Chapter 212: Familiar Recipe

Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan planned very well.

After the plan ended, Qin Huai started making longevity noodles.

Having stayed in Huang Ji for so long, making longevity noodles every morning had almost become Qin Huai's habit; even during the few days when crab roe shumai practice was the craziest, Qin Huai's breakfast was still longevity noodles.

Imagine, on a not-so-beautiful morning, you can eat a bowl of hot, hand-kneaded, and chewy longevity noodles just cooked as soon as you arrive at the company every day. The side dishes are very simple, all light side dishes, but the soup is very mellow, and the chicken soup is fragrant and rich.

Slurping a bowl of noodles into the stomach, then gulping down the remaining chicken soup, smacking your lips with lingering aftertaste, and then choosing how many wontons to boil according to your appetite, whether to add seaweed, whether to sprinkle green onions.

After this set of processes, the not-so-beautiful morning became beautiful.

"*Hic*." Dong Shi drank the last mouthful of noodle soup, licked his lips, and whispered: "If Qin Huai could also make longevity noodles at noon, that would be great. I could definitely eat two big bowls at noon!"

The people from Zhi Wei Ju didn't speak, but frantically echoed Dong Shi's words in their hearts.

That's right, it's like this; they could also eat two bowls!

They could eat it right now!

Of course, eating two bowls was impossible; Qin Huai always made longevity noodles according to the number of people. If Guo Mingzhu wanted to eat, Gong Liang had to tell Qin Huai the day before, and Qin Huai would make an extra bowl for Gong Liang to pack and take back.

After breakfast, the people from Huang Ji started tense and busy work, except for Zheng Da.

Zheng Da came at ten o'clock.

At this time, the guests queuing outside had already lined up for 100 meters.

Zheng Da slowly wandered into the back kitchen, saw Huang Shengli who was commanding the overall situation, and said happily: "The queue outside seems to be longer than yesterday. If *Zhi Wei* publishes in two days, this queue won't line up to the neighborhood next door, right?"

Huang Shengli saw Zheng Da like this and couldn't help but shake his head helplessly.

Whenever he felt his junior brother could do it, finally had the appearance of a master and hope to take an apprentice, Zheng Da would tell him: No, you can't, I won't strive to be strong, I am still that salted fish from before.

Huang Shengli looked at the people from Zhi Wei Ju who were working against the clock, occasionally taking the ingredients they had processed to Qin Huai to look at and asking Qin Huai if it was okay, and felt that Zheng Da couldn't be stable this time either.

Sure enough, there is no harm without comparison.

This comparison was truly too obvious.

If one had to find fault, the only fault of the people from Zhi Wei Ju was that they poured tea too diligently; Qin Huai had already gone to the restroom twice this morning.

"Master Zheng." Qin Huai saw Zheng Da come, put down the work in his hand, and walked toward Zheng Da, "I have a matter I want to ask you."

Zheng Da's eyes shone: "What asking or not asking, ask, ask whatever you want!"

"Do you know how to make hundred-fruit filling? Hundred-fruit filling for Four-Joy Tangyuan."

Zheng Da was stunned.

A silence, a silence that made people feel awkward.

Zheng Da really wanted to shout with a full voice: Of course I know! A mere hundred-fruit filling is absolutely not a problem.

But he truly didn't know.

This question also tested his knowledge blind spot.

Zheng Da laughed awkwardly twice: "Four-Joy Tangyuan, this snack, I don't know how to make it very well."

"The state-run restaurant didn't sell it back then."

Qin Huai wasn't very disappointed; he had already guessed it, and was about to say two words and turn to leave when Huang Shengli suddenly spoke.

"Is it Gong Liang who wants to eat it?"

"Yes." Qin Huai nodded, "Yesterday I asked Mr. Gong if there was any snack he wanted to eat, and Mr. Gong said he had eaten Four-Joy Tangyuan made by Master Jing on his birthday, which was very unforgettable, and he wanted to eat hundred-fruit filling Four-Joy Tangyuan again."

