From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

The last dish served by Yan Jianxing was a traditional dish that had been improved by Feng Zhengming.

Eight Treasures Bag Chicken.

In the large porcelain bowl on the table, there was a whole boneless chicken in the water-like chicken soup. The chicken's belly was filled with balls made of eight-treasure ingredients, and a few eight-treasure balls were also placed in the chicken soup.

When this dish was served, Zhang Lili was amazed.

"Wow, is this clear chicken soup? It looks like there's something in the chicken's stomach?"

Wang Jialiang explained to his wife: "This is not just chicken soup, this dish is called Budai Chicken."

Zhang Lili looked at her husband and said, "Budai chicken? Is this dish also a traditional Shandong dish?"

Wang Jialiang nodded: "Yes, but this dish should have been improved a little bit, right?"

Yan Jianxing smiled and said, "Yes, this is an upgraded version of Budai Chicken. It can be called Eight Treasures Budai Chicken. This dish is the improved version made by Zhengming."

Wang Jialiang looked at Feng Zhengming and asked, "You improved the chicken?"

Feng Zhengming nodded: "The preparation of this Eight Treasures Bag Chicken is the same as that of the Bag Chicken, that is, the whole chicken is deboned, but after that, instead of stuffing it with stuffing, the eight delicacies are made into eight delicacies meatballs and stuffed into the chicken's stomach."

Wang Jialiang took a closer look and found that there were indeed balls in the chicken's stomach.

When he got closer, Wang Jialiang smelled the aroma of chicken soup.

"This chicken soup has such a strong aroma? Is there something mysterious about this chicken soup? It doesn't seem to be the traditional Shandong cuisine soup made from the soup."

Yan Jianxing smiled and explained: "The clear chicken soup in this bowl is indeed not the clear soup made by the traditional method of sweeping soup. In fact, this clear chicken soup is also a method that Zhengming learned from other places."

Wang Jialiang naturally looked at Feng Zhengming again.

The latter explained: "To make this chicken soup, the old hen is directly put into the pot and cooked over low heat. The pot must not be opened during the cooking process, and the old hen is cooked slowly.

After it is cooked through, take out the old hen and filter the soup with gauze to remove most of the fat.

Then, add the second old hen and simmer it slowly over low heat.”

Yan Jianxing took over the conversation: "A total of three old hens are needed to make this pot of clear and fragrant chicken soup. Finally, put the prepared Eight Treasures Bag Chicken in the soup, and then steam it over high heat, and then it can be served."

After listening to Feng Zhengming and Yan Jianxing’s stories, Wang Jialiang was really surprised.

He didn't expect that such a bowl of clear chicken soup could be made in this way.

Master Yan said: "This method is a method used in Huaiyang cuisine in the south."

After hearing this, Zhang Lili thought about it and asked curiously, "If we use three old hens for one pot of soup, what should we do with the old hens that have been used to cook the soup?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and explained: "Don't worry about this, sister-in-law. We have also learned the cooking method of Huaiyang cuisine. We take out the chicken meat from the old hen after cooking the soup and use it as the stuffing for the buns."

Wang Jialiang immediately responded: "Three Ding Baozi."

Zhang Lili had also heard of Sanding Baozi, and she was a little surprised: "So this is how Sanding Baozi is made?"

Master Yan nodded and said: "The chef who invented the Sanding Bao thought it was a waste to throw away the whole chicken after cooking the soup, so he took the chicken parts out of the whole chicken after cooking the soup and used them as the filling for the buns.

However, chicken itself has little fat, and after being cooked into a pot of soup, it is very dry and has no taste, so we add diced pork with alternating fat and lean meat to increase the fat, and diced bamboo shoots to increase the taste, and finally stir-fry it with seasoning.

The stuffing is made of diced chicken, diced pork and diced bamboo shoots, and the three-diced buns are made.”

Feng Zhengming added: "When I went to participate in the national competition, I heard from the Huaiyang cuisine chefs that they have also developed a five-diced bun, which adds sea cucumber and shrimp to the three-diced bun."

Master Yan smiled and said: "Wu Ding Bao is not a new invention. In fact, there were Wu Ding Bao in the past. The reason why it is still San Ding Bao most of the time is mainly because the shrimps used in Wu Ding Bao in the past were river shrimps, so there are seasonal restrictions."

After hearing what the master said, the fellow disciples immediately learned some new knowledge.

Zhang Lili asked curiously, "Can we also have Sanding Bao today?"

Yan Jianxing nodded immediately: "Okay, I also learned from Zhengming and used the seasoning of our Shandong cuisine. Would you like to try it, sister-in-law?"

Zhang Lili quickly said, "I want to try it."

Yan Jianxing went out and quickly brought back a basket of buns.

The fellow apprentices tasted the three-stick buns made by Yan Jianxing and his team.

The taste is indeed different from the Huaiyang cuisine's Sanding Bao.

