Chapter 202 The tips and secrets of cooking braised prawns! Dundun’s revenge!
"Braised prawns?"
Upon hearing the name of the dish, all the relatives showed expectant expressions.
It’s not that this dish is unusual, on the contrary, braised prawns can often be eaten at wedding banquets in the Central Plains.
Just because we eat it often, everyone wants to compare it to see the difference between what Lin Xu cooks and what he usually eats for weddings and weddings.
The current farm-style restaurant in the scenic spot is run by Lin Xu’s second uncle Shi Wenming.
He is a village banquet chef in a nearby town. Since the business in the scenic spot has been booming recently, he has been in charge of a farm-style restaurant.
When he heard that his nephew was going to make braised prawns, Shi Wenming quickly put down his wine glass and walked over:
"What seasonings do you need? I'll prepare them right away. Do you want ketchup? A big jar has just been opened in the kitchen, and rice vinegar is also newly opened."
Lin Xu smiled and shook his head:
"Second uncle, when I make this braised prawns, I don't use either tomato sauce or rice vinegar, but it's definitely more delicious than the one made with tomato sauce and rice vinegar."
The prawns eaten in the Central Plains are basically frozen shrimp.
Not fresh live shrimp.
Therefore, when braised in oil, rice vinegar or tomato paste will be added to create a sweet and sour taste, which is used to suppress the stale texture and taste of shrimp meat.
However, in fact.
Real braised prawns do not need these condiments.
When Shi Wenming heard that the method was different, he became curious:
"What should we do? Can I follow you and watch? This won't involve the secrets of the State Guesthouse, right?"
As a chef, I am full of curiosity about different cooking methods.
But the mystery of the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse made Shi Wenming a little uneasy.
I'm afraid that my nephew will reveal secrets that shouldn't be revealed.
Lin Xu said:
"You can come and see me as you like. There is no secret in this. Even your aunt and uncle can come and see it. This dish is quite simple. Once you learn it, it will definitely be a highlight at the family banquet."
Once I heard it, it was so simple that the ladies couldn’t sit still.
They all got up and came to study.
Even Chen Meijuan was eager to try it, but she was afraid that Baby Shen would feel uncomfortable sitting alone among relatives, so she suppressed her curiosity and continued eating with her baby daughter-in-law.
Mrs. Lin looked at this scene with a smile:
"Only when a family is harmonious can everything prosper. This is absolutely true."
She was the principal of a middle school before she retired and was well-known in the family. The reason why the Lin family's relatives are so united is inseparable from Mrs. Lin's management and education.
It can even be said that the Lin family's family tradition of "helping each other and supporting each other" was established by Mrs. Lin.
This is why as soon as the scenic spot started to develop, Chen Yuanyuan came over to work as a ticket seller, Shi Wenming took charge of the farmhouse restaurant, and even Lin Xu’s idle cousin came over to look at the gate.
Relatives have to help each other.
See relatives gathered around.
Lin Xu didn't hide his secrets, and started to clean up the prawns while explaining the essentials.
What my uncle bought today were premium grade prawns, also called prawns. They were big and because they were still alive, they must have cost a lot of money.
"The processing of shrimp is divided into four parts: prawn cutting, shrimp sac removal, shrimp leg cutting, and shrimp line picking. I will tell you one by one. There are tips for this."
The so-called shrimp gun is the straight and long spike at the front of the shrimp head.
When cooking shrimp, this part should be cut off, otherwise it will easily pierce the mouth when eating, causing redness, swelling, bleeding or even inflammation in the mouth.
The shrimp gun cannot be used to cut from the part connected to the shrimp head. If you do not remove the roots, you will still be stung by the shrimp gun hidden in the shrimp head when you eat it.
If you want to clean the shrimp gun, you need to cut off the shrimp's eyes, including the shrimp eyes, the shrimp whiskers, and half of the shrimp head.
Lin Xu explained while cutting.
After cutting off the shrimp heads, he cut off all the shrimp legs and feet along the shrimp body.
Then cut the shrimp tails flush with each other, and also cut the middle part of the two shrimp tails. The purpose of this is to make it easier to pick out the shrimp lines.
After doing this, insert the scissors into the remaining shrimp head and gently pick out the shrimp bladder.
When picking, I will occasionally pick out all the shrimp threads.
This is the reason for cutting the tail of the shrimp.
It doesn’t matter even if the shrimp thread doesn’t come out.
Use scissors under the second section of the shrimp tail, gently cut open the shrimp shell, and then use the scissors to pick out the meat, and the shrimp thread will be picked out.
