Liang Jian: I have a canteen

Seeing Xu San's worried look, the cook immediately smiled and said, "Ah, I remember Mr. Edogawa has a strong taste, so I will add more salt."

"You can do whatever you want!" Xu San said, "You do yours, I'll do mine, I'll make two more dishes, and we'll make twelve."

"Oh, how can this be possible? You are so precious, how can you do heavy work?"

The cook still had a smiling face, looking like a typical Shanghai mother.

"It's okay or not. Here, I still have the final say."

"So what dishes do you plan to cook? I'll prepare the ingredients for you right away." The cook didn't fight for it anymore, but decided to be a kitchen helper so that she could see how Japanese food is cooked and learn a little.

In the cook's mind, this city will be populated by Japanese sooner or later, so learning a few Japanese dishes will just be a good way to improve her skills in making a living.

Her plan was quite good, but unfortunately Xu San smacked his lips and said, "I need two main dishes, a chicken stewed with wild mushrooms and a steamed Panlong eel."

"Uh," the cook was a little confused and stammered, "These are all Chinese dishes. Aren't you going to make two Japanese dishes?"

"Japanese food? We're making it on New Year's Eve. We want noodles over there. Here it's called buckwheat noodles. Oh, by the way, buckwheat noodles should be served with sauerkraut and fat sauce to be more palatable."

Xu San talked incessantly, and his saliva was about to flow out.

After swallowing his saliva, Xu San continued, "We need the pickled cabbage from Northeast China, not the pickled cabbage from the south. Oil is easy to make. Just get some lard and some lard and it will come out."

The cook looked at Xu San and couldn't help asking, "Do you really want to prepare these?"

"Yeah, that's all. Although I'm Japanese, I have a special liking for Chinese food. I especially love the wontons and pan-fried buns here in Shanghai." Xu San explained his somewhat abnormal taste with a smile.

"Oh~" The cook was still confused, but she didn't dare to ask more. "We don't have lard here. I'll ask Xiao Hai to buy some."

The cook waved her hand and called her son over as she spoke, "Xiao Hai, go buy some lard at your third uncle's shop. His meat is safe to eat." As she spoke, the cook took out a few French francs and handed them to her son.

Xiao Hai rubbed his hands on his apron, took the money, and trotted away.

Seeing Xiao Hai's hurried look, the cook called out, "Slow down, don't be in a hurry, the lard will be used in the evening."

After finishing speaking, the cook said with an apologetic look on her face, "Mr. Edogawa, I'm sorry that you made fun of me because I'm such a child."

I have been in Shanghai for a while. If we talk about the most authentic Shanghainese, it is this cook. Her very typical accent, tone and temperament suddenly made Xu San feel a strong sense of intimacy.

There is no more to say. The more you say, the more mistakes you will make, especially to a middle-aged woman like this.

They are nosy, suspicious, and have rich social experience. Most importantly, these middle-aged women will magnify trivial matters infinitely.

For example just now
She began to have obvious doubts about her own taste.

Um.
Do you want to silence him?

As Xu San thought about it, he picked up an eel from the basin of water beside him.

I pinched the eel's body with my fingers and found the meat was a bit soft.

Forget it, I won’t silence him.

although
However, Xu San felt that he was not that kind of person. (End of this chapter)