"The braised beef is still a bit off, once I learn, I'll definitely bring you some to try." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
"Sure." Grandpa Wang nodded, picking up a piece of pig's head meat and putting it in his mouth, then taking a sip of liquor and letting out a long sigh of relief with a smile: "Still writing letters to that girl?"
"Yes, thanks to the master's guidance, the letter format, opening remarks, and closing remarks are no problem at all now." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile, not in a hurry to leave, but instead pulling up a small stool to sit down.
"Would you like a drink too?" Grandpa Wang pointed to the liquor bottle beside him.
"I can't drink any more, I have to cook tonight." Zhou Yan said with a smile, shaking his head, a hint of gossip on his face. "Master, did you often write love letters when you were young?"
"I was so busy when I was young, always traveling all over the country. I had absolutely no time to write love letters." Grandpa Wang took another sip of his drink, his gaze drifting into the distance, his expression growing more somber. "Tell me, was I really that busy back then? So busy that I couldn't even write a single letter..."
The young Grandpa Shan continued talking in the radio, but Grandpa Wang remained silent.
Zhou Yan rode away, having heard no more gossip, but he was increasingly certain that the master was a man with a story.
Next time, bring him a bottle of good liquor. A couple of drinks might open his mouth.
With the opening of Feiyan Restaurant as a sales channel, today's turnover immediately increased by 21.7 yuan. Although the profit margin dropped a bit, the gross profit should still be around 7 yuan.
This money is easy to earn! Huang Bing comes to pick up the braised food himself, they don't even have to do the chopping. It's great!
The Huang siblings come to eat three meals a day.
Judging from yesterday's orders, their daily meal budget is around 6.6 yuan, which is 20 yuan for three days.
For two people, this is a very high standard.
They are high net worth clients.
As for urging Huang Ying to lose weight, Zhou Yan doesn't really have a good method.
He can only use some tricks, like having Aunt Zhao bring them a large bowl of warm water before each meal.
After cycling over ten kilometers and working up a sweat, they were incredibly thirsty, and no one could resist a bowl of lukewarm water.
After a bowl of water, she was already half full.
Then, her appetite naturally halved.
Judging from yesterday's feedback, Huang Ying's appetite had indeed decreased significantly, the effect was remarkable.
However, Huang Bing seemed to have a much larger appetite, chugging down beef soup and even managing two bowls of rice.
That's good, considering his current thin and weak appearance due to kidney deficiency, being able to eat is a good thing.
Zhou Yan guessed that Zhao Shulan let the siblings to eat together not only to help Huang Ying lose weight but also to help Huang Bing gain some weight.
Unfortunately, this task didn't trigger.
Useless damn system!
Zhou Yan thought this was much simpler than getting Huang Ying to lose weight.
It was only a little past three when he got back to the restaurant, and Zhou Yan had just parked the bicycle.
"Guo Guo, I want to sleep." Zhou Momo rubbed her sleepy eyes and snuggled up to Zhou Yan, trying to climb on him.
"Don't let her sleep! If she sleeps, we can't sleep tonight!" Zhao Tieying, who was leaning against the recliner by the door, sat up and looked at Zhou Yan, saying, "If you don't keep the cat awake during the day, the cat will keep you awake at night! Take her out for a walk, have dinner, and then let her go to sleep early."
"Okay…" Zhou Yan, who was about to bend down to pick up Zhou Momo, instead took her hand and said with a smile, "Come on, brother will take you to find Dad to go fishing."
The sleepy Zhou Momo paused for a moment, tilted her head back, and her eyes quickly lit up: "Fishing?!"
"Yes, fishing." Zhou Yan nodded with a smile.
"Yay! Yay! Momo wants to go fishing!" The little one jumped up excitedly, instantly wide awake.
"Come on, let's go find Dad first." Zhou Yan took her hand and walked towards the river.
Comrade Old Zhou usually goes fishing in front of the restaurant in the afternoon. Since he took Zhou Yan's advice and switched to using small earthworms, he has been able to catch a few small fish everyday, successfully getting rid of his status as a fisherman who catches nothing.
Sure enough, after walking two hundred meters upstream along the riverbank, they saw Comrade Old Zhou sitting by a clump of reeds.
A folding stool, a homemade fishing rod, and a military green water bottle at his feet, he could sit by the river for an entire afternoon.
Sometimes Zhou Yan really admired the fisherman's willpower.
"Daddy!" Zhou Momo let go of Zhou Yan's hand and ran down the riverbank.
