Chapter 200: The Marvelous Kitchen Chapter 202: Following

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

That piece of goose leg was cut into a very suitable size; if it were Zhang Cherry's small mouth, she might need two or three bites, but Ma Shenzǐ, with her broad mouth blessed by all directions, believed she could eat it clean in one big mouthful, skin and meat together.

When she served the dishes earlier, she had been in a hurry and only glanced briefly; now that she finally had leisure, before putting it in her mouth, she took a moment to examine it carefully.

Although Ma Shenzǐ had never seen white jade, she had seen mutton fat; the goose leg, once boiled, had skin exactly the color of mutton fat, bright yellow and glossy, the yellow tinged with white, looking incomparably smooth and tight.

Boiled meat in plain water, without extra condiments to stain it, came out simply the color of cooked meat, with a pinkish tint; near the bone, the pink was deeper and the meat paler, and even inside the bone there was a hint of rosy red—proof that the marrow was cooked but not done through—truly fresh enough to see with the naked eye.

Ma Shenzǐ swallowed that fresh bite into her mouth, and with teeth, tongue, and chopsticks all working urgently, she spat out the bone in the middle, then began chewing the skin and meat together.

By then the goose meat had been left to cool for a while, and even the outer layer was slightly cool.

On a hot summer night, eating such a piece of goose that was half warm and half cool, without even needing to blow on it, was very appetizing.

She bit into the skin first, then came the very thin layer of goose fat between skin and meat, and finally the goose meat itself.

The goose skin was crisp and smooth, even with a slight chewiness; the goose meat was extremely fresh and sweet, and had plenty of chew—this goose was a four-month-old maiden, very tender, the meat fine and tender, smooth and not dry, but by no means only tender.

The family of the patron who sent the goose as thanks had not lied; the few geese raised by his old lady were indeed the best among healthy geese, fond of pecking people, splashing in water, and strolling about, which made the skin and meat firm and chewy.

Tenderness and firmness intertwined, mixed with that particularly thin layer of fat, forming the special texture of this bite of goose meat.

Chew it down, and it bursts with soup.

That soup was a mixture of extremely thin goose fat and extremely sweet goose meat juice; the goose fat was too thin and already half-cool, so it was not greasy, only enhancing the aroma; the goose meat had only its own meat sweetness, not a hint of off-flavor, all sweet meat juice slowly coaxed out by chewing, the whole mouth full of meat fragrance and meat sweetness.

Ma Shenzǐ usually thought her taste was heavy, but after eating this bite of goose leg meat, she suddenly felt the charm of plain boiled meat.

—Plain boiled in water, only the original flavor of the meat, could it actually be this delicious!

She was chewing absentmindedly when she suddenly heard someone speaking beside her ear; she turned her head, and it was Song Xiaoniangzi pushing a small dish of dipping sauce in front of her.

"The flavor of plain boiled goose is stronger; if you're not used to it, you can try eating it with this dipping sauce."

Ma Shenzǐ hurriedly swallowed the meat in her mouth, then swallowed another mouthful of saliva, and said: "I'm used to it! I'm used to it! I only now realize plain boiled goose is this delicious!"

While speaking, she hurriedly went to grab more meat.

Zhang Siniang on the side was still chewing meat in her mouth; hearing this, she hurriedly poked her sister-in-law with her elbow, then pointed to the small dish of dipping sauce in front of each person, quickly making a "dip" gesture, and for fear she wouldn't understand, she simply helped her clip a piece of meat back; the goose meat rolled once in the dipping sauce before being sent into her sister-in-law's bowl.

This piece was goose back meat.

Out of her sister-in-law's kindness, Ma Shenzǐ naturally hurriedly put it into her mouth.

Goose meat dipped in sauce juice was yet another flavor, a taste she had never eaten before, carrying a very rich citrus fragrance, salty and sour as the base, and the bright sourness of white vinegar, light and dark complementing each other, sour and especially spirited; garlic, scallion white, evodia, mustard seed, each with pungent and spicy heat; soy sauce salty and fresh; finally a hint of returning sweetness.

This sauce was salty, sour, spicy, fresh, sweet—all flavors complete—but each flavor maintained a very subtle balance, not at all overpowering; paired with plain boiled goose, it was extremely harmonious.

For a moment, Ma Shenzǐ actually could not tell whether eating it plain was more delicious or eating it with sauce was more delicious.

Truly, each had its own deliciousness!

She hesitated in her heart, finding it hard to judge; when eating the goose meat with sauce, she felt there was no more delicious way to eat in the world; but after drinking a mouthful of porridge to clear her palate, when eating it plain again, she felt plain had its own good, allowing her to focus on savoring the meat flavor, and compared to the sauce, more pure.

So to be fair, she had to give the sauced goose meat another chance.

Just like that, one bite plain, one bite with sauce; unknowingly, a big sea-bowl of porridge was finished, and she still could not rank the two ways of eating.

At the Du Shui Jian dining table on the other side of the front hall, they were also eating.

Wu Gong had been rushing about on the river all day with his people, already tired and hungry, and could not wait for anything else; as soon as a dish was served, he ate a dish, practically eating as if wind swept away the clouds.

But halfway through eating, everyone stopped at once.

Because Song Miao sat at the same table with the other women in the kitchen, Wu Gong came forward, turned and called out: "Song Xiaoniangzi, Song Xiaoniangzi!"

Song Miao heard the voice and looked back, only to see a group of people opposite all waving at her.

"Xiao Song, Song Xiaoniangzi, trouble yourself, come over for a moment!"

That Wu Gong raised the bowl in his hand, then looked at the bowl in Song Miao's hand, making a mouth shape of carrying a bowl.

