NABC Chapter 92 The Chef
Chapter 92 The Chef
After Xiaowei finished mopping the floor clean, Xia Maosheng and the other two returned carrying groceries.
The four of them took off their coats and started packing: picking and washing vegetables, cutting meat and chopping ribs. The fish was frozen and needed to be thawed in water.
There weren't enough plates at home. Before, Xiaowei didn't know any better and didn't pay attention, so he just used whatever he could find, such as lunchboxes, small bowls, and big bowls. Now that he's been learning for two months and considers himself an expert, he wanted to be more professional. So he went downstairs to the general store and bought ten sets of plates and bowls, as well as a fish plate and soup bowl.
He also grabbed a few pairs of slippers, as there weren't enough slippers for the large family. To be honest, in the early 90s, not many families in Northeast China required guests to change their shoes before entering the house; at most, they would mop the floor every day to keep things clean.
At that time, almost all ordinary people's homes had cement floors, and very few used ceramic tiles. There were very few types of decorative materials available, and they were quite expensive. In 1995, a piece of particleboard cost more than 160 yuan.
It wasn't until after 95, with the proliferation of commercial housing and the rise of interior decoration, that things changed. Commercial housing was often unfurnished, while the original welfare housing was ready to move into. Around 2000, a nationwide trend of interior decoration began, marking the end of the welfare housing era.
In the real estate sector, we should thank two people: Li Ka-shing and his second son. Starting in 78, these two worked tirelessly to abolish the welfare housing policy in China. Although they encountered various setbacks, they ultimately defeated all opponents, including President Zhu, and led the nation into the era of commercial housing.
Victory belongs to all of humanity.
Washing dishes, chopping vegetables and arranging them on plates, preparing ingredients and meat, cutting and marinating the meat, and making sweet and sour sauce—while everything else was done, the fish was ready. Xia Maosheng rolled up his sleeves and taught Xiao Wei how to prepare the fish. The knife fish was simple: just cut off the head, tail, and fins, open the belly through the vent to remove the internal organs, and then cut it into sections. The kingfish was a bit more troublesome; you couldn't damage the belly.
Xia Maosheng took three chopsticks, pried open the kingfish's mouth, and inserted the chopsticks into the mouth. He then inserted them one by one along the fish's flesh wall in different directions until he reached the bottom of the fish's belly. He then pinched all three chopsticks together and twisted them around. After twisting them a full circle, he pulled them out through the fish's mouth. The entire internal organs, including the gills, were tangled in the chopsticks and pulled out.
Then rinse the fish by pouring water into its mouth, place it on a cutting board, and use a slicing knife to make diagonal cuts along the gills, being careful not to cut through the bones. After making cuts on both sides, place it on a plate. The ingredients are now ready. The next step is preliminary processing: deep-frying.
Except for green peppers and dried tofu, all the vegetables need to be deep-fried. For the "Three Treasures of the Earth" dish, the eggplant, potatoes, and green peppers are not coated in oil and are directly deep-fried until cooked through. "Ba Qie Tiao" (braised eggplant strips) involves cutting the eggplant into one-centimeter square strips and deep-frying them directly. However, eggplant absorbs a lot of oil, so after frying, the oil needs to be squeezed out.
Both pork ribs and sweet and sour pork are coated in a hard coating, which means they are directly coated with water and starch without adding anything else. Once coated evenly, they are fried directly. Because the pork slices are large, they must be fried one by one to spread them out.
The kingfish is also fried directly until thoroughly cooked and dry before being taken out.
The knife fish pieces also need to be coated with a soft coating, which is made by adding an egg to water starch, coating them evenly, and then pan-frying them instead of deep-frying them. Once cooked, they are plated and set aside.
With the dishes prepared, we rinsed the rice and started cooking. Of course, steamed buns were also essential. It wasn't necessary, as people in Northeast China mainly eat rice. However, the rice cooker was only so big, and one pot of rice wasn't enough. Steamed buns, on the other hand, could be stored in the rice cooker, which was convenient.
Li Guangzhao went downstairs to buy steamed buns, the kind from the old fat man from Ludong that Chen Xiao had mentioned last time. Yang Tiebin helped Xiao Wei fry the buns. Xia Maosheng was fine now, so he washed his hands and sat down in a chair to make a pager.
