To everyone's surprise, the manager's fair and just approach to rewards and punishments won everyone's approval.
"The restaurant's profits mainly depend on everyone. If you have any good ideas or suggestions, please feel free to bring them up. As long as they are beneficial to the restaurant's operation, they will be adopted."
There are more than ten people in the hotel kitchen. What happened today was an eye-opener for them. What was originally a bad thing turned into a good thing.
At this moment, a chef surnamed Huang walked over, cupped his hands in greeting to Zhao Xian, and then said:
"Manager Zhao, I come from the south. In my hometown, there is a kind of crustacean that we call crab. It has eight legs and a pair of claws. It lives in ditches and rice paddies. In summer and autumn, it is everywhere. It damages crops, and the local farmers do not like it."
Because there are too many of them to get rid of completely, farmers are having a major headache with these crabs.
When I was a child, my friends and I often caught crabs and roasted them in the fire. But the locals thought crabs were evil creatures, and my parents wouldn't allow us to touch them or eat them, or we would be beaten.
Later, when I became a chef, my master told me that those claw-like, shelled crawling creatures are called crabs. Crabs are a type of crab, and people have been eating them since ancient times. If cooked properly, they taste quite good.
I have an idea: to develop crabs into a delicious dish and sell it in restaurants. Diners should like it. I wonder what Manager Zhao thinks of my suggestion?
Zhao Xian immediately understood that the "crab" that Chef Huang was talking about was a small crab called the "Xiangshou Crab," whose deliciousness was no less than that of the hairy crab. Making it into spicy crab was the real delicacy.
"How far is your home from Qing'an Prefecture? Could you buy some crabs now? We'd like to try developing some dishes and offering them in restaurants."
At this moment, Zhao Xian also became interested. Just thinking about spicy crab made his mouth water.
“My home is in Huangjia Village, Taiping County. It takes a day to go back by horse-drawn carriage, and two days to go back and forth. There are crabs everywhere in the ditches and rice paddies in our area. In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, you can catch several buckets of them.”
"Huangjia Village, so is your surname Huang?" Zhao Xian asked.
“My surname is indeed Huang, and my given name is Huang Bo. Our surname is a common one in the village, and the village head is also surnamed Huang.”
“Alright, Master Huang, I’ll take you back by carriage tomorrow morning. Can you get back before dark the day after tomorrow?” Zhao Xian asked.
“That’s no problem. After I get back tomorrow, I can use the evening to catch several large buckets of crabs. I’ll be back early the day after tomorrow and be back at the restaurant by evening. Then we can have some delicious crabs tonight,” Huang Bo said.
"Okay, then hurry back. Tomorrow I will personally cook a delicious dish with crabs."
The chefs were taken aback; they hadn't expected Manager Zhao to be a cook, so it seemed his culinary skills must be quite good.
Huang Bo was very happy at this moment, as his suggestion had been adopted by Manager Zhao.
Just then, Manager Lu returned with twelve jars of liquor. Two jars were for Zhao Xian, five were for the restaurant, and the remaining five were to be sent to shops in other places for sale.
Manager Lu worked very hard. He rested for a short while before starting his work again.
Zhao Xian told him about making detergent that morning and proposed a reward or punishment plan for the chef.
Manager Lu immediately gave a thumbs up, fully agreeing with Zhao Xian's decision.
Zhao Xian immediately had the cook brought over and took five taels of silver from the account, handing it to the cook.
"Manager Lu agrees to your punishment and reward. The fifty copper coins as punishment will be deducted from your wages next month, and the five taels of silver are your reward."
The restaurant has a clear system of rewards and punishments. I hope you will do your best in the future.
The cook took the silver, bowed to Zhao Xian and Manager Lu, and then left excitedly.
Early the next morning, Zhao Xian prepared the carriage, and Huang Bo got into the carriage and left with great confidence.
Zhao Xian had originally planned to visit Prefect Shen after receiving the liquor, but now he was in no hurry. He planned to cook some spicy crabs after Huang Bo brought them back and bring them to Prefect Shen along with the liquor.
In order to make delicious spicy crab, Zhao Xian carefully selected several seasonings in the system, and just waited for the crabs to return before starting to cook.
Finally, at dusk the next day, Huang Bo returned. He had been traveling for two days and was indeed very tired, but he was still full of energy.
Huang Bo brought back four buckets of crabs. When Zhao Xian saw this, he couldn't help but worry that putting the crabs in the buckets like this might crush them.
Zhao Xian soon discovered that his worries were unnecessary. The crab shells were very hard, and they were fine when pressed together. Of the four buckets of crabs, not many died; the vast majority of the crabs were alive.
The crabs were poured into a pool, and they quickly became active and full of energy.
Zhao Xian selected a basin of crabs and had someone brush each crab clean, then wash them with clean water. After washing, they were cut in half with a knife and then marinated with seasonings.
Zhao Xian then took out some seasonings for cooking spicy crab, which were specifically designed for this purpose.
He handed the seasonings to Zhao Dani and told her how to cook spicy crab.
Marinating crabs is very simple; you just need to let them absorb the flavor. Zhao Dani first puts the crabs into the oil and frys them until the shells turn red, then she takes them out and sets them aside.
Next, add oil to the pot, along with seasonings such as scallions, ginger, and sauce. Stir-fry until fragrant, then add the fried crabs and stir-fry. The aroma of the stir-fried crabs will begin to fill the air. At this point, add an appropriate amount of seasonings.
The special seasonings quickly blended with the crabs. Zhao Dani continued to stir-fry for a while before adding an appropriate amount of hot water to the pot.
At this point, add enough water at once. After boiling for a while, turn the heat from high to medium and simmer for a while. The kitchen is filled with the unique aroma of spicy crab. Gradually, the spicy crab sauce begins to thicken, and the aroma becomes even more intense.
Soon the spicy crab was ready, and all the chefs gathered around. They were used to being surrounded by cooking fumes every day, and their sense of smell had become dulled, but the freshly cooked spicy crab had already whetted their appetites.
This was a newly developed dish, so Zhao Xian asked the chefs to taste it and give their feedback.
The chefs couldn't wait any longer and started grabbing the food with their hands to taste it.
The spicy crab was so delicious that it was practically flawless. Even seasoned chefs had never tasted such a delicacy.
Zhao Xian had the spicy crabs put into small plates and sent to each private room for the diners to taste and see their reactions.
The plates are small and can only hold a few pieces of spicy crab. In some rooms with many people, there definitely won't be enough to go around.
The response was swift; after tasting the spicy crab, diners requested another plate, and some even went directly to the kitchen to serve themselves.
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