vrcanaries Chapter 302 Birthday Banquet
Chapter 302 Birthday Banquet
The sisters-in-law were surprised again after hearing what Chef Huang said, and they looked at Zhao Xiaojing differently.
Zhao Xiaojing was surprised and didn't realize anything. She looked at the time and took several pressure cookers that were pressing chickens off the stove, put them aside to wait for the steam to escape, then took a new pressure cooker and put the first batch of pork elbows in.
The pork elbow was fried in advance along with the crispy pork yesterday, and soaked in water for twenty minutes in the morning. Now you just need to add some star anise for seasoning, add some sugar coloring water to color it, and press it for fifty minutes. When the meal is almost ready, simmer it over high heat to reduce the sauce, then put it on a plate and serve.
Around ten o'clock, guests began to come in and out of the yard. The host of the banquet, the old lady of the Wei family, was wearing a red Chinese cotton jacket and was supported by her two grandchildren to sit in the main hall.
Although the old lady was already ninety years old and walked unsteadily, she looked in good spirits and had an easy-going temper. When she entered the yard, she came over to greet and chat with the cooks. When she saw Zhao Xiaojing, she curiously asked if she was Chef Xie's new apprentice.
"Grandma, this is the chef from Jiangcheng whom we specially invited. He prepared a surprise for you, and you discovered it in advance!" The grandson who had met Zhao Xiaojing yesterday said hurriedly, winking at the people busy in the kitchen.
"Yes, old lady, this is not our apprentice, he can be our master!" Chef Huang received his grandson's look and agreed very supportively.
"Good, good, good, you are all filial!" The old lady was surprised and happy when she heard it. She kept clapping her grandson's hands, her eyes narrowed into slits with smile.
The birthday banquet officially began with the arrival of the old lady. Soon, there was the sound of lively firecrackers outside the yard. After a while, there was the excited voice of the host, who was serious and livening up the atmosphere. There seemed to be many children, and the screams and cheers were intermittent.
The six cold dishes had already been prepared and arranged in a long line on a wide rack on one side. Chef Huang's eight-treasure rice had also been put in the steamer, with two layers of steamers and four layers on the side. The time the steamers were put on the rack would be different depending on the start time of the three rounds of meals.
Zhao Xiaojing poured the chickens from several pressure cookers into a large pot, added the chopped mushrooms, and added seasonings. As soon as the soup in the pot boiled, she scooped a small piece of chicken into a small bowl next to it to taste it.
In order to prevent poor performance due to unfamiliarity with the environment, Zhao Xiaojing, the temporary kitchen staff here, entered the virtual space and practiced for more than 200 hours last night. It can be said that she has mastered the heat and seasoning quite accurately. However, to be on the safe side, it is safest to taste it herself.
The saltiness and texture of the meat were just right, Zhao Xiaojing was very satisfied, and she covered the pot and continued to stew it until it was tasty.
The noise outside continued. After singing several popular songs that Zhao Xiaojing often heard when she was a child, they started singing operas. As soon as the opera started, the old lady in the main room could no longer sit still and ran out on her own, leaning on her crutches. A group of Wei family relatives hurriedly followed her and supported her, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
In the meantime, the eldest daughter-in-law came out and squatted to peel a large basket of water chestnuts, which made Zhao Xiaojing even more curious. One moment was glutinous rice, the next moment was water chestnuts. Could it be that the relatives were making desserts?
At eleven o'clock, the first round of the buffet began, and the fifteen tables outside were full. Six cold dishes were served first, and three apprentices carried large trays back and forth to serve the dishes. Zhao Xiaojing and Master Huang were busy making hot dishes, and the remaining three sisters-in-law quickly served the hot dishes.
Zhao Xiaojing's four hot pots were ready. After the three apprentices served the cold dishes, the three sisters-in-law had assembled fifteen family portraits, and then took the pots to start putting beef in. After the apprentices finished serving the beef hot pot, the remaining pork ribs hot pot and chicken hot pot were also ready.
Master Huang took down the two layers of steamers in front of him and opened them. Together with the three sisters-in-law, he carefully used tongs to pick up the bowl. After peeling off the plastic wrap on it, he held the plate in his left hand and held the bowl in his right hand with a rag. He quickly buckled it down and then lifted the bowl in his right hand. The braised pork with preserved vegetables was beautifully served on a plate.
The four of them moved very quickly. It took less than thirty seconds from opening the steamer to completing the fifteen bowls. The bowls were still sizzling hot when the two apprentices served them.
Meicaikourou is also a classic dish at banquets. Although it is not complicated to make, the process is extremely time-consuming. It takes at least 30 minutes to cook the pork. After cooking, small holes must be pierced in the skin of the pork. After the holes are pierced, it must be painted. After that, it must be air-dried for a while before being deep-fried in a pan. Then, it must be rinsed with cold water, skinned, sliced and marinated. After marinating, it must be arranged in a bowl one by one, and the dried plums must be stir-fried in the middle. After the water is completely stir-fried, pour in the broth to season and collect the juice. Finally, cover the meat with a little moisture in a slightly dry state, and then steam it in a steamer for three hours. The whole process takes at least four hours.
It was too late to make this dish on the same day, so Zhao Xiaojing made it in advance yesterday, put it in a bowl and steamed it for two and a half hours. Today, it only needs to be steamed for half an hour, and the taste will be better.
"Chef Huang, can I lend you two trays?" The eldest daughter-in-law hurried out of the kitchen, borrowed a serving tray and went back into the kitchen. Zhao Xiaojing and Chef Huang knew that the Min dishes for their relatives were ready, so they stretched their necks to take a look. Soon, the eldest and second daughters-in-law came out with trays. The first tray contained brown blocks that looked like rice cakes, and the second tray contained red and white balls of vegetables covered with beautiful sauce.
"What kind of dish is that?" Seeing the finished product, not only Zhao Xiaojing was curious, but the sister-in-law behind her also asked curiously.
"I don't know about the first one, but the second one might be lychee flesh?" Master Huang looked at it uncertainly for several times.
In the kitchen opposite, two people walked three times before serving the two dishes. After that, the relatives followed out and entered the main hall where the host family was sitting. As soon as they entered the main hall, there was another round of lively shouting.
Zhao Xiaojing was worried. Would Chef Min only cook for one round? Would she not be able to taste the dishes she was looking forward to because she also had to cook?
Zhao Xiaojing helplessly lowered her head and shook the big pot. The fifteen fish in the pot had already absorbed their juices. She called out to the sisters-in-law to come over and take the pot. Zhao Xiaojing also took the chopped green onion and red pepper shreds, and the sisters-in-law immediately began a new round of plating.
The first batch of pork elbows in the pressure cooker here has also reached its time. Zhao Xiaojing opens it easily by twisting the lid lightly. She takes a look at the color and sees that it is not bad. She continues to pour the juice into a new pot.
It was time to cook the eight-treasure rice in the bottom two layers of Chef Huang’s four-layer steamer. He and his apprentice moved all four layers of the steamer down, and then put the top two layers back into the steamer. The sisters-in-law on the side immediately took over the boiling hot steamers and started to cover the bowls with the eight-treasure rice.
After the pork elbow had absorbed all its juice, Zhao Xiaojing went to another stove and found a large pot that her apprentice had just cleaned, and started making the last two dishes.