From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

At the end of the meal for everyone in Hong Kong, of course, there had to be a bowl of mullet egg soup.

The version served by Feng Zhengming is his adjusted version, which does not require thickening and uses pickle juice to add sourness.

The taste amazed everyone in Hong Kong as soon as they tasted it.

"This soup, this taste, is it actually mullet egg soup?"

Tycoon Huo asked Li Guansheng: "Mr. Li, is this soup a traditional Shandong dish?"

Li Guansheng shook his head: "This is probably not a traditional method. The one we had at Jufengde at noon is the most traditional Shandong cuisine. However, Feng Zhengming's method is indeed very novel and tastes great."

Dai Long was a little surprised: "This soup tastes so good, it's a bit unexpected."

Long Kunbao tasted it carefully and said, "What is this sour taste? It doesn't taste like vinegar."

Then everyone looked at Jiang Chengzhe.

I think he followed Feng Zhengming to Huiquanlou in the afternoon.

And he has been observing in the kitchen of Huiquanlou, so he might know.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, Jiang Chengzhe spread out his hands helplessly.

"Don't look at me like that. I really don't know how to season this soup. You guys came before I even had time to see it, so I really don't know how to make this soup."

In this case, all we can do is wait patiently.

Until Feng Zhengming came to serve everyone the last snack.

There are silver thread rolls made by Lu Chongshan of Huiquanlou, as well as some stir-fried hand-rolled noodles made by Lu Chongshan.

I saw Feng Zhengming personally come to serve the last snacks and main dishes.

Naturally, everyone took the opportunity to ask about the recipe of mullet egg soup.

In the end, it was Li Guansheng who asked the question.

"Zhengming, your mullet egg soup doesn't seem to be made in a traditional way, right? I see your mullet egg soup doesn't have starch thickening, and your seasoning is also very special. Can you tell us about it?"

Before Feng Zhengming could speak, Li Guansheng added another sentence.

"If it's inconvenient to say, you don't have to tell us how to season it. We don't want to pry into your secrets."

Feng Zhengming replied with a smile: "It's not a secret. My mullet egg soup is indeed not made in the traditional way. I add the cooked mullet eggs directly into the brown soup after sweeping the soup.

Are you curious about the sour taste? It is not seasoned with vinegar, but with the juice of pickled cucumbers. "

Feng Zhengming's answer shocked all the chefs in Hong Kong.

Long Kunbao took another sip of what was left in his bowl.

I savoured the taste carefully.

Long Kunbao exclaimed: "Yes, it tastes like pickled cucumbers. This sour taste is exactly that sour taste."

Seeing Long Kunbao’s surprised expression.

Li Guansheng, Dai Long and Jiang Chengzhe who were present were also quite surprised.

They had never thought that they could use the juice from pickled cucumbers as a seasoning.

Carefully savor the mullet egg soup you just had.

The taste is quite mellow, even with a slight aftertaste of sourness, which makes people feel really comfortable drinking it.

The sour taste produced by cooking with vinegar is completely different.

It cannot be said that traditional mullet egg soup is not delicious.

For example, the mullet egg soup made by Jufengde is also quite delicious.

It’s just that the mullet egg soup that Feng Zhengming adjusted tastes different.

This dinner tonight allowed everyone in Hong Kong to clearly feel that Feng Zhengming is different from others.

Especially compared with the reception dinner at Jufengde.

Jufengde can be said to be an authentic representation of Shandong cuisine.

Everyone in Hong Kong has to admit that every dish at Jufengde is cooked quite well.

You can taste the flavor of traditional Shandong cuisine.

Moreover, the taste is acceptable to everyone in Hong Kong.

Feng Zhengming’s dishes cannot be considered traditional.

He added a lot of his own creativity based on tradition.

His creativity is not for the sake of creativity.

It’s not something that’s lost in traditional Shandong cuisine.

The Hong Kong chefs present knew that Feng Zhengming could cook the most traditional and authentic dishes.

Everyone has seen this when participating in the national cooking competition.

It is because Feng Zhengming can make traditional Shandong cuisine authentic.

He can innovate based on tradition.

Such innovation will not lose tradition, but will also allow for the creation of dishes with their own unique personality.

Every dish Feng Zhengming serves tonight is traditional Shandong cuisine.

Each dish has a unique style.

Li Guansheng hesitated for a moment and then said, "Feng Zhuangyuan, we can taste your personal thoughts on each of your dishes tonight. It seems that after the national cooking competition, your cooking skills have indeed improved a lot."

