As the saying goes, northerners love to eat noodles, while southerners love to eat rice.
If this principle is further extended, it would naturally be that northerners are good at making noodles and southerners are good at making rice.
For example, using "noodle fertilizer" to make dough is a key trick used by northern white chefs in making pastry.
The so-called "fat noodles" are also called "old 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 the power to transform the ordinary into magical.
Pastries made with this stuff will have a pure grain aroma.
This advantage can never be matched by pasta made with yeast powder or self-rising flour.
As for the famous special noodles in Beijing, whenever old Beijing people talk about it, they 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 is a high-end restaurant.
In addition to the well-known signature dish "braised sea cucumber with green onions", there are also some unique dishes that are more down-to-earth and benefit the people.
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. It undoubtedly means that their exquisiteness and deliciousness can be compared with 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 Mansion Gate" to describe it, it would be "Steamed buns must be from Fengzeyuan."
This shows how much people in the capital recognize the noodles here.
And because "Zhang Dashao" worked in "Fengzeyuan", there is no one who knows the ins and outs of the kitchen better than him.
He certainly knows the secret of why "roasted steamed buns" and "silver rolls" are so delicious.
Regardless of the unique production method, it still has to rely on a piece of "noodle fertilizer" that is hundreds of years old.
If this matter were to be heard by outsiders, it might seem very strange.
Because most people in the capital know that this grand restaurant was founded in 1930.
Up to now, despite all calculations, the history is only about fifty years old.
How come the "fat noodles" are hundreds of years old?
In fact, there is nothing strange about this. This is just a layer of paper. You will understand it when the barrel is broken.
Before answering this question, we must first understand another thing, that is, where did the chef of "Fengzeyuan" come from?
Hey, those were all brought out by Luan Xuetang from its old proprietor "Xinfeng Tower".
Needless to say, the "noodle fertilizer" used in this white table also comes from "Xinfeng Tower", one of the "Eight Buildings" in Beijing.
The founding history of "Xinfeng Tower" can be traced back to the Guangxu period.
So after calculation, this "noodle fat" is indeed a hundred years old.
Needless to say, the dough made with this kind of "dough fertilizer" is definitely different from ordinary dough.
It not only makes the dough bigger, but also takes less time, and can effectively preserve the nutrients of the pasta.
So much so that the pure wheat flavor of the steamed pastry is a bit like milk.
Many customers once suspected that fresh milk or milk powder was added to the pastries of "Fengzeyuan". This is the real reason.
Having said so much, I actually just want to prove one thing.
After the capital moved south, the fall of Peiping, the golden yuan coupon storm, public-private partnership, popular cuisine trend, and other historical twists and turns.
Today, when countless old names have been buried in the dust of time, it is not easy for this piece of flour to be preserved intact, even quietly accumulating its own potential for hundreds of years.
For any northern chef, it is a "treasure" that can directly add to their skills.
Just like the copper pot used to cook fried liver in "Tianxingju", it has a fairy spirit.
It just so happens that the most evil people in this era are here.
After a long period of changing customs and various "movements" that destroyed the old and established the new, history has formed a narrow crack in the distortion of values.
No one in the restaurant actually cares about a treasure like this. People here regard it as a very common thing.
How much do you not care?
It turns out that anyone can be contacted at any time and at will.
When Hong Yanwu went to play with this thing, it was beyond his expectation.
Because the whole process is effortless.
He caught up with a kitchen apprentice who came to throw away garbage behind the restaurant.
Originally, I wanted to get to know Bai An’s chef through him.
Unexpectedly, the two of them were smoking cigarettes and he tried to test him with words. The boy didn't care and revealed all the details of the kitchen.
The apprentice worker said that Bai An's kitchen was not taken seriously at all and the management was very lax. He also said that he could get the sourdough that Hong Yanwu wanted by himself.
Hey, what was the result? Hong Yanwu slapped most of the boxes of "friendship" into the boy's hands on the spot and promised him another ten yuan.
That boy actually went in and got the "fat".
When he came out, the apprentice nonchalantly handed Hong Yanwu a brown paper bag.
Hong Yanwu opened it and took a look, my dear, this guy is really reckless, he could chop it off with a kitchen knife and there would be at least three taels.
The sour smell in the paper is like a punch.
It was a pleasure for him. As soon as the money was given, the transaction was completed.
