Here Comes The Lady Chef

Because she was just experimenting, Wen Rou carefully discarded the remaining brine that she had created. She then cleaned up the kitchen, and placed all pots and pans back in their original positions, so as not to leave any evidence of her experiment.

In her heart she was elated. This would be another sleepless night for her.

—— Another day —–

For some strange reasons, in these few days, the weather in Xianyang had turned very chilly. All who were out on the street shivered uncontrollably from the cold.

It was dinner time, and you could see the smoke bellowing out of the chimney stoves as household after household prepared dinner for themselves and their families.

Wen Rou twitched her small nose, took a sniff, turned to her mother and inquired, "Mum, is Dad cooking red braised pork belly? It smells great!"

"Girl, are you craving for meat so much that you are hallucinating? I could smell a delectable aroma, but even I could not tell it is red braised pork belly." Zhou smiled as she gently pinched Wen Rou"s nose.

Wen Rou just giggled with a mischievous smile. Then she stood there, astounded.

"Mum is right! How did I know for sure it is red braised pork belly?"

The cold northwest wind brings with it the chill of the winter, freezing all it caressed. But it also inadvertently carried the mouth-watering aroma of the scent from the kitchen and spread it all over the household. Wen Rou patted her tummy, and felt that her stomach is growling in hunger.

"It smells really wonderful!" Wen Rou could not resist the temptation of the scent, and rushed towards the kitchen.

Her mother, Zhou Shi closely followed her.

The Wen family kitchen is just an ordinary kitchen. Although it is not very big, it is well stocked with ingredients.

This is because the head of the household, Wen Shouzhen, is the head chef of Xianyang best restaurant, "Drunken Immortals Restaurant!"

Within the kitchen, Wen Shouzhen was hard at work together with his disciple, Fang Dashi [1].

This 16 years old youth is simple, hardworking and practical. Wen Rou loved and regarded him as a brother and a member of her family.

Especially after that day…..  When the Wen family was in trouble, Fang Dashi used his huge body to block the door to buy time for the family to escape. Although he was scared, he did not retreat a single step. Only when he was beaten to death by the military soldiers did he allowed the soldiers into the courtyard.

Brother Shi!

When she thought of Brother Shi"s bravery and sacrifice for her and her family, Wen Rou"s eyes turn moist and she almost cried.

At this moment, within the black wok, following the shaking of the wok, a flash of red appeared. Steam rose up from the food, and effused a luscious smell.

"Lift the food out of the wok!"

"Coming!"

Fang Dashi immediately handed over a plate that had been warmed beforehand.

Wen Shouzhen grabbed the plate with his left hand, and with his right hand, he scoop up the food with a spatula, and transferred them onto the plate.

Placed on the white plate were thick, black slices of fatty pork. As the pork reflected the light of the day, the pork seemed to be enshrouded with a sea of colours, from brown, crimson, red, white and a cloud of tantalizing aroma.

Looking at the plate of food in her father"s hand, Wen Rou gasped in wonder and astonishment. "It is really red braised pork belly!" Does this mean that after she was reborn, her nose had also become more sensitive?

Zhou Shi also widened her eyes in surprise and astonishment. This young lady"s nose is really incredible!

"Master, you had already cooked 5 to 6 servings of this red braised pork belly. Why are you still unsatisfied with this dish?" Fang Dashi inquired.

"Yesterday there was several guests in the restaurant. They complained that the red braised pork belly I made is too oily. Today I have half a day break, and decided to try to improve upon this dish." Wen Shouzhen smiled as he explained.

As a chef, the one thing they look forward to the most is the customers" opinion. But the one thing they feared the most is also customers" opinion.

For this reason alone, just because of the comments of "oily" taste, there were already 5 to 6 plates of different types of red braise pork belly placed on the kitchen table.

The 5 to 6 plates differ from one another. There is a plate of red braise pork belly with tangerine peels, another plate with almonds added to them, one plate served with salted vegetable, and another plate served with a different type of dipping sauce, etc.

It is evident that in order to improve upon the dish "red braise pork belly", Wen Shouzhen had really given his all.

Wen Shouzhen was glad to see his wife and daughter. "Yi? The two of you are here? Come and try the food! I just changed the recipe. Eat it while it is hot!"

For a chef, there is no greater happiness than to cook for others to eat. This is especially so if the "others" is their family and loved ones.

"Rou Er"s nose is really sensitive. While she was inside her room, she could already tell that you are cooking red braise pork belly!" Zhou Shi teased her daughter as she picked up two pairs of chopsticks.

"I will then help myself and try dad"s cooking!" Wen Rou immediately sat down, and accepting a pair of chopstick from her mum, she immediately picked up a slice of the pork belly and put it into her mouth.

Wen Shouzhen was very happy to see Wen Rou enjoying the food, and called Fang Dashi to join in, "Shi Tou [1], don"t just stand there. Come and eat, and give me your opinion!"

He himself also grabbed a big piece of the pork belly and put it into his mouth.

Fang Dashi took a bite and immediately praised the dish,"Delicious! It is soft and smooth, and immediately melts in the mouth!"

"Of course! If I declared my cooking skills as the second best, within Xianyang n.o.body would dare to declare themselves as the best! [2]" Wen Shouzhen"s cheeks were bulging, and his speech is slurred as his mouth is filled with food. It is simply amazing that he could squeeze out this sentence with a full mouth.

"Eat slowly. Do not talk when you eat, you almost choked!" Zhou Shi lectured her hubby.

