deltrittennovels Chapter 42 Horse Quick Hand
Chapter 42 Horse Quick Hand
Having escaped the pungent smell of the meat market, Chen Feng, carrying the foreleg he had just bought, led Xing Ruo into an alleyway filled with spicy and sour aromas.
This place is a distribution center for seasonings and pickled products. Rows of large blue-and-white porcelain jars are neatly arranged, and the air is filled with the rich aroma of fermented broad beans, the refreshing scent of pickled peppers, and the pungent sourness of aged vinegar.
Xingruo followed closely behind Chen Feng, her eyes still somewhat timid, but more than that, they held a thirst for the unknown.
She watched as Chen Feng stopped in front of a stall with a sign that read "Old Ma's Fried Food".
Chen Feng said he wanted to make shredded pork with garlic sauce, but instead of taking her to buy fish, he took her to this snack shop, which puzzled her greatly.
"Master, why is this dish called 'Fish Fragrant' but doesn't use fish?" Xingruo pursed her lips and finally mustered the courage to ask the question that had been bothering her.
Chen Feng stopped and turned to look at her, his eyes softening.
"This is the beauty of Sichuan cuisine. The so-called 'fish-fragrant' flavor doesn't actually contain fish. Instead, it's made by using pickled red chilies, scallions, ginger, garlic, sugar, salt, soy sauce, and other seasonings, which are adapted to imitate the traditional Sichuan method of cooking fish."
As Chen Feng spoke, he pointed to a jar of bright red pickled peppers on the stall, "And the soul of this dish lies in these pickled red peppers. Without them, this dish has no backbone."
The stall owner next to him was a lean middle-aged man surnamed Ma, nicknamed "Fast-Handed Ma".
He was stirring the pickled vegetables in the jar with long bamboo chopsticks when he saw Chen Feng walking over. Chen Feng was dressed smartly, and a shrewd look flashed in his eyes before he put on a warm face.
"Hey boss, are you here to buy some goods? These pickled red chilies are freshly opened today, they're really juicy, want to see?" Boss Ma said, deftly picking out a string of bright red chilies from the jar and waving them in front of Chen Feng.
Those chili peppers were indeed beautiful, uniform in size, with bright red skin and glistening with juicy juice.
Chen Feng nodded slightly, leaned closer to smell it, and then gently pinched the end of the chili pepper.
"Xingruo, come and take a look." Chen Feng beckoned, "Smell this."
Xingruo leaned closer somewhat hesitantly, her nostrils twitching slightly. A pure, tangy fragrance wafted towards her, not pungent at all, but rather refreshing enough to make one's mouth water.
"Remember this taste," Chen Feng instructed in a low voice. "Good pickled peppers have a mellow sour taste, without the pungent smell of industrial vinegar."
And the color should be a bright red, but not an unnatural, garish red. Something like this is about right. Most importantly, it needs to have a good texture.
Chen Feng turned to Boss Ma and said, "Boss, these chilies look good. I need a lot today, so pack me five pounds."
When Boss Ma heard that he was buying a lot, his eyes lit up and he started working faster.
"Alright! Don't worry, boss, I'll definitely pick the best for you." Boss Ma said as he deftly grabbed things from a large plastic basket that was already half full.
"Hey, there are a few pounds left at the bottom of this basket, which were just scooped out this morning. I'll combine them for you, and we can take it all in one pot, so I don't have to open a new jar. I'll give you a discount of 50 cents per pound, how about that?"
Without waiting for Chen Feng's consent, Boss Ma began pouring chili peppers into the weighing pan. He moved quickly, seemingly trying to save Chen Feng money and trouble, but Chen Feng's eyes darkened.
"Boss, no rush, let me take a look first." Chen Feng reached out and firmly pressed down on the spoon that Boss Ma was about to pour out.
Boss Ma froze, a hint of unease flashing across his face, before he chuckled awkwardly, "Boss, look how quick I am! I guarantee I won't cheat you on the weight. Everything here is just as fresh; would I possibly cheat you?"
Chen Feng ignored his words and instead picked up a long-handled strainer from next to the stall, gently poking at the bottom of the large basket that Boss Ma had just left.
As the strainer turned the peppers, some blackened, even soft and mushy, pieces of pepper emerged from the once bright red cluster.
The chilies, having been soaked for too long or weighed down by the weight at the bottom, had completely lost their elasticity and emitted a stuffy, even slightly rotten, sour smell.