"But yesterday I inquired, and there are very few shops that make hundred-fruit filling Four-Joy Tangyuan on the market now, so I wanted to ask Master Zheng today."

Huang Shengli smiled: "I knew it was him. You can just listen to Gong Liang's ghost talk; he lived next door to our master back then and ate plenty of good things from childhood to adulthood. At that time, materials were scarce, and many snacks and good dishes were only made by master during festivals. As long as he ate it once or twice, it would be many years since he ate it from his mouth, unforgettable for life, and wanted to eat it again."

Qin Huai:...

Gong Liang, worthy of being you.

After Huang Shengli said this, Zheng Da remembered: "Is the one Gong Liang talking about the birthday of the year he got engaged to his wife, when master boiled a big pot of Four-Joy Tangyuan? I wanted to eat meat filling, and you and Gong Liang wanted to eat hundred-fruit filling. As a result, those Tangyuan looked the same, and I ate until my belly was about to burst and only ate three meat fillings."

"Before making Tangyuan, the winter melon sugar wasn't enough, and I even went home and stole 5 jin that time."

Huang Shengli nodded.

Zheng Da exclaimed: "If it was that time, I have an impression of the hundred-fruit filling. Master took out all the good things at the bottom of the box; those top-quality candied fruits and dried fruits were so expensive, all wrapped in Tangyuan. It made my heart ache at the time; it could have been half of the mooncakes, I loved eating hundred-fruit filling mooncakes."

Qin Huai didn't expect Zheng Da and Huang Shengli to have an impression of that Four-Joy Tangyuan, so he hurriedly pursued: "Then Master Zheng, do you remember the ingredients for the hundred-fruit filling that time?"

Knowing the specific ingredients would be much simpler. Qin Huai believed that the methods for hundred-fruit filling must have their own merits, but overall they were about the same. If he knew the ingredients, he wouldn't have to beg for help all the way to Zhi Wei Ju; he could grab Zheng Siyuan and research it together, and if he really couldn't research it, there was still Zheng Da.

Although Zheng Da didn't know, he could also research it.

"Don't know." Zheng Da shook his head honestly, "That was many years ago; at that time I was still making buns in the state-run restaurant, and such expensive fillings weren't my turn to make."

Qin Huai was a bit disappointed.

"I remember." Huang Shengli said with a smile, "Although I don't know how to make hundred-fruit filling, I still remember the recipe for hundred-fruit filling back then."

Qin Huai:!

"The ingredients for Four-Joy Tangyuan that year were prepared by me for master, and I was also helping out in the kitchen when making Tangyuan. It's normal that Zheng Da doesn't remember; I remember very clearly." After saying that, Huang Shengli also gave Zheng Da a faint look and smiled; everything was unspoken.

Zheng Da:...

Was it his illusion? How did he feel his senior brother's aggressiveness had increased day by day in these few months.

"Since you want to research Tangyuan, Xiao Qin, then delay the heat control practice in the afternoon by an hour and a half. Research the hundred-fruit filling first, and then follow me to practice heat control."

"Thank you, Master Huang."

"It's nothing, you are a pastry chef after all, and it's a good thing to be willing to research new snacks. I also haven't eaten hundred-fruit filling Four-Joy Tangyuan for many years, and Zheng Da isn't a person who likes to research this kind of snack. If you and Siyuan can really research it out, I can also enjoy the blessing of the mouth."

After speaking, Huang Shengli looked straight at Zheng Da, didn't say a word, just looked at him.

Zheng Da:?

Zheng Da:...

Zheng Da:.

Zheng Da:!

Zheng Da understood.

"Who said I don't like researching this kind of snack? I like researching new snacks the most now! Starting this afternoon, I'll research with you. Siyuan has only been making snacks for how many years, he doesn't have my experience! He didn't like eating hundred-fruit filling or five-kernel filling mooncakes since he was small, unlike me; I loved eating hundred-fruit filling mooncakes at that time."

