Quick Transmigration: The Supporting Female Lead Stays Out of It - Chapter 8: Chef 7

Pickled bean dregs, this kind of ingredient, is a specialty of the Zongzi Kingdom. The Zongzi Kingdom was a tribal state established by the remnants of the Xia and Shang dynasties, clinging to a corner and attempting to restore the old order. Later, it was annihilated by the famous general Zikong of the previous dynasty. Although it is still called the Zongzi Kingdom, it is actually just a county of the Great Chu.

Lin Dan didn’t expect that someone in such a remote place would also know about it, and would even describe in detail the production process of this local specialty, and couldn’t help but look at the handsome man. The man met her gaze, and in the end, he continued to munch on his dry rations.

The sliced cured meat in the pot was already entirely coated with a layer of pickled bean dregs, and the rich oil was constantly making a crackling sound after boiling, and releasing a strong fragrance. Lin Dan looked away and said to the little girl squatting beside her: “You can pour in the water now.”

The little girl immediately poured the water from the earthenware jar slowly into the pot. As the water flowed in, the already unappetizing dish became even more turbid, but the pungent smell of the pickles was greatly reduced, instead stimulating the fragrance of the beans and the smoky aroma of the cured meat, bringing out the original flavor.

This change in aroma was immediately blown away by the spring wind, spreading everywhere. The three men sitting not far away couldn’t help but sniff, and the originally somewhat dry mouths immediately secreted a lot of saliva, so that they could easily swallow the hard flatbread without even needing to drink water. But now, looking at the hard flatbread again, they had a feeling that they couldn’t eat it.

Lin Dan completely disregarded the feelings of certain people, and seemed to feel that the food in the pot wasn’t delicious enough, so she added several seasonings respectively, and stirred it slowly with a spatula. The soup was already boiling, bubbling, and the white steam was carrying a domineering fragrance, spreading everywhere, attacking everyone’s nostrils and taste buds.

The little girl, swallowing her saliva, asked: “Master, you put in the Sichuan peppercorns only after the soup has been boiling for so long, won’t it be insufficiently flavorful?”

Lin Dan said slowly: “These are rattan peppercorns, not Sichuan peppercorns. Sichuan peppercorns are numbing, while rattan peppercorns are numbing with a hint of astringency. Boiling them for too long will make the food bitter, so you have to add them later. The numbing taste of the rattan peppercorns is actually more authentic than that of the Sichuan peppercorns. There’s no need to stir-fry them in oil; just put them in boiling water and boil them for fifteen minutes to bring out a refreshing, numbing and spicy flavor.”

The little girl nodded to show that she had been taught, and Lin Dan then put the sliced bamboo shoots into the pot and cooked them for a while, and in the end, she rolled three or five strands of washed wild green onions into a bundle, ready to put them into the pot.

The little girl quickly grabbed her sleeve and said with confusion: “Master, you once said that the most taboo thing in cooking is turbidity, but why is your pickled bean dregs stewed cured meat like this? This dish already has a strong flavor, and you’re still putting in these pungent wild mountain onions. Don’t let it ruin the flavor in the end, and then we can’t eat it! I think the taste is already very good now, and there’s no need to add any other seasonings.”

Lin Dan smiled and looked at her, and explained softly: “Do you remember the seasoning methods I taught you? Heavy-flavored dishes require the use of the flavor-enhancing method to highlight the richness of the dishes; light-flavored dishes require the use of the flavor-reducing method to highlight the freshness and fragrance of the dishes; there are also the mixed method, the flavor-changing method, and so on. Now I’m using the flavor-enhancing method, adding the sour and spicy flavor of the pickled bean dregs to the smoked saltiness of the cured meat. After the two are mixed together, the numbness of the rattan peppercorns is added. The sour, spicy, and numbing three flavors are slightly turbid, and at this time, the wild mountain onions are added, then the slightly sweet, slightly astringent, and slightly bitter flavors are added, along with the strange fragrance of the wild green onions mixing into the strange stench of the pickled bean dregs, making the flavors progress layer by layer and enhance layer by layer, and that’s how a good dish is made.