Fang Dashi noticed that Wen Rou was just quietly sitting there, and asked, "Sister Rou Er, why are you so quiet today?"

What happened to this girl?

When Wen Shouzhen was cooking, he had repeatedly mentioned that his daughter Wen Rou loves the red braised pork belly that he made. But unlike the rest of the people in the kitchen who were helping themselves to the food, Wen Rou only took one bite, and just sat there quietly, without taking another piece of the pork belly.

"Rou Er, are you feeling unwell?" Wen Shouzhen also found this to be very strange. Normally his daughter is not like that! Every time he put some food in front of her, she would usually gobble up the food. But today, she just took one bite and stopped eating….

"Woah, Dad, I was thinking about something!" Wen Rou answered. But it is obvious that she was lost in her thoughts and her heart was not into eating the pork belly.

"You are still young, what are worried about? Come, eat more. Only when you eat more, then will you grow taller and prettier!" Wen Shouzhen picked up a piece of lean pork belly and put it into Wen Rou"s bowl.

"Er…. You do not feel that this meat is quite oily?" Wen Rou suddenly remarked.

In the past, she is not only the daughter of Wen Shouzhen, the imperial chef. She is also a great helper for her father, and had a profound understanding of her fathers" recipe and skills. In the past, she believed that her father cooking skills were superb, no matter what he cooked, he could whet a person"s appet.i.te. Especially the red braised pork belly. Each time he made this, she would cheerfully guzzle the food.

Since when did her taste buds become so sensitive and she become so picky about food?

"Oily? I do not think so." Fang Dashi put his chopsticks down.

"Oily?!" Wen Shouzhen stopped eating.

Zhou Shi also put her chopsticks down, and gently said, "Hearing what Rou Er had said, I also felt that it is also a bit greasy. For me, I definitely could not finish this plate of red braised pork belly."

Again, the word "oily" is used to describe the food he cooked!

Wen Shouzhen licked his lips and managed to taste the oiliness on his lips. He raised his eyebrows.

Wen Shouzhen was feeling very frustrated. He had worked the whole afternoon, tried experimenting with 5 to 6 different varieties of red braised pork belly, and finally was defeated by one comment from his daughter.

Wen Shouzhen could not bring himself to be angry at his family. He forced himself to smile and remain calm, "All right, later when we are having dinner, I will make some hot and sour soup. This will wash away the greasy taste of the dish."

"Shifu [3], do not trouble yourself. I will go and cut some fruits and it will wash away the oily taste." Fang Dashi got up from the chair, and was ready to work.

"Hei! Why do all of you need to go to such lengths and troubles!" Wen Rou walked towards a pot of rice, and open the lid. A stream of white color cloud rose up from the pot. The fragrance of the white rice enveloped Wen Rou.

"For me, the best way to get rid of the greasy taste is white rice!" Wen Rou giggled as she filled a bowl of rice for everyone on the table.

The grains of slender white rice seemed to glitter and sparkle as it released the mild fragrance of a freshly cooked rice.

"In this way, you can enjoy the pork without the greasy taste!" Wen Rou picked up several pieces of the red braised pork belly and placed them on top of her bowl of rice. Then she sat down and being to eat in earnest.

Looking at Wen Rou digging into her meal, it seemed as if the moment when she stopped eating and being to think in earnest had never occurred.

You could hear the sounds of her grabbing the pieces of red braised pork belly daftly with her chopsticks and her devouring the food in earnest. The look of pure bliss on her face indicated that it is really tasty.

It is just a bowl of white rice! Is it as amazing as what Wen Rou had said?

With some skepticism, Wen Shouzhen used his chopstick to eat some white rice, and then he ate a piece of red braised pork belly.

Oh my gosh! Red braised pork belly complements the white rice perfectly!

The white rice absorbed all the greasiness of the pork belly. When you eat the red braised pork belly with rice, the fatty part of the pork belly melted into the rice, and enhanced the flavor of the rice. When bitten, the lean part of the pork that contains the sauce released its flavor into the rice. The ordinary bowl of rice suddenly seemed to be full of flavor when it is enhanced with the tender taste of the pork.

As well, the contrast between the neutral white rice and the sweet pork belly actually enhanced the taste of the pork belly!

All these combined to make the dish in perfect harmony.

Maybe I had gone off track in my experiment. The more simple and common the food is, the more suitable it is to complement the red braised pork belly.

Wen Shouzhen was giddy with happiness, and he took large bites of the rice with some pork slices on them.

"Let see if that group of food critics dared to show up again! This time I will definitely win them over." Wen Shouzhen could not help feeling proud. He was sure he had unlocked the secrets to a non-greasy red braised pork belly!

[1] Fang Dashi 方大石 - His surname is Fang, and his name literally means "big stone"! This is why Wen Rou referred to him as石头哥 aka "Brother Stone". But it sounds weird, right? For Chinese families, the last character of the name is often used as a pet name. e.g. Wen Rou is often referred as Rou Er by her friends and family. So I choose to use the last character of his name and translated it as Brother Shi instead of Brother Stone.

For others who are calling him by his nickname "石头" aka Stone, I will just use the Hanyi Pinyi version instead as his nickname, Shi Tou

[2] He is praising himself as the best.

[3] 师父 [Shifu] is a term used to call a teacher who imparts their trade skills. It can be cooking, kungfu, blacksmithing skills etc. For school teachers that impart knowledge about the world, they are addressed as 先生 [Xian Sheng] or the more widely used j.a.panese term [Sensei].