"Slow down, slow down." Comrade Old Zhou turned around, quickly put the fishing rod aside, and hugged the little one who was rushing down.
"Did you catch any fish?" Zhou Momo looked at the empty fish basket beside and couldn't help but sigh. "Nothing at all?"
"Not yet." Comrade Old Zhou scratched his head awkwardly, but still confidently said, "But I'll definitely catch something on the next cast."
"Momo wants to take a nap, Mom asked me to take her out for a walk." Zhou Yan walked over and explained with a smile.
"Okay, she didn't sleep until 1 a.m. last night, which made your mom very sad." Comrade Old Zhou nodded with a smile.
"Daddy, I want to fish too." Zhou Momo looked at the fishing rod beside him, expectantly.
"Come on, try fishing for a bit." Comrade Old Zhou picked up the fishing rod, replaced the worm, and handed it to her. "Hold on tight, it's a bit heavy."
"It's okay, I'm super strong!" Zhou Momo held the fishing rod with both hands, casually tossed it into the water, and muttered, "Fish, fish, bite quickly, I'm here to feed you!"
Zhou Miao held her loosely to prevent her from falling into the water, and said with a smile, "Fish aren't so easy to catch. Look, Daddy's been sitting here for ages, and the float hasn't even…"
Before he could finish speaking, the float, which hadn't moved for so long, suddenly jerked twice and sank sharply, the rod tip plunging into the water as well.
"Wow!" Zhou Momo exclaimed in surprise, clutching her fishing rod tightly as she backed away, bumping into Comrade Old Zhou's arms. She cried out excitedly, "A big fish! Daddy, look!!"
Comrade Old Zhou stopped laughing, his eyes widening in disbelief.
The smile didn't disappear, it simply moved to Zhou Yan's face.
"Dad, why aren't you smiling? Are you just naturally averse to smiling?" Zhou Yan teased.
Comrade Old Zhou reacted quickly enough, before the fishing rod slipped from Zhou Momo's hand, he grabbed her with one arm as she was being pulled forward, and seized the rod with the other.
The vibrating rod brought an unprecedented feel to the hand.
The straight rod bent into a deep bow, the tip trembling as if it might snap at any moment.
This—
Isn't this the big fish he'd been dreaming of?!
Unbelievable! The big fish he'd been waiting for all afternoon was caught by the little one with a casual cast.
Which step went wrong?
Was it because he forgot to chant the incantation?
Comrade Old Zhou was starting to question his existence.
"Go! Go, Daddy!" Zhou Momo cheered, pushing herself along.
Comrade Old Zhou carefully played the fish, taking a full ten minutes to finally turn it over. The large, golden red carp tilted its head back, choked on two mouthfuls of water, and was completely exhausted.
Zhou Yan, holding the fish basket, scooped the fish up.
Goodness, one fish filled the small basket completely, its golden red tail fin still sticking out.
A huge catch!
"Wow! What a big fish!" Zhou Momo was overjoyed. She leaned forward and poked the fish's tail, then turned back to Comrade Old Zhou with a beaming smile: "Daddy, wasn't I amazing?"
"You're amazing…" Comrade Old Zhou nodded with a smile, a hint of bitterness in his expression.
A newbie catching a big fish on her first cast? What was he then?
"Zhou Momo is amazing! Tonight, our family is finally having a wild big fish." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
"Guo Guo, the big fish is so cute." Zhou Momo looked up at Zhou Yan. "Should we steam it? Or braise it?"
"It is carp so braise it." Zhou Yan took the fish out of the basket, removed the hook, and weighed it in his hand. This fish weighed at least five jin.
The wild-caught carp from the Qingyi River was stunningly beautiful, with golden scales and a plump belly, clearly having gained weight during the winter.
Chopping it into sections, frying it first, and then braising it was probably the best way he knew to cook it.
This time, he wouldn't add any perilla leaves, he'd try the braised fish recipe he'd secretly learned from Senior Brother Zheng at Brother Hao's wedding.
The fish was a bit too big, cooking it whole wouldn't allow the flavors to penetrate, and it would waste too much oil.
After putting the fish back in the basket, Zhou Yan saw that Comrade Old Zhou had already packed away his small stool and asked with a smile, "Dad, not fishing anymore?"
"No more fishing." Comrade Old Zhou nodded. "I'm suddenly feeling a bit unwell..."
