From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Feng Zhengming returned to Huiquanlou. He was somewhat dissatisfied with his performance today.

So after returning to Huiquanlou, he plunged into the kitchen and began to think about how to improve the dish in the competition.

His condition made Grandpa Feng, several fellow brothers and Luo Qing a little worried.

He Yunqing, who did not go to watch the game in person, was also somewhat worried about Feng Zhengming's situation.

"Is the chef okay? Did he have a bad day?"

Luo Qing replied: "The dish he cooked today scored second."

He Yunqing breathed a sigh of relief: "Second place? Isn't that already very good? The chef got first place in the first game, and second place today. As long as he doesn't perform badly in the third game, the chef will definitely be able to represent Shandong cuisine in the national competition."

Luo Qing was still very worried: "He seems to be dissatisfied with his results."

Several senior brothers were also somewhat worried about Feng Zhengming.

After all, Feng Zhengming had basically always scored first in previous competitions.

Or rather, every time he prepared a dish carefully, he would get the highest score in the competition.

Senior Brother Li Huidong said: "It's good that he got second place this time. After all, his opponent is Master Cui's best disciple. He is the Shandong cuisine chef in the Chinese restaurant department of Jingcheng Hotel."

Third Senior Brother Yang Bin felt a little sorry for his junior brother: "But his Oolong Dengyun, besides the fancy carvings, I dare say it definitely tastes worse than Zhengming's Oolong Xizhu."

This point was agreed by all the senior brothers present, and everyone felt that Feng Zhengming's Oolong Xizhu must taste better.

Because Feng Zhengming used very traditional techniques and added creative seasonings.

It adds freshness to the dishes and increases the taste layering.

Even though several senior brothers didn't taste it on the spot, they were still sure that there was absolutely nothing wrong with Feng Zhengming's cooking method.

Second Senior Brother Chen Zezong said: "But this is a competition after all. On the field, Lin Bosheng's mistake was indeed more gorgeous."

Although everyone was on Feng Zhengming's side, they couldn't find any fault with Lin Bosheng's Wulong Dengyun.

The design of that dish is not inferior to Feng Zhengming's, and the shape is even more exquisite than Feng Zhengming's.

So in the eyes of the seniors, Feng Zhengming lost to the opponent by one point, and they couldn't really say that the judges were unfair.

Fifth Brother Cao Zhiguo said: "I said that Zhengming has been in Quancheng for too long and needs to go out more often. The chefs in many big restaurants outside are really good at cooking."

Sixth Senior Brother Zhang Minghai nodded: "This time in the selection competition, I finally saw the cruelty of the competition."

Grandpa Feng spoke only after Brother Feng Zhengming and his fellow brothers had finished speaking.

"I don't think Zhengming can't accept that he only came in second place. He must have realized his own shortcomings through the cooking skills of Chef Lin Bosheng, so he wanted to verify it as soon as he came back."

After hearing what Grandpa Feng said, everyone felt that it might indeed be the case.

Based on everyone's understanding of Feng Zhengming, he really doesn't seem like the kind of person who can't afford to lose.

Li Huidong said, "Okay, let's stop guessing and go to the kitchen to check on him."

Then several senior brothers changed their clothes and went to the kitchen to see Feng Zhengming.

In the kitchen, Feng Zhengming asked everyone in Huiquanlou's kitchen to continue working, while he himself did some research.

Just as grandpa said, Feng Zhengming didn't care at all about winning or losing this game.

He was still thinking, is there anything wrong with his Oolong Xizhu?
More importantly, he was thinking about how to make the dish Oolong Xizhu in Huiquanlou.

The first step is to disassemble the entire dish.

It is not difficult for Feng Zhengming to really disassemble the process.

This dish can be divided into two dishes.

Two dishes: braised sea cucumber with scallions and scallops with broccoli.

During the preliminary processing, the two dishes should be cooked separately.

In the kitchen, you can cook a lot of sea cucumbers at one time to season them.

It is even easier to make scallops. You can even make a lot in advance and keep it in stock. When needed, just steam them and arrange them on a plate.

Of course, the preliminary material preparation and production process still require some disassembly.

The preparation of shrimp paste, chicken paste and scallops needs to be handled separately.

After processing, mix the ingredients together, beat them well and squeeze them into balls. Wrap them with various chopped strips and place them on a plate, or freeze them directly for storage, or steam them in large quantities in a steamer.

Then the sea cucumber can be seasoned and prepared in advance together with the scallion-fried sea cucumber.

