Chef Hua
Chapter 520 - 280

Chapter 520: 280

The rule at Daoxiang Garden was that the dishes offered on the takeaway stand had to be changed every two days. Even though these were mostly quick-cooked dishes that only required a couple of stirs before they were ready, and were made with common ingredients found around the marketplace, they were very popular. Over time, many customers buying takeaways even turned "guessing today’s dishes" into a form of entertainment. If their favorite flavors were absent for several days in a row, they would relentlessly nag the chef.

Hua Xiaomai moved closer without greeting Zhou Yunyun and craned her neck to have a look.

Today, the standout dishes on the takeaway stand included Fried Double Crispy, scallion chicken slices, and Fried Tofu. A large pot of fresh lotus soup had been simmering since the shop opened in the morning. By noon, the soup had turned snow-white and sweet-tasting. For just four copper coins, one could enjoy a big bowl of it after the meal. Having those couple of sips added a refreshing sense of fullness, almost as if one had gained extra strength.

In addition to these few dishes, there was also a jar of Shiitake Mushroom Cubes placed conspicuously on the stand.

This dish was one of Master Tan’s specialties, prepared with pork belly and including diced shiitake mushrooms, minced scallions, a couple of spoonfuls of dried fermented black beans, and chili sauce during the stir-frying process. It was oily and shiny with a rich sauce. It might be slightly too salty to eat alone, but spooned over rice, it would blend perfectly: spicy, aromatic, and fresh with the grains. According to Madam Meng, even without any other dishes, with just a small bowl of Shiitake Mushroom Cubes, she could happily devour two large bowls of rice. It was indeed an excellent appetizer.

Unlike the other proper dishes on the takeaway stand, the Shiitake Mushroom Cubes were free. They were just placed there for customers to help themselves. Ever since Master Tan brought it to Daoxiang Garden, it had been very popular.

Hua Xiaomai looked around the edges of the crowd for a while, then squeezed herself in discreetly, heading towards Zhou Yunyun.

At that moment, the girl was busily preparing Fried Double Crispy.

"Double Crispy," a term that referred to both duck kidneys and pork kidneys, required utmost attention when stir-fried in oil. It was crucial to prevent the meat from bleeding while ensuring that both ingredients remained crisp when eaten. If they were removed from the heat too soon, an off aftertaste could remain. But if left on the heat for a bit too long, both would become overcooked and would no longer do justice to their name in the dish.

Zhou Yunyun was known for her efficiency. Heating the wok, warming the oil, adding the ingredients, seasoning... She did each step swiftly and still had to deal with the incessant urging of the customers. Although she looked a bit tense, her actions were flawless. In no time, she had the dish ready, served it into a food container, handed it to La Mei with a shy smile, and went back to cooking the next order.

She was in the midst of a rush when she heard a cheerful female voice: "This Fried Double Crispy looks really good, I’ll have a portion too."

She quickly looked up and saw Hua Xiaomai and Madam Meng in the crowd, her face immediately flushed red.

"Master, stop causing trouble. Can’t you see how busy it is right now?"

Today was only her second day in charge of the takeaway stand, but it was the first time she had to cook in front of Hua Xiaomai, which inevitably made her a little anxious.

"When have I ever caused trouble? It really does look good. Can’t I even have a taste?" Hua Xiaomai tilted her head and whispered, "You’re quite bold, aren’t you? Fried Double Crispy is a dish that really tests a cook’s skill, and yet you dare to take it on?"

"I had Master Tan and Master Wang try it, and only after they both said it was good did I..." Zhou Yunyun continued to work non-stop as she spoke hastily, "Master, can we talk about this later? I really can’t take a break right now."

"You go ahead with your work; I’ll head inside first."

Hua Xiaomai didn’t want to tease her further, so she patted Zhou Yunyun on the shoulder and exchanged a few words with the diners around before heading into the hall and straight into the kitchen.

Wang Zhanrui and Master Tan were also busy preparing dishes. When they saw her come in, they just turned their heads to greet her. Wang Zhanrui nodded towards the direction of the bamboo forest in the northeast corner, "A family from the city seems to have come to Fire Knife Village to enjoy the autumn scenery. They stumbled upon our Daoxiang Garden set amidst the picturesque countryside, and since it happened to be mealtime, they sat down in that bamboo forest and ordered two dishes. Master Tan and I are preparing them now; take a look and see if there’s anything amiss..."

"No need to look." Hua Xiaomai smiled at him and said, "Both of you masters have superb cooking skills and are extremely experienced in the food industry. With you both in charge, I can afford to slack off."

These words weren’t spoken lightly — the take-away stall at the door was now reliably managed by Zhou Yunyun, at least it appeared so today; the restaurant and the kitchen in the back garden were in the capable hands of these two chefs, and all those miscellaneous tasks, big and small, Chun Xi and La Mei would handle on her behalf, making her, the actual owner, the most leisurely one of all.

Looking at the situation, besides collecting money, it seemed that she might not have anything else to do — could it be... she could now comfortably laze around and focus on raising children!

Wang Zhanrui gave a response but said nothing further, walking away to the side.

So Hua Xiaomai began to wander aimlessly around the kitchen, inspected the fresh vegetables, fruits, and fish that had been delivered that day, and opened a cabinet in the corner. Before she could see clearly what was inside, a strong scent of Chinese medicine hit her.

She instinctively stepped back, blinked her eyes, but then saw several packages of medicinal herbs in the cabinet, and furrowed her brows.

"Who’s sick?" She turned to look at the two chefs and said, "Don’t keep the medicinal herbs in the kitchen; the scent is so strong. If it gets absorbed into the ingredients, it’ll spoil the flavor of the dishes when cooking!"

"It’s not that." Wang Zhanrui, handling the wok with the speed of the wind, stole a glance over, "No one’s sick; the herbs were picked up from the pharmacy today when Ji Xiang went into town for purchases."

"If no one’s ill, then why get the herbs?" Hua Xiaomai took another look at the medicinal herbs, "Dong quai, poria... wow, these aren’t cheap items either. And, Wang Zhanrui, as a man, you don’t seem to need these, do you?"

Wang Zhanrui, seemingly a bit impatient, stir-fried a couple of times before frowning and saying, "For medicinal cuisine." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket, monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile phone users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)