Master Xiao smiled and said, "My senior brother Xu Yunliang, huh? What, Master Zheng, you know him too?"
Master Zheng stopped smiling.
Zhou Yan couldn't help but laugh.
He's playing a trick on you, Master Zheng!
Zhou Yan had already realized that his master wasn't just the type to scold him with a stern face in the kitchen; he also possessed the humor and wit typical of Sichuan people in everyday life.
Master Zheng's expression was a mixture of shock and embarrassment. He unconsciously straightened his posture and stammered, "Xu Yunliang, that's my master..."
"What? Master Zheng, you're my senior brother Xu Yunliang's apprentice? Aiyo, then we're fellow disciples!" Master Xiao happily grasped Master Zheng's hand. "Master Zheng, we're truly destined to meet."
"Master Uncle, just call me Little Zheng..." Master Zheng was on the verge of tears, feeling his face burning hot.
The thought of Xiao Lei calling him "Master Zheng" over and over again these past two days makes him want to crawl into a hole in the ground.
His master, Xu Yunliang, learned to cook in Suij and moved to Rongcheng over ten years ago. He's now a head chef at a restaurant there, and his grandmaster was the renowned Jiazhou chef, Master Kong Huaifeng.
His master had mentioned having several junior brother, but he didn't remember any of them.
Who would have thought that returning to save the day at a banquet would lead to a chance encounter with his Master Uncle?!
Master Xiao patted Zheng Qiang's hand with a smile: "Master Zheng, no need to be modest. By seniority, you're my master nephew, but when it comes to cooking fish, you're Master Zheng. To cook thirty braised fish at once and make them taste this good—I truly admire you."
Xiao Lei's words were sincere, without a hint of teasing, only genuine appreciation for his master nephew.
Feeling the praise, Zheng Qiang's tense expression relaxed somewhat, and a smile returned to his face. "Master Uncle, don't try to fool me. Our grandmaster was a famous fish chef, so you must be very good at cooking fish too."
Xiao Lei released his hand and looked at Zhou Yan. "Call him Senior Brother. This is your Senior Master Uncle, Xu Yunliang's esteemed disciple."
"Senior Brother Zheng, I'll offer you a cup of tea instead of alcohol." Zhou Yan smiled and raised his tea cup to Zheng Qiang.
"Junior Brother." Zheng Qiang quickly raised his tea cup and clinked it against his.
"This can be considered our sect's first successful large-scale banquet." Zhou Yan said, putting down his cup and smiling at Xiao Lei. "Master, have you ever thought about becoming a village chef? Isn't Senior Brother Zheng planning to come back and be a village chef? If the two of you team up, you'll definitely be the most sought-after village chefs in all of Jiazhou."
"That's a great idea!" Zheng Qiang's eyes lit up, looking at Xiao Lei expectantly. "Master Uncle, let's work together! You can be the head chef, and I'll be your assistant and kitchen helper. You take most of the wages, and I'll take a smaller portion. That sounds great!"
After the events of the past two days, he had a clear understanding of his own abilities. He couldn't possibly organize a large-scale banquet by himself. But he was more than capable of being Master Uncle Xiao's assistant.
Xiao Lei frowned slightly, deep in thought.
He had mentioned going to Rongcheng to his wife several times. The salary would be higher than at the textile factory, but he had an elderly person bedridden at home and children in school, so he had to go alone.
Leaving his wife to take care of the elderly person and children, living apart from his family, and being unable to care for them, he was ultimately uneasy.
If he worked as a village chef, he could earn ninety yuan per meal like this. After deducting the cost of seasonings, even if he split it with Zheng Qiang, he would still earn more than forty yuan.
Just three meals a month would be equivalent to the salary of a head chef at a large restaurant in Rongcheng.
With more weddings at the end of the year, the number of events per month is expected to increase, leading to a more substantial income.
This way, there's no need to go to Rongcheng, and the family can still be taken care of.
Previously, he thought rural chefs were somewhat beneath their dignity, but this experience has changed his prejudice.
From the hosts to the helpers, everyone treats the rural chef with respect.
This is the most important wedding celebration for a young couple entering marriage. A rural chef can't just throw together a few steamed dishes; a good meal means happy and satisfied guests, a proud host, and a joyful newlywed couple—it's a wonderful thing.
Xiao Lei made up his mind and nodded, saying, "I think that's a good idea. Let's get all the necessary equipment. Zheng Qiang and I are just as good as them."
"Okay! From now on, I'll work with my Master Uncle!" Zheng Qiang nodded earnestly.
"Okay, then when we've eaten enough, I'll go up on stage and help you promote it. May be some of the 300 people who came to the banquet today will be planning to hold a large-scale banquet." Zhou Yan said with a smile, "Besides large-scale banquets, we can also take on some family banquets, those one or two tables banquets. We can take a few orders a month, and even in the off-season we can do it."
Zheng Qiang's eyes lit up: "Junior Brother, you're so quick-witted! Rich people in Rongcheng definitely do that. People often offer high prices to hire my master for family banquets; it's usually the boss who pays."
"Suji probably doesn't have that kind of wealthy clientele." Xiao Lei shook his head, not very optimistic.
"Whether they do or not, let's get the advertising going first. Once we build a reputation, people in Jiazhou will come to invite." Zhou Yan said with a smile. "Among the guests today, there aren't just people from Suji, but also from Jiazhou and even Rongcheng. If they're satisfied with this meal, they'll think of us when they have banquets in the future. This is a good start."
"That makes sense." Zheng Qiang nodded repeatedly.
Xiao Lei thought for a moment and nodded as well: "Okay, let's do it your way."