A moment later, the phone rang back. Xia Maosheng answered, "Hey? Is this Chen Xiao? Is someone named Chen Hui with you? Hmm? Oh, he got into trouble. Tell him to bring a thousand yuan to our place to pay the fine. What kind of fine? Uh, well, hahaha, damn it, I don't know him, I can't make this up anymore. Um, this is Xia Maosheng. We're at Xiaowei's house. Xiaowei came back from his studies today and is cooking a big meal. He's inviting you guys over for dinner. Um, come early, okay?"
After hanging up the phone, Xia Maosheng laughed and said, "Damn it, my accent is so bad, I can't even fool anyone. People can hear it right away. Next time, I'll have Lao Li try to fool him. Lao Yang won't work either, his accent is too heavy. Xiao Wei won't work either, your personality won't be convincing."
While scooping the meat out with a slotted spoon, Xiao Wei asked, "Is Hui Zi with Xiao Xiao?"
Xia Maosheng stood up, lit a cigarette, leaned against the kitchen door, and said, "Yeah, they're over there. Looks like they're really dating. Not bad. Chen Hui didn't lose out by dating Chen Xiao. This girl is pretty good."
Yang Tiebin washed his hands with soap, and without looking up, said, "There's still money."
Xiao Wei scooped the fried sweet and sour pork out of the oil and placed it on a draining rack, saying, "Are you envious?"
Yang Tiebin said, "Why envy that stuff? It's not like they can't make money. With their spendthrift personalities combined, they could cause their families a lot of trouble. We can't afford to mess with them."
As the oil temperature rose, the last kingfish was added to the pan and fried until the cuts flipped up and the flesh inside turned red. Yang Tiebin nodded and said, "Alright, take it out." Xiao Wei took the fish out and put it on a plate. Fish don't absorb oil, so there's no need to drain it.
Turn off the heat, pour the oil from the large ladle into the oil strainer, and wait for everyone to arrive before starting to stir-fry.
Xiao Wei washed his hands and said, "You guys wait at home, I'll go pick up Xiao Hong."
Xia Maosheng glanced at his watch and nodded, saying, "It's five o'clock, that's about right."
Xiao Wei put on his coat, changed his shoes, and went downstairs. Li Guangzhao, carrying steamed buns, climbed up the stairs, panting, and asked, "Where are you going?"
Xiao Wei stepped aside to let Li Guangzhao pass, saying, "Why did you take so long to buy this? I'm going to pick up Xiao Hong. You guys sit inside and wait for a while. Chen Hui and Chen Xiao will be here soon too. By the way, I don't have any wine in the house. If you want to drink, you'll have to go downstairs to buy some."
Li Guangzhao said, "They're playing mahjong downstairs. I stood there and watched for a bit, but there's nothing else to do upstairs." He then took the steamed buns and went upstairs.
Stepping out of the building, a gust of wind carrying snowflakes blew against his face. Xiao Wei hunched his shoulders, tightened his coat, and trudged through the thin snow toward the Northeast Institute of Technology. The first snowfall brought a sudden change in weather, and it was bitterly cold. Moreover, the snow at this time was mostly fine, icy grains, unlike the sticky snowflakes that fall after winter has truly arrived, which are blown around in clumps by the wind.
Living in this area is great in every way, except it's too close to the lake, so it gets really cold in winter.
He jogged all the way to the north gate of the engineering college. He checked his watch and saw that only a few minutes had passed. He looked into the school and saw that the trees were dark in the snow and swayed a few times when the wind blew through them. The streetlights on campus were already on, and there was no one on the road. In the distance, the red flag on the towering main building fluttered in the wind, as if shouting silently.
The school's teaching area and dormitories are all located on the south and east sides. Restaurants, hotels, and shops are all concentrated around those two gates, making it much more lively than this side. Apart from vehicles and visitors, the north gate area is basically deserted, with nothing but trees.
I lit a cigarette and stood there for a while. The cold air crept up my feet, so I had to keep stomping my feet and glancing into the school gate from time to time.
The small window of the guardhouse opened, and the old man watching the gate asked from inside, "What are you doing?"
Xiao Wei said, "I'm here to pick someone up. I'm too early."
The old man asked, "Who are you picking up? What are you doing?"
Xiao Wei said, "I like to study here. I had military training a few days ago, and I can go home today. I came to pick me up."
The old man sized up Xiao Wei a few times and said, "Come inside. Aren't you afraid of getting cold wearing such thin shoes?" He then slammed the small window shut.