1984: Starting from a bankrupt Sichuan restaurant

Chapter 159 Run away, you horse's head!
Kong Guodong led everyone through the courtyard and headed straight for the kitchen.

The original kitchen of Leming Restaurant was already very large. After the renovation, two more rows of stoves were built, which can accommodate more than 20 chefs to work and learn at the same time.

A group of people had gathered around the stove. The person in charge of cooking was a middle-aged man with a round face. Despite the chilly early winter weather, he was wearing a thin chef's uniform, but his forehead was covered in sweat.

On the other side of the stove stood three old men. The one in the middle was wearing a chef's uniform. His silver hair was already thinning, and he was combing the hair around his head towards the middle, stubbornly trying to cover his bald spot.

If viewed at eye level, it should be considered decent.

But Zhou Yan was half a head taller than him, and from his angle, it looked more like a smooth-bottomed bird's nest.

The one on the left is wearing a black Tang suit, is overweight, has his hands behind his back, and looks quite kind.

The one on the right is wearing a brand-new indigo-blue Zhongshan suit, with five buttons and four pockets, perfectly ironed, and has a somewhat serious expression.

There were seven or eight middle-aged and young chefs surrounding them, who were probably all apprentices or grand-apprentices.

"The one in the middle is your grand-uncle Kong Qingfeng, the one on the left is Uncle Qin Kun, a first-class chef who also retired from Leming Restaurant. The one on the right is Li Liangcai, the former head chef of Feiyan Restaurant. The current head chef of Feiyan Restaurant, Li Laosan, is his apprentice." Xiao Lei slowed his pace and introduced them to Zhou Yan and Zheng Qiang in a low voice: "The ones next to him are all your grand-disciples and grand-disciples who have been taught by your grand-uncle over the years. Call the older ones grand-uncle and the younger ones senior brothers. There shouldn't be any major mistakes."

Xiao Lei and Zheng Qiang nodded and first identified everyone.

This should be the top-tier chef in Jiaozhou right now, the kind who can prepare banquets.

Of course, when it comes to individual skills, there are many hidden talents among the common people.

"Zhong Yong is stir-frying pork liver. This is today's exchange dish, mainly to test the cooking skills. The old man asked me to go to the market early this morning to buy five catties of pork liver. Everyone has a chance to try it today," Kong Guodong explained with a smile, leading the three forward.

When the topic of spicy pig liver came up, the expressions of Zhou Yan and the other two became somewhat subtle.

Recently, Xiao Lei has been practicing stir-fried pork liver at the restaurant every day, cooking dozens of portions daily, which is quite strenuous.

The progress bar has been stuck at 98% for two days, just one step away from completion.

When Zhou Yan and the others arrived at the stove, the stir-fried pig liver was already cooked, and a steaming plate of it was placed on the stove.

Kong Qingfeng frowned and raised his voice a few decibels: "Zhong Yong, Zhong Yong, your skills have declined quite a bit. Have you been directing your apprentices around in the kitchen every day for the past two years?"

Look at how you've cut the pig liver! Some pieces are big, some are small, some are thick, some are thin. How am I supposed to cook it like that? Either the thin pieces will be overcooked, or the thick ones won't be cooked through.

"This is supposed to be a hot and spicy dish, but I don't know how you managed to cook it with so much water. You didn't even dare to turn up the heat. Is this still a hot and spicy dish? It's all soupy and watery, and it doesn't look appetizing at all."

"I can't even be bothered to hand you chopsticks, you old bastard!"

Zhong Yong blushed and lowered his head, stammering, "Master, I mainly cook braised dishes and cold dishes now. I can only stir-fry pork liver once a year. I really didn't learn properly when I was learning to cook. I'm sorry for making a fool of myself."

"Playing the erhu in a graveyard—don't talk nonsense! Don't you care about knife skills and heat control when you cook?" Kong Qingfeng rolled his eyes. "There are two pounds of beef brisket over there. You'll be in charge of cooking it later. I want to see if your cooking skills have deteriorated. If they're still this bad, I'll teach you a lesson."

The onlookers laughed. As long as the elders of the sect weren't cursing them, they could laugh without restraint.

The atmosphere suddenly became cheerful.

Zhong Yong raised his head, patted his chest confidently, and said, "Master, don't worry! Braised beef brisket with potatoes is my specialty, absolutely no problem!"

