Chapter 1010: Only those who can’t afford to eat eat this
Wobbegong sharks primarily live in the waters from Australia to South Asia, with only two species found in the Atlantic Ocean. They're not often seen here, though. They're relatively small, about a meter long, about the length of a human leg. They resemble the traditional Chinese instrument, the pipa, and typically lie motionless in the sand, waiting for prey. Their lifestyle is similar to that of anglerfish.
Many people say that sharks must swim to breathe, but this is actually wrong.
Some sharks do breathe by thrust, meaning they must swim to breathe, like the great white shark. But sharks are a large family, and many don't need to swim to breathe—there are more shark species that don't need to swim than those that do.
Virtually all bottom-dwelling sharks can breathe without swimming. For example, the nurse shark, which earned Xiao Peng the nickname "Shark Whisperer," can breathe without swimming. There are even sharks that can breathe without water: the epaulette sharks found in Australia and Sumatra can walk on their pectoral fins and even live on land for short periods.
"What are you going to do with this fish?" Xiao Peng asked.
Aruba was stunned after hearing this and said directly: "Xiao, what are you going to do?"
"Eat!" Xiao Peng said concisely.
It would be nice to pair a table with seafood.
"Xiao, why don't you change to another fish? I have sea bass here. This wobbegong is not tasty!" Aruba said directly.
Xiao Peng smiled and said, "Why don't you let me try?"
Aruba was not stingy and directly gave the shark to Xiao Peng and also gave him a sea bass.
Xiao Peng pointed in the direction of Papa and said, "You've come back at a good time. They're taking photos over there. There are a lot of girls from other villages. You should go quickly."
Papa's eyes lit up: "I'll put the fishing net back home first!"
He left immediately after he finished speaking. The word "girl" was too tempting for him. Why did he catch so many fish today? Wasn't it just to show off?
Ilka frowned at the huge shark and said, "Master, you should listen to Aruba's advice. This fish is really not tasty. When I was back home, it was something only people who couldn't afford to eat would eat!"
Xiao Peng's face darkened after hearing this.
"Ilka, do you eat offal there?" Xiao Peng asked.
"Eat! When I was in my hometown, the only meat I could find from childhood to adulthood was basically offal. It was not until I became a 'Vowed Maiden' that I could really eat meat!" Ilka answered directly.
Xiao Peng's face was filled with black lines. This answer was different from the script.
But after hearing Ilka's words, his heart softened slightly. What had this girl been through? Wasn't the status of rural women in Albania so low? Didn't becoming a 'sworn virgin' mean becoming a man? Only then could one eat meat?
As expected, people's happiness and unhappiness are determined by comparison. The more places you travel to and the more things you see, the happier you feel.
"Ilka, I'll let you experience some different food today! It's different from what you've eaten before!" Xiao Peng said.
Xiao Peng took the wobbegong and rinsed it thoroughly. He then boiled a pot of water nearby and placed the wobbegong in it for a long time. Then, he took out a dagger and began scraping the "sand" off the shark's skin. The shark's skin was essentially like sand, and this was a lengthy process. Once he was done, Xiao Peng began cleaning the shark's internal organs.
Shark liver is a good thing, but... alas, if you eat it directly, the bloody smell is too strong, and it can easily cause vitamin A poisoning. Some people may even experience allergic symptoms, which is also related to a person's physique. Some people can eat shark liver every day without any problem, but Xiao Peng is unwilling to take the risk.
The best way was to extract shark liver oil. But he didn't have the time for that right now, so he chose to discard it. He did, however, keep the shark belly.
Make soup from the fish head and fin. Remove the bones and cut the fish into pieces, leaving the skin on. Sprinkle with ginger and salt, add a little water and cornstarch, and mix well. Coat the fish with egg and flour, then add to the water and boil. When it's almost done, remove any foam from the water, then remove the fish and place it on a plate.
However, there was too much fish meat, so he couldn't cook it all at once. He could only cook it in batches at a time. But he was not in a hurry. After cooking a little, he found a bowl, put minced ginger and salt in it, poured in the fish soup made from shark fin and fish head, and finally sprinkled with chopped green onion, put the prepared shark meat in the fish soup and added white pepper powder.
"Come, Ilka, try what the food you said only people who can't afford to eat would eat tastes like." Xiao Peng handed her the bowl.
Ilka took the bowl and asked in confusion, "What is this?"
Xiao Peng explained, "You could call it shark slip, but I'm not quite satisfied. After all, the conditions here aren't good enough. For example, it shouldn't be coated with egg flour, but sweet potato flour. Also, the soup should be seasoned with pork bone broth and fish sauce. The fish head soup is just a compromise of the original broth and the original ingredients. I'm not sure if it will taste good this way, so why don't you try it and see how it tastes?"
Ilka picked up a piece of fish with a spoon and put it in her mouth. After taking just one bite, her eyes lit up: "Mmm! Mmm! Mmm!"
Xiao Peng said helplessly: "Ilka, is it really that delicious? Your acting is a bit exaggerated! I said, this is missing a lot of ingredients."
"Master!" Ilka finally swallowed the fish in his mouth and directly used a spoon to give Xiao Peng a piece: "Try it!"
Xiao Peng took a bite and said, "Hmm? It tastes pretty good this way!"
Ilka was anxious. "Master! It's more than just 'ok'! The fish meat is so tender, and eating it with the skin, the skin is so sticky and springy with a really nice gelatinous texture! Strange, I've eaten this kind of shark before, and it tasted really fishy, but how come this way it doesn't have that flavor? It's just a delicious fresh taste!"
After she finished speaking, she took a sip of the soup and said, "Oh my God! This soup is amazing, right? This is the first time I've had such delicious soup! Master, are you a professional chef?"
Xiao Peng's face was filled with anguish. "Me? How can I be considered a professional chef? I don't even have a chef's license! I know an amazing chef named Lao Liu, but compared to him, my cooking skills are like those of a child who hasn't grown up yet! He'd probably laugh at the fish I cooked. If I had a chance to let you try his cooking, you wouldn't praise me anymore. You just saw how I did it, didn't you? I'll make something else first. When you're done, put this fish in and cook it and make your own soup."
"Okay, Master!" Ilka quickly put another piece of fish into her mouth. "It's delicious!"
Before she even swallowed the fish in her mouth, she was busy giving a thumbs up and speaking incoherently.
Xiao Peng smiled and said, "Ilka, I suggest you don't eat so much. Save some space for the rest of the dishes I'm making."
"Master, I'm really looking forward to it!" Ilka said, "I'm not lying to you. I wasn't looking forward to it just now because I've been eating these things since I was a child, but now I'm really looking forward to it!"
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