"To make a rich pork bone broth, the weight ratio of meat to water should be 1:3. First, soak the meat to remove the blood. This needs to continue for about two hours, changing the water at least twice."
After soaking for the required time, Nakiri Alice removed the pork chunks, discarded the bloody water, added scallions, ginger, and fresh water, then put the meat back into the pot and turned on the heat.
As the temperature rose, scum continuously floated to the surface of the stockpot. Standing on a stool nearly as tall as herself, Alice patiently skimmed off all the scum with a fine mesh strainer, preventing any unpleasant odour from lingering in the ingredients.
After dealing with the scum, the ingredients needed to be removed again and rinsed thoroughly with clean water to wash away any remaining surface scum. This was a crucial detail Dylan had taught her.
Without Dylan's guidance, she would have, at most, changed the pot of water and added the ingredients directly back in. This would cause any scum still clinging to the meat chunks to have difficulty rising, becoming assimilated into the broth and resulting in a certain degree of unwanted flavour.
Of course, by this point, the unwanted flavour was already minimal, perhaps undetectable even to the great gourmands of the culinary world. Only someone with a special gift like the "God's Tongue" could perceive it clearly, which is why most people would subconsciously overlook this detail.
However, Dylan, possessing a 'super taste', could naturally detect this faint trace the moment it hit his palate, so he paid extra attention during the preparation.
By mastering this detail, the quality of the dish naturally improved.
"Let me make a mark for you. With your current eye, you can't add water precisely enough yet."
Just as Nakiri Alice finished weighing the cleaned ingredients, returned them to the pot, added fresh water, and was about to start simmering the broth, Dylan suddenly appeared beside her. Holding a small knife, he casually made a precise mark at the waterline. From now on, the water added should not exceed this line.
"Okay, I understand."
Nakiri Alice nodded. Although it was a minor detail, high-end cuisine itself is built upon countless such subtleties.
To create truly top-tier dishes, one must first endure the monotony, breaking down each detail and methodically preparing every course.
"There are three key points for this broth. If you follow them step-by-step, you likely won't go wrong."
"First, keep it on medium-high heat the entire time, stirring every half hour to prevent sticking. Second, during the process, keep the lid half-off; this slows down the broth's evaporation. Third, top up the water to the mark every two hours. Understood!?"
Dylan's voice held a hint of sternness. Hearing his words, Nakiri Alice nodded seriously, indicating she understood.
Then came the practical application. As the heir to a prestigious culinary family, Nakiri Alice's cooking talent was indeed strong. She executed Dylan's instructions well, constantly asking about the reasons behind each step.
Curiosity is the driving force for a chef's progress!
Under Nakiri Alice's persistent efforts, the broth in the stockpot gradually transformed from its initial clear state towards a milky white.
As the bones softened, the clever Nakiri Alice anticipated Dylan's next instruction, suggesting they remove the bones every half hour and pound them with a kitchen tool to accelerate the emulsification process.
However, because the young girl didn't have much strength, Dylan completed this part. Under his forceful handling, the bones quickly melded into the broth.
Seeing the visibly rich, white bone broth, a satisfied expression appeared on Dylan's face. He then took some ginger from the ingredient bag, smashed it, chopped half a white onion, four dried shiitake mushrooms, roll-cut one carrot, halved some garlic cloves, and added a quarter of a head of cabbage.
All the prepared ingredients were poured into the finished white broth to enhance its savoury-sweet flavour. After this step, he immediately turned the stove heat to maximum, allowing the essences of the various ingredients, bones, and meat to converge into one pot.
Rumble~
A rich aroma wafted through the kitchen. Nakiri Alice's mouth began to water profusely. Because they had been so engrossed in cooking, neither had eaten lunch yet. Smelling such a fragrant aroma, her stomach immediately started growling with hunger.
"I've already prepared the other toppings. Once the soup is ready, we can assemble everything. Just be patient until then."
Seeing Nakiri Alice's extremely eager expression, Dylan callously turned his head away, silently continuing to stir the broth with a ladle.
"What a wonderful smell, such a rich broth! Did Alice make this?"
"Of course! This is all Alice's accomplishment!"
Seeing Nakiri Alice standing nearby wearing an apron, Nakiri Leonora, who had just come downstairs after an afternoon nap, remarked with some surprise.
As she spoke, she had already walked over to the stockpot. Inhaling the rich fragrance emanating from it, she couldn't help but sigh in admiration.
"Leonora, please wait a moment nearby. This soup is about to reach its peak."
"Alice, go chop the toppings for the tonkotsu ramen. Just cook the noodles normally. All that's left is assembly!"
Dylan spoke without looking up, his eyes fixed intently on the soup pot in front of him, stirring occasionally. Hearing him, Alice immediately went to prepare the toppings.
Soon, sensing the change in the soup within the pot, Dylan turned off the heat. He then took three large bowls from the cupboard and quickly rinsed them with a ladleful of hot water.
He added 30 grams of seasoning sauce and 2 grams of aroma oil to each bowl. Then, placing back fat held in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl, he ladled hot tonkotsu broth over it, letting the rendered fat drip through the mesh into the noodle bowl.
Watching the glistening oil, he added the piping hot broth. At this moment, Nakiri Alice had also finished cooking the ramen noodles. With a skillful flick using a noodle strainer, she drained the water, leaving behind perfectly springy noodles.
"It smells so good!"
Breathing in the aroma filling the air, Nakiri Alice couldn't help but exclaim, her face radiating enjoyment.
"Wait until I add the toppings, then we can eat."
Distributing the noodles evenly into the three bowls, Dylan smiled as he unwrapped the plastic film covering the honey-glazed char siu pork he took from the refrigerator. He sliced it into pieces about 3 millimeters thick and arranged them sequentially atop the steaming ramen, creating a powerful visual impact.
Below the pork, he arranged seasoned bamboo shoots, shredded wood ear mushrooms, half a soft-boiled egg, sprinkled chopped scallions, and tucked a sheet of nori seaweed onto the side of the bowl. Thus, a bowl of intensely rich tonkotsu ramen was complete!
And as the nori sheet was placed, the entire dish seemed to suddenly freeze.
The next moment, brilliant golden light burst forth from the ramen bowls, illuminating the entire kitchen. Caught off guard, Nakiri Leonora was momentarily blinded, her steps faltering, nearly causing her to fall.
"Ah!"
"Careful."
Fortunately, Dylan was quick-witted and swift-handed. His other hand caught her by the waist, pulling her into his embrace, where he immediately felt an extreme softness.
Nakiri Leonora had an excellent figure, especially after becoming a wife and giving birth to Alice. No wonder Nakiri Alice was already so well-endowed upon entering high school – it was all genetic inheritance!
"Mmm..."
A pleasant scent of shampoo reached Dylan's nose, and the roots of the hair his fingers brushed against were still slightly damp.
If he wasn't mistaken, Nakiri Leonora must have just finished bathing not long ago!
Describing her as a 'lotus emerging from water' couldn't be more fitting!
____________
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