All of a sudden, the sound of chopping vegetables, pouring water, popping firewood, and the sound of iron spoons and pots clashing in the open space came one after another, making it very lively.
The chefs were busy cooking, and Cai Jinghe and the guests were also sitting there, tasting wine, talking and laughing, and of course the topic was still about wine and food.
In fact, this time Cai Jing held a crab roe banquet just for delicious food and did not want to mix too many political factors into it, so he did not invite the big guys like Wang Fu, Gao Qiu, and Liang Shicheng. He knew very well that if these people Come here, this crab roe feast will definitely change, and it may become another political confrontation. Besides, Wang Fu and the others are busy forming cliques now, and they have no time to come here to participate in any crab roe feast.
The people sitting here now are all foodies who are very knowledgeable about food. The level of taste is secondary. Of course, no matter how low it is, it will not be too low.
"Boqing, I heard that you went to Zuixianju last time and tasted the 'Boiled Song Ye'?" Cai Jing suddenly asked Zuo Boqing in a very calm tone.
When Zuo Boqing heard this, he looked stunned and suddenly felt enlightened. He knew that Cai Jing did not deliberately want to punish Li Qi, but just wanted to scare him. He nodded and said, "Yes, I did go to Zuixian a few days ago." Residence."
Cai Jing smiled slightly and said, "But I don't know how the boiled water song leaves taste?"
Zuo Boqing nodded and said: "It can definitely be called a delicacy. I'm ashamed to say it. I haven't figured out how to make that dish yet."
"Oh? It makes you so distressed. It seems that boy is indeed quite capable." Cai Jing smiled and nodded.
Cai Sui, who was on the side, didn't take it seriously and said: "Master Zuo, you are too humble. I think that boy is young. No matter how good his cooking skills are, he must not be much better."
Zuo Boqing smiled and nodded, but did not answer.
Cai Jing glanced at Cai Sui slightly. His expression was slightly displeased, but he didn't say much. He smiled slightly and said, "Since Bo Qing admires the boiled water song leaves, I would also like to try it." He paused. After a pause, he turned to Zuo Boqing and said, "It seems that you are more optimistic about that boy."
Zuo Boqing shook his head and said, "Well, Boqing doesn't dare to make rash judgments."
Suddenly I heard a person on the right say: "In my opinion, Mrs. Zhang from Fanlou must be the winner."
This person is the Minister of Punishment, Zhao Ye.
This person had extremely strong communication skills, and he was able to enjoy both sides of the court, and he was very successful. When Cai Jing and King Fu were changing, except for him, who had won the trust of both of them, no one could please both sides as well as him.
And he is a regular customer of Fan Lou, so of course he hopes that Lady Zhang can win.
Another person heard someone say: "What Zhao Shangshu said is wrong. Just speaking of cooking skills. I think Cai Minde of Jade Cuixuan and that lady Zhang are only close friends. It's not certain who will win."
This person was Wu Min who was involved in the incident. He had known Cai Jing for a long time. Moreover, Cai Jing was kind to him and promoted him. At that time, Cai Minde was still working as a cook in Taishi Mansion, so he Naturally, I prefer Cai Minde.
Zhao Ziyi was dissatisfied and raised his hands towards Cai Jing, saying, "Who do you think will win?"
Cai Jing stroked his beard, shook his head and said, "Both of these two are superb cooks, and there are rising stars like Master Li. I think I have to wait until I taste the delicacies they cook before I can judge. "
"What En Xiang said is true." Wu Min said.
...
On the other end, Li Qi had already wrapped the tofu in lotus leaves and bamboo slices, put it into a stew pot, and placed it on the stove. The next thing they had to do was to control the heat.
Li Qi and Wu Xiaoliu were squatting by the stove, sweating profusely and looking like their balls ached. They were probably the most relaxed among them.
"Brother Li, I just secretly took a look at the materials prepared by Yuan Cai, tsk tsk, what do you think I saw?" Wu Xiaoliu said.
Li Qi was not interested in any of this and asked calmly: "What did you see?"
"Egg."
Wu Xiaoliu said with a gossipy face: "A lot of eggs."
"Egg?"
Li Qi asked in surprise: "What egg?"
"I'm not very sure about this. Anyway, there are a lot of eggs, and the crab is also the oldest one. From my point of view, it looks like it was brought from the sea." Wu Xiaoliu said enviously.
Li Qi asked doubtfully: "Is what you said true? How much money does it cost to transport it from the sea?"
"How do I know? Anyway, Mr. Cai is not short of money."