"Then you carry the fish, I'll help you with the rod." Zhou Yan said with a smile, handing him the fish basket. "After all, you're the one who baited the spot and caught the worms."
"I don't know why, but my belt suddenly feels a little itchy." Comrade Old Zhou said, touching his waist.
"Come on, come on, Zhou Momo, let's go back and clean the fish! I'll make you some fried fish!" Zhou Yan picked up the fish basket, grabbed Zhou Momo, and turned to leave.
"Okay!" Zhou Momo's legs swung quickly.
Comrade Old Zhou watched their retreating figures, unable to help but shake his head with a smile.
Although he didn't catch anything, at least he experienced the feeling of reeling in a big fish.
Besides, what his youngest daughter caught was the same as what he caught.
Tomorrow he'll go to his usual spot to share his experience and techniques for reeling in big fish with the fishermen who have caught nothing.
"Wow, Old Zhou caught such a big fish!" Aunt Zhao and Zhao Hong were chatting by the door when they saw the large fish's tail sticking out of the fish basket Zhou Yan was holding and stood up in surprise.
"Such a big tail! It's huge!" Zhao Hong also came over, looking on with curiosity.
""I caught it! I caught it!" Zhou Momo jumped up and shouted, waving her hand.
"You caught it?" Aunt Zhao and Zhao Hong were both stunned, looking at Comrade Old Zhou, who was carrying a fishing rod and a small stool, walking up from behind.
"Yes, she caught it." Comrade Old Zhou nodded, a little embarrassed.
"Huh?"
"Huh?"
Aunt Zhao and Zhao Hong were shocked.
"Youngest daughter, you're a bit fierce! Your dad has been fishing for over ten years, and he's never caught a fish this big!" Aunt Zhao picked up Zhou Momo and planted a kiss on her cheek. "So amazing!"
Zhou Momo giggled, extremely pleased with herself.
Comrade Old Zhou blushed, feeling even more embarrassed.
"Your First Uncle has never caught one this big either. Last time he caught a one jin carp, and we set up two tables at home, but we couldn't even get a single bite." Zhao Hong added with a laugh.
Comrade Old Zhou felt a bit better, his older brother had been fishing for ten years longer than him, and he'd never caught a big fish either.
"How are we going to eat such a big fish?" Aunt Zhao asked Zhou Yan.
Now, Zhou Yan is the family's top chef, the king of the kitchen.
"Such a big carp, how about we braise it?" Zhou Yan said.
"Braised is fine." Aunt Zhao nodded.
"Then I'll kill the fish first." Comrade Old Zhou put the fishing rod and small stool back, picked up a boning knife, and looked at Zhou Yan, asking, "Want it whole or cut into pieces?"
"In pieces. First, cut the fish in half, then cut it this wide. This fish has thick flesh, so cutting it narrower will help it absorb the flavor." Zhou Yan gestured to him. Killing a fish is delicate work, and since Comrade Old Zhou volunteered, he could go prepare the ingredients for cooking the fish.
As if sensing the killing intent, the large carp suddenly exerted its strength, flipping from Zhou Yan's hands and jumping around on the ground.
"Fish, stop struggling, it's useless now~" Zhou Momo squatted down to the side and advised in a childish voice.
"Okay." Comrade Old Zhou replied, bending down to give the large carp a sharp whack on the head with the knife handle.
With a dull thud, the previously thrashing carp instantly lost its will to live and lay still.
"It fell asleep in a flash?" Zhou Momo looked up, somewhat shocked, at Comrade Old Zhou.
"Yes." Comrade Old Zhou picked up the instantly asleep fish, grabbed his knife and basin, and headed towards the riverbank.
Zhou Yan went to prepare the ingredients. Sichuan people use a lot of ingredients and oil when cooking fish.
It's only because they make everything themselves now that the cost isn't so high, otherwise, just buying the fish seasoning, pickled vegetables, pickled peppers, side dishes, scallions, ginger, cooking wine, and oil would cost almost as much as buying a fish.
To make braised fish chunks, Zhou Yan recalled fragments of his Master's cooking techniques.
Previously, he only remembered the steps, not the underlying principles, and couldn't replicate them.
It was like knowledge flowing through his mind without leaving a trace.
But after mastering the perfect recipe for braised crucian carp with perilla leaves, everything became clear.
Marinating the fish with scallions, ginger, and cooking wine was pretty much the right approach.
Thickening the sauce wasn't difficult either, he could control the thin sauce for spicy stir-fried pork liver, so a slightly thicker or thinner sauce for braised fish chunks wouldn't make much difference.