Of course, there is another very important point here. When the sea cucumber is cooked after it has been seasoned, the sea cucumber pulp must be stuffed.

Making the filling is not a difficult task and can be assigned to apprentices in the kitchen.

Place the whole dish on a plate to complete the dish.

Of course, there is also scallion sauce poured on each sea cucumber.

The final soul soup is made by adding shrimp oil to the broth and thickening it.

All ideas, processes and procedures.

It went through Feng Zhengming's mind very smoothly.

In the kitchen, everyone was busy preparing ingredients, and would look at Feng Zhengming from time to time, and see him standing there alone, doing nothing, just standing there.

This made everyone in the kitchen very strange?
Everyone thought that the game didn’t go well today?
So the chef is back in a bad mood?

It can't be that the chef was eliminated, right?
These thoughts echoed in everyone's mind in the kitchen.

Everyone wanted to ask, but they were a little afraid to disturb Feng Zhengming.

Until several of Feng Zhengming's senior brothers came in wearing chef uniforms.

Then they also saw Feng Zhengming standing alone in the kitchen, in front of his own counter, staring at the chopping board and knife in front of him in a daze.

After watching for a while, I found that Feng Zhengming was just standing there in a daze, doing nothing.

Sixth Senior Brother Zhang Minghai couldn't help but ask, "Isn't it possible that Old Seven was really shocked and went crazy?"

Li Huidong glared at his sixth junior brother: "What nonsense are you talking about? Junior brother, you won't be unable to withstand such a small blow."

Third Senior Brother Yang Bin said, "I'm afraid he is thinking about something."

As soon as the third senior brother finished speaking, Feng Zhengming finally came to his senses.

He let out a long breath.

Feng Zhengming stretched and turned around.

He saw his fellow brothers and other people in the kitchen were staring at him.

He smiled at everyone and said to the people in the kitchen: "You guys continue to work, I'm fine, we will open as usual tonight."

When everyone in the kitchen heard him say this, they naturally breathed a sigh of relief and immediately got busy.

Several senior brothers walked up to Feng Zhengming. As the eldest senior brother, Li Huidong was the first to speak.

"Zhengming, there will always be winners and losers in a competition. You only lost by one point this time. Don't be discouraged."

After the eldest senior brother said this, the other senior brothers also encouraged Feng Zhengming.

"Yes, there is still one game left. If you prepare well, you will definitely be able to move back."

"With your current score, you will definitely be selected to participate in the national competition."

"Your dish is excellent, but the presentation lacks a little decoration. It's no worse than Lin Bosheng's."

"Come on, you've done a great job."

When Feng Zhengming heard the comforting words from his senior brothers, he immediately laughed.

“Hahaha, don’t worry, brothers. I’m not discouraged. Judging from the situation at the competition, my Oolong Playing with Pearls is indeed a little worse than Brother Lin’s Oolong Ascending the Clouds.”

Yang Bin immediately said: "It doesn't matter, we all think you did a great job."

"That's right, you did a great job, we all think it's a great idea." Sixth senior brother Zhang Minghai immediately agreed.

Feng Zhengming continued to smile and said, "Brothers, you don't have to comfort me like this. I really don't think there is anything wrong with losing. Brother Lin did a better job than me in that Wulong Dengyun.

I still need to learn more from Brother Lin in terms of plate design and carving."

Seeing Feng Zhengming say this with a smile.

The fellow practitioners all understood that his words came from the heart, and they felt relieved.

Then, Feng Zhengming shared his thoughts on how to prepare the dish Oolong Xizhu in Huiquanlou.

The brothers were really stunned by what they heard.

They didn't expect that Feng Zhengming had already figured out how to serve this dish in Huiquanlou in such a short time after returning.

After listening, Cao Zhiguo asked in surprise: "Zhengming, did you just come up with this idea? Do you want to order this dish at Huiquan Restaurant?"

Feng Zhengming nodded: "Yes, I am planning to serve this dish in Huiquan Building. I think this dish will be easier to sell online, and if the quality can be guaranteed, it will definitely sell better than the scallion-fried sea cucumber."

The senior brothers felt that what Feng Zhengming said was somewhat wrong.

Yang Bin said: "It may not sell better than scallion-fried sea cucumber, right? After all, scallion-fried sea cucumber is a classic dish of our Shandong cuisine."

The Sixth Senior Brother echoed, "Yes, many people might come here for the scallion-fried sea cucumber."

