Chapter 52 Chapter 52 Lin Mansion, Su Li...
Lin Mansion, Su Li and the other three followed the housekeeper Lin all the way in through the corner door, passing through the corridor and finally reaching the side hall for guests.
Father Lin was drinking tea inside. When he saw Su Li and the other three, his first reaction was to be stunned. It was obvious that he didn't know what Butler Lin meant.
Didn't he ask her to go find the food vendor? What was she doing?
"Master, this is the young lady who sells food that the eldest young master mentioned."
Upon hearing this, Father Lin once again sized up the four men in linen clothes in front of him, the word "liar" almost written in his eyes.
Butler Lin felt the same way. He had searched the entire pier, and only this shop looked like the one the young master had mentioned. He had also actually seen the food they were selling, and there was indeed that fish.
"Master Lin, I heard that you wanted us to come to your house tomorrow to make pickled fish."
"Sour fish?" Father Lin was speechless. What an ugly name, so tacky. Was it the fish from yesterday?
However, Steward Lin had no need and dared not lie to him.
Lin Shou did not respond to Su Li's words, but slowly said to the steward Lin next to him,
"In that case, let them try it."
After saying that, he asked Butler Lin to take Su Li and the others to the kitchen. However, Su Li did not leave immediately. Instead, she suddenly asked, "May I ask if Mr. Lin's guest is from Jiangnan?"
Lin Shou, who obviously didn't expect Su Li to ask this question, looked at Su Li straight in the eye this time and said, "Not bad."
But so what?
Su Li continued, "If someone from Jiangnan doesn't like this dish, I'm afraid they won't like it."
?
Seeing that the other party was willing to listen to her, Su Li slowly said, "People in Jiangnan tend to have lighter tastes. I'm afraid they can't get used to the heavier flavors of our food."
This was half true and half false. In fact, as far as Su Li knew, many people in the Jiangnan area were used to eating this. However, Su Li thought carefully about what Steward Lin said on the way. Considering that the other party was so ostentatious that even a dish had to be carefully considered in advance, it was likely that the guests were either rich or noble. If they were rich, the three large courtyards of the Lin Mansion should be relatively wealthy in the county. Excluding one option, the only option left was noble. It was likely that this guest was someone from the county government office, or someone with real power.
This also means that if this gentleman praises the dishes she cooks, her catering business may soar and become prosperous. This is simply a great advertising opportunity!
So Su Li is not satisfied with just the other person thinking that the food is delicious, she also wants the other person to really like and love to eat it!
This is why she went to such lengths.
Father Lin, who was sitting at the head of the table, heard this and thought, "Yeah, he actually forgot about this!" He just thought the fish was delicious and wanted to add more, but he forgot that the gentleman was from the south of the Yangtze River and had a light taste and preferred sweet food. He almost made a big mistake. What a close call.
Thinking of this, Father Lin was truly grateful to the little girl in front of him.
Just when he was about to ask Steward Lin to pack a bag of silver and snacks for her as a thank you, Su Li spoke again.
"I know of another fish dish that might be more to this guest's taste."
"What fish dish?"
"Squirrel Mandarin Fish." Also known as Squirrel Mandarin Fish, it is said that this is a delicacy that Emperor Qianlong tasted by chance when he visited Suzhou incognito during his trip to the south of the Yangtze River. Later, because of its sweet and sour taste, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, it was deeply loved by the general public and became famous throughout the country. Su Li thought carefully about all the fish dishes and found that this one was the most suitable one. It had both good appearance and good taste.
He knew about mandarin fish. He had caught one in a lake outside the city in the spring. The meat was delicious and fresh. He also knew about squirrels, but he didn't know what it meant to put the squirrel and mandarin fish together. Could it be that they were killed together and cooked?
Father Lin, who considered himself knowledgeable, heard it for the first time and found it quite interesting.
"Then, may I ask where is the person who can make this squirrel mandarin fish dish?"
"I."
"you?"
Father Lin almost laughed when he realized that after years of doing business, he had been led into a ditch by a little girl. He really thought that the other party was giving him a kind reminder, but it turned out that she was waiting for him here!
He said that in this world, profit comes and goes, so how could someone help others without any benefit? He was overthinking it.
But... the name of the dish sounds fresh, so it wouldn't hurt to let her try making it. Her businessman nature was fully exposed at this moment.
"It's not impossible for you to have a try, but I have to say this first: if you don't do well, I won't give you a penny. Do you think you can accept that?" As for the bag of silver that Lin Shou originally intended to give, he didn't plan to give it to him. He believed that all merchants are dishonest. Giving money to people for free is something only kind people would do. To him, every penny should be spent wisely.
"Okay!" Su Li agreed without thinking.
"Lin Fu, go find someone to catch some squirrels. As for the mandarin fish, see where you can buy them and ask someone to buy a few." It was perfect. There was no need to go anywhere else. There were some growing on the pine tree in the backyard. As for the mandarin fish, the restaurant should sell it.
?no.
Realizing that the other party had misunderstood, Su Li quickly explained, "It doesn't have to be squirrel. It's just that the dish got this name because it looks like squirrel fur."
Never mind, this explanation isn't clear enough, you'll see once you make it.
Lin Shou obviously didn't dwell on this. "No matter what it looks like, just ask him to find it for you."
After saying that, he asked Lin Fu to take them to the big kitchen.
Otherwise, how can they say that the Lin family is rich? This kitchen is half the size of the Su family's, and is fully equipped with all kinds of vegetables and kitchen utensils. Because it is past lunch time, there are not many people in the kitchen, only a few servants sweeping the floor and cleaning up the ground and colanders and other things that were dirty at noon.
