From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

At his first dinner in Shanghai, Feng Zhengming paid special attention to tasting every dish served.

By carefully tasting each dish, Feng Zhengming quickly discovered some of his past misunderstandings.

Maybe in the past, when people mentioned Shanghai cuisine, the first word that came to everyone’s mind was “sweet”.

The four words that come to mind are "thick, oily and red sauce".

But when Feng Zhengming actually ate the local Shanghai cuisine on the spot.

He found that this was just like the stereotype of Shandong cuisine being "black and sticky".

It is a label given by many people who only have a limited understanding of the situation.

These local dishes on site actually incorporate many techniques from other cuisines.

The taste is also more complex, a flavor that is a fusion of flavors from different regions.

Speaking of “sweetness”, Shanghainese cuisine is indeed sweeter than dishes from other cuisines.

But it’s not the sweet label that many people put on it.

In fact, the sweet taste of Shanghai cuisine also contains more flavors.

Take the local braised pork served to Feng Zhengming and his team as an example.

People who don’t know much about it might think that this style of braised pork is just pork belly cooked in syrup.

In fact, both in appearance and taste, this style of braised pork may be more like the cherry meat in Su cuisine.

After Feng Zhengming became famous because of the live TV audition, he received many letters from food lovers from other places.

Many of them are recipes and food legends collected by food lovers from other places.

He also learned the characteristics of many other regional cuisines from those old cookbooks.

Just like this cherry meat dish in Su cuisine, it is said to have been created by a Suzhou chef named "Zhang Dongguan" during the Qianlong period.

Originally, Zhang Dongguan was the chef of a wealthy businessman named Chen in Suzhou.

When Emperor Qianlong went to the south of the Yangtze River, special dishes were prepared for him to enjoy.

After tasting Zhang Dongguan's food, Emperor Qianlong liked it very much and transferred him to the capital to be the imperial chef.

Zhang Dongguan even invented "Su Zao Tang".

The "Suzhou-style soup" was used to create unique dishes such as Suzhou-style meat.

To cook cherry meat, you need to make cuts on the whole piece of pork belly, then stew it in a casserole without a drop of water, using the best Huadiao wine, adding onions, ginger, rock sugar and red yeast rice.

The meat is tender and crispy when it comes out of the pot, and after being dyed with red yeast rice, it looks like small cherries.

That’s why it’s called “cherry meat”.

Braised pork in brown sauce is a local dish in Shanghai.

When cooking, the pork belly should also be cut into regular square pieces.

In this respect, it is very similar to making cuts on cherry meat.

In addition, during the cooking process, although red yeast rice is not added for coloring, it is still stewed with Huadiao wine, soy sauce, onion, ginger and rock sugar. The overall method is very similar to cherry meat.

Moreover, the braised pork in Shanghai's local cuisine is not thickened.

The soup is entirely cooked and the juice is reduced, allowing the soup to naturally become thick and viscous.

This may seem simple, but it actually tests the chef's cooking skills and seasoning very well.

As the soup naturally thickens, its flavor will inevitably become stronger as well.

Therefore, when adjusting the taste, the chef needs to have a threshold.

Don't give too much food when there is a lot of soup.

Otherwise, the taste will be off after the soup thickens.

This may be the reason why many people who are not familiar with local cuisine will naturally judge that local cuisine is too sweet when they eat dishes made by chefs whose cooking skills are not very good.

If the chef does not make a threshold adjustment to the mouth before collecting the juices.

By the time the soup thickens, the braised pork will inevitably become too sweet.

But many chefs may often overlook this point when cooking.

Ultimately, the result was that a delicious braised pork that was supposed to have a moderate salty and sweet taste became a dish that was too sweet and greasy, and even made it difficult for many outsiders to swallow.

On site, many chefs may not taste each dish carefully.

So when I saw Feng Zhengming tasted each dish very carefully.

It once again attracted the attention of local chefs in Shanghai.

Zong Desheng came to Feng Zhengming again.

"Chef Feng, I noticed that you seem to eat very carefully. Do you have any suggestions?"

Feng Zhengming saw Zong Desheng asking him again, and this time he smiled and said, "Chef Zong, the local dishes you prepared tonight should be very traditional, right?

I think your braised pork is similar to the cherry meat in Su cuisine in terms of presentation and taste.