Zhou Yan's words and actions are indeed becoming more and more mature, and his mind is very quick; he's definitely got business acumen.
Zhou Yan leaned over and whispered with Xiao Lei and Zheng Qiang about the unit price. They agreed that if they only cooked the dishes, it would be three yuan per table, and if they included labor and ingredients, it would be calculated separately according to the menu and the price of the dishes that day.
The others at the table paid no attention to what the three of them were saying. Having been busy all morning, they were already starving, and faced with such a large table of delicious food, they ate with great relish.
"Eat, eat, I'm hungry." Zhou Yan said, picking up his chopsticks and quickly grabbing the last piece of salted braised pork belly from bowl.
The auntie remained silent, focused solely on eating meat.
The salted braised pork belly was incredibly popular!
Seeing Zhou Yan take the last piece, everyone glanced at him, and many sighed inwardly.
The thickly sliced pork belly, marinated in amber sauce, sat on a bed of pickled vegetables, steamed until incredibly tender, trembling slightly when picked up.
The meat sank right in with a chopstick, and the juices overflowed, making it glistening with oil.
[A Pretty Good Piece Of Salted Braised Pork Belly]
Without daring to make any unnecessary movements, Zhou Yan directly put the meat in his mouth.
One bite, and he felt his very soul tremble.
The fatty part was steamed until incredibly tender, melting in his mouth.
The lean meat was tender yet not dry, soaked in the unique aroma of the sauce and pickled vegetables, its flavor rich, savory, and slightly sweet.
Delicious!
Zhou Yan felt that this was the best Salted Braised Pork Belly he had ever eaten. Compared to the ones he had tried in other restaurants in his later years, this one was quite different.
The pork was amazing!
It was from their own free-range pig, using the finest three-layered meat, steamed in a traditional earthen stove.
Of course, the most important factor was Master Xiao's superb culinary skills—the perfect heat control and seasoning.
Luckily, he acted quickly and managed to grab the last piece of salted braised pork belly.
This dish is something he need to learn!
Zhou Yan's gaze swept over the Sweet Braised Pork Belly next to him; half the glutinous rice in the bowl had been eaten, and only one piece of meat remained.
Unfortunately, before Zhou Yan could even make a move, Master Zheng had already snatched the meat before the aunties could even reach for their chopsticks, feeding it directly to his mouth. His eyes lit up, and after savoring it carefully, he looked at Xiao Lei and said, "Master Uncle, your Sweet Braised Pork Belly is even better than my master's! Can you teach me how?"
Zhou Yan, who hadn't gotten any meat, rolled his eyes. What a treacherous disciple who betrays his master and ancestors! Next time he saw Senior Master Uncle Xu, he'd definitely tell him this whole story verbatim!
His master's steamed dishes were indeed superb; the evaluations were all above "good" and the consistency was astonishing.
As Zhou Yan ate, he thought to himself that most people's perception of Sichuan cuisine as solely about spiciness is a prejudice.
Hot pot doesn't represent Sichuan cuisine!
Of the eight steamed dishes today, only Steamed Pork With Rice Flour and Dongpo Pork Knuckle are spicy; the other six are not spicy at all, emphasizing freshness.
Take the Steamed Pork With Rice Flour, for example. The marinated pork belly is coated in rice flour and steamed until tender and juicy, resulting in a soft and chewy texture. The flavor penetrates from the outside to the inside, creating a unique taste. Aroma is the dominant flavor, while spiciness is a complementary element.
The spiciness of the Dongpo Pork Knuckle is also subtle. The sauce is a perfect balance of sour, spicy, and slightly sweet, fragrant enough without being overpoweringly spicy. The tender knuckle is infused with flavor; the fat melts in mouth, and the lean meat falls apart easily when picked up. Dipping it in the sauce and coating it with the sauce makes for an absolutely exquisite bite! In comparison, authentic Jiangxi and Hunan cuisine made Zhou Yan hesitate; even the Quzhou duck heads from Zhejiang province had brought tears to his eyes from the spiciness.
The spiciness was truly uncompromising!
Of course, Sichuan cuisine has a very rich variety of flavors, but when it comes to spiciness, Salt Gang cuisine can definitely compete.
Anyway, when Zhou Yan goes to Yandu, no matter how delicious the rabbit is, he never dares to eat it to his heart's content, for fear of running out of time at the proctology hospital.
Zhou Yan turned his attention to braised fish.
[A Decent Braised Fish]
He picked up a piece of fish and put it in his mouth. The skin was crispy and fragrant, while the flesh was exceptionally tender. The frying temperature was perfectly controlled.
Carp can easily have a muddy taste if not prepared properly, but Zheng Qiang had masked it wonderfully. During the cooking process, the broth had seeped into the fish, and coated in the thick sauce, the spicy, numbing, and savory flavors were all perfectly balanced in one bite.
Indeed, excellent.
Just as Zheng Qiang said, their sect was famous for its braised fish. His master was also a master at cooking fish, proficient in dry-frying, red-braised, and boiled dishes.
If Zhou Yan was to bring out a crucian carp with perilla leaves, it would certainly be no worse than this braised carp.
However, to be able to cook thirty carp at once in this situation and maintain this level of quality, Master Zheng's skill was truly exceptional!
No wonder his master would coax him into playing around; even if he wasn't a sect's prodigy, he was still considered a core disciple.
Zheng Qiang ate a few slices of pig's ear, then two pieces of pig's head meat, and finally a piece of cold chicken dish.
After finishing, he was astonished. He looked at Zhou Yan, then at Master Xiao, and exclaimed in shock, "Master Uncle, did Grandmaster give you special instruction? How come my master doesn't know how to make this cold dish?"
"Is it too late for me to become your disciple now?"