From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Chapter 243: Instructing apprentices to prepare for shortlisting and selection

After sending away all the young chefs from other places who came to Ganfantan, Qianfantan has finally returned to peace.

However, the news that a young chef from out of town came to Fengjiagan Restaurant quickly spread in Quancheng.

After receiving this news, many locals in Quancheng felt very happy.

"We in Quancheng have gained a reputation in the whole province this time. Those young chefs from out of town will immediately go to our Quancheng's best young chef's restaurant to pay homage to the dock."

"Hahaha, yes, the young owner of the Feng Family Restaurant is definitely the best among our young chefs in Quancheng."

"Although he doesn't work as a chef in any big restaurant, he relies on his own skills to open a dry restaurant, and everyone in Quancheng knows that he can cook a handful of meat. That's his ability."

"He is really capable. There is also a dish he created on the menus of Jubinyuan, Taifenglou and Jufengde."

"Hahaha, so I can directly create new dishes and serve as a teacher for the young chefs of those big restaurants. I don't need to go to big restaurants, I just have to do my own business."

These rumors spread in Quancheng, making most people in Quancheng very proud.

Because Feng Zhengming represents the young chefs in Quancheng no matter what.

His appearance in front of young chefs from other places made many locals in Quancheng feel that this was proof that local young chefs in Quancheng were better than young chefs from other places.

Hearing these rumors in Quancheng, Luo Qing's family members were also very happy.

Especially Luo Qing's parents were praised by many old neighbors and colleagues in the family courtyard.

"Your Luo Qing has the foresight to find such an outstanding young man."

"Yes, there are rumors now that Feng Zhengming is our representative of young chefs in Quancheng and a truly outstanding young man."

"He must be an outstanding young man. I estimate that this year's outstanding young man in our Quan City will definitely be awarded to him."

In the eyes of some people before, Feng Zhengming did not have a formal job and was just a self-employed person who opened his own shop. Some people looked down upon Feng Zhengming to some extent.

But now young chefs from other places who came to participate in the Young Chefs Cooking Exchange Competition came to our door.

After a series of events, Feng Zhengming has become the leading young chef in Quancheng.

This changed many people's views on him.

When Luo Qing's parents praised her from her neighbors and colleagues in the family compound, they were naturally filled with pride and always had a smile on their face.

"Our family Xiaoqing is also very good. Now she lives at her uncle's house. In addition to working, she is also attending night school. She is also studying hard to enrich herself. Both of them are good children who pursue advancement."

"We, the old couple, now understand that our son is still not as good as our daughter."

When Luo Qing's parents mentioned Luo Qing's brother, they also felt a headache.

But after what happened last time, Luo Qing's parents were too embarrassed to go find their daughter, let alone Feng Zhengming.

Regarding their son's affairs, the old couple could only let it go.

Feng Zhengming's reputation has spread, and many young chefs from other places, as well as local young chefs in Quancheng, are very motivated. They want to give him a showdown in the cooking exchange competition and defeat him when the time comes.

Master Yan was also a little surprised by his apprentice's growing reputation.

Master took the time to give Feng Zhengming serious instructions.

"Your reputation is a little too famous now, so you must prepare the dishes for the competition well. You must show your true strength. You must be able to win over others with the first dish and convince others."

After listening to the master's words, Feng Zhengming nodded.

"Master, I understand, I will definitely convince them."

Master Yan asked directly: "What dishes have you prepared?"

Feng Zhengming didn't hide anything from his master: "For the first dish, I plan to cook a whole fish and eat it twice."

After hearing this, Master Yan asked: "How are you going to cook fish for two people?"

Feng Zhengming once again told his master how to make two meals.

After hearing this, Master Yan's brows were frivolous and he looked at his young apprentice with a somewhat surprised look.

"You actually want to do two things like that. It seems that during this period, you are not only busy running your dry rice shop, but also constantly improving your cooking skills, so you dare to have such an idea."

When Feng Zhengming heard what his master said, he immediately understood that his master agreed with his approach.

"Master, your teachings are still good. The two methods I designed are actually the techniques you taught me, master. I just integrated the techniques to make the dishes more detailed and truly cook them." It’s full of color, flavor and taste.”

Master Yan nodded with satisfaction: "Okay, then Master is looking forward to eating two of your whole fish."

Feng Zhengming responded with a smile: "I will not let Master down."