Seeing Lin Fu coming with Su Li and others, they all stopped what they were doing and bowed their heads and said, "Butler Lin."
"It's nothing, just go about your business."
After saying that, he turned to Su Li and said, "I've already asked someone to buy the mandarin fish. If you need anything else, just let me know."
Su Li looked at the things in the kitchen. Except for the mandarin fish, everything else was there. Not only that, there was also leftover mutton, pork, and a variety of vegetables and fruits placed aside that had not been put away yet. This shows how extravagant the Lin family is.
"Okay, if you need anything, just give the orders. You can command everyone here." Then, Lin Fu gave some instructions to the servants before leaving.
When the fish came back, Su Li familiarized herself with the things in the kitchen, and also asked her eldest and fourth sisters to familiarize themselves with them so that they could help her later.
Su Hong and Su Tao were still a little shocked. They had never thought that they would be able to meet such an important person one day. Their hearts were still beating. The fifth sister was really bold. She actually dared to talk to the other party.
Zeng Laoer felt the same as her. His family was considered well-off in the village, but outside the village, they were nothing. Naturally, he had never met someone like Master Lin in his life. If he hadn't insisted that he was the elder, he wouldn't even dare to look Master Lin in the eye.
However, it was because of this that Zeng Lao Er discovered that Su Li was the most courageous and bold one in the Su family. At such a young age, she dared to talk fluently with such a person. It really proved the saying that a newborn calf is not afraid of a tiger.
"Big sister, you and fourth sister will light the fire for me later."
"good."
Squirrel mandarin fish is a dish that tests your knife skills extremely well. If it is cooked well, it is called squirrel mandarin fish. If it is not cooked well, it is just a rotten fish.
After buying the mandarin fish, Su Li first killed the fish and removed the fins and head. However, the head could not be thrown away as it would be useful later. Then she removed the bones. This step required a lot of dexterity. Su Li's previous teacher could remove the fish meat cleanly without rotting. After Su Li traveled to this body, she had been practicing her techniques and knife skills, but even so, she could not compare to the peak period of her previous life when she studied hard every day.
Fortunately, it was not bad. The fish meat was picked out relatively intact, and then the most important step was to cut it into a cross shape, first cutting sideways and then cutting in reverse, cutting the fish meat into the shape of squirrel hair, adding onion, ginger, salt and Huadiao wine. Huadiao wine is the essence of this dish. It can not only remove the fishy smell but also enhance the flavor and improve the final taste of the fish meat.
After marinating the fish, Su Li asked her eldest and fourth sisters to start the fire. Don't make the fire too big, especially when frying the fish. When the oil temperature reaches about 60% to 70%, put the mandarin fish coated with starch into the oil pan and start frying. After frying, take it out and then increase the oil temperature and continue frying it until it turns golden brown, with the head and tail raised. At this time, Su Li also prepared the diced mushrooms, bamboo shoots, river shrimp and green beans.
Start making the sauce!
There are two ways to prepare the sauce for squirrel mandarin fish. One is to use tomato sauce with white vinegar, sugar and other condiments. The other is to use the old-fashioned sweet and sour sauce directly with white sugar and white vinegar. Use three spoons of sugar, four spoons of rice vinegar and one spoon of water. First, heat the oil in a pan, stir-fry the minced garlic and ginger, then add rice vinegar, sugar and soy sauce. After the sugar is melted, add water and starch to thicken it. Boil the sauce until it becomes thick, pour it on the fried fish, add blanched green beans, mushrooms and bamboo shoots to make the color look better, and finally arrange the freshly fried fish head with a beard to look like a squirrel.
“It smells so good!”
Zeng Laoer, who was sitting at the kitchen door waiting for Su Li and the other two, couldn't help but turn his head and stretch his neck to look at Su Li. Is it ready? Why does it smell so good?
The servant who was cleaning nearby was also attracted by the rich smell. He stopped what he was doing and looked at Su Li, wondering why he felt hungry again when they had just eaten.
"Eldest sister, fourth sister, look, does it look like a squirrel?" Su Li placed the squirrel mandarin fish and showed it to eldest sister Su Hong and fourth sister Su Tao.
"Don't tell me, they really look alike."
"Yeah, I think so too."
The two of them looked at the squirrel mandarin fish on the plate and felt that they looked more and more similar, and they couldn't help but exclaim.
Su Tao couldn't help swallowing her saliva, and secretly sighed in her heart, this fish smells so good, and the color is so beautiful, bright red, it really makes people drool, it's a pity that I can't eat it.
Su Hong thought the same. She didn't know how it tasted, but it looked very good. She was worried that her fifth sister was just bragging, but she didn't expect that there really was such a dish.
I heard from grandma and mother that the fifth sister learned how to cook from the chefs who came to the village, and she was able to learn so well, which shows how talented she is.
Su Hong sighed in her heart. This was the nth time she had sighed since returning to her parents' home.
The squirrel mandarin fish was ready, so of course it had to be taken to Master Lin to taste. Zeng Lao Er called the housekeeper Lin to take the fish over, and they followed behind him.
On the way, Butler Lin thought of the fish on the plate he had just seen. It really looked like a squirrel, vivid and lifelike.
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The author has something to say: Squirrel: Peanuts for me!!!
I'll probably update in a couple of days after the other babies finish their college entrance exams (if not, just ignore what I said hehe [kiss][kiss]
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