Chapter 94 - Wensi Tofu
Chapter 94: Wensi Tofu
Wensi Tofu was a famous dish that had been around for hundreds of years. It was the pinnacle of Huai Yang Cuisine that required extreme cutting skills. One had to cut the tender and smooth tofu as thin as a strand of hair, which was a great test of the chef’s cutting skills.
Originally, this dish could be made with the tofu from the supermarket, but the final product would not be as good as making it with raw ingredients.
After Xu Le ground the soybeans into soy milk, he removed the bean dregs and poured the milk into the pot to boil.
Li Qing crossed his arms as he watched from the side.
Ever since Xu Le had taught him how to cook imitation crab, he had developed a strange admiration for this child.
The reason why it was strange was because ever since he was young, Li Qing had never thought highly of anyone.
His master, whom he had acknowledged after joining the industry, claimed that he would need two years to finish learning a dish. However, Li Qing managed to cook better than his master in two months.
All these experiences made him proud and arrogant. After Xu Le gave him some pointers, his pride gradually turned into feelings of admiration and reluctance to give in.
Without at least ten years of cutting skills, it was absolutely impossible to cut the Wensi Tofu. Li Qing ordered this dish because he wanted to see with his own eyes whether Xu Le deserved his reputation.
This dish was created by a monk in the past. Monk Wensi had passed down the recipe, so it was naturally named after him.
The raw soybean milk was poured into the pot. He started a small fire and stirred as he cooked, since he was afraid that it would be overcooked. After bubbles appeared on the surface of the soybean milk, Xu Le scooped a bowl of clear water and poured it into the pot. Then, the bubbles slowly disappeared.
The raw soybean milk needed to be boiled repeatedly to ensure that the ingredients were edible.
Lu Yuxi was worried outside and asked Auntie Liu to look after the cashier area while she went into the kitchen.
Auntie Liu was confused. “What’s there to worry about?”
“I’m worried they’ll fight.”
Lu Yuxi knew that Li Qing was a troublemaker and was afraid that he would cause trouble for Xu Le. Unexpectedly, when she entered the kitchen, she saw Li Qing, who was initially full of disdain, standing behind Xu Le and watching him filter the soybean milk attentively. The boiled soybean milk was filtered with a sieve. After filtering the residue inside, the soybean milk was placed aside to cool to about 85 degrees.
At this moment, Xu Le took out a packet of white gluconate and mixed it with a suitable amount of warm water.
Lu Yuxi asked curiously, “What kind of dishes are you planning to cook?”
“Wensi tofu.”
“Oh, oh, I know this dish. You can also make chrysanthemum tofu, right?”
“The method is similar.”
After Xu Le answered, Lu Yuxi had an ignorant expression. She took out her phone and planned to film his cooking process.
Li Qing snorted.
Lu Yuxi immediately rolled her eyes.
After the tofu cooled down, Xu Le picked off the surface of the tofu. There was just nice a square mold in the kitchen. He poured the melted gluconate into it and added the soy milk.
The soybean milk was poured in from midair, and when it landed, it was just enough to completely flush the gluconate evenly.
Xu Le took a metal spoon and carefully removed the foam on the surface.
This step was especially important. Otherwise, there would be pits and holes on the surface of the finished tofu.
Now, he just had to wait for the tofu to cool.
Xu Le took out the chicken that he had specially asked for in the morning from the fridge. Li Qing glanced at the chicken feet and could immediately tell that it was at least three years old.
He said, “Not bad, you’re quite particular about it.”
“You’ve already made your own tofu. Shouldn’t you be more particular about the chicken soup?”
The chicken was slit open from the stomach in half, and Xu Le took out the internal organs with his swift movements. He cut the chicken breast first, then chopped the drumstick and other parts into smaller pieces.
The chicken breast that was placed aside was sliced horizontally and vertically into small pieces.
Xu Le said, “Bring out the food processor.”
He rarely used the food processor, so he kept it on the kitchen cabinet. With Xu Le’s height, he needed a chair to reach it.
Lu Yuxi was filming and it was not convenient for her to take it. Li Qing rolled up his sleeves and tiptoed to take down the food processor from the cabinet. “Are we blending the chicken now?”
“That’s right.”
He added the tender chicken breast into the food processor, poured six times the amount of water, and blended the chicken to be used in the soup.
He could start making the chicken soup now. After putting the chicken into the pot, he could add fresh water. Then, he could add the three ingredients to remove the meat stench – scallions, ginger slices, and wine.
Xu Le turned to high heat to boil the chicken soup. After removing the froth on it, he switched to a small fire and covered the lid to stew the soup.
“It’s going to take three hours. Are you going to stand here the whole time?”
Xu Le took off his apron.
At this time, the crispy pork belly that was being roasted was ready. After he took it out, he used a knife to scrape the crispy skin on it. Just by listening to the sound, one could imagine how crispy the pig skin was.
Lu Yuxi’s eyes widened as she watched Xu Le slice a few times horizontally and vertically, producing a series of ‘crack’ sounds. The crispy pork belly was cut into small cubes.
The sliced pig skin was burnt crispy and the fatty meat was glistening with oil while the lean meat was slightly dry.
Xu Le first used a toothpick to poke through a piece of meat, then wrapped it evenly with the prepared dipping sauce. He handed it over and said, “Lu Yuxi, try if there’s poison.”
Lu Yuxi opened her mouth and was about to eat when Li Qing, who was standing between the two of them, suddenly bit down before her. It was so hot that he jumped and shouted, “Ouch, it’s so hot!”
Lu Yuxi glared at him angrily. “You deserve it!”
She had long been unable to restrain herself. She went forward and picked up a piece of pork belly, wrapped it in chili powder, white sesame seed, and several other kinds of condiments before putting it into her mouth.
The skin was crispy, and it tasted very fragrant when chewed. The fat wrapped around the lean meat, so it was oily and not dry. With the stimulation of the condiments, the more she chewed, the more fragrant it became.
Lu Yuxi could not bear to swallow it. She looked at the plate of crispy pork belly and nodded repeatedly. “It’s too delicious!”
Li Qing smacked his lips. He wanted to nitpick, but he really couldn’t find any flaws. In the end, he could only nod and say, “It’s not bad.”
Seeing the argumentative person give in, Xu Le felt a sense of accomplishment.
After bringing the crispy pork belly out for Auntie Liu to try, she hurriedly waved her hands and said, “I don’t want to eat it. It looks too oily. Sun Zhi, do you want to come over and try it?”
Sun Zhi took a bite and without chewing much, he reached out to grab a handful from the plate and stuffed it into his mouth.
Auntie Liu widened her eyes and said, “Eat slowly, don’t be like a hungry ghost. What’s wrong with you recently?”
Previously, Sun Zhi was skinny and short. His face was also sallow. Recently, after eating at Xu Le’s Eight-year-old cafeteria, he seemed to have become alive and was glowing.
Auntie Liu felt a little embarrassed and wanted to pay Xu Le for the food.
Xu Le refused generously. “It’s a place to prepare food anyway. Having another child eating doesn’t add up to much. Don’t stand on ceremony with me. If you really want to thank me, just do your job and clean up the shop.”
Sun Zhi said through an unclear voice, “The skin is so crispy. This skin is the best..”