too far and you can go back on the same day.
Madam Yu: "That's easy to say."
She knew Lin Qiuran was pregnant, and since she was a widow, it was probably early in the pregnancy, so nothing could be seen yet. Living in Xiaojia Village, far away, she had to be careful. She couldn't let anything happen to the child while preparing for her mother-in-law's birthday party.
After leaving Wang's house, Lin Qiuran went to look for Sun and Xiao Dashi. The two had almost sold out their fish, so they had some food in the county town and then went home together.
Today is the 23rd, and there are still three days. During these days, he will sell fish according to the routine. Xiao Dashi catches so many fish every day that he will not have too many to sell, and it is enough for him to go to the county town.
On the 26th, Lin Qiuran took Sun to the county town early in the morning and did not let Xiao Dashi go with them.
This was her plan. Since the Wang family only had one empty room and Xiao Dashi was a man, it would be inconvenient. So she and Sun would come today, and Xiao Dashi would come alone tomorrow.
The two of them came in an ox cart and arrived at Wang's house at three quarters of an hour.
Lin Qiuran greeted the host and went to the kitchen. The cook was there too. "Mrs. Lin, just tell me what you need me to do."
Lin Qiuran planned to take a look at the vegetables first. She told Madam Zhao that if they couldn't keep them, she could buy them tomorrow. For example, the tofu and the meat to be fried tomorrow... in this season, they would definitely go bad if left overnight.
But what needs to be cooked today needs to be delivered today, otherwise it won't be ready tomorrow. For example, braised pig ears and liver take most of the day, and she planned to make them in the afternoon so they would be ready by evening. But that would take too long, and with other dishes to prepare tomorrow, it would definitely be too late to make them now.
Lin Qiuran counted in his mind, eggplant, onion, ginger, garlic, seasonings, green peppers, preserved eggs, vermicelli... there were enough.
When it came to the pig liver and pig ears, Lin Qiuran only saw one pair. She asked the cook, "Madam, why are there only one pair of pig liver and pig ears?"
The author has something to say:
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Asking for nutrient solution irrigation~[Starry Eyes][Sprinkle Flowers]
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