Chef Hua
Chapter 513: Episode 277 - A Foot of Silver in the Market_2

Chapter 513: Episode 277 - A Foot of Silver in the Market_2

The only thing that caused her distress was Meng’s old mother.

Her mother-in-law had not addressed her for many days now; she came to the shop as usual every day, eyes fixed tightly on her every move, but consistently refused to speak a single word to her. On the occasions when their gazes met, Meng’s old mother would immediately shift her eyes away, treating her as though she were invisible or a lifeless object.

Quite a temper she has... Hua Xiaomai quietly scoffed to herself. However, things have been busy lately, and I’m afraid it’ll only be after the birthday banquet that I’ll have a chance to have a proper talk with her.

The twelfth of September was fast approaching, which was the actual day of Qiao Xiong’s father-in-law’s birthday banquet.

The row of wooden houses beside the fishpond had been tidied up early that morning. The banquet occupied three rooms, which were all redecorated anew—with birthday candles, birthday couplets, and birthday paintings fully embellishing the space, radiating an air of merriment.

On each table inside, birthday peaches and various fruits were, of course, indispensable, but what stood out most was the freshly-marketed Buddha’s hand. Not only did it symbolize good fortune, but its attractive shape and the sweet and tangy scent of the fruit immediately assaulted one’s senses upon entering the room, bringing a refreshing lightness to one’s being.

Qiao Xiong’s father-in-law obviously liked this garden very much; longing for the rural scenery he hadn’t seen in a long time, the moment he stepped into Daoxiang Garden, his smile never ceased, and the wrinkles on his face seemed to unfold.

It was unavoidable that relatives attending the banquet would bring along their children, causing a noisy crowd. One child clamored to see fish by the pond, another fussed to play with the Buddha’s hand. Before anyone had even taken their seats, the commotion was uproarious. Qing You and a few other boys, helped by a couple of girls, could manage some but not others, creating a bustle of activity.

Hua Xiaomai, just at the sound of the turmoil, already felt a headache coming on. She did not head towards the fishpond, but stayed inside the restaurant, thinking that if Wang Zhanrui and Chef Tan encountered any difficulties with cooking, she could lend a hand, so she kept moving back and forth between the great hall and the kitchen.

Fortunately, the two men were very reliable, and with adequate preparation beforehand, the essential dishes for the birthday banquet came together without much trouble at all, saving Hua Xiaomai the effort and leaving her to just look around idly.

It was during this inspection that she noticed a few knife fish about a foot long in the water basin on the floor.

In autumn, it was not the best time to eat knife fish, for a simple reason: after the summer, the meat of the knife fish becomes tough, or what people refer to as "old knife."

Knife fish were nearly impossible to catch at this season, and she had no idea where Xu Ershun had sourced these from. Hua Xiaomai stared at them for a while, pondering how to cook them to make them delicious.

"Those were caught by Xu Ershun by chance, so he just charged a couple of coins for them. We don’t even have this dish on our menu, so let’s not bother with it. Even if it were prepared, it wouldn’t taste good."

Chef Tan turned around and said this to Hua Xiaomai.

Almost simultaneously, an idea sprouted in Hua Xiaomai’s mind. She smiled at him, "Don’t worry about it, I’ll cook the fish. Consider it an extra dish to celebrate the old master’s birthday."

Saying this, she promptly picked up the fish, laying it on the cutting board.

The knife fish had a silver-white color, with a slender and thin body, and at a glance, indeed looked a bit like a blade. Hua Xiaomai sliced open the fish from its back, preserving the head’s integrity while keeping the belly intact, then soaked it in Shao Wine before putting it over soup to stew. After letting it cool a bit, she removed the central fishbone and delicately picked out the small bones from the flesh with a pair of bamboo tweezers.

These steps not only demanded high Knife Skills but also a great deal of patience, for there are indeed many bones in a fish, and removing them all required significant effort and energy. Once completed, she put the two halves of the fish together and thickly coated them with a sauce made from Salt and Pepper and lard, then steamed them in a pot again.

By this time, the fish flesh was nearly melting away, but its surface skin remained intact. Placed on a plate, the fish still shimmered, glinting silvery and pretty, garnished with a few red and white lotus petal slices, and looked all the more appealing ready to be served.

This dish was called "A Foot of Silver on the Plate," named entirely according to its shape. Though the fish meat was not the tenderest, the repeated stewing and steaming had made it melt in the mouth, and with not a single bone left inside, it became even smoother and more delicate, an excellent choice for an elderly person with poor teeth, a combination of exquisite flavor and texture.

Talking about it like that, this one dish took quite a bit of time to make. Zhou Yunyun, originally assisting Wang Zhanrui with chopping vegetables, couldn’t help but look back from time to time, muttering softly under her breath. Even without hearing clearly, it was obvious she was marveling at something.

"You think it’s troublesome?" Hua Xiaomai looked up and smiled at her, handing the plate to a boy who had run in to carry dishes.

"It is a bit of work, but..." Zhou Yunyun licked her lips, "You’ve said before, to be a chef is to invest effort into it. If I can’t even tolerate this bit of trouble, I probably shouldn’t dream of graduating."

Hua Xiaomai chuckled and did not hurry to respond, only glancing at the finely chopped scallops on the cutting board in front of her and arching an eyebrow.

"Already thinking about graduating? It’s not that easy in my kitchen!"

"I know, I wasn’t thinking, just talking off the cuff." Zhou Yunyun hurriedly shook her head, "Without your word, Master, how would I dare contemplate such a thing?"

"Is that so?" Hua Xiaomai’s smile grew wider, "Well then, the small restaurant has been quite busy these past days, and both Master Wang and Master Tan are worn out. How about you try taking charge of the takeout stand tomorrow noon, what do you think?" (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we welcome you to vote for it with your recommendation ticket and monthly ticket on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to continue reading.)