As we all know, northerners love to eat noodles, while southerners love to eat rice.
If this principle is further extended, it means that northerners are good at making noodles and southerners are good at making rice.
The capital city belongs to the north, so of course the people have a special liking for pasta.
If you talk about the famous noodles in Beijing, people in Beijing will basically mention "Fengzeyuan Restaurant".
This time-honored brand was founded by the "legendary shopkeeper" Luan Xuetang.
Although from before liberation to after the founding of the People's Republic of China, it has always been a popular place for celebrities, dignitaries, and high-ranking officials to have banquets.
But this high-end restaurant, in addition to its well-known signature dishes of "roasted sea cucumber with green onion", "agarwood in clear soup", "shark fin casserole" and "braised mullet eggs", there are also some more down-to-earth dishes,
A unique skill that benefits the people more.
Those are eight kinds of noodles that originated from Shandong and have been improved.
Grilled steamed buns, silver rolls, Shandong steamed buns, dumplings, bean paste buns, happy character cakes, salted flower rolls, and small steamed buns.
These classic pastries of "Fengzeyuan" have long been nicknamed "Eight Great Pieces" by the people in the capital.
This meaning is obvious, and it undoubtedly means that their exquisiteness and deliciousness are comparable to the delicate ones in the pastry shop - "Beijing Eight Pieces".
The most rare thing is that even in special times, the chefs of "Fengzeyuan" are forced to cook "public meals".
The pastry here has not lost its inheritance, at least the "roasted steamed buns" and "silver rolls" are still being made and sold.
Therefore, after so many years, the window of the "Fengzeyuan" takeout department has been a lively scene with people queuing up almost every day, and the place will not leave until the food is sold out.
If we want to use the words of Bai Qiye in the TV series "The Mansion Gate" to describe it, it would be "Steamed buns must be from Fengzeyuan."
This shows how much people in the capital recognize Fengzeyuan’s pastries.
But delicious is delicious, but not many people really know why Fengzeyuan’s noodles are so delicious.
Most people think that the chef's cooking skills must be unique and must be unique.
Only then can we make this ordinary pasta outstanding and extraordinary.
Ning Weimin thought so too.
Especially when he knew very well that the steamed buns produced in Fengzeyuan in the 1930s were far less delicious than they are today.
In my heart, the chefs at Fengzeyuan are not as good as the previous generations.
I cherish the time I have now more and more, and take advantage of the convenience of Shan'er Hutong being close to Fengze Garden to enjoy it as much as possible.
I often run there just to buy pasta.
Until this secret, like a layer of window paper, was easily revealed by "Zhang Dashao".
Only then did Ning Weimin realize that he had thought wrong again.
The key reason why Fengzeyuan's noodles are so delicious is actually the "old noodles" from Xinfenglou, which have been passed down for more than a hundred years.
The so-called "old noodles" are also called "fat noodles".
Some places call it "noodles" or "yeast".
This is a dough made through certain processes and methods, and is a product formed after fermentation.
Scientifically speaking, it is the natural yeast used for baking dough, or the beneficial bacteria culture medium.
Despite its ordinary appearance, this thing is just a honeycomb-shaped sourdough that usually just lies quietly in the dough bag.
But its interior is extraordinary, full of infinite vitality and magical power.
The pasta made with this stuff will have a pure grain aroma.
No matter the strength or elasticity, it cannot be compared with pasta made with yeast powder or self-rising flour.
As for how to get Fengzeyuan's "old noodles", the whole process was quite effortless for Ning Weimin.
He just made an appointment with Qiao Wanlin to go there together and asked for a piece directly.
Before going there, Ning Weimin thought it might not be easy.
I'm afraid that if I don't have a good relationship with the chef, I might have to rely on Qiao Wanlin's official position to exert some pressure.
Unexpectedly, when I took a look around, I found that the head chef on duty was a very talkative and nice guy.
As a result, the head chef has absolutely no control over the kitchen, and the situation in the kitchen is extremely lax.
Everyone does their daily work on their own initiative and only cares about their own business.
Not only are we joking and chatting casually at work, there are even chefs smoking cigarettes at work.
No one took the head chef and Ning Weimin and Qiao Wanlin who came to "check the work" seriously.
Normally, Qiao Wanlin would probably have a droopy face, thinking that the head chef was so useless.
Why are the people below making such a fuss and not even making any superficial show of dealing with the inspection?
But because this day had a special purpose, this unbearable situation turned out to be a good thing.