Qin Huai said to Zheng Da with a smile: "Then I'll trouble Master Zheng to work overtime with us in the afternoon starting today."

Zheng Da was directly happy: "Not troublesome, not troublesome."

Qin Huai went back to continue working, Huang Shengli glanced at Zheng Da who had no sign of wanting to work, and whispered: "You come earlier in the future."

"Every day you can't even catch up with the breakfast Xiao Qin makes. Those who know think you are too lazy to get up early and don't want to come over; those who don't know think you look down on Xiao Qin's skills and don't bother to eat."

Zheng Da:?

Zheng Da felt it was time to buy a house in the neighborhood opposite.

Living too far away, I really don't want to get up early in the morning.

With the help of a group of involution kings in Zhi Wei Ju, the pastry in the back kitchen came out of the pot continuously, making the neighbors queuing outside run to tell each other.

There are more snacks today than yesterday, neighbors who are still hesitating, come and buy quickly; if you are lucky, you might be able to queue for two rounds!

Although there were many guests queuing to buy snacks at the door of Huang Ji, those who had the patience to queue from early morning to noon, queuing hard for 4 hours just to buy a few more buns, were still mainly the retired neighbors around who had nothing to do.

"Qin Huai, have you heard? 5 fights broke out among the guests queuing outside today, 2 more than yesterday. Foreman Cao decided to launch an online queuing business, the kind where you lose your turn if you miss it."

When eating at noon, Dong Shi happily carried his bowl and shared the gossip he just heard with Qin Huai, and seeing that Qin Huai's lunch today was actually Eight-Treasure Duck personally made by Huang Shengli, he mooched a pair of chopsticks.

Qin Huai didn't listen much.

He was researching the recipe Huang Shengli just gave him.

Huang Shengli's recipe was handwritten; after so many years, Huang Shengli only remembered the various ingredients and the approximate amount, and couldn't remember the more detailed ones.

According to this recipe, the hundred-fruit filling sweet glutinous rice ball version of Jiang Weijin could be called luxurious.

Dried apple, candied osmanthus, raisins, dried apricots, jujube paste, longan meat, dried peaches, candied olives, plums, candied kumquats, hawthorn...

Walnut kernels, almond kernels, peanut kernels, melon seed kernels, sesame, lotus seeds, hazelnuts, cashews...

Sugar was made by boiling winter melon sugar and lard.

The ingredients were very rich, rich to the point of being a bit excessive.

When Qin Huai saw this recipe, his first reaction was that adding so many nuts and dried fruits, can the people eating Tangyuan eat it?

Even if this kind of filling is called hundred-fruit filling, you can't really add so many, right?

And...

Don't know why, Qin Huai felt these nuts and dried fruits were very familiar, as if he had seen this combination somewhere.

Qin Huai was thinking.

He didn't like eating dried fruits usually either.

Did Luo Luo didn't like it either.

Even during the New Year, the Qin family didn't buy many dried fruits, and they wouldn't buy so many fancy nuts either, mainly buying melon seeds and peanuts, basic models, not making mistakes.

In his memory, who had eaten so many kinds of nuts and dried fruits?

Wait.

There really is!

Crazy Miss!

When Crazy Miss was eating and drinking in Beiping, she was eating and taking in Taifeng Tower every day, and her pockets were full of candied fruits and dried fruits. As a new restaurant that wanted to make a name for itself in Beiping, the candied fruits and dried fruits prepared for guests in Taifeng Tower were all top-quality.

Qin Huai vaguely remembered that if dining in, the luxurious candied fruit and dried fruit platter would be laid with ice underneath, and would also be plated and styled. Qin Huai hurriedly put down his bowl and chopsticks, ran to another small stove to ask Zheng Da: "Master Zheng, did Master Jing use many hundred-fruit filling snacks before?"

Dong Shi:?

Was the gossip he just obtained not that attractive?

Zheng Da was eating with a bowl, and was almost asked by Qin Huai to spit out the rice in his mouth, first clearing his mouth to answer Qin Huai's question.

