Chapter 85: Braised Beef And Cold Chicken Salad

“Alright.”

Zhou Yan responded, went to find Zhou Hao and Zhou Hai, took one on each side, and led Zheng Qiang away.

He took a set of bowls and chopsticks for himself, sat down next to Xiao Lei, poured wine for his master, and chatted about the arrangements for tomorrow’s banquet.

In Jia Zhou, the outdoor banquet centers on the noon meal. The Nine Big Bowls and all the main dishes are served then, so that the guests can eat their fill and be satisfied.

The evening meal is simpler. Two meat dishes and a few stir-fried vegetables are enough. Minced meat with sour cowpea counts as a fine dish to go with sweet potato porridge.

Actually, not only in Jia Zhou. Zhou Yan had attended several wedding banquets in Sichuan Province, and the midday banquet was always the most important. The wedding ceremony was also held at noon, which was different from Zhejiang Province, where the emphasis was on the evening banquet.

As for the evening meal, usually they played mahjong in the afternoon, drank a bowl of congee to pad the stomach, and then each went home.

Who could handle two consecutive heavy, oily feasts?

With one arm around Zhou Yan’s shoulder, Xiao Lei said earnestly, “Study properly with your grandmother. If you can learn eighty percent of her craft of braised delicacies, you’ll have no trouble selling in Su Ji. People from the town will all come to buy.”

“Mm, I understand.” Zhou Yan nodded.

His master did not blame him for apprenticing to someone else. Instead, he urged him to learn well. That alone was very rare.

After a while, Second Uncle came over with a few brothers, taking turns to toast, and Zhou Yan’s cousins followed. Master Xiao, who could usually hold his liquor, gradually started to get tipsy.

By the time they finished eating, it was dark. Xiao Lei, who had drunk a jin of white wine, declined to stay the night, but after failing three times to get onto his bicycle, he was finally dragged away by Zhou Yan.

No one had slept in Zhou Yan’s bedroom for a long time. Inside, there was only a wooden bed, with an old box placed at the head of the bed.

The bedding was complete, but after not being used for so long, it had a faint moldy smell.

Zhou Yan pulled off his drunken master’s shoes and tossed him onto the bed. By the time Zhou Yan finished washing up, his master had taken off his jacket and rolled to the inside, sleeping soundly against the wall.

His drinking manners were good. Once drunk, he simply fell asleep. He did not hit, did not curse, and did not cling to people for chatting and gossiping.

Zhou Yan had also been running around all day and was exhausted. He turned off the light, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep at once, no longer caring about the musty quilt or his master’s thunderous snores beside him.

If you still have the energy to complain about these things, it means you are not tired enough.

Before dawn the next day, Zhou Yan heard rustling sounds. He opened his eyes and saw his master standing by the bed putting on his shoes. Zhou Yan sat up, rubbed his eyes, and asked in surprise, “Master, why are you up so early?”

Seeing how dead drunk he had been yesterday, he had worried his master would not be able to get up today. He had not expected his master to wake earlier than him.

“The roosters are crowing. Early, my ass.” Xiao Lei took a look at his watch. “It’s four thirty. The bridal escort team needs to set out at six. They have to eat at five thirty. I’ll go over now and start the stove, cook two pots of noodles for them. That will be about right.”

“Alright, I’ll get up too.” Zhou Yan responded, got up with him, and went out into the dark before dawn, flashlight in hand.

In the yard, Comrade Old Zhou and Auntie Zhao were already there, each holding an enamel cup and brushing their teeth.

“Why are you two up so early as well?” Zhou Yan looked at them in puzzlement.

Auntie Zhao rinsed her mouth and said with a smile, “We’re going to help. Your Second Uncle said he’s worried the young people might not handle the bridal escort steadily, and if they miss the auspicious time it will be trouble, so he called your old man to go along and lead the team. I didn’t help yesterday, so of course I have to go early today. Someone also needs to lend a hand boiling noodles in the morning.”