When Feng Zhengming heard what Li Guansheng said, he did not act modestly this time, but responded neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"After returning from the national cooking competition, I have indeed been doing research. I want to integrate the skills I learned from chefs in other regions into our Shandong cuisine so that our Shandong cuisine can be innovative."

Dai Long couldn't help but praise: "You have done it. The dishes you cooked today are really good."

A tycoon from Hong Kong City nodded: "Yes, I like your Nine-Turn Large Intestine very much. The taste is more mellow, and the sour, sweet, salty, spicy and bitter are quite obvious.

The flavors blend well with each other, and none of them overpowers the other, so the balance is excellent.”

Feng Zhengming responded with a smile: "Thank you. If you all like it, our efforts tonight are worth it."

Long Kunbao asked curiously: "How did you come up with the idea of ​​using pickled cucumber juice as a seasoning?"

Hearing Long Kunbao's question, Feng Zhengming replied with a smile: "Because I think if I use vinegar to season the soup without thickening, it will taste a bit too pungent. Using pickled cucumber juice is more gentle."

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, Long Kunbao thought about it carefully and felt that it seemed to be correct.

If vinegar is used for seasoning, the traditional thickened mullet egg soup, or should it be called soup, will taste smoother.

However, the soup seasoned with vinegar without thickening will always be a little sour and pungent.

The pickled cucumber juice that Feng Zhengming chose for seasoning does make the soup sour and very comfortable to drink without thickening.

Everyone from Hong Kong City present, as well as several bosses who hosted the dinner, truly felt the charm of seasoning.

Jiang Chengzhe looked at Feng Zhengming and finally couldn't help but speak out his thoughts.

"Zhengming, you are really amazing. You can actually use different things to make seasoning."

Feng Zhengming smiled and responded: "Anything can be used as a seasoning as long as it has flavor and is harmless. Aren't we chefs supposed to know how to play with flavor? So we shouldn't stick to common seasonings."

These words made several chefs from Hong Kong City present fall into deep thought.

If you think about it carefully, what Feng Zhengming said does make sense.

A chef should be good at controlling taste.

The flavors aren't just the usual condiments.

Many vegetables, fruits, meats, and things like pickles that have been fermented to produce flavor can also be used.

When it comes to seasoning, you should not stick to traditional forms.

You can try using other things to season the dishes.

Feng Zhengming saw that the chefs in Hong Kong were all thinking, so he gave a reminder. "Isn't there sweet and sour pork in Cantonese cuisine? I remember that sweet and sour pork can be fried with pineapple, doesn't it also borrow the flavor of pineapple?"

These words really woke up the Hong Kong chefs present.

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, they felt that it was indeed correct.

You can use pineapple as seasoning and stir-fry sweet and sour pork.

Why can’t you use pickled cucumber juice to season mullet egg soup?

In fact, they are all borrowing flavors.

To increase the flavor of the dish.

The dinner at Huiquanlou in the evening really broadened the horizons of the people in Hong Kong City.

The chefs and the two tycoons in Hong Kong all feel that Feng Zhengming's current title of national number one is well deserved.

The masterly demeanor he displayed enabled him to fully handle any situation.

In front of the two tycoons in Hong Kong City, he was still quite at ease.

Even the presence of Feng Zhengming made the bosses who hosted the dinner feel a lot more relaxed.

They also became natural in chatting with Hong Kong tycoons.

After everyone finished their meal at Huiquanlou, they left the building. Several bosses then invited the tycoons from Hong Kong City to sit down and talk about possible cooperation.

Li Guansheng and the chefs did not leave together. They stayed in Huiquanlou and wanted to communicate with Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming distributed aprons to everyone and led Li Guansheng and others into the kitchen.

When Li Guansheng and his team walked into the kitchen, they were immediately welcomed by everyone in the kitchen.

This really made Li Guansheng and the others feel flattered.

After taking a closer look at the kitchen, I found that most of the chefs there were young.

Li Guansheng was a little surprised: "Zhengming, most of the chefs in your kitchen are young?"

Feng Zhengming nodded and said, "Yes, when I took over Huiquan Restaurant, most people in Quancheng didn't think highly of me, and no chef was willing to help.

I invited the young chefs from Qilu who had participated in the provincial young chef cooking competition to help. "

Hearing this, Dai Long smiled and asked, "You mean, when you first took over Huiquanlou, you were ostracized by the Shandong cuisine chefs?"