Boss Ma's smile froze on his face. He coughed awkwardly twice, slowed down his movements, and his eyes began to wander.
Xingruo watched clearly from the side. Although she didn't know how to cook, she could sense that the atmosphere had become somewhat stiff for a moment.
She glanced at her master subconsciously and found that he did not get angry as she had imagined, nor did he yell at her. He just looked at Boss Ma calmly.
Chen Feng put away the strainer, pointed to the blackened, defective products, and said calmly:
"Boss, I understand that you want to do business quickly and save trouble."
But as a chef, I value stability. The chili peppers at the bottom have already lost their flavor; if I take them back and stir-fry them, this whole pot of shredded pork with garlic sauce will be ruined. That one or two yuan saving can't buy back the reputation of my restaurant.
Boss Ma blushed, scratched his head awkwardly, and chuckled, "Oh dear, look at my memory! I guess the last few from yesterday sank to the bottom. I didn't notice, I didn't notice. Boss, you have a sharp eye, you have a sharp eye."
"Xingruo, look carefully." Chen Feng turned to Xingruo. This was the second lesson he was giving his apprentice. "In the market, sometimes some bosses want to finish work early and make more money, which is understandable. But as a chef, you have to have your own standards. If your standards are low, the ingredients will deceive you; if you are perfunctory with the ingredients, the customers who end up eating them will be perfunctory with you. In this market, we don't need to argue with others, but we must be clear-headed and not pick inferior goods to buy."
Xingruo listened attentively, tugged at her clothes, and nodded. She watched as her master reached out, avoiding Boss Ma's basket of "inferior products," and instead walked to the rows of neatly arranged large urns, pointing to one of them.
"Boss, could you please take some more from this jar?"
At this point, Boss Ma dared not try to be clever anymore and obediently reopened the jar, filling it with five jin of the finest pickled red chili peppers for Chen Feng.
The subsequent purchasing process seemed to open the door to a new world for Xingruo.
Chen Feng took her to pick out black fungus. He picked up a dried fungus and weighed it in his palm.
"Xingruo, look at the wood ear mushroom. First, it should be light; second, it should be crisp." Chen Feng gently pinched it, and the wood ear mushroom made a crisp snapping sound.
"Good dried wood ear mushrooms have extremely low moisture content, feel very light, are jet black in color, and have a slightly grayish underside. If they feel heavy or are difficult to squeeze, they may have had sugar or salt added to increase their weight. Such wood ear mushrooms will not only taste bad after soaking, but also have an unpleasant odor."
Xingruo took a flower, pinched it like her master, felt the dry crispness through her fingertips, and remembered it.
Next came pickled bamboo shoots and pickled ginger.
"The sourness in shredded pork with garlic sauce needs to be layered. Pickled peppers are responsible for the spiciness with a hint of sourness, pickled ginger is responsible for the spiciness and removing the fishy smell, and these pickled bamboo shoots are responsible for providing a refreshing taste." Chen Feng explained to Xing Ruo while selecting the ingredients, "Although the side ingredients are inconspicuous, only when the proportions are right can they bring out the tenderness of the shredded pork."
Chen Feng's movements were swift yet extremely meticulous. He peeled open each clove of garlic to check for mold, and smelled each piece of ginger to see if it had a pungent odor.
At first, the stall owners were a little impatient with Chen Feng's pickiness, but when they saw him accurately point out the problems with the ingredients and then readily pay for the high-quality products, they all showed a bit of respect.
Xingruo followed behind Chen Feng, carrying a few bags of lighter items.
She watched her master's retreating figure. She watched him face the pots and pans, the scallions, ginger, garlic, and vinegar, and saw a gentleness and sensitivity that others couldn't comprehend.
"Master, it feels like you're talking to these dishes," Xingruo whispered during a break between scenes.
Chen Feng was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled. He stopped and looked at his apprentice, who was thin and pale but had bright eyes.
"Yes, all things have a spirit," Chen Feng said softly. "If you respect them, they will show their best side in the pot to repay you. That's called reverence."
"Xingruo, if you want to make a name for yourself in this industry, you not only need to hone your knife skills and control the heat, but also cultivate a deep respect for the ingredients."
Xingruo lowered her head as if she understood but not quite, but something was quietly taking root in her heart.
"Let's go, let's grab some dried shiitake mushrooms and fermented bean paste one last time, then we'll have finished our homework for today."
With a wave of his hand, Chen Feng led his first disciple into the deepest part of the market amidst the increasingly boisterous shouts of vendors.