“Master Xiao, conditions at home are simple. You probably didn’t sleep well last night, did you?” Comrade Old Zhou looked at Xiao Lei with concern.

“I slept great. Slept straight through till the rooster crowed. Haven’t slept that soundly in ages.” Xiao Lei replied with a smile.

After a quick wash, they all headed out.

Zhou Mo Mo was still asleep, wrapped in a small quilt and placed in a bamboo basket, carried on Comrade Old Zhou’s back.

Zhou Yan glanced at the little girl in the bamboo basket, switched on his flashlight, and rode toward the old house.

At such an early hour, Zhou Yan had thought his grandmother wouldn’t be up yet.

But as he turned the corner, he saw a dim yellow light glowing at the doorway of the old house.

Zhou Weiguo was holding a damp towel, carefully wiping every nook and cranny of the bicycle. A bunch of red silk was tied to the handlebars, looking very festive.

His grandmother sat on the stone stool at the doorway, dressed today in a dark blue front-clasp jacket, with new cloth shoes on her feet. Her white hair was neatly combed back, and she looked very spirited. Seeing Zhou Yan riding over, she stood with a smile. “You are up early.”

“Grandma, Uncle, why are you up so early too?” Zhou Yan stopped his bike.

“Zhou Hao is getting married. Of course we need to get up early to prepare. They’re using my bicycle for the bridal escort today. I’ll wipe it clean first and then take it over.” Zhou Weiguo replied.

“Come on, let’s go get the chickens. There’s still lots to do this morning.” His grandmother picked up a bundle, got directly onto the bike, and sat down.

“Sit tight.” Zhou Yan said with a smile, and pedaled away.

With Zhou Hao’s wedding, the whole family took it to heart, working together to handle everything properly and beautifully.

Zhou Yan began to understand his grandmother’s example through words and deeds.

Zhou Jie and Zhou Hai had gotten up early to boil water and slaughter the chickens. By now they had them cleaned thoroughly. When they saw Zhou Yan arrive, they lined the bamboo basket with a plastic bag and put four chickens inside.

“Ride slowly and take Grandma back to the shop. I’ll go get the beef and pig heads and bring them right over to you.” Zhou Jie said to Zhou Yan, then hopped on his bicycle and left first.

Zhou Yan strapped the flashlight to the handlebars and rode steadily toward the town with his grandmother.

There were no streetlights in those days, and the road was bad. With his grandmother at her age, Zhou Yan did not dare to be reckless.

“Grandma, why don’t we just bring the braising liquid over to the outdoor banquet and braise there? Wouldn’t that be more convenient?” Zhou Yan asked on the way.

“The craft of braised delicacies is something you can rely on to make a living. An outdoor banquet is an open space, with many people and many eyes. If someone intends to steal your methods, how will you guard against it?” His grandmother said calmly, “Spices are just those few types. Whether you use more or less, you can figure it out by trial. As long as they can get five or six tenths of your flavor, and then drop their price by thirty percent, customers will choose them instead of you. That’s the first point.”

“Second, this pot of braising liquid you are using today is made from my old braising liquid. With all the bumping along the way, it is easy for filth to get in and spoil it. If it spills on the road, that’s even more of a loss. A good pot of braising liquid should not be moved lightly, much less touched by others.”

“Once the dishes are braised, you can take them to the outdoor banquet and slice them there. It doesn’t affect the flavor at all. When I used to run my stall, the restaurants in Jia Zhou came every day to get whole braised pork head meat and pork ears from me. They took them back whole and only sliced them when customers ordered.”

“I understand.” Zhou Yan nodded, gaining a deeper understanding of how important the braising liquid was.

After Zhou Yan returned to the shop, Zhou Jie arrived as well and carried the meat into the kitchen.

In the bamboo basket were three deboned pig heads, plus eight extra pork ears. Butchers usually would not sell those separately. Brother Jie really had his channels.