"Don't make a fuss. Go wash the cutting board and the pot, and stand aside and watch how your fellow apprentices stir-fry pork liver." Kong Qingfeng waved his hand.

“Master, Xiao Lei and his two nephews have arrived,” Kong Guodong finally said.

"Uncle-Master, it's been a long time." Xiao Lei stepped forward with Zhou Yan and Zheng Qiang, and said with a smile.

Kong Qingfeng smiled and shook Xiao Lei's hand, saying, "Shitou, it's been more than half a year since I last saw you. How is everything at home? Are your two kids in junior high school now?"

“One is in the second year of junior high, and the other will be in the first year of senior high in the fall,” Xiao Lei replied with a smile, then introduced to Kong Qingfeng, “This is Zheng Qiang, Yunliang’s apprentice, and this is Zhou Yan, my apprentice.”

"Grandmaster Uncle," Zhou Yan and Zheng Qiang greeted respectfully.

"Yunliang said he was too busy to come, so he sent you, kid, instead?" Kong Qingfeng said to Zheng Qiang with a smile.

"The Rongcheng restaurant is doing incredibly well, and my master is indeed very busy and can't get away. I hope my grandmaster will forgive him," Zheng Qiang hurriedly said.

"Being busy is good, it means you can still cook, and your skills haven't declined." Kong Qingfeng nodded with a smile, then looked at Zhou Yan, looked him up and down, and laughed, "Shitou, your apprentice looks more like a celebrity than a chef."

As everyone was sizing up Zhou Yan and Zheng Qiang, they laughed and teased upon hearing this:

"It really is true. Senior Brother Xiao's disciple is quite handsome and sunny, like a movie star."

"You've taken this visit to your sect quite seriously, even wearing new clothes and new leather shoes. It shows your thoughtfulness."

Kong Qingfeng looked at Zhou Yan and said, "How old are you this year? You've been studying with your master for two or three years now, haven't you? I heard him mention it before."

"I'm twenty this year, and I've been studying with my master for over two and a half years," Zhou Yan replied with a smile.

"Good. Looking at your forearm muscles and the calluses on your hands, it shows you train hard and haven't been slacking off." Kong Qingfeng nodded.

"My master is too strict, I dare not slack off," Zhou Yan said with a smile.

"Senior Brother Xiao."

Everyone greeted Xiao Lei.

Xiao Lei responded with a smile, introducing Zhou Yan and Zheng Qiang to a group of people so they could get to know each other's faces.

"Junior brother, have you remembered who's who?" Zheng Qiang asked in a low voice.

"More or less." Zhou Yan nodded.

Zheng Qiang scratched his head: "Damn it, I have face blindness. I was so busy nodding that I didn't remember any of the names."

Zhou Yan laughed and said, "It's alright. The older ones are called 'Master Uncle,' and the younger ones are called 'Senior Brother.' You can't go wrong." "That makes sense." Zheng Qiang nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Come on, next Wang Mian. Spicy pig liver was one of your specialties back in the day. Let's see how many of your skills you still have left," Kong Qingfeng said.

"Yes, Master." A sturdy middle-aged man stepped out from the crowd and responded. He took out his kitchen knife from his bag, cut off a piece of pig liver from the basin next to him, placed it on the cutting board, and slicing it into thin, even slices.

Kong Qingfeng nodded slightly and said, "See? This is the basic skill. You need to use the knife with strength, steadiness, and precision, and make clean and neat cuts. That's how you slice the pig liver so evenly. A chef's knife skills depend entirely on diligent practice. There are no shortcuts."

Everyone nodded.

Zhou Yan watched from the side and thought, "As expected of a master craftsman, his knife skills are indeed excellent, far superior to those of the previous senior apprentice."

After slicing the pork liver, start seasoning it. Add cooking wine, salt, and other seasonings to the bowl one by one, and finally thicken it with a small handful of cornstarch.

Kong Qingfeng watched from the side and nodded repeatedly.

Indeed, it was a master craftsmanship; the ingredients and methods were basically the same, except that the cornstarch slurry was a bit too thick in Zhou Yan's opinion.

Wang Mian first glanced at the stove and asked his apprentice to add a piece of firewood. Once the oil was hot, he added the pig liver and quickly stirred it with a ladle. Then he added scallion segments and chili segments, stir-fried it quickly, and served it.