Yan Jianxing made some adjustments to the seasoning of the filling, making the taste more in line with the salty and fresh taste of Shandong cuisine.

When frying the stuffing, Yan Jianxing used diced pork that was fat and lean, which added fat to the stuffing.

Therefore, when you bite the bun, some oil will even flow out.

The inner wall of the bun was also covered with oil.

The whole bun tastes quite oily and fragrant.

Yang Bin ate two big buns in one breath.

"Jianxing, your improvement is great. It makes the buns even more delicious. Especially the flavor of your filling is perfect for our taste."

Yan Jianxing smiled and said, "This is all thanks to some of the ideas Zhengming brought back. I just made some minor improvements."

"Brother Jianxing's cooking skills are really amazing. This small improvement makes the buns even more delicious." Feng Zhengming praised after swallowing the bun in his mouth.

Hearing Feng Zhengming's praise, Yan Jianxing laughed: "Hahaha, Zhengming, don't praise me like that. I just modified some other people's things. It's not really a big deal."

The master and his wife broke a bun and ate half each.

I'm old and can't eat greasy food.

However, after eating half of the bun, Master Yan still gave his eldest son a thumbs up.

"It's been improved very well and is more suitable for our local taste. It's a good skill to be able to absorb and improve other people's things."

Yan Jianxing felt very happy to receive his father's recognition this time.

He looked at his father and said seriously, "Don't worry, Dad. I will cook the dishes well and live up to the reputation of Yan's Restaurant."

Master Yan didn't say much, but just nodded with satisfaction.

During the lunch to pay New Year's greetings to the master, Feng Zhengming and his fellow brothers talked about many things.

He shared with his seniors some of his experiences in participating in the national competition and some of his insights after returning.

He also selflessly shared with his fellow students the skills he learned in the national competition and the details of the award-winning dishes he made in the national competition.

Several fellow students were inspired and shared their thoughts along the lines of Feng Zhengming.

Through mutual exchanges, it can be said that the fellow brothers and sisters have gained a lot of new inspiration.

As a master, Master Yan also gives some advice to his apprentices.

It can be said that everyone gained a lot from this kind of communication.

After lunch, we drank tea and chatted for a long time in Yan’s Restaurant in the afternoon.

Originally, Yan Jianxing wanted to invite everyone to have dinner.

However, everyone had their own things to do in the evening and did not stay at Yan's Restaurant for dinner.

Feng Zhengming, his eldest brother Li Huidong, his third brother Yang Bin, and his fifth brother Cao Zhiguo had to rush back to Huiquanlou and Ganfanpu respectively to make some preparations for the business on the sixth day of the Lunar New Year.

Second brother Chen Zezhi has agreed with his family that he will go back to spend time with them in the evening.

Fourth Senior Brother Wang Jialiang and his wife also had to go home to spend time with their family in the evening. After all, Wang Jialiang had been abroad for the past two years, so he had to spend more time with his family this time.

Sixth senior brother Zhang Minghai felt that there was nothing to do in the evening, so he went with Feng Zhengming and the others.

On the way back, Feng Zhengming asked his senior brother Li Huidong about the situation in the cafeteria.

Li Huidong did not hide it from his fellow junior students.

"My brother-in-law and I have already told the factory that we will withdraw from the canteen after the new year and will no longer continue to contract the canteen. Fang Jian was very happy and thought that my brother-in-law and I were sensible. He even told us that he would hire us to continue working for him."

Yang Bin couldn't help but say after hearing this: "That old guy is really shameless."

Cao Zhiguo and Zhang Minghai also agreed.

Feng Zhengming laughed instead: "I wonder how he would react if he knew that you, my senior brothers, were leaving the cafeteria to run a dry food shop over at the brewery?"

Li Huidong laughed when he heard this: "I'm afraid Fang Jian will be pissed to death."

Yang Bin thought for a while and asked, "Big Brother, how about letting Zhang Lei and Yang Peng work in the old shop of Ganfanpu for a while, and let me take care of the new shop. I will see if I can beat Fang Jian, the contractor of the canteen, to the death."

Feng Zhengming agreed with his third senior brother's approach.

"Third brother is right. Let Zhang Lei and Yang Peng work in the old shop first to avoid some trouble."

Li Huidong shook his head and said, "If you go over there, it will be dangerous too."

After a pause, the eldest senior brother continued, "Fang Jianzhen has contracted the canteen. If you open a dry food shop there, it will definitely affect the canteen's business. If he finds out, he will definitely find a way to deal with you."

Yang Bin was not afraid at all: "Let him come, are we afraid of him?"

Li Huidong said seriously, "In terms of craftsmanship, the people Fang Jian found are definitely not as good as you. But Fang Jian is very sinister. He can't beat you in terms of craftsmanship, so he will definitely resort to dirty tricks."

When Cao Zhiguo and Zhang Minghai heard what their senior brother said, they became a little worried.