There were also fifteen jin of beef shank, freshly slaughtered today. Zhou Village never lacked beef. Their whole family were cattle slaughterers, and they only needed to notify their colleagues in advance.

Lastly, he took out four palm-sized pig trotters.

“Are we braising pig trotters too?” Zhou Yan was a bit surprised. That wasn’t on the menu.

Zhou Jie smiled and said, “These pig trotters are from the pig we slaughtered yesterday. My old man said Grandma and Mo Mo love them. You braise them together and set them aside. Let Grandma have them with wine, and let Mo Mo gnaw on one too.”

“Alright.” Zhou Yan nodded with a smile. Second Uncle truly respected the elderly and cherished the young. Since he was in charge of braising, he wondered if he would be able to taste and adjust the salt.

“Need any help?” Zhou Jie asked.

“No need, you go join the bridal escort. Leave this side to me.” Zhou Yan waved him off and started drawing water to clean the ingredients.

“Grandma, I’ll head back then.” Zhou Jie said to his grandmother, then jogged out.

For a wedding, the bridal escort is the most important part.

As Zhou Hao’s older brother, he certainly wanted to be there.

In the kitchen, Zhou Yan handled the work, while his grandmother stood by and guided him.

He was already proficient in braised pork head meat and braised pork ears, and dealt with the ingredients skillfully.

He separated the pork ears and braised pig snouts, split the pork head meat in half, and did each step carefully.

He also processed the pork knuckles and set them aside.

At first, his grandmother still offered a few pointers. Later, she simply moved a stool over, sat beside him, and chatted and gossiped with Zhou Yan, though her eyes never left his hands, and she nodded from time to time.

“You learned cold dishes from Master Xiao?” Watching Zhou Yan finish dealing with the pig heads, she finally could not resist asking.

“A little. But my master said your craft is better and told me to study carefully with you.” Zhou Yan said with a smile.

His grandmother nodded. “His craft is not bad. The way he taught you to handle pig brains, his methods and techniques are at a good level.”

“He’s a second-class head chef.” Zhou Yan nodded with a smile. His grandmother’s eye was too sharp, so he had no choice but to push his master out as a shield.

“Grandma, I’ve never done beef and chicken. How long do I braise the beef shank? I need to decide which goes into the pot first.” Zhou Yan straightened his attitude and asked his grandmother earnestly for guidance.

Braised beef and cold chicken salad were both excellent dishes.

If the system would not give them, then he would learn from his grandmother.

Zhou Yan was no longer who he used to be. Now he was skilled in knife work, and his seasoning and heat control had greatly improved. He was also proficient in the pork products series of braised delicacies, and his understanding of braised dishes was at a certain level.

Since his grandmother was willing to teach, he would certainly not be a slow learner.

His grandmother took a watch from her pocket and placed it on the stove, then said, “Once the beef shank is washed clean, braise it for an hour and a half. Among today’s dishes, that takes the longest time, so the beef shank goes in first. Pig trotters braise for one hour. Pork ears, braised pig snouts, and pork head meat all take forty minutes.

“Cold chicken salad is different. You can’t braise it directly in this pot. You need another pot of braising liquid, white braise, so that the chicken meat comes out pale and clean. Once it is torn into shreds and mixed with red oil, the color is bright and it is both tasty and beautiful to look at…”

His grandmother taught, and Zhou Yan did. Each ingredient went into the pot right on schedule, with almost no mistakes and excellent efficiency.

Even his grandmother, who rarely praised anyone’s cooking, could not help complimenting Zhou Yan twice:

“Your basic skills are really solid.”

“The flavor is just right, not too salty and not too light. This is the correct amount.”

Outside, the sky was growing brighter.

The fire under the braising pot gradually burned out.

The braised meat was left to sit in the pot, quietly waiting for the banquet.

For braised meat, thirty percent is in the boiling, seventy percent in the resting. Only when the flavor soaks deep into the meat can it be considered perfect.

Sixth update!