"Remember it is the second section from the top. After the shrimp shell is cut in this part, the shrimp meat will be intact. The shrimp shell will not crack when stewing. At the same time, the flavor of the seasoning will penetrate into the shrimp meat from here.
”
The prawns required to make braised prawns are quite large.
If you don't cut it, it will be difficult for the seasoning to completely penetrate into the shrimp meat by stewing it in oil. Even if it penetrates, the shrimp meat will have already been cooked.
Lin Xu's relatives nodded repeatedly.
Even Shi Wenming, the chef of the village banquet, looked like he was listening carefully at this time. Although he had been involved in cooking for many years, he always followed what others were doing.
I know it, but I don’t know why.
Now listen to Lin Xu explain.
Only then did he realize that if he wanted the shrimp meat to absorb the flavor quickly while keeping the shrimp body intact, he only needed to use scissors to cut open the second section of the shrimp shell.
What a great trick!
After processing all the prawns, Lin Xu put the prawns aside and flattered his uncle:
"The shrimps that uncle bought are really perfect. Even the purchasing manager of Diaoyutai may not be able to buy such good quality prawns."
When Lin Xu's uncle Chen Meide heard his nephew praise him so much, he immediately smiled and said:
"You don't know, in order to buy this shrimp, I went to the seafood city and searched several stores before I found it. It took a lot of effort."
Lin Xu’s grandmother, Mrs. Chen, couldn’t help but glare at him:
"My nephew flatters you and you just listen. Why do you show off your merits?"
Chen Meide quickly picked up a piece of soft roasted tofu for his mother:
"Mom, are you thirsty after eating vegetables? How about I pour you a cup of tea?"
Mrs. Chen laughed and cursed:
"You brat, I can't talk about you anymore, can I?"
There are three brothers, Chen Meijuan. The eldest, Chen Meide, is a small cadre of the Municipal Culture Bureau. The second, Chen Meiliang, was a famous breeding king in Yinzhou City in the early years and opened the largest chicken farm in Yinzhou City.
After an avian flu.
His career suddenly evaporated, and he was even burdened with millions of dollars in debt.
After years of frugality and the help of relatives, I finally paid off the debt.
After her daughter Chen Yuanyuan came to the scenic spot to work, Chen Meiliang, who finally had a rest, also ran over and took the initiative to take on the responsibility of the reservoir manager.
When I have nothing to do, I paddle a small boat for a lap in the reservoir.
Like a hermit.
After cleaning up all the prawns.
Lin Xu took a piece of ginger and cut it into slices. Then he cut some green onions with a diagonal knife and said while cutting:
"To make braised prawns, you don't need tomato sauce or vinegar, but you need green onion and pepper oil."
Onion and pepper oil?
Not only were the aunts and uncles confused, but even Shi Wenming, the village banquet chef, was a little confused and unfamiliar with this term.
Lin Xu smiled and said:
"Onion pepper oil is an oil fried with onion, ginger and Sichuan peppercorns. It has the effect of removing fishy smell and foreign substances. You can fry some and keep it at home. Add a little when making seafood in the future. The taste will be very outstanding."
You can put it in when cooking seafood.
Everyone is interested:
"How did Xiaoxu explode?"
"What are the proportions of these three materials?"
"What oil is better? Is soybean oil okay?"
Lin Xu put the chopped green onions and ginger in bowls, then grabbed a handful of peppercorns and said:
"The ratio of onion, ginger, and pepper is 6:2:1. Standard onion and pepper oil smells like Sichuan peppercorns, but it doesn't taste numb at all. This is the most suitable state for seafood... As for oil, except vegetables
Except for seed oil, any other oil will do."
"Why can't we use rapeseed oil?"
"Rapeseed oil is too easy to color, and the fried onion and pepper oil is dark in color, which affects the presentation of the seafood."
After explaining, Lin Xu added some peanut oil to the pot.
Then turn on the stove and start burning oil.
When the oil is 30% hot, pour the pepper into the pot and fry slowly over low heat.
When the oil in the pot heats up and smokes, open the pot and put the ginger slices in.
This can not only lower the oil temperature and prevent the peppercorns from being fried, but also bring out the aroma of the ginger and blend it into the fat as the oil temperature decreases.
Wait for the oil temperature in the pot to drop.
Put the pot back on the stove, turn on low heat, add the green onion slices cut with a diagonal knife into the pot, and fry at low temperature.
This can not only bring out the flavor in the ingredients, but also prevent the color from changing.