Before I came here, I had read a lot of information and learned that the braised pork in red sauce of local cuisine is indeed derived from cherry meat. "

Zong Desheng was a little surprised when he heard this. Generally speaking, most chefs of a certain cuisine are proficient in the dishes of their own cuisine.

I might learn about dishes from other cuisines, but I will never study them in great detail.

Feng Zhengming immediately told the origin of this dish, Braised Pork in Brown Sauce.

He could also taste the different flavors.

This time, Zong Desheng's impression of Feng Zhengming changed again.

Before, Zong Desheng took the initiative to greet Feng Zhengming, which was considered a polite acquaintance.

Because almost all chefs from all over the country know that Feng Zhengming is a very young and capable chef in China.

Naturally, he would attract the attention of many chefs, who would take the initiative to greet him and get to know him.

Originally, Zong Desheng didn't have much idea of ​​having a close relationship with Feng Zhengming.

Now, after listening to Feng Zhengming's analysis, he suddenly felt that the other party was worthy of close friendship.

"I never thought that Chef Feng, at such a young age, not only can cook Shandong cuisine so well, but he also has some knowledge of cuisines from other places."

Feng Zhengming quickly said, "Chef Zong, you are too kind. I also made up for some knowledge of other local cuisines before participating in the national competition.

I read some related introductions in some books. If I am wrong, please forgive me, Chef Zong."

Zong Desheng smiled and said, "No, Chef Feng, you are right, our braised pork is indeed improved from cherry meat.

After all, Shanghai is very close to Suzhou, so many of our local dishes are more or less influenced by Suzhou cuisine.

This may give many people the impression that there is no difference between Shanghai cuisine and Jiangsu cuisine.”

Feng Zhengming added with a smile: "It will also give people the impression that the dishes are very sweet."

“Yes, people who don’t understand Shanghai cuisine and Su cuisine will have this impression.” Zong Desheng was also a little helpless.

“Everyone always thinks that Jiangsu cuisine and Shanghai cuisine can be summed up in one word: ‘sweet’.”

Feng Zhengming said: "It's just like the impression many people have of Shandong cuisine, which is that it's dark and sticky."

Hearing Feng Zhengming say this, Zong Desheng couldn't help laughing. After laughing, Zong Desheng nodded in agreement: "That's right, everyone always has some stereotypes and labels us."

Zong Desheng then asked: "Will Chef Feng change his impression after tasting it today?"

Feng Zhengming responded seriously: "It will indeed change the stereotype. Maybe your braised pork is indeed sweet, but it is not overly sweet. Instead, it strikes a good balance between salty and sweet.

And this balanced salty-sweet taste is a good counterbalance to the greasiness of the pork belly.”

After listening to Feng Zhengming's words, Zong Desheng was quite impressed with him.

This young man can really describe some of the characteristics of Shanghai cuisine.

After some thought, Feng Zhengming took the opportunity to give Zong Desheng some small suggestions.

"Chef Zong, I have a small suggestion. Since our braised pork is sweet, can we add some fruit like some Cantonese dishes? To combine the sweet taste and let the meat flavor be accompanied by a little fruit flavor?"

These words made Zong Desheng fall into deep thought.

Feng Zhengming then gave an example: "For example, when stewing meat, you can add some tangerine peel or hawthorn, or when collecting juice, you can rub some lemon peel to add fruit flavor."

After hearing this, Zong Desheng couldn't help but feel that Feng Zhengming's idea was really quite bold.

And it is somewhat subversive.

But if you think about it carefully, it does seem feasible.

Feng Zhengming then pointed out some characteristics of Shanghai cuisine.

“In fact, local cuisine is said to be rich in oil and red sauce, but many dishes still retain the original flavor of the ingredients better and add flavors on top of the original flavor, so local cuisine has very high requirements for the freshness of the ingredients.”

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, Zong Desheng nodded with a smile: "That's right, Chef Feng, you are really knowledgeable."

Chatting with Feng Zhengming really made Zong Desheng very happy.

Because he can really strip away the stereotypes and make evaluations simply by tasting it himself.

In particular, he can understand the true characteristics of many local dishes.

For example, the freshness of this ingredient can be fully demonstrated in a dish of pickled pork with preserved vegetables from local cuisine.

Yan Du Xian must use very fresh spring bamboo shoots and pair them with spring lettuce.

Then use fresh pork and bacon, as well as ham and tripe.

It can be said that the whole dish is stewed and its taste is full of the flavor of spring.

It will really be a delicious seasonal dish.