The braising sauce was based on Zheng Qiang's braised fish recipe, adjusting the amount according to the size of the fish.
Comrade Old Zhou brought back the cleaned fish, and Zhou Yan rinsed it again with well water, washing it thoroughly until there was no blood left.
Half of the fishy smell comes from the blood and the mucus on the surface, washing it clean immediately halves the smell.
The wild carp from the Qingyi River has excellent flesh, the meat is yellowish, looks translucent and firm, and the fishy smell is much milder.
One fish, after being cleaned, filled half an enamel basin.
"More than five jin, at least five jin and eight liang." Comrade Old Zhou said with a smile.
"You're accurate, I trust you." Zhou Yan said with a smile.
Smash and slice the ginger, add a handful of scallions, pour in some cooking wine and a pinch of salt, and marinate the fish for a while.
Zhao Tieying looked at the bowl of fish and said, "There's quite a lot of fish. Why don't you fry some, scoop out a bowl, and have Zhao Hong take it back to your grandma to cook for herself? She loves fish, and it's rare to find such a large wild carp."
"Okay." Zhou Yan nodded.
Braised carp is a dish to eat with rice, and this large bowl of fish was indeed a bit too much for five people.
After marinating the fish, drain off the excess blood, remove the scallions and ginger, beat an egg and pour it into the bowl, coating the fish with the egg mixture. Then add dry sweet potato starch to coat the fish in a batter.
This method is actually similar to the Tai An fish from Tong Nan, but the amount of sweet potato starch is less, and the fish is cut into larger pieces, not small chunks.
Tai An fish is a local intangible cultural heritage delicacy of Shancheng. In his previous life, Zhou Yan, as a food blogger, had filmed an inheritor of this heritage making Tai An fish up close. The master chef provided detailed explanations during the process.
This video was filmed and edited by himself. He revised it many times during the editing process, and the method was practically memorized.
Before, he only admired the master chef's skill, now he could try to replicate it.
Pickled ginger, pickled peppers, and pickled radishes were diced, dried chilies and scallions were cut into sections, Sichuan peppercorns and garlic were prepared—the ingredients were ready.
He was about to start a fire.
Zhou Momo came huffing and puffing over, carrying a handful of thin firewood. "Guo Guo, let me help you start the fire!"
"Okay." Zhou Yan smiled, taking the firewood from her hand, breaking it in half and stuffing it into the stove. He then took a bundle of straw, struck a match, and it ignited. The straw was then added to the stove, and the firewood was immediately set ablaze. Finally, a piece of oak wood was added, and the fire was lit.
Zhou Momo moved a small stool over, sat down in front of the stove, and muttered, "Good stove, I'll feed you firewood, you have to keep the fire burning well and cook me some fish to eat~"
Aunt Zhao and Zhao Hong had arrived earlier, standing on either side of the wok, both eager to learn some advanced fish cooking techniques.
Like twice-cooked pork, cooking fish is a must-learn skill for Sichuan people.
It's hard to say about other dishes, but when it comes to cooking fish, almost every family has a representative chef.
Add two large spoonfuls of lard to the wok, then two ladles of rapeseed oil.
This step made Aunt Zhao and Zhao Hong's eyes widen.
These four ladles of oil were enough for the family to cook for half a month.
"You don't need that much oil to braised fish, but you need more for frying it. It helps it set quickly and prevents the fish from overcooking." Zhou Yan explained. He brought the oil to a boil over high heat, and when it reached about 60% of its maximum temperature, he added the fish pieces.
Sizzle! Sizzle!
The fish pieces sizzled immediately upon entering the oil.
"Fry them in small batches with several times. Don't fry them for too long. Once the skin is slightly golden and set, they're ready to be taken out." Zhou Yan used a slotted spoon. After the fish pieces had set, he quickly scooped them out, shook them in the spoon to separate any pieces that were stuck together, and poured them into a clean large bowl.
This bowl of fish, fried in four batches, filled a large basin, and smelled wonderfully of fish.
"It smells so good!" Zhou Momo couldn't resist staying by the stove any longer. She went to the wok, stood on tiptoe to look, and couldn't help but swallow her saliva.
"How about we pick a few pieces and refry them, making a plate of fried fish?" Aunt Zhao suggested.
"I love fried fish!" The little one nodded frantically.