Song Miao did not understand his meaning, but honestly brought her bowl and chopsticks over.

As she approached, everyone at the table called out "Song Xiaoniangzi."

Wu Gong was the head after all; he smiled and pointed to a plate of dishes, saying: "Quick, specially saved for you—you quickly clip some over."

Song Miao heard and went to look, only to see the whole table already eaten to a mess; that plate was very large but untouched; on the left were thick slices of braised goose liver, on the right were soy sauce stir-fried goose intestines with bean sprouts underneath.

She said curiously: "What does this mean? Why specially save things for me? Everyone need not go to such trouble; just eat to your heart's content!"

Before Wu Gong could speak, a student on the side interjected: "Kong Fuyang said it! We all know, Song Xiaoniangzi, don't hide it!"

Another person said: "Kong brother said, last time when we ate pig trotter rice, he praised the braised pig trotters to Song Xiaoniangzi as the number one braised food under heaven; the young lady said, actually all braised foods, different braising methods, each has its own chew, no first or second; he then asked you which you liked best, and you answered, saying you had liked braised goose liver since childhood!"

"Exactly! Isn't this braised goose liver today? Quick clip! Quick clip!"

"This plate we haven't touched at all; it smells fragrant—if you can eat it, just eat it all, it doesn't matter..."

The word "de" had just been spoken when this person unconsciously turned to look at the braised goose liver.

Such plump, smooth two lobes of goose liver, the outside already braised into a very deep amber color, looking oily and lustrous; sliced and stacked into a whirlpool leaf shape, the exposed cut surfaces were smooth as a mirror, the texture truly uniform, not even a pore, half gray, half brown, oozing a glimmer of oil; just looking at it, one could imagine how delicate the texture must be.

The braising color so beautiful, the braised food so fragrant; even separated by half a table, his nose seemed to have its own mind, sniffing while urging his brain: You smelled it, didn't you? Smelled it, isn't it fragrant?

The brain naturally couldn't help but reply: So damn fragrant!

After answering, it would also think to itself: Song Xiaoniangzi with such skill, who knows how many good things she has eaten; she still remembers this braised goose liver—just how delicious must it be?

Once this thought arose, it could not be shaken off; looking and looking, this person's throat made a "Antique" sound, and he involuntarily swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Song Miao was truly surprised.

But she had already figured out what was going on; seeing everyone so enthusiastic, she could not refuse, so she took the public chopsticks, clipped two slices of braised goose liver, then smiled: "Thank you all for thinking of me; I usually like everything; braised goose liver is good, but I must leave room for other things; besides, this gets greasy easily; everyone share a taste, otherwise if I eat too much at once and get tired of it, I won't want to eat it next time."

She raised her bowl again, smiling and thanking them repeatedly, then finally pointed to the plates on the table and said: "Although the main dish today is plain boiled goose, actually these goose intestines, goose liver, goose heart, plus the pork belly boiled together, each has its own chew; the rest doesn't matter; those goose intestines are best eaten hot—very delicious, not afraid of organ flavors, feel free to try!"

After speaking, she finally held her bowl and returned to her table.

The table from the Water Supervisor's Office was still smiling and seeing her off with their eyes; once she had gone far enough, every last one of them swished their chopsticks up, and it looked like they were about to plunge into utter chaos.

Wu Gong had instructed everyone early on not to bother with him, no need to defer or yield, but at this very moment, seeing such a scene, his heart suddenly panicked.

With this many people, how much heart, liver, and intestine could one goose possibly have? How could it be enough to go around?

With his speed, he was bound to lose out to the young people, yet he was unwilling to pull rank on account of age, using his official post to pressure others.

One might say it was precisely because he had lived more years and weathered the ups and downs of officialdom that Wu Gong, though flustered, kept his composure; he quickly coughed twice, slapped his chopsticks on the desk, and said, "What are you doing? What are you doing! Scholars, for a mouthful of food, to behave so disgracefully — what kind of appearance is this!"

As he spoke, he called out, "Xiao Xu!"

The one at the table called Xiao Xu was just lifting his chopsticks; hearing this, he let out an "Ah?"

Wu Gong said, "You do the dividing, by headcount, that's fairer!"

He added, "Everyone gets to eat, so no more snatching this time, right?"

With such fairness, naturally no one could snatch anymore.

Xiao Xu found scissors, cut the goose intestines into sections, then counted heads and divided every dish portion by equal portion.

Wu Gong finally sat peacefully and ate the fermented black bean stir-fried goose intestines.

A section of intestine full of wok hei; eating it, the outer layer inexplicably had a kind of powder-coating sensation.

That "powder" was the intestine's own sweet powder; only after the teeth pierced through it could one reach the crisp springiness beneath.

It was crisp and springy, that crispness carried resilience, even a slight bounce, yet it was very easy to chew, chewing with a "crunch-crunch" sound, and surprisingly tender inside; the outer skin wrapped in fermented black bean sauce, salty, fresh, fragrant, the fermented black bean aroma mingling with the intestine's sweet fragrance, texture and taste both rich, all flavors delivered directly, and underneath lay mung bean sprouts, refreshing and crisp-tender, neutralizing all the saltiness and greasiness...

And the braised goose liver was yet another texture; once in the mouth, it required no chewing at all, the tongue and upper palate gently closed together, applying just a little force, and it would slowly melt on its own, turning into an extremely smooth, delicate texture, salty-fresh, sweet-rich, luscious, carrying the aroma of fat and braising spices.

Such fine things were paired with plain water porridge, not sticky or greasy at all, incomparably