When the announcement was made to prepare Pickled Pork, everyone was very excited. They even wanted to @ Xu Xinhua, who was on his day off, to let him feel the pain of craving something he couldn’t have from a distance.
After Ou Hua arrived, the sense of anticipation dwindled significantly. Two fewer servings wouldn’t be satisfying at all, but being able to taste it was fine too. Since the boss had made it, there would surely be no shortage of Pickled Pork in the future. Today was just for taste-testing; there would be plenty of time later!
However, as soon as Boss Hu arrived, everyone’s spirits plummeted. They couldn’t even taste the dish anymore... Like Ou Hua, Boss Hu didn’t ask about the price either. He just paid two hundred yuan and left with the food.
Lin Xu smiled helplessly. "We won’t make it today. Let’s have Pickled Pork tomorrow instead."
It was already after three in the afternoon. Even if they rushed the preparation, it wouldn’t be ready until at least five-thirty. By then, the shop would already be busy. Even if it were ready, they wouldn’t be able to manage serving it, so it would be better to prepare more tomorrow.
To avoid dampening everyone’s enthusiasm, Lin Xu said to Ma Zhiqiang, "Zhiqiang, add some more meat when you cook the stew later. Let everyone have their fill."
Ma Zhiqiang wiped his hands and replied, "Adding too much meat to the stew can make it greasy. I’ll go buy some tofu and fry some dried tofu instead. Dried tofu tastes very good in stew. It’s better than adding more meat."
"Then go ahead, and remember to have Tiantian reimburse you for the tofu."
Occasionally, they needed to buy things from the nearby supermarket for the shop. Lin Xu’s policy was for whoever made the purchase to pay upfront and then get reimbursed by Song Tiantian upon presenting the supermarket receipt. This method didn’t interfere with Song Tiantian’s work and simplified accounting.
Ma Zhiqiang didn’t linger. He went straight to the supermarket next door to buy tofu.
Before long, he returned with a large piece of tofu. At the door, he handed the payment receipt for the tofu to Song Tiantian. After receiving his reimbursement, Ma Zhiqiang immediately went to the kitchen and said to Lin Xu, "Boss, the supermarket’s tofu looked really good, so I bought extra. I’m planning to braise it with the Braised Chicken Feet stock. Such perfect stock would be wasted on just Braised Chicken Feet."
This was the advantage of having an experienced chef: they had their own ideas and could create new dishes based on the shop’s available ingredients and local conditions. Actually, Lin Xu had also considered braising some dried tofu before. But the shop was too busy, and since dried tofu wouldn’t sell for much, he hadn’t acted on it. Since Ma Zhiqiang wanted to try it, Lin Xu let him. If it sold well, the shop would have another side dish to go with drinks.
Ma Zhiqiang set up a wok, poured in the oil previously used for frying meat, and lit the fire to heat it. When the oil reached medium-high heat, he took a block of tofu in his left hand. He dipped his knife in water to prevent the tofu from sticking, then swiftly began slicing the tofu he held. As the knife neared his hand with each cut, a deft flick sent a slice of tofu, about half a centimeter thick, sliding off the blade and into the hot oil. His speed was incredible. With a few swift strokes—SWISH, SWISH, SWISH—he sliced the entire block of tofu he was holding.
"Chef Ma, your Knife Skills are impressive!" Che Zai had never seen anything like it and found it fascinating.
Ma Zhiqiang smiled. "For chefs who regularly work banquets, this is just a basic skill. I once fried over two hundred pounds of tofu in a single session—so much that my hands grew too tired to even hold the tofu properly."
Over two hundred pounds? Goodness! Just cutting and frying all that tofu would take half a day, wouldn’t it? No wonder banquet chefs are paid so well. With such a heavy workload, no one would do it if the salary weren’t high enough.