The so-called taboo of turbidity does not mean that the fewer seasonings you add, the better, but rather that the more distinct the flavors are, the better. It emphasizes the layering, not the appearance. Moreover, there is mutual gain and loss between the flavors. Sourness can reduce saltiness, and saltiness can add sweetness, which is also very wonderful. Therefore, when I stir-fried this dish, I didn’t put the cured meat into boiling water to cook, because the sourness of the pickled bean dregs will weaken the saltiness of the cured meat. The taste will be bland if you blanch it, so you must pay attention to it in the future.”

Lin Dan said as she stirred the wild green onions into the pot lightly, and the bean dregs soup, which was originally in a clump, immediately became white, red, and green, and the colors became very beautiful, and a strong, indescribably fragrant smell permeated everywhere.

The little girl, swallowing her saliva, sighed: “Master, you are really amazing! After adding the wild mountain onions, the taste of this pot of soup is indeed different again! One pot of food has changed its flavor three times in a row. If you hadn’t said it, I really wouldn’t have thought it could be done like this.”

Lin Dan chuckled and said, “Then let me test you, what’s the reason for adding the bamboo shoot slices?”

“The bamboo shoots and cured meat are always cooked together, so the flavor is even better.” The little girl, who had just learned to cook, was still at the stage of being muddled.

Lin Dan explained patiently: “Pickled bean dregs and cured meat are both pickled foods, and although the taste is good, they have a biggest weakness, and that is the lack of freshness. These bamboo shoot slices are used to enhance the freshness and can make up for the deficiency of the dishes. You all taste it, after adding the bamboo shoot slices, does your tongue feel a fresh and lively sensation?”

Lin Dan scooped a bit of soup with a spoon and handed it to the little girl’s mouth.

The little girl took a careful sip and immediately gave a thumbs up: “It’s really fresh! Master, you’ve brought this dish to life!”

Lin Dan smiled and shook her head, and then she shouted to the servants, who had already drooled all over the place: “Alright, everyone can eat now.”

“It’s time to eat, it’s time to eat! Bring the bowls and chopsticks!” The crowd, who had already gathered around, served the food at the fastest speed, ladled the dishes, and buried their heads in eating. The clanging sound of chopsticks hitting bowls and dishes, the hissing sound of tongues rolling up food, and the gurgling sound of swallowing, the eager way they ate was like they had been starving for several days.

The little girl was sweating profusely and her cheeks were flushed as she ate, and she couldn’t help but sigh: “Master, since you got sick, we haven’t eaten a full meal for a long time. After getting used to eating what you make, the other things really don’t taste good.”

Lin Dan rubbed her head, her eyes showing fondness, and she ate a few mouthfuls casually and then went back to the carriage to lie down. Her illness hadn’t gotten better yet, and she had been exposed to the smoke and flames just now, and her throat started to hurt again.

The two burly men sitting not far away had already been unable to swallow their flatbreads while Lin Dan was cooking. They all stretched their necks to look at the large pot, and even the cold-tempered leader looked several times, unable to restrain himself, and the speed of swallowing the flatbreads became slower and slower. When Lin Dan began to talk about the seasoning method of this dish, he couldn’t eat the flatbreads at all, and simply threw away the water bag and stood up to listen attentively.

Lin Dan’s voice was very slow and gentle, and the words she used were also very vivid and lively. Even if they couldn’t clearly see the food in the pot, just by listening to her description and then smelling the smell, they could imagine how wonderful the taste of this pot of pickled bean dregs stewed cured meat would be. When the servants started to snatch the food, this imagination turned into reality, making the three of them’s stomachs rumble like drums, their mouths watering, and their hunger assailing them wave after wave.

“Damn it, I can’t take it anymore!” The carefree, burly man wiped his shining mouth with his sleeve.