If the head chef can't control people, it's natural that he's in the wrong. Even if his superiors are afraid of being blamed, he'll just try his best to curry favor.
In this case, Ning Weimin used the excuse that he wanted to make some steamed buns at home.
He just mentioned it once, and finally got the "fat noodles".
The head chef entered Bai An's kitchen and came out within a minute. He handed Ning Weimin a large brown paper bag with a smile on his face.
Ning Weimin opened it and took a look, wow! How reckless! This piece of food weighed at least half a catty when chopped with a kitchen knife.
Not bad, the sour smell in the paper is overwhelming.
He was so happy that he lit a cigarette to the head chef and thanked him endlessly.
In this way, Ning Weimin not only got his wish but left with his old face in his arms.
Moreover, the chef also gave him and Qiao Wanlin a large lunch box of roasted sea cucumber with green onions, a large package of fried quail legs and a large package of dry croquettes each.
Look, after kidnapping someone else's "child", the parents are so stupid that they just give him food and drinks, what a worldly thing!
No need to ask, the first thing Ning Weimin did when he returned was to make the dough himself and steam two pots of steamed buns to try them out.
So what is the effect?
Hey, don't tell me, the dough made with such "dough fertilizer" is just different from ordinary dough.
It not only makes the dough bigger, but also takes less time, and can also effectively preserve the nutrients of the pasta.
So much so that the pure wheat aroma of the steamed pastry is a bit similar to the aroma of milk.
Only then did Ning Weimin know why many people had suspected that fresh milk or milk powder was added to "Fengzeyuan" pastries. This was the real reason.
And despite his inexperience, this was his first time steaming steamed buns.
Even if I had to ask Aunt Luo at the hospital for advice on how to add alkali, the steamed buns would still be a little yellow.
But the steamed buns that are so alkaline have no astringency at all, and the taste is still overpowering.
Everyone in the hospital tasted it and received rave reviews.
Like Mi Xiaohui next door, after school, she caught up with the second pot of hot steamed buns that had just been opened.
This girl actually ate half of it and said it tasted better than "righteousness bread".
She also said that she would no longer eat her own steamed buns from now on, and would only eat steamed buns made by Ning Weimin.
This gave Ning Weimin a sense of accomplishment.
Even Kang Shude was surprised when he went home and ate steamed buns.
Because the old man is really knowledgeable, he can taste the flavor of Fengzeyuan as soon as he eats it.
After figuring out what happened, the old man was sincerely happy for his apprentice and couldn't help but admire him.
It is said that a piece of old noodles can have such miraculous effects, as if it has a fairy spirit. Love is a century-old thing.
If even a novice like Ning Weimin could make steamed buns with such a taste.
I'm afraid that for any ordinary chef, this thing is a "treasure" that can directly add skills.
It is completely foreseeable that when Ning Weimin's restaurant opens, the noodles produced will definitely be good.
This is so true.
Ning Weimin thought so too.
No one knows better than him that after all the historical twists and turns such as the capital's move to the south, the fall of Peking, the gold yuan coupon storm, and public-private partnerships.
How difficult it is for this century-old dough to be preserved intact, even breathing quietly and silently accumulating its own potential.
As the core competitiveness of a restaurant, something like this should be strictly guarded and kept secret at all costs.
If it hadn't been for a long period of various "movements" that changed customs and established new ones, history would have formed a narrow slit of distorted values.
How could he take advantage of such a big loophole and get it?
It is no exaggeration to say that after 30 years, even if an ordinary person uses this noodle fertilizer to open an old noodle steamed bun shop, the business will easily flourish.
It would not be difficult to really build a chain store and make hundreds of millions from this thing.
This is like a sapling that has always been a cash cow.
If it really grows, it will be inexhaustible and inexhaustible.
God knows how the people of "Fengzeyuan" lost such a treasure.
Anyway, Fengzeyuan’s steamed buns in the future will obviously not taste as good as today.
This also means that his restaurant may have the opportunity to dominate the market with its pasta in the future and win the current crown of Fengzeyuan.
Isn't this enough to make him take it seriously?
impossible!
Come on, don't say anything. There is only one thing he has to do next.
That is, he solemnly put the "old noodles" in a special celadon basin and "raised" them as if they were offerings to gods, and locked them in the cupboard.
Privately, he only gave the key to Kang Shude and entrusted it to the master with great solemnity.
I beg the old man to help him take care of the saplings of this money tree before the restaurant opens.
You must remember to continue the interview on time, and you must not let this "living baby" have any problems.