Feng Zhengming quickly waved his hands and explained, "No, I wasn't excluded by them. But after all, they are all chefs in restaurants and hotels, and they are older than me. They must be unhappy to work for me at Huiquanlou."

Dai Long then asked with a smile: "Now, do they all want to come and help you?"

Feng Zhengming also laughed when he heard it: "Not really, they are still better than me at traditional Shandong cuisine."

Dai Long is a straightforward person and will definitely speak out whatever he thinks.

Therefore, his temper has offended many of his colleagues in Hong Kong.

Because when Dai Long sees his colleagues making mistakes in cooking, he will criticize them directly and bluntly.

Many times, they directly criticize their peers regardless of the occasion.

This approach was bound to make Dai Long offend many people.

As he listened to Feng Zhengming, a disdainful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"You don't have to speak for them. I know better than you what kind of people some chefs are. Some chefs may not be very good at cooking, but they are very arrogant."

Li Guansheng couldn't help but remind him: "Okay, Dai Long, you drank a few more glasses tonight. You must have drunk too much, right? Stop talking."

In front of Li Guansheng, Dai Long is still a junior, so when Li Guansheng speaks, Dai Long naturally shuts up.

"Hahaha, okay, okay, I won't say anything more."

Li Guansheng felt helpless and apologized to Feng Zhengming.

"Sorry Zhengming, Dai Long is just like that."

Feng Zhengming smiled and shook his head to indicate that it was okay: "It's okay. Chef Dai has a straightforward temper. I understand that. I think this is good."

Li Guansheng didn't let Dai Long speak, he directly changed the subject.

"So, Zhengming, you have also gradually built up your own reputation with these young chefs."

Feng Zhengming nodded: "Yes, we are all young people, so we can communicate with each other more directly, and we will work together to make better dishes."

Dai Long couldn't help but say: "You are still the best chef."

Li Guansheng glared at Dai Long, who had no choice but to shut up again.

Feng Zhengming said with a smile: "It's not just me who can manage the kitchen well. To run a restaurant like Huiquanlou, the kitchen still needs cooperation from everyone.

And now I have two senior brothers in the kitchen, so I don’t need to personally instruct on many things, my two senior brothers will help me do a good job.”

At this time, Feng Zhengming introduced his two senior brothers to the chefs in Gangcheng.

I met Feng Zhengming’s two senior brothers, Li Huidong and Cao Zhiguo.

It also made Li Guansheng and others quite polite.

After all, they are Feng Zhengming's senior brothers and should be given enough respect.

After visiting the kitchen of Huiquanlou.

I watched Feng Zhengming leading the kitchen staff to cook again.

Li Guansheng and others also felt that Feng Zhengming's kitchen team was very strong.

Dai Long couldn't help but whisper to remind them: "Did you see that? What everyone in the kitchen does seems to have been arranged in advance. Almost every dish they make can be made by a group of people working together."

Li Guansheng nodded immediately: "This shows that Feng Zhengming's command and dispatch are very good. He breaks down the various details of a dish very well."

From the bystander perspective of several chefs in Hong Kong.

The kitchen of Huiquanlou is like a processing workshop.

There is almost no idle person in the kitchen, everyone has their own job.

A dish can be completed to a high degree after passing through the hands of a group of people.

None of this surprised Li Guansheng and the others.

Even Li Guansheng felt a little envious and envied such a team.

A kitchen team that can achieve such a level of tacit understanding.

In the eyes of Hong Kong chefs, this is not something that can be acquired overnight.

First of all, the chef Feng Zhengming needs to be able to clearly control the details of each dish and break it down into detailed steps.

Another thing is that Feng Zhengming needs to be able to adapt according to the abilities of different chefs and apprentices.

Assign individuals the processes that suit them.

It seemed that Feng Zhengming had no involvement in the final dish.

But the quality of the final dishes is no less than those he makes himself.

Under normal circumstances, a level of more than 60% is considered acceptable.

The kitchen of Huiquanlou can reach 80% of the standard.

This can be considered a pretty impressive team.

After watching for a while, Li Guansheng and the others felt embarrassed to disturb Feng Zhengming all the time.

When Huiquanlou welcomed another group of customers, Li Guansheng and his friends took the opportunity to say goodbye to Feng Zhengming and leave.

I walked out of Huiquan Tower and looked back at it.

Li Guansheng couldn't help but sigh: "Feng Zhengming is really a chef with all-round abilities."

Dai Long, Long Kunbao and Jiang Chengzhe all agreed with this statement. (End of this chapter)