"After the good onions and peppers are fried, the color of the fat will be exactly the same as when it was poured into the pot, so as not to affect the appearance of the dishes."
When the onion slices in the pot turn brown.
Lin Xu put the filter on a large bowl, and then poured out the oil in the pot. The filtered oil was scallion and pepper oil.
As for the fried onions, ginger, and peppers, there is no need to throw them away.
Adding it to the pot when cooking in the afternoon will make the food taste more fragrant.
After making the onion and pepper oil.
The preparation of braised prawns is now complete and it’s time to cook.
Lin Xu set up the wok.
First, heat the pan with cold oil and slick the pan with oil to prevent the prawns from sticking to the pan during frying. Then add a large spoonful of cooking oil to the pan, and then add half a spoonful of green onion and pepper oil.
Stir to mix the two oils together.
Then place the prepared prawns one by one in the oil pan.
"Oh, isn't this hot, Xiaoxu?"
"Just, don't burn you."
"I never dare to do this at home, for fear of getting burned."
"People say that good chefs are not afraid of burning. It seems that our Xiaoxu has also reached this level."
"Wen Wenming, you are also a chef, are you afraid of being burned?"
"This is my country style, informal."
"..."
The relatives chatted with each other, and by the time Lin Xu arranged the shrimps, the oil in the pot had completely heated up. The prawns were fried until they turned red, and the rich flavor wafted out of the pot.
Lin Xu turned the pan gently and let the oil in the pan fry all the shrimps.
Then suddenly a big turning spoon came, and the shrimps in the pot were thrown up high. After being turned over in the air, they fell into the pot again, still neatly stacked together without any mess.
"Oh, what a beautiful hand!"
"Every time I watch the chefs on TV, I envy those chefs who turn their spoons. I didn't expect that we also have someone in our family who is good at turning the spoons."
"If I had known that I had just recorded it, wouldn't it have attracted a lot of likes when I posted it?"
"That's for sure. You don't know how popular Xiaoxu is online."
"Can you be civilized?"
"I know how to do it, but I have to quickly pick up the shrimps that fell on the ground after turning over."
"..."
While everyone was chatting, Lin Xu started to talk about the main points.
"After turning the prawns over, use a spoon to squeeze the shrimp heads one by one to squeeze out the brains and let the oil in the pot turn into shrimp oil, so that the fried prawns will be more delicious." p>
He said while squeezing.
Soon.
The originally golden fat in the pot turned into ruddy shrimp oil due to the action of shrimp brains.
These shrimp oil re-fried the shrimp shells, making the originally red shrimp shells more red and attractive.
Wait until both sides of the prawns are fried.
Lin Xu added a spoonful of rice wine to the pot.
According to the amount of prawns in the pot, add a large bowl of water, a teaspoon and a half of salt and a handful of rock sugar.
Finally add a handful of minced ginger.
You can cover the pot and start simmering.
When stewing, do not turn on high heat to prevent the shrimp meat from being cooked. Just use low heat.
"Aren't you going to put onions, Xiaoxu?"
Second aunt Lin Hongxia asked.
"Don't put it. If you add onion, it will smell like onion. Just put the minced ginger."
"It looks so simple, I'll try it when I get back."
"I'll give it a try too. You have to learn this. I won't have another specialty dish at home in the future."
"Xiao Xu has taught us how to cook more dishes these days at home. My colleagues have been teasing me about this for the past two days, saying that my nephew is working in Diaoyutai, but I can't even fry shredded potatoes."<
/p>
"Me too, they always say that the potatoes I cut are thicker than my fingers."
"My old potato shreds turn into pieces when fried, and they break into pieces when fried. What should I do, Xiaoxu?"
"Xiao Xu, do you have any tips for shredding?"
"..."
Lin Xu looked at his aunt and aunts dumbfounded, and said with a smile:
"Just use a wire scraper. Buy one with small eyes. After scraping it into silk pieces, wash it several times with clean water to wash out the starch. This will make the texture crispier when fried and it will not be easy to fry into lakes... The most important thing is
, fry less at a time."
I saw relatives who were interested in this dish.
Lin Xu simply took two potatoes, peeled them quickly and cut them into thin strips, washed them twice with water and then took them out to control the water.
Then prepare some dried chili segments and chopped green onions, and cut some green and red chilies into shreds.
Then set up the wok and start making.
Pour peanut oil into the pot and put some Sichuan peppercorns into it before the oil is hot. After frying until fragrant, take out the Sichuan peppercorns and throw in the dried chili peppers and chopped green onions.
