0p0 Chapter 271 Hand-pulled Lamb
Chapter 271 Hand-pulled Lamb
In the pitch-black night, a crescent moon hangs in the sky.
Moonlight shone down, reflecting in the water vat at the entrance of the Hundred Herbs Garden kitchen.
Suddenly, ripples appeared on the calm water.
Shen Cao picked up a ladle, scooped up a whole ladle of water, and poured it into the pot where she had just steamed the shumai.
After doing all this, she looked up at the people in the kitchen.
These were the waiters who asked her about the food after she gave a plate of shumai to the guests on the second floor.
She never expected that simply giving a customer a plate of shumai would attract so many people to ask about it.
She thought for a moment before speaking, "Go and tell the customers that these shumai will be available for sale at Baicaoyuan after the opening event."
"Tell them they're welcome to come and try it if they want to."
After seeing the waiters off, Shen Cao instructed Xiao Qiao to prepare a hot pot with shumai and hand-pulled mutton and bring it up the private staircase on the fourth floor to the "Mei" private room.
There are no guests in the private rooms on the fourth floor yet. Shen Cao and his friends usually rest or eat in the private rooms on the fourth floor.
Shen Cao and Wan Yue used the "Lan" private room to rest, so they didn't plan to eat there.
She had already started stewing the hand-pulled mutton before making the shumai.
Good lamb doesn't need many seasonings to enhance its flavor, because it's delicious on its own.
She had already discovered that she now lived in a different time and space, free from all kinds of pollution, so the meat here was of much better quality than in her previous life.
However, even the best ingredients can become unpalatable if a chef who doesn't understand them adds random ingredients and prepares them in a haphazard way.
This was also the best meat she had eaten here – simply boiled meat, because it retained its most original flavor!
Therefore, Shen Cao only used spring water and a slice of angelica root to cook the hand-pulled mutton.
Angelica dahurica can effectively remove the gamey smell of mutton. All meats have a gamey smell, and although this mutton doesn't have a muttony smell, it still needs to be deodorized.
It can also enhance the flavor of the mutton.
By the time the shumai was steamed, the hand-pulled meat had been stewing for a full half hour.
Lifting the lid, the once crystal-clear spring water turned milky white, looking incredibly tempting.
Shen Cao stewed a whole rack of lamb chops until the meat was so tender it fell off the bone!
As she picked up the mutton with her chopsticks, a bone slipped and fell into the pot. The splashing broth accidentally landed on Wanyue's mouth, scalding her and making her cry out.
"Ah!!" She staggered.
He bumped into Wei Siyu's arms, and his ears immediately turned bright red. "Be careful, if you fall, you won't get to eat meat."
After Wanyue regained her footing, she ignored him. Her gaze was already drawn to the food, and she couldn't spare a single glance for anything else.
She licked the burned spot with her tongue; it tasted sweet. "Sister Grass, it's so sweet!"
Shen Cao was amused by her actions; this child really doesn't care about anything else when she encounters delicious food.
However, the deliciousness of the mutton soup was within her expectations. You know, even if she had personally searched for such high-quality mutton in her previous life, she could not find any as good as the mutton she had now.
She gently flicked Wanyue's nose. "Little glutton, add some salt and a handful of chopped green garlic later, it will taste even better!"
Upon hearing this, Wan Yue's eyes immediately lit up, and she licked her lips with longing.
In the "Plum" private room on the fourth floor, there was a huge round table in the hall, and the table was full of people.
Recently, Shen Cao has been eating at Baicaoyuan every day before going home. A round table is just the right size to be filled with Ji Lingfeng, the people he brought, and Shen Cao and the others.
Strangely, none of these people started eating as usual.
Instead, they all looked at Shen Cao, because they had never eaten shumai or hand-pulled mutton before, and were waiting for Shen Cao to teach them how to eat them.
In the past, whenever they encountered food they had never eaten before, they would patiently wait for Shen Cao.
The hand-pulled mutton, prepared by Shen Cao, has been cut into easily edible pieces.
She first used her chopsticks to pick up a very tender piece of mutton, then dipped it in a little bit of her homemade chive blossom sauce.
"This mutton is best served with chive blossom sauce. You can also dip it in the salt and pepper, chili powder, or salt on the side."
After saying that, Shen Cao put the mutton into her mouth.
Lamb is naturally tender, and it has been stewed until it's soft and tender.
Upon tasting, the fatty parts melt in your mouth with a gentle touch, while the lean parts retain their fibrous texture but are effortless to chew.
The umami flavor of the mutton is amplified several times by the addition of chive blossom sauce.
The chive blossom sauce is homemade and not salty at all.
She ate so much that she almost wanted to swallow her tongue along with the meat.
The taste was even better than the freshly slaughtered mutton she had eaten on the grasslands in her previous life.
She couldn't wait to put another piece on her plate.
Mmm, delicious!
She thinks lamb is the best-tasting and most tender meat in the world.
The mutton from Mengxian County is now exactly what she wants!
Seeing Shen Cao eating mutton with such relish, the others followed suit and picked up some mutton to eat as well.
hmm~
hmm~
For a moment, the private room was unusually quiet, with only occasional humming sounds.
However, she didn't expect that the whole rack of lamb chops she stewed would be gone after she only ate four pieces.
Wanyue ate with gusto, her mouth greasy, she hadn't had enough.
"Sister Grass, this mutton is so delicious."
"I never imagined that mutton could be eaten like this."
"When we get back to Beijing, I'm going to make this for my father... he loves lamb the most!"
"Sister Cao'er, I haven't had enough. Can you make some more tomorrow?"
Shen Cao smiled and nodded; she hadn't had enough to eat either.
Ji Lingfeng, who was standing next to him, only ate two pieces because he wanted to maintain his image in front of outsiders.
He was satisfied to hear that Shen Cao would be doing it again tomorrow.
He never expected that the mutton, simply boiled in spring water and dipped in that green sauce, would be so delicious.
Their military camp seemed to be quite close to Meng County, and they often ate mutton.
In order to be able to enjoy this delicious food in the future, he decided to instruct He Yu to learn how to cook this hand-pulled meat in a little while.
After finishing the hand-pulled mutton, everyone remembered the shumai they had overlooked.
Hot pot, 'Does nobody remember me, who's been bubbling around for so long?!'
Shen Cao picked up a small plate and gently placed a shumai on it.
The shumai had been sitting for a while, and the broth inside wasn't too hot anymore.
She first took a small bite, then raised her chopsticks and sucked the soup out of the shumai.
The sizzling sound was not considered vulgar by anyone; they all thought it was celestial music, pure and delightful!
Using a small spoon, I scooped a small spoonful of vinegar and poured it into the top of the shumai.
Then, put the shumai into your mouth in one bite.
After swallowing, the fragrance lingers on the lips and teeth.
She announced that her favorite meat is lamb!!!