"Okay." Zhou Yan smiled, took a plate and put the fish pieces separately, then poured them back into the wok to fry again after the oil temperature had risen a bit.
This time, he didn't rush to take them out. He waited until the fish pieces were golden brown and crispy before taking them out.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The fish pieces made a crisp sound as they were placed on the plate, their golden brown shells releasing an irresistible aroma.
He sprinkled a layer of salt and pepper on top, shook the plate a couple of times, and immediately coated them evenly.
"Here, have a taste, but be careful of the barbels." Zhou Yan handed over the plate, and everyone picked up a piece.
Zhou Momo touched it, then immediately pulled her hand back, pinching her ear and pouting, saying pitifully, "It's so hot!"
"Let me blow on it for you." Zhou Yan quickly blew on her reddened hand, then took a long strip of fish belly and blew on it until it was cool before handing it to her.
"Thank you, Guo Guo." Zhou Momo grinned, holding the golden-fried fish in both hands, and took a small bite.
Crunch!
The crispy egg-coated crust crackled softly, revealing tender fish meat inside – crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, simply divine.
"So fragrant! So delicious!"
The little one nodded happily.
"Slow down, watch out for the fish bones." Zhou Yan chuckled, taking a bite of the fried fish himself.
The crust was crispy, with a subtle eggy aroma, the fish meat was delicate, with a slight elasticity, unlike the mushy texture of farmed fish.
When making braised fish, Zhou Yan uses a lot of seasonings. When marinating the fish, he used relatively little salt, leaving a base flavor. However, after sprinkling salt and pepper on top, the fish was salty, fragrant, and just right.
It was indeed very fragrant.
Most importantly, there was absolutely no fishy smell.
Wild river carp of this era were truly of high quality! People in Guangzhou don't like to eat carp, and people in Hubei despise it, but carp holds a respectable place in Sichuan.
Of course, this is mainly because Sichuan cuisine has many cooking methods, and even farmed carp has various techniques to mask its muddy taste.
"It smells so good! Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. I'll go get some chili powder, it'll be even better then." Aunt Zhao exclaimed, going out to get a plate of special dipping sauce that used for the cross-legged beef. She dipped the fried fish in it, took a bite, and nodded repeatedly: "Yes! It's absolutely delicious!"
"I'll try it." Zhao Hong dipped her fried fish in chili powder, took a bite, and nodded repeatedly, "Even more fragrant! Delicious!"
A plate of fried fish became everyone's snack, and it was finished quickly while it was still hot.
Zhou Momo ate three pieces, then went back to tend the stove, satisfied.
"Dad, next time catch more whitebait. Those fried fish are so much better—crispy and crunchy, you don't even need to spit out the bones. Get two or three jin" Zhou Yan said to Comrade Old Zhou.
"Okay." Comrade Old Zhou nodded, feeling a bit of pressure.
Two or three jin?
He could only catch two or three at a time…
Zhou Yan glanced at his watch, it was 4:30, just the right time. After eating, the textile factory would close, and he could start working right away.
There was a little oil left in the wok. He added a spoonful of fermented broad bean paste and stir-fried until the oil turned red. Then he added chopped pickled peppers, pickled ginger, and pickled radish, and stir-fried over low heat until the moisture evaporated and the sour aroma intensified. He then added crushed garlic, ginger, and dried chili pepper pieces, and continued to stir-fry.
Once the dried chili pepper pieces turned a dark brown, he added water. Once the water boiled, he poured in the previously fried and shaped fish pieces.
He left about a third of the fish in the wok, intending to have sister in law Zhao Hong take it home to the old lady after get off work.
The water just covered the fish pieces, and he added scallions.
The fire under the stove had long been turned down to a low simmer.
High heat for tofu, low heat for fish—this is the wisdom passed down through generations.
"Glug~ Glug~"
The fish pieces trembled slightly in the rich, red broth, bubbling and releasing an aroma that filled the entire kitchen.
He gently stirred them a few times with a spatula to prevent sticking.
After simmering for about ten minutes, the broth gradually reduced.
Now sprinkle some finely chopped celery stalks and a handful of tender green scallions on top, then remove from the heat and plate.
The largest porcelain bowl in the restaurant was overflowing.
The fish is coated with powder and completely soaked in the bright red broth, making it look crystal clear. The white scallion segments, green celery, and red chili segments intertwine to create an enticing color.
The spicy and savory aroma wafted up with the steam.
The braised fish was done!
The five people in the kitchen simultaneously swallowed hard.