After frying until fragrant, add shredded potatoes, stir-fry twice and then pour half a spoonful of vinegar along the edge of the pot.
"The earlier the vinegar is added, the crispier the texture of the potato shreds will be. Also, if the vinegar is added earlier, the sour taste will evaporate, leaving only the aroma of vinegar in the dish, making it more delicious."
Stir fry quickly for one minute, then add a little light soy sauce, then add salt and a little sugar to taste.
Finally, add the sliced green and red peppers.
Continue to stir-fry for 30 seconds.
Let the sauce hang evenly on the potato shreds.
Remove from pan and plate.
"It's so fast. Is that good?"
"This kind of professional stove has strong firepower and is most suitable for stir-frying. If you cook it at home, try to use as little quantity as possible and heat the oil to achieve the stir-fry effect."
Lin Xu put the shredded potatoes in the pot into several plates.
Second uncle Shi Wenming and second aunt Lin Hongxia immediately took it to their relatives to give it away.
"Come and taste it, come and taste it. Xiaoxu just took the time to make the potato shreds. The smell of it will make you want to eat it."
The relatives who were waiting to eat the prawns did not expect a surprise.
After the plates were brought to the table, everyone tasted the shredded potatoes and immediately began to praise Lin Xu's delicious cooking.
Liu Zhengyu tasted it and said with a smile:
"Cantonese cuisine pays great attention to wok gas. Stir-fried dishes without wok gas will be a failed product. I didn't expect that Lin Xu's random stir-frying of shredded potatoes would also have wok gas. This skill is really good."
Zeng Xiaoqi next to her took a big bite:
"It's delicious. I was thinking of showing off my skills in front of Boss Lin when I go back and asking him to treat me to crayfish. I didn't expect to taste Boss Lin's craftsmanship in advance."
She just said it casually.
But when Chen Meijuan at the next table heard this, she immediately ordered Lin Hongqi:
"Since Reporter Zeng wants to eat crayfish, Hongqi, go buy some after dinner. There are many people today, so let's buy more so that everyone can try the crayfish cooked by Xiaoxu."
I haven’t tried my son’s crayfish cooking skills yet.
You have to take advantage of this opportunity to enjoy yourself.
As soon as he heard about eating crayfish, Shen Baobao, who was eating scrambled eggs with ground vegetables next to him, immediately said:
"Mom, have you never tried the crayfish made by Xubao? It tastes great. Oh, my mouth is watering just thinking about it now!"
"Then let Xiaoxu cook it for you tonight. Make more so that my daughter-in-law can enjoy it."
Shen Baobao immediately put his head on Chen Meijuan's shoulder and said coquettishly:
"Thank you, Mom, you are so kind to me."
Seeing the harmonious relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, the relatives all had aunty smiles on their faces.
Who would have thought that a daughter-in-law from Beijing would be so sensible.
I just got engaged and it sounds so smooth to call me mom.
On the other hand, here in my hometown, there are many daughters-in-law who were married with high-priced gifts. There are many who do not change their words after six months of marriage. When talking to their mother-in-law, they will either say "XX fuck" or "Hey", as if they are inviting an ancestor back home.
It’s really incomparable!
In front of the stove.
The prawns in the pot are still simmering.
Lin Xu held the handle of the pot with one hand and pressed the lid with the other hand and shook it gently a few times.
The purpose of this is to prevent sticking to the pan and also allow the sauce to penetrate into the shrimp meat more evenly.
About time.
He lifted the lid of the pot.
A rich and delicious aroma suddenly spread out from the pot.
"Wow, this smells so good."
"Xiao Xu's craftsmanship is really amazing."
"I can eat two big steamed buns just by smelling this smell."
"As expected of a specially hired chef from Diaoyutai, my nephew is amazing."
When relatives were praising them, Lin Xu used kuaizi to pick out the prawns from the pot and put them on a plate. As soon as he arranged the shape, Shi Wenming couldn't wait to ask:
"Is it ready to serve?"
"It's still not good, uncle, I still have to pour juice on it."
After pouring out all the prawns in the pot, Lin Xu placed a leak-tight drain on the bowl, poured the soup in the pot, and filtered out the minced ginger.
Pour the soup back into the pot and heat it up.
Stir while burning.
The soup becomes thicker at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"The advantage of adding rock sugar is this. The juice is collected quickly, the juice is bright, and it looks more beautiful when poured on the shrimp."
Soon.
The soup in the pot not only became thicker, but also became rosy in color.
This is the role of shrimp oil.