With this treasure in his pocket, he immediately acted like he had successfully abducted someone's child.
No need to ask, the first thing he did when he got back was to make the dough himself and try the steamed buns.
What's the result? What does it mean to be extraordinary?
On this day, the Hong family and the Shui family consumed three large pots of steamed buns, which was extraordinary.
In the evening, Xiaoying Baizui even ate one and a half, saying it was more delicious than "Yili Bread", and she would eat it instead of bread in the future.
Hey, this kid is full of steamed buns.
At night, I had to rely on a bowl of bottled water from Aunt Shui to help me sleep.
The same goes for the next day.
As soon as the "Polar Bear" cafeteria used the "noodle fertilizer" sent by Hong Yanwu, the employees praised it so much that the steamed buns sold like crazy that day.
For the first time, there were several trays of rice left, leaving only fried rice for the next meal.
The effect shocked the entire "White Case Team", but after using it once, everyone can appreciate its benefits.
In particular, the team leader "Master Gou" immediately and solemnly placed the "noodle fertilizer" in a special celadon basin and locked it in the cupboard as if it were a sacred object.
Privately, he kept making promises to Hong Yanwu.
He said that for the sake of the cooperative business, he had to work hard to take good care of this money-making rake, and he would never let this "living treasure" have any problems.
Just like that, the next day, when the simple decoration is completed.
The staple food takeout window with the sign of "Laomian Steamed Buns" is now open for business.
The effect was also immediate.
At noon on the opening day, not many people came to inquire, because no one knew about it at the beginning. It relied on temporary customers inside and outside the store.
Moreover, the price of steamed buns and rolls at the "takeout window" is 7 cents, which is 2 cents higher than the price in the grain store. Anyone who asked the price would smack their lips.
But there is one thing. As long as a piece is cut off on the spot and the offending person has a taste, almost everyone will pay for it obediently.
So the 500 steamed buns and flower rolls we prepared were sold at 70%, which is not too bad.
It was easier in the evening. After word-of-mouth fermented at noon, neighbors exchanged information with each other, and a large queue formed at the "takeout window".
The five hundred steamed buns and flower rolls prepared for the evening were all sold out.
To make matters worse, there was not enough to sell at noon, so I had to temporarily take out a hundred from the "big canteen" to make up for the sales.
It was just as exaggerated in the evening. Even though I specially prepared 200 more, they were still sold out within an hour and a half.
What is this called?
This is called "the aroma of wine is not afraid of the depth of the alley", this is called "people are silent when you ask for a thousand words, but goods come by themselves when you are asked to nod."
I have no choice but to reassure the customers who didn’t buy anything that they will come early tomorrow.
In this way, "Polar Bear" Pastry has become famous in the neighborhood effortlessly.
Since then, more than 2,000 steamed buns and flower rolls have been sold every day.
And it must be made clear that more than two thousand is not the real demand of the market.
Because the more we see long queues, the more people are recruited, but the actual demand is still far away.
Even if I make two thousand more, I'm afraid I can still sell them.
But the key is that the "White Case Team" has a limited number of people and limited equipment, and they have to provide the factory with staple food every day.
If there is more, I really can't do it, so there's nothing I can do about it.
However, Hong Yanwu thought this was not bad.
The most valuable thing about people is contentment. Just by making steamed buns and flower rolls, you can earn more than 100 yuan in profit every day.
Apart from them and "Fengze Garden", who else in the entire capital can do this?
That's enough, enough to be proud of.
Let’s talk about hunger marketing. It’s just because it’s hard to buy that it’s considered a good thing.
For example, the police station and the street have discussed with him privately, asking if they can take care of him, open a back door depending on the situation, and leave some space.
To this, Hong Yanwu agreed happily.
He said, "You don't want to come. If you want it, call in advance. Just calculate how much you want, and we will make it now and send someone to deliver it to you."
No, it's just a ready-made favor.
What's more, it is completely foreseeable that when he resumes his old business, the noodles produced by the Hong family's "Yan Mei Lou" will definitely be good.
This is equivalent to the "Big Canteen" helping the Hong family protect the saplings of the money tree.
If he didn't keep it like this every day, where would he find this "noodle fertilizer" when he wanted to use it?
Who knows if the people at Fanzhuangzi will wait until yeast powder becomes available on the market and, in order to save trouble, do away with the "flour fertilizer"?
Being able to get this living treasure is his biggest gain.