"Very few." Huang Shengli helped Zheng Da answer, "In my memory, master only made hundred-fruit filling Tangyuan two or three times, and mooncakes once. Our state-run restaurant basically didn't sell this type of snack, and master didn't make it much either."

That Huang Shengli said so, Qin Huai suddenly had an absurd guess.

Actually, Jiang Weijin didn't know how to make hundred-fruit filling much either.

This recipe of his was completely matched according to the candied fruit and nut platter of Taifeng Tower back then.

Jiang Weijin was Jiang Chengde's son, and must have been a chef or helper in Taifeng Tower. Because he didn't know how to make hundred-fruit filling well, he matched a hundred-fruit filling with very rich ingredients according to the recipe of ingredients he was familiar with.

At the same time, because he didn't know how to make it well, he basically didn't make it.

As for why Huang Shengli and others couldn't eat the problem and felt that the hundred-fruit filling snacks made by Jiang Weijin were particularly delicious, that was entirely because Jiang Weijin's skill points were high enough. Like Jiang Weiming, the snacks invented were still delicious.

If the filling for the hundred-fruit filling Tangyuan Gong Liang wanted to eat was made like this, Qin Huai would roughly know how to try it.

Try randomly.

Qin Huai was too good at this way of researching dishes.

Free play, try however you want.

Take Four-Joy Dumplings as an example; didn't the people in Huang Ji's back kitchen eat authentic Four-Joy Dumplings? Didn't they know that the Four-Joy Dumplings Qin Huai made were a bit different from the serious Four-Joy Dumplings, but no one raised an objection.

Because it was delicious, and it indeed looked like Four-Joy Dumplings.

For dishes, delicious is the kingly way.

The chef who made Four-Joy Dumplings in Zhi Wei Ju yesterday made serious Four-Joy Dumplings, but he wasn't as delicious as Qin Huai's.

In Huang Ji, Qin Huai's Four-Joy Dumplings were the orthodox Four-Joy Dumplings.

Qin Huai understood, went back to eat, and after eating, took the recipe and happily told Zheng Siyuan his trial-making ideas.

After Zheng Siyuan knocked out several question marks, he indicated that you are happy.

Since Qin Huai decided so, there must be his reason.

Just like this, Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan started a hearty hundred-fruit filling practice.

Huang Anyao found a supplier to send top-quality candied fruits and nuts according to the list, providing a solid logistical guarantee for Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan's practice.

As for the production method, Qin Huai found several kinds online.

Some required cutting some ingredients into pieces, pouring brandy to soak until soft, then cutting the remaining ingredients into pieces, adding them one by one and stirring, not boiling, and finally stirring until it could be pinched into a ball to be used as filling.

Some required boiling sugar first, boiling winter melon sugar, white sugar, lard, and maltose into syrup first, then cutting the remaining ingredients into pieces and pouring them in to stir and make filling.

Others were very simple and rude: fried flour, sugar, oil, chopped candied fruits and nuts all mixed together, stirring to complete was the filling.

Considering that there was a step of boiling sugar in Huang Shengli's memory, Qin Huai was more inclined to the second one, but for the sake of stability, Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan tried all three methods once.

Then, unexpectedly, they rolled over three times.

Such rich ingredients, such sweet and greasy candied fruits, such a large amount of winter melon sugar, plus lard boiled with winter melon sugar.

The most critical thing was that this filling was to be wrapped into Tangyuan and put into a pot to boil.

The taste of the rollover could be imagined.

Sweet and greasy, other dishes are pursuing fat but not greasy, the Tangyuan Qin Huai and Zheng Siyuan wrapped this time were super sweet and greasy.

Zheng Siyuan tasted a Tangyuan he boiled, and his face turned green.

Perhaps Zheng Siyuan hadn't rolled over so big since he didn't have to follow his own father and Huang Shengli to learn skills.

Qin Huai repaired Zheng Siyuan's bug of not having a super rollover for many years very well.

"Are you sure this method can be tried out?" Zheng Siyuan began to doubt life.