After all, Fang Jian is the deputy director of the brewery.

He must have some influence over the brewery.

At least he must be more familiar with some of the street thugs over there than Yang Bin and the others.

He contracted the canteen, but his cooking skills were not as good as those of the restaurant owner.

The business was taken away by the dry rice shops.

There is a high possibility that Fang Jian will become desperate and ask some ruffians over there to come and cause trouble.

Cao Zhiguo said, "Big Brother, if Fang Jian really lets the ruffians come to cause trouble, it won't be any use even if Zhang Lei and Yang Peng are there, right?"

Li Huidong explained seriously, "After all, Zhang Lei and Yang Peng have worked in the cafeteria for several years. They are familiar with some people in the brewery and the surrounding areas. They can help mediate there."

After hearing what the eldest senior brother said, Feng Zhengming's other senior brothers became a little worried.

Everyone was worried that Fang Jian was doing something shady behind the scenes.

Wouldn't it be a waste of the money Feng Zhengming invested in opening the restaurant there?

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "Don't worry, senior brothers. Did you forget that Yao Zhenhui is also going there this time? Yao Zhenhui's family is from there, and he is more familiar with it than Zhang Lei and Yang Peng."

This reminded several senior brothers, and they were immediately less worried.

Feng Zhengming mentioned two more people who could help.

"Also, we can find Liu Yongfeng and Liu Daxing in advance. If we have the police to help us, why should we be afraid of those hooligans over there?"

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, the brothers completely relaxed.

Yang Bin even smiled and said: "We have all overlooked Zhengming's current status. He is the champion of the national cooking competition, and both the province and the city are very supportive of him.

Fang Jian really dared to do something behind the scenes and prevent Zhengming from opening the new dry rice shop over there. Zhengming reported it to the police, and he was fired from his position as deputy factory director?"

Feng Zhengming shook his head and said, "It's better not to go that far."

Li Huidong also agreed: "Yes, if we really do that, we will have to bear a lot of favors."

Yang Bin said: "Then we can find the police. Liu Yongfeng and Liu Daxing have good relations with Zhengming. Liu Daxing is now the police officer in charge of that area, and Liu Yongfeng has been recruited by the Municipal Bureau.

With two policemen helping us, we can do business honestly without worrying about the ruffians over there causing trouble."

After listening to this, Li Huidong nodded and thought that this was indeed a good idea.

In fact, all of this was already part of Feng Zhengming's original plan.

After he left the cafeteria, he had been paying attention to the situation of the senior brother in the cafeteria.

So Feng Zhengming knew very well what the eldest senior brother had suffered in the cafeteria.

This time, Feng Zhengming not only wants to find a position for the eldest senior brother where he can better utilize his abilities.

More importantly, he opened a dry food shop near the brewery just for Fang Jian.

He knew very well that once the eldest senior brother withdrew from the canteen contract.

Fang Jian will definitely try his best to contract the canteen.

Feng Zhengming wanted to open a dry restaurant there, and use his skills and low prices to squeeze out the canteen taken over by Fang Jian, snatch away Fang Jian's canteen's business, and make Fang Jian lose money from the moment he took over the canteen.

After all, the other party bullied his senior brother, so he must teach him a lesson.

In the past, Feng Zhengming could only watch from the sidelines because he did not have enough ability and means.

It’s different now. I’m already the champion of the national cooking competition.

He is the youngest new generation chef of Shandong cuisine.

Gained attention from the province and the city.

It also has two well-known restaurants in Quancheng, Fengjia Dry Rice Shop and Huiquanlou.

If you have the ability but don't show your strength, isn't that like walking in the night in gorgeous clothes?
Feng Zhengming's goal was very clear, he wanted to help his senior brother vent his anger and suppress Fang Jian.

In addition to helping the eldest brother vent his anger.

This is also his first step to expand his dry rice shop business.

Ganfanpu is not like Huiquanlou, which is a low-cost business that wins by volume.

Moreover, Feng Zhengming's initial goal was to turn Fengjia Rice Shop into a chain store and make it a model of Chinese fast food.

In the past, we did not have enough manpower, but now we have enough manpower, and we need to take the first step.

The reason for choosing the brewery was that when other factories were not doing well, the brewery's performance was still very stable and the wages of the employees in the factory were relatively stable.

Secondly, when the eldest brother contracted the brewery canteen, he had already introduced braised pork in the canteen.

The recipe that the eldest senior brother used at that time was the one given to him by Feng Zhengming.

So the people there have become accustomed to the taste of the braised pork at Fengjia Dry Rice Shop.

The eldest brother no longer contracted the brewery canteen, so it was impossible for him to leave the recipe of braised pork with pork to Fang Jian.

Then the people who are used to eating the braised pork at Feng's dry rice shop and the brewery will naturally become loyal customers of Feng Zhengming's new shop. (End of this chapter)