Wu Xiaoliu became more and more excited as he talked, and added: "Also, Brother Li, I also saw that Madam Zhang prepared a hen, and Pan Lou's master Gu prepared a big winter melon. After all, it belongs to us.
The materials are the most miserable, a piece of tofu, a river fish, some soybeans, and a few river crabs. Compared with this, we are at a disadvantage. If the Grand Master is not satisfied later, you will have to take a beating.
.”
When Li Qi heard that he had been beaten, his heart was shaken, his eyes widened, and he said angrily: "Do you have a good word in your mouth? Do you have to see me beaten to make you happy? md, let me tell you, I
If your butt is damaged, your life will not be easy either."
Wu Xiaoliu pursed his lips and said, "No, I'm not worried about you."
"I don't need you to worry. The food hasn't even been served yet, and you're here to pour cold water on me. If I had known this, I should have brought Brother Zhuzi here." Li Qi said angrily.
Wu Xiaoliu stuck out his tongue and did not dare to talk back anymore, fearing that Li Qi would relegate him to the cold palace from now on.
...
Time flies by, and in a blink of an eye, noon is about to pass.
The delicacies carefully prepared by twenty chefs were also out of the oven. Suddenly, bursts of aroma emanated from each hut, which was so tempting.
A series of delicacies made of crab roe were placed on the low table of Cai Jing and all the guests, such as crab roe belly with flowers, crab roe and lobster dumplings, turtle and crab bucket, etc. They were really dazzling and beautiful.
The guests were all very happy to eat, but Cai Jing only nodded slightly to these dishes and did not make too many comments. Zuo Boqing gave his own comments one by one, but so far, there seems to be no one.
A dish that satisfied him very much.
In the blink of an eye, fifteen dishes were presented. Although these dishes did not receive much praise, they were still satisfactory. For the chefs, the task was completed.
After all, there are masters among masters such as Madam Zhang, Gu Da, and Cai Minde behind them, so they don't dare to think too much about this crab roe feast.
Next up will be Liu Yongfu from Yang Lou. The dish he made today is called 'sea yellow ginseng'.
Sea cucumber, as the name suggests, is made of sea cucumber and crab roe. The key to this dish is that sea cucumber and crab roe are cooked completely separately, sea cucumber, onion, cooking wine and other seasonings are added to the pan and fried until
The crab roe is made from crab meat, corn, pumpkin, etc., and is finally poured directly on the sea cucumber.
The sea cucumbers are like gold bars, shining with golden light, which makes people's hearts flutter.
Cai Jing took a sip, nodded and said, "It's soft, mellow, and delicious. Not bad, not bad." This was the first time he praised it.
Zuo Boqing also nodded and glanced at Liu Yongfu approvingly.
When Liu Yongfu heard Cai Jing praising his delicious food, his hands were trembling with excitement.
Next it was the turn of Guda from Pan Lou.
When Guda brought out the dishes, everyone exclaimed.
But what was placed on the plate was a fan that looked like it was made of jade. The handle of the fan was dark red. The body of the fan was light green with some khaki patterns on it. The tassels on the top were gray.
The fan is crystal clear and extremely luxurious.
"Is this---is this a dish?"
"What is this fan made of? Why does it look like jade?"
...
Cai Jing was also very curious and asked: "Master Gu, what do you use to make this dish?"
Guda replied: "As far as I'm concerned, my master, this 'crab roe and jade fan' is made of winter melon."
"Winter melon?"
Everyone shouted again. They never thought that this gorgeous fan was actually made of winter melon. This was really incredible.
Even Li Qi was secretly surprised, thinking that this man, with his humble appearance and a rough-looking appearance, was so good at knife skills. I really made a mistake. It seemed that I had underestimated this Northern Song Dynasty chef.
After the introduction, Guda used a knife to take out the green part in the middle, put it in a bowl, and presented it to Cai Jing and all the guests.
When everyone saw him slashing the fan with a knife, they felt a little unbearable.
Zhao Ye saw that Guda only took the middle part, but the red handle and the gray part on the top did not move at all, and asked curiously: "Master Gu, could it be that you only eat the middle part of this dish?"
Guda nodded and said: "That's right. The rest is just for decoration."
"I see."
In fact, the key reason why this yellow jade fan can be mistaken for real is that everyone was only looking at it from a distance, not up close. After the maid presented the small bowl on the low table in front of everyone, everyone took a closer look and suddenly realized,
The green object in the bowl is actually a winter melon, and the middle of the winter melon has been hollowed out in half, with some patterns made of some khaki sticky substance inside.