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "But if you want to eat scallion-fried sea cucumber, there are many restaurants and hotels in Quancheng that offer it. If everyone makes it, won't it lose its novelty?

My dish lets everyone taste two dishes at once: scallion-fried sea cucumber and hydrangea scallops. "

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, the senior brothers suddenly felt that this dish was indeed more cost-effective.

If Feng Zhengming can design the process well, customers will indeed be able to taste two classic Shandong dishes.

When combined together, customers can enjoy an innovative Shandong dish.

With some appropriate publicity, this dish might become a classic dish in Huiquanlou.

Senior Brother Li Huidong said: "Zhengming, if you go to the national competition this time, you must design this dish well and make it again in the national competition. I think this dish deserves better promotion."

After hearing what the eldest senior brother said, the other senior brothers also expressed their agreement.

Everyone feels that if a dish like this is not promoted in a national competition, it would be a waste of such a good idea.

If this dish can win a gold medal in the national competition, it will become a classic Shandong dish in the future.

Just based on this dish, Feng Zhengming is worthy of being called a master chef of Shandong cuisine.

When Feng Zhengming heard his senior brothers say this, he naturally nodded in agreement.

"Okay, if I can participate in the national competition, I will definitely make this dish more carefully and carefully again in the national competition, so that this dish will shine in the national competition."

Feng Zhengming was chatting with his fellow brothers in the kitchen when his master, Master Yan, also came to Huiquanlou.

Seeing Master Yan come in, Grandpa Feng and Luo Qing came forward to greet him.

"Old Yan, you didn't come to the competition for so many days, why did you suddenly come today?"

Master Yan walked in and said with a smile, "The dish Zhengming made today made me feel like I need to come over here."

When they saw Master Yan come in, someone had already gone to the kitchen to inform Feng Zhengming and his fellow brothers.

Feng Zhengming and his fellow brothers also hurried out.

The fellow disciples came forward together and saluted the master respectfully.

When Master Yan saw that his apprentices were all there, he was very pleased.

"You are all here? That's great. It seems that Zhengming's Huiquan Building will be the place where you brothers gather from now on."

Li Huidong said quickly: "Master, we are worried about our junior brother these days, so we are here to help him with advice. If we brothers want to get together, we will definitely go to see Master and go to Yan's Restaurant."

Master Yan smiled and waved his hand: "No, next time you come to Huiquanlou, you can let me know and I will come."

After hearing what their master said, the disciples looked at each other, not knowing what to say.
Master Yan saw that his disciples were silent, so he continued to ask with a smile: "What's wrong? Don't you welcome the master?"

Feng Zhengming quickly said, "How could that be? Master, you coming to Huiquanlou is the happiest thing for us."

Master Yan nodded and said, "Zhengming, the Oolong Playing with Pearls dish today was great. You combined two classic dishes, the scallion-fried sea cucumber and the hydrangea scallop, and used a sauce to blend the two dishes into one dish. It's very creative."

Feng Zhengming smiled and responded: "Thank you for the compliment, Master. I feel more confident to receive your affirmation."

Master Yan then said, "Master came here because he hopes that if you go to the national competition this time, you can make that dish again."

Hearing the master say this, Feng Zhengming and his fellow brothers exchanged glances.

Senior Brother Li Huidong confessed to his master: "Master, we just told Junior Brother that we can perform the Oolong Playing with Pearls again when we go to the national competition."

Master Yan said: "Yes, such a creative dish would be a loss to Shandong cuisine if it is not displayed in the national competition."

Feng Zhengming promised earnestly: "Master, rest assured, I will further improve the dish and strive to win a gold medal in the national competition."

Seeing his young apprentice so confident, Master Yan said with satisfaction: "Okay, Master will wait for your good news."

Then Master Yan also mentioned Lin Bosheng’s dish.

"Lin Bosheng's Oolong Climbing Clouds today may not be as creative as yours, but his production is more sophisticated than yours and better meets some of the requirements of the competition. You should learn from this."

Facing the master's warning, Feng Zhengming still nodded and agreed: "Master, don't worry, I will learn from Brother Lin."

Master Yan had some conversation with his apprentices and gave them some warnings.

In particular, he warned his disciples not to become proud and indulge themselves just because Feng Zhengming's fame was growing.

After being warned by their master, the disciples all agreed seriously and said they would not be overbearing.

In the evening, Feng Zhengming and his fellow apprentices invited the master to stay for dinner and each of them prepared a dish for the master to taste. (End of this chapter)