When Master Yan learned that his apprentice was prepared for the competition, he was naturally relieved.

Master Yan still knows his disciples quite well.

Although they usually keep a low profile because of their own teaching.

But being low-key doesn't mean they can't be high-profile in their craftsmanship.

When it comes time to show off, they won't hold anything back.

And their craftsmanship is trustworthy, and they can definitely cook every dish well.

Therefore, for Feng Zhengming, Master Yan would give him more guidance on the operation of the dry rice shop, instead of setting up a small kitchen for him and teaching him a few dishes unexpectedly for competitions.

As the provincial young chefs cooking exchange competition approaches, more and more young chefs from all over the province come to Quancheng.

The young chefs are also preparing individually and want to show themselves well in the competition.

Even Xia Hui and Sun Hai in the Feng Family Restaurant are making preparations.

The task of opening a small stove for them naturally fell on Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin.

Because Xia Hui and Sun Hai work at the Feng Family Restaurant, although the Feng Family Restaurant is well-known because of Feng Zhengming and the handfuls of pork he makes, it is not yet qualified to directly recommend chefs to the shortlist.

So they have to participate in the first round of selection.

The shortlisted dishes are open to the public, and there are a total of three dishes to choose from.

One is shredded silver sprout tenderloin, one is fried diced chicken in sauce, and the other is braised fish fillet.

These three dishes are actually considered chef-level dishes.

Setting the shortlisting assessment for these three dishes is a screening process for the young chefs who have signed up. We cannot let some random ones enter the later competitions.

Although the final selection is for three dishes, which dish should you make? This will require on-site drawing of lots at that time.

That is to say, the young chefs who participate in the shortlisting selection have to draw lots on the spot, and whichever dish they draw will be the dish they cook on the spot.

Moreover, there is a time limit for the shortlist selection. From the moment you draw lots to determine what to cook, to when you go to collect the materials, the timing begins. You must complete it within the specified time, otherwise you will not be shortlisted even if you complete it.

Therefore, for young chefs who need to participate in the shortlisting and selection process, the shortlisting and selection stage is not simple.

It is equivalent to saying that every young chef who is shortlisted for selection will take an exam on the spot.

Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin were both positive about Xia Hui and Sun Hai's abilities.

The rest requires some improvisation by two people.

Feng Zhengming taught the two people some on-the-spot experience.

"First of all, your hands must not shake. Even if you are very nervous, even if your hands are indeed shaking when you are nervous, you must not shake the moment you hold the knife. You must be able to hold the knife and hold it firmly." "Secondly, although at the scene, There is a time limit, but when you receive the materials, you must carefully select them, make sure the materials are correct, and make sure nothing is missing. More importantly, after you receive the materials, you also need to check the stove and make sure there is no problem with the stove before proceeding. When cooking, you must not be in a hurry.”

After hearing Feng Zhengming's key reminder of this point, Yang Bin also agreed with his reminder.

"Yes, this is very important. You must remember that the stoves on site must be inspected and no problems can occur during cooking. In that case, even if you are given a chance to come back, you will still be affected by the previous ones and you will not be able to make the right things. deviation."

After being informed about some issues in the selection, Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin watched Xia Hui and Sun Hai cook three dishes respectively.

"You have to cook all three dishes once. When you are shortlisted, you are not sure what dish you are going to cook, so you need to master all three dishes."

Yang Bin pointed to the materials on the table: "Okay, you two, let's get started."

Feng Zhengming emphasized when the two started working: "There is no time limit for what you do this time. You must do every step well."

Xia Hui and Sun Hai responded. The first thing they made was silver bud tenderloin.

For silver sprouts, you need to pinch off the heads and tails of the bean sprouts, leaving the straight middle part.

The steps of pinching silver buds also need to be done by Xia Hui and Sun Hai themselves.

So the two of them first had to screen the bean sprouts.

In order to produce good results, the bean sprouts must be straight.

Then the bean sprouts are basically cut off from head to tail until they are about the same length.

Next, compare the length of the bean sprouts and cut the tenderloin shreds.

Each tenderloin shred should be as consistent in length and thickness as the bean sprouts.

Xia Hui and Sun Hai first compared the length of the bean sprouts and cut the tenderloins until they were the same length as the bean sprouts.

After cutting off the length, the two began to cut the tenderloin shreds.

With some water on the blade, both of them almost chose to fillet the tenderloin first.