Zuo Boqing asked: "Master Gu, what is in this winter melon?"
Guda said: "This is made by a villain using crab roe, mushrooms, egg white, winter melon juice and other ingredients. Together with the winter melon, it is cooked in a cage and then poured with soup."
"I see."
Zuo Boqing nodded and praised: "The ancient master was so ingenious that he was able to carve a lifelike jade fan out of only winter melons. It's really amazing."
Cai Jing laughed and said, "When it comes to knife skills, who can compare with you, Zuo Boqing?"
"The grand master is so complimentary." Zuo Boqing said with a modest smile.
Due to the previous visual impact, everyone was naturally full of praise for this dish when they tasted this 'Crab Roe Jade Fan'.
Guda's face showed joy, and he glanced proudly at Cai Minde and others behind him.
But Li Qi, Cai Minde and the lady Zhang all looked disdainful.
Next it was Cai Minde's turn to appear, but what he presented was an egg as big as a lead ball. The outside was smooth and clear, and the sun shone on it, making it sparkle. There were flowers carved out of vegetables and fruits on the side.
The decoration is very unique.
Cai Jing had never seen such a big egg in his life, and asked curiously: "Min De, what is the name of your dish?"
"Replying to the master, this dish is called 'Emerald Pearl'. It is made with twenty quail eggs, twenty chicken eggs, twenty duck eggs, as well as crab roe, ham, and pumpkin."
When Cai Jing heard this, he was even more surprised and asked, "Then how is this dish made?"
Cai Minde replied: "The villain first took out the egg whites of the sixty eggs, stirred them well, put them into the washed pig belly, sealed the pig belly, soaked it in the soup, kept turning the pig belly, and then
Then pour the prepared egg yolks such as crab roe, pumpkin, ham, rice wine, etc. into the pork belly, and then soak it in the soup until it is cooked."
"Wonderful! Wonderful!"
After Zuo Boqing heard this, he immediately shook his head and praised.
Cai Jing glanced at Zuo Boqing and said, "Boqing, what do you think of this dish?"
Zuo Boqing said: "Returning to the Grand Master, Master Cai would never have been able to make this dish without twenty years of effort. He poured the egg white into the pork belly, then put it into the soup and turned it. It sounds like
It's quite easy, but actually it's not. This rotation must be done very fast, and there shouldn't be any pause in the middle. The purpose is to make the egg white evenly adhere to the inside of the pork belly layer by layer, making it look like it's hollow in the middle. To achieve this
It’s not easy at all, and Master Cai is very thoughtful in thinking of using pumpkin to accompany crab roe.”
After everyone heard this, they suddenly realized.
Li Qi listened and secretly admired it. In fact, even if Zuo Boqing didn't say it, he had already thought of the key to this dish.
After Cai Minde cut the big egg open, he found that the egg white inside was as clear as Zuo Boqing said, and the "yolk" was as red as the morning sun, which was really attractive.
Afterwards, the maid presented the sliced eggs to the guests.
After Cai Sui tasted it, he immediately praised: "This egg white also contains ginseng soup, which makes it taste sweeter and more refreshing. Not bad, not bad."
Wu Min nodded and said: "Moreover, the egg yolk melts in your mouth, and the pumpkin is added to it, so it doesn't taste so greasy. It's very good. I like this 'Emerald Pearl' very much."
The others also nodded and applauded.
When Cai Jing heard everyone's praise, he looked pleased. He also took a sip, nodded with satisfaction, and said to Cai Minde: "Minde, I didn't expect that your cooking skills have improved a lot in these years."
"Thank you for the compliment, sir."
Cai Minde bowed and said: "Although I have been away from the Grand Master's Mansion for more than ten years, I have always regarded myself as a member of the Grand Master's Mansion, and I hope that one day I can cook for the master again."
When Cai Jing heard this, he couldn't help but feel a little sad and said: "I still remember the first time you cooked for me. You were only in your twenties at that time. In the blink of an eye, you and I are already old."
Although the status of cooks is not that great nowadays, Cai Jing, the number one foodie in the Northern Song Dynasty, Aiwujiwu, still valued the cooks. Apart from the imperial palace, the cooks in his palace received the highest salary.
"With God's blessing, I will live a long life."
Cai Minde knelt on the ground and said with a hint of choking.
Damn it! Are you here to cook, or are you here to recognize your father?
Li Qi saw this old fox playing the family card and secretly scolded him for being extremely shameless.
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