But if it is not cooked well, many people will not be able to eat this dish.

So the reason why some people think many dishes are not tasty is actually because the chef’s skills are not good enough.

If you don’t understand a dish well enough, it’s natural that you won’t be able to make the dish taste the way it should.

Zong Desheng was so impressed by Feng Zhengming’s recognition of the local cuisine.

I can say that I have a very good impression of him.

The two discussed a lot together and talked about many details of the cooking methods of local dishes.

Feng Zhengming finally sighed: "No wonder the focus of this national competition is to let us make traditional classic dishes more standard.

The truth is that too many chefs today fail to understand the foundations of traditional classic dishes, and often make huge deviations from their original recipes.”

Zong Desheng nodded and said, "Yes, many chefs who don't know how to cook local cuisine just make it sweet.

As a result, some of the detailed characteristics of Shanghai cuisine were ignored by them.

Just like some Shandong chefs, their scallion-fried sea cucumber is so black and slimy that it’s hard to arouse your appetite.”

At this point, Zong Desheng couldn't help but praise Feng Zhengming's Oolong Playing with the Pearl.

"But I saw on TV that the dish you made, Chef Feng, was probably made using the traditional method of cooking sea cucumber with scallions, and it turned out very beautiful."

Feng Zhengming said modestly: "I am just making some attempts."

Zong Desheng said: "You just need to be bold to try. Only by trying can you better understand classic dishes."

At this moment, Feng Zhengming and Zong Desheng really had some similar interests.

By the end of the conversation, even the other chefs had finished their meal and left.

Zong Desheng saw that most of the chefs had finished their meals and left. He quickly said apologetically, "I'm so sorry to have delayed your meal, Chef Feng. Everyone has finished their meals and left, but you haven't finished your meal yet, okay?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "It's okay, I've eaten very well."

Zong Desheng added: "Chef Feng, please don't blame me for the poor hospitality."

Feng Zhengming shook his head: "It's already very good, I really eat very well.

Besides, being able to chat with Chef Zong and exchange some of our cooking ideas is more worthwhile than this dinner tonight."

Zong Desheng also said: "Yes, I benefited a lot from communicating with Chef Feng."

Afterwards, Feng Zhengming also said goodbye to Zong Desheng and left the restaurant first.

After Feng Zhengming left, Zong Desheng also left the restaurant and went to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Zong Desheng met his master, Master Li, who is considered to be the top chef of Shanghai cuisine.

When he saw Master Li, Zong Desheng excitedly told Master Li about his conversation with Feng Zhengming.

Master Li was somewhat surprised after hearing Zong Desheng's narration.

"Oh? Now that you mention it, Feng Zhengming seems to be a very creative young chef. Moreover, he has dabbled in other cuisines as well. He is really amazing."

Zong Desheng said, “Yes, Master, I think Feng Zhengming is a very good chef.

He has a lot of ideas that may seem incredible at first glance, but if you think about it carefully, you will find that they are indeed feasible.”

Master Li laughed and said, "How else could he become a representative chef of Shandong cuisine at such a young age?"

Zong Desheng nodded: "When I saw him perform the Oolong Playing with Pearls on TV, I felt that he was really extraordinary."

Master Li agrees: "It is really not easy for him to combine two classic Shandong dishes to create such an Oolong Xizhu dish."

Master Li then added: "You can communicate with him more when you have time. This is also what we hope to see in this national competition."

Zong Desheng quickly agreed.

After saying goodbye to his master, Zong Desheng went into the kitchen and led the chef team to finish the meal.

Master Li left the kitchen, still thinking about Feng Zhengming whom Zong Desheng mentioned.

Through his apprentice's retelling, Master Li also felt that Feng Zhengming had done in-depth research in culinary arts.

As he thought about it, Master Li muttered, "Maybe he can really beat that young talented chef from Gangcheng."

Obviously, this time, the chefs from all over the country also regarded the chefs from Hong Kong City as a test for the chefs participating in the national competition from all over the country.

In order to save face in front of Hong Kong chefs, the old master hopes to see some talented young chefs emerge.

After today's observations, Master Li has temporarily fixed his sights on Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming left the restaurant and took the elevator upstairs to his room.

As luck would have it, he ran into Gangcheng's chef team while taking the elevator.

Then Feng Zhengming saw that in the Gangcheng chef team, there was a young chef who was about the same age as himself. (End of this chapter)