"Of course." Qin Huai was full of confidence, holding his phone and taking notes in the memo.

"This is our first attempt, it's very normal to make it like this. Look, after today's failure, we have already discovered that the amount of winter melon sugar was clearly added too much, and the taste of dried apricots in it was very not prominent, it should have been covered by some ingredient."

"The olives that Huang Anyao's supplier entered are not good, ask him to change to a better batch tomorrow."

"When boiling sugar, lard can be added boldly; we were still a bit too restrained when we did it just now."

"The amount of sesame is also too small; have you noticed that although Tangyuan is boiled, sesame mixed in it can still taste the fragrance of fried goods."

"Put too many melon seed kernels, I could only taste the melon seed flavor in the 3rd batch of Tangyuan."

Zheng Siyuan:... You could actually taste the melon seed flavor; he just wanted to vomit after taking a bite of the 3rd batch of Tangyuan.

Zheng Siyuan found that he was indeed far inferior to Qin Huai in terms of trying rollover dishes.

"Do you have any ideas on your side?" Qin Huai asked.

Zheng Siyuan thought for a while, picked up the bowl like returning to death, and took a bite of Tangyuan.

"I think we can ask Tan Weian first." Zheng Siyuan said, pointing to Tan Weian who was working seriously at the culinary table and occasionally looking at the two with doubt.

"When we were making hundred-fruit filling just now, he had been watching us. From his eyes and expression, I could roughly tell that he knows how to make hundred-fruit filling."

Qin Huai:!

Qin Huai immediately looked at Tan Weian, and just when he wanted to pull Tan Weian into their hundred-fruit filling trial-making small team, Qin Huai suddenly remembered that their team seemed to be missing a capable general.

Where did Zheng Da go?

He was the backbone of the team, the one with the highest culinary skills!

Although his mouth was clumsy, his culinary skills were absolutely unquestionable.

"Where is your dad?" Qin Huai asked.

"Oh, him." Zheng Siyuan said numbly, "After tasting the 1st Tangyuan, he ran away."

"I guess he might feel that our method can't try out results, or he might not want to try such unpalatable Tangyuan for a month like this."

"If nothing goes wrong, he should have gone home to research how to make hundred-fruit filling."

Qin Huai:...

Is it that unpalatable?

Qin Huai took a bite.

It is indeed quite unpalatable.

But trying dishes is like this; first match the most outrageous combinations, and then change them bit by bit.

If you use conservative methods to try from the beginning, you can't try out the core problems at all.

Qin Huai took another bite.

Well, can't taste the hazelnut flavor at all; such expensive nuts can't taste the flavor, it must be that the combination is wrong.

Qin Huai took another bite.

Sorry, too unpalatable, a bit don't want to eat.

At this moment, Qin Huai missed Qin Luo very much.

If Did Luo Luo were here, it would be great.

Although Qin Luo's sense of taste wasn't as good as Qin Huai's, Qin Luo could eat, was willing to eat, and was willing to eat bitterness.

Before when Qin Huai tried snacks, these kinds of snacks that were explosively unpalatable in the early stage were all eaten by Qin Luo.

Basically, things that Qin Luo could clearly taste were wrong were things that must be changed.

Qin Huai calculated the days.

Qin Luo still had 20 days to go on vacation.

Private school vacation is really late.

Qin Huai sighed deeply.

"What's wrong?" Zheng Siyuan asked; he thought Qin Huai was hit by the unpalatability of the snacks he made.

"Nothing, just miss Did Luo Luo a bit."

"Before when trying snacks, these kinds of unpalatable snacks were all eaten by Did Luo Luo."

Zheng Siyuan:...

Don't know why, Zheng Siyuan suddenly felt that Qin Luo was also not easy.

Zheng Siyuan looked at the Tangyuan in the bowl and felt that it was truly bitter for Did Luo Luo all these years.

When Qin Luo comes for winter vacation, big brother will definitely make her the most delicious fresh meat mooncakes.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 214 =====