Soon, the wok was full of tofu slices. Ma Zhiqiang set down his knife and gently stirred the tofu with a large spoon to prevent the pieces from sticking together. Among deep-fried ingredients, tofu is relatively simple to cook. Due to its high water content, you can fry it directly over high heat without worrying about it burning. Once the tofu slices turned golden brown and floated lightly to the surface, he scooped them out with a strainer, let the oil drain, and then started frying the next batch.
After all the tofu slices were fried, Ma Zhiqiang moved the oil wok aside and switched to a clean wok. He poured in some of the stock from the Braised Chicken Feet. Once it was hot, he set aside the fried tofu needed for the stew and added the rest to the simmering stock. The surface moisture of the fried tofu had completely evaporated, leaving them like small sponges. Upon being submerged, they rapidly began to soak up the stock. Once the stock in the wok came to a boil, Ma Zhiqiang turned the heat down to low, maintaining a gentle simmer just below a rolling boil. Dried tofu braised this way over low heat would become infused with rich flavor from the stock. Each piece would be incredibly juicy, almost bursting with savory liquid at every bite—truly delicious.
While the dried tofu was braising, Ma Zhiqiang grabbed a handful of glass noodles from the storage room and soaked them in warm water. A good stew is incomplete without glass noodles. Delicious glass noodles not only add a finishing touch to the dish but also enrich its overall texture. Slurping up glass noodles that had absorbed the flavorful broth offered a mouthful of rich taste.
Then, based on the appetites of the staff, he chopped two heads of Cabbage. The best vegetable for stew is napa cabbage, but since it wasn’t in season, he had to use Cabbage as a substitute. Lastly, he sliced some Crispy Meat and also diagonally cut the dried tofu (the portion set aside earlier for the stew) into smaller pieces. He cut it diagonally because this made it easier for the tofu to absorb the broth, enhancing its flavor.
Next, he began to prepare the stew. He heated some oil in a wok and added half a spoonful of lard. Once the oil was hot, he added the sliced pork belly and stir-fried it over high heat. When the pork belly slices became translucent and began to render their fat, he added Scallion and Ginger and dried chili. He stir-fried them for a moment before adding salt, Light Soy Sauce, Dark Soy Sauce, and white sugar. After stir-frying the seasonings until evenly distributed, he added several bowls of Pork Bone Broth. He brought it to a boil, then added the Cabbage, dried tofu, Crispy Meat, and glass noodles. After simmering for a while, he added some Celery sticks, Carrot slices, and wood ear mushrooms as complementary ingredients. When the broth in the wok thickened slightly, he seasoned it with a little more salt and drizzled in some Seasoning Oil. After a final stir to combine everything, the stew was ready.
"It looks so easy," remarked Che Zai, whom Song Tiantian had dubbed the ’floor tile of back kitchen culinary skills’. He thought there was no real trick to making stew; you just threw in good ingredients. What was so hard about that?
But Lin Xu knew better. This dish might appear simple, but it had its intricacies. For example, Ma Zhiqiang had used several rich ingredients: pork belly, lard, Pork Bone Broth, and Crispy Meat. Therefore, he deliberately included Celery to balance the dish’s richness. Furthermore, Cabbage can have a slightly bitter taste compared to napa cabbage, so Ma Zhiqiang had added some naturally sweet Carrot slices to counteract this. Additionally, adding salt at the end ensured that both the ingredients and the broth were properly seasoned. If the salt were added too early, all the saltiness would concentrate in the broth, leaving the vegetables bland.
Indeed, making stew wasn’t difficult, but pairing the ingredients correctly was an art form. Master that, and even a simple vegetable stew could be incredibly appetizing.
As Lin Xu was contemplating this, a system notification suddenly sounded in his mind: "Congratulations to the Host for comprehending the Qualified Level cooking Technique—Mix & Match. This Skill can aid the Host in making mixed stews, braised dishes, and ’hog-killing dishes’."
Holy moly! There’s a reward for this too?
Just as he was feeling joyful, Shen Guofu, the Bentley owner, pushed open the shop door. "Brother Lin, is the Pickled Pork ready yet? Hmm? What’s that delicious smell? Is there another surprise today besides the Pickled Pork?"