A dish of dry, oily, and spicy stir-fried pork liver is then plated.

Steam rose from the pot, and a fragrant aroma wafted through the air.

Zhou Yan glanced at it: [A rather good stir-fried pork liver]

"Look, this stir-fried pork liver is finally doing properly! It's oily but not brothy, the surface is glossy and dry, and the aroma is irresistible," Kong Qingfeng praised. He picked up a piece of pork liver with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and nodded, "Hmm, not bad, very tender, and the cooking time is just right. It's just that the seasoning is a little lacking in spiciness, and if you taste it carefully, there's a slight gamey flavor. It could have been marinated a bit more thoroughly."

“Yes, Master, I have learned a lot.” Wang Mian nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

Qin Kun and Li Liangcai also picked up their chopsticks and tasted it.

"It's good. It has the wok hei (wok aroma), and it's tender but cooked through. The heat control is quite good, but there's definitely room for improvement in the seasoning." Qin Kun nodded. "This is much better than those Sichuan restaurants outside. It's definitely at level two."

Li Liangcai put down his chopsticks and said, "I think the thickening is a bit too thick, so the flavor didn't penetrate properly and just floated on the surface, which is why the gamey smell wasn't completely masked. Next time, I'll reduce the amount of cornstarch by one-third and try making it thinner."

“What you two gentlemen say is true. I’ll go back and practice some more,” Wang Mian said respectfully.

Kong Qingfeng said, "Come on, you guys try it too, share your opinions, and verify what the gentlemen have said. That's how you improve faster."

Everyone took chopsticks and stepped forward to taste the food.

Zhou Yan tasted a piece and seemed to be deep in thought. The older generation really had some skills!
That hits the nail on the head.

The stir-fried pork liver was indeed quite good, tender and oily, but the flavor was on the surface, resulting in a slightly gamey aftertaste.

But this is the result of eating only one piece and tasting it carefully from the chef's perspective.

If it's served on the dining table, guests will find the pork liver crisp, tender, and smooth, and the taste quite good.

So all things considered, this is a pretty good stir-fried pork liver dish.

There is a certain gap between what he did and what his master did.

He's not as good as his master.

Wang Mian set a good example, and the stir-fried pig liver cooked by his fellow apprentices afterward was also quite good.

But by the time it came to the grand-disciple generation, the situation gradually began to get out of control.

"What kind of cut did you make? It's thicker than your cactus board!"

"Heavens! Is this boiled pig liver?"

"You're really something! I didn't ask you to make charcoal-grilled pig liver, and you even managed to start a fire on a clay stove? I really want to slap you across the face!"

Before Kong Qingfeng could even speak, their own master was already furious and disappointed in him.

The younger generation lowered their heads and listened to the reprimand, not daring to utter a sound. After all, what they had lost today was not just their own face, but their master's face, and they could understand their master's anger.

"Thank goodness my master didn't come today," Zheng Qiang said with a sigh of relief.

"It's alright, my master is your master too. Let him come and scold us later," Zhou Yan comforted him.

Zheng Qiang glared at Xiao Lei, who was smirking, and said, "Forget it! I don't necessarily need a master."

On the contrary, Kong Qingfeng and the other two elders were quite tolerant of the younger generation, giving them calm and gentle guidance, and occasionally making sarcastic remarks about their master.

"Stone, why don't you give me a demonstration? Back in the day, my senior brother's stir-fried pork liver and stir-fried pork kidney were absolutely amazing. They were known as the most tender in Jiaozhou, and no one has surpassed them since." Kong Qingfeng looked at Xiao Lei and said with a smile, "Let me see how much of his skills you've inherited."

All eyes turned to Xiao Lei.

"There's only one serving of pig liver left, so I won't embarrass myself by showing it off," Xiao Lei said with a smile. "Let Zhou Yan cook one for everyone, and we'd like the three elders and fellow apprentices to give him their feedback. Young people like us shouldn't miss this opportunity."

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Zhou Yan.

The younger generation, especially those who had been scolded earlier, all looked at Zhou Yan with pity.

Run away, horse's head!
You'll still get scolded if you deserve it!
Being handsome is useless.

A chef's skill ultimately comes down to their hands.

(End of this chapter)