When the soup became completely thick, Lin Xu scooped half a spoonful of green onion and pepper oil into the pot, quickly mixed it evenly, then took the pot and carefully poured it on the prawns on the plate.
After pouring.
It’s ready to be served and tasted.
Relatives looked at each other in shock:
"So this is braised prawns in oil? Then the previous method of adding tomato sauce and vinegar was wrong?"
Lin Xu smiled and said:
"It's not bad. When the shrimp is not fresh enough, making it into a sweet and sour dish can maximize the umami taste. But for live shrimp, this method is better. You can taste the freshness and sweetness of the shrimp meat, and the texture is still crispy.
”
It’s okay if he doesn’t say it.
As soon as they said that the prawns made in this way were so amazing, several relatives quickly took the prawns away.
One table at a time, let everyone have a taste.
"Grandma, grandma, you two hurry up and try my craftsmanship."
Lin Xu took off his apron, sat down next to Baby Shen, and picked up a prawn each for Mrs. Lin and Mrs. Chen.
Mrs. Chen took a bite of the prawn and then gave a thumbs up:
"It's delicious. My good grandson's cooking skills are better than those of two uncles tied together."
Chen Meide: "..."
Chen Meiliang: "..."
Mom, you praise your grandson just as you praise your grandson, why do you have to bring us two with you?
Mrs. Lin next to her took a bite of the prawns in the bowl, and her eyes suddenly lit up:
"When I first started working, I once went to Beijing as a representative and ate braised prawns in oil. It tasted exactly like this. I thought this method had disappeared, but I didn't expect that my good grandson would actually cook it." p>
She took another bite.
Then he said:
"Yes, that's the taste. It's salty in the mouth and sweet in the aftertaste. It's not like the banquet here where the braised prawns are made into sweet and sour prawns."
Lin Xu smiled and said:
"If you like to eat, I will cook it for you every day."
Mrs. Lin smiled and said:
"Then it won't happen. My dear grandson has to work in the capital. As long as your mother and others can do it, grandma will let them cook for me when she misses you."
Baby Shen felt a little sad when he heard this topic and quickly said:
"No, grandma, if you want to eat, just tell us and we will come back to cook it for you. As long as you don't bring a dumpling, it's still very fast to take the high-speed rail."
As soon as she finished speaking, Dundun, who was passing by, raised his paw and stepped on her shoes.
There is a dirty cat paw print printed on the white shoes.
Baby Shen felt very distressed immediately:
"Wow, my little white shoes... are stinky, did you do it on purpose?"
Dundun squatted at the door and licked his paws leisurely.
What are you talking about? I can’t quite understand it~
Baobao Shen, who looked aggrieved, could not beat Dundun, so he could only vent his anger on the braised prawns.
She picked up a large shrimp and imitated Lin Xu's example, taking a sip on the head of the shrimp and sucking out the brain and juice inside.
"Wow, it's so fresh. Sure enough, this is the correct way to open live shrimp!"
After sucking the shrimp brains, bite off the upper body of the shrimp shell, eat the remaining shrimp meat inside, then bite the shrimp and gently pull it with a tachyon, and the entire shrimp shell will be pulled off.
Eat a whole shrimp in your mouth.
The taste is sweet, crisp and elastic at the same time, which is simply intoxicating.
"Delicious! Will Lin remember this dish in the future?"
"Yes, this traditional method of braised prawns is becoming less and less popular. I have to try my best to promote it to prevent more and more people from mistaking sweet and sour prawns for braised prawns."
Lin Xu feels that as a caterer.
Have the obligation and responsibility to pass on traditional practices.
Just thought of this.
The system prompt sounded in my mind:
"The host has decided to carry forward traditional food cooking techniques, completed the hidden task [Carry forward the tradition], and will be rewarded with excellent life skills - dubbing. Congratulations to the host."
With...dubbing?
I'm just a chef.
Why did you give me this thing?
Lin Xu silently complained, feeling that the system's rewards were becoming more and more liberating.
Could it be that Dundun kid stole too many rewards?
So does the system need to make up for it in other aspects?
He sighed softly.
Then he picked up a prawn and ate it...
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Yesterday, I was looking for a bunch of recipes for braised prawns in oil, and Lao Fan Gu’s recipe was the most authentic. This chapter refers to the video of Lao Fan Gu’s "Braised Prawns in Oil", which was produced by the chief chef of BJ Cuihua House.
Sir, Liu Jianmin, the master of Shandong cuisine, everyone can learn from it. This chapter has 6300 words, please vote for me, brothers!