Among them, Xia Hui removed it from above, and Sun Hai removed it from below.

It doesn't matter whether it's from the top or bottom.

The key still depends on the mastery of personal knife skills.

At this point, Xia Hui and Sun Hai are both qualified.

The two arranged the slices of meat and then began to cut them into shreds one by one.

Shredding is relatively simple, just push and pull the knife.

The two cut the tenderloin and showed it to Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin first.

Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin looked at it and nodded together to indicate that Xia Hui and Sun Hai's tenderloins were finely shredded.

"OK."

"It's great, better than mine."

Yang Bin also gave a word of encouragement.

The cut tenderloin still needs to be rinsed first to remove as much blood as possible.

The next step is to flavor and starch the tenderloin shreds.

Because the tenderloin shreds are very thin, you must not grab and mix them when flavoring.

Xia Hui and Sun Hai used a large basin, so after they sprinkled the flavor, they pressed it with their palms and kneaded it gently to let the flavor go into the tenderloin shreds.

In this step, Xia Hui is probably a girl, and her thoughts and techniques are more delicate, but she obviously does it better than Sun Hai.

Knead the salt in, then add the onion and ginger water, and rub the onion and ginger water into the shredded meat to make the shredded meat stick.

Then the two began to add water starch for sizing.

Feng Zhengming saw this step and said: "You should add egg white first, but there must not be too much egg white. Just use your fingers to hook up a little bit of egg white and add it. You also need to knead the egg white into the shredded meat, and then add water and starch to sizing it. Finally, Seal the oil.”

Yang Bin echoed: "You can't add too much egg white, but you can't leave it out. Also, when adding salt, you can add a little less baking soda, which will make your shredded pork look better."

Feng Zhengming then asked the two of them: "You use this relatively large basin in the kitchen. If only smaller basins or only small bowls are provided when you are shortlisted, how will you code the taste and sizing?" ?”

Xia Hui and Sun Hai looked at each other after hearing this, and then they almost answered together: "Rub slowly with the back of your hands."

Feng Zhengming nodded: "Okay, as long as you know, continue."

Xia Hui and Sun Hai continued to operate.

The two of them flavored and sizing the shredded pork, and finally sealed it with oil. They also needed to make a bowl of sauce.

The bowl juice of this dish must be small, and in order to ensure the whiteness of the dish, soy sauce cannot be added to the bowl juice.

Simple salt, sugar, green onion and pepper cooking wine.

Feng Zhengming saw this and asked again: "Do you want to thicken the soup?"

Xia Hui and Sun Hai replied almost simultaneously: "No need."

Yang Bin said with a smile: "This is a stir-fried dish. It must not be thickened. The two of them should know this."

Feng Zhengming looked at the third senior brother, and then said to the two of them seriously: "No, if you want this dish to be beautiful, you must add a little bit of gravy, which is to steal the gravy."

This statement made the third senior brother Yang Bin stunned.

Feng Zhengming personally poured a little bit of water starch into the bowls of juice for the two of them.

"Remember this amount, it must not be too much. If it is too much, it will be seen as thickening, and you may be deducted points. If you secretly add a little bit of gravy, it will not be seen, and it will make the shredded pork and bean sprouts thicker. Bright."

When cooking the next dish, Xia Hui and Sun Hai both carefully moistened the pot.

This is a very critical step. If you want to make this dish well, moistening the pot can be said to be very important.

Whether it was during the exam for this dish or during this shortlisting selection.

If the shredded pork sticks to the pan when frying, it will be screened out immediately.

Xia Hui and Sun Hai moistened the pot very carefully and made sure that the pot was moistened very well.

The two of them poured scallion oil into the pot, and first put the shredded pork into the pot to stir-fry.

Remove the shredded meat when it is almost discolored.

Then leave a little base oil in the pot, add silver sprouts and stir-fry in the pot.

Sun Hai poured some cooking wine into the pot.

Instantly, the flames in the pot on his side rose, and Sun Hai took advantage of the flames to put the tenderloin shreds into the pot.

Then pour the bowl of juice into the pot and stir-fry over high heat.

When the silver sprouts and pork loin are almost stir-fried, turn off the heat and put it on the plate.

Xia Hui's side was a little slower, but he also took out the pot and put it on the plate.

Two plates of silver bud tenderloin were presented to Feng Zhengming and Yang Bin together.

(End of this chapter)