“Such a big pot of food, do you think they can finish eating it?” Another burly man asked hopefully.

The handsome man didn’t answer, but his phoenix eyes stared at the large pot uncontrollably, and his Adam’s apple moved slightly, as if he was swallowing his saliva.

The three of them were silent for a while. Seeing that the people over there were putting chopsticks into the pot one after another, they were picking up cured meat and bamboo shoot slices, bamboo shoot slices and wild mountain onions, and in the end, even scooping out the bean dregs soup and mixing it with rice. They couldn’t sit still anymore.

“Brother Zhao, go ask them if there’s any leftover food, and we’ll buy it.” The carefree, burly man elbowed his companion.

Zhao Liu muttered in a low voice: “Why don’t you go?”

“Didn’t I just scold that little boy? I’m also a person who values face!”

“Brother Luotou, you want face and I don’t?” As soon as the words were out, a gust of wind blew the rich aroma of the food over, the numbing, spicy, and sour flavors mixed with the smoked saltiness of the cured meat, before even eating it, they already had a feeling of unbridled joy, it was simply alluring!

“Damn, I don’t want this face, I’ll go over and ask right away!” Zhao Liu immediately put aside his face and ran over with two taels of silver.

The little boy, who had been ruthlessly rejected and ridiculed by the two before, took a lot of effort to lift his face out of the bowl, and said with a roll of his eyes: “With so little food, six of us are eating it, how can we not finish it?”

“We can buy it with money, can’t we?” Zhao Liu took out two taels of silver, and smiled very obsequiously. The firewood had been burning continuously, and the soup had been boiling continuously, and it smelled so good that it was almost impossible to resist! He couldn’t move after approaching the large pot, and his mouth was drooling.

“No.” The little boy bypassed him and walked to the side of the pot, scooped a few slices of cured meat, and then scooped a few bamboo shoot slices and wild mountain onions, and gobbled them into his mouth, completely without time to talk.

Zhao Liu stared at his oil-slicked mouth, and his expression was somewhat pitiful.

It seemed that he felt his subordinates were somewhat shameful, the handsome man gave a low order: “Come back.”

Zhao Liu looked at the little boy’s soup-soaked rice, then looked at the boiling pot, and finally came back unwillingly. The three of them, with a common goal, picked up their water bags and drank water, and got a full of water, their mouths became more and more tasteless. After sitting for a while, they each took a piss, and the water they drank immediately disappeared, and the three of them were even hungrier, and their eyes, staring at the large pot, were somewhat green.

The little boy was frightened by the gaze of the few of them, and couldn’t help but think: The day after tomorrow will be our parting, and the afternoon and evening might be useful for these three people, so let’s give them a little charity, and then he used a spatula to scoop out the remaining meat slices and soup, and put them in a large bowl and said loudly: “There’s still a little stewed food left, do you want it?”

“Yes, yes, yes, thank you, this little brother!” Zhao Liu, who couldn’t sit still, ran over at the fastest speed, and although the other two tried their best to conceal it, their Adam’s apples were still moving uncontrollably.

The soup that had been stewed to the very end was the essence. The cured meat was already well-cooked, and the bean dregs had also been half-melted. The appearance didn’t look very good, but the taste was absolutely superb. They broke the flatbreads and put them into the bowl to soak up the soup, and then took a big bite. The hard and dry texture was immediately replaced by the soft, glutinous, sour, salty, numbing, spicy, and fresh taste, making them want to swallow their tongues.

The three big men squeezed together, head to head, each holding a piece of steamed bun dipped in soup, and even sandwiched the cured meat between two pieces of the bun, eating eagerly in large mouthfuls. In the end, there was a little soup left, and the handsome man’s phoenix eyes widened, and the other two didn’t dare to move, watching with tears as their leader broke the buns and tossed them into the bowl, slurping it all up clean.

When Zhao Liu returned the bowl, his face was flushed. It was because the bowl was too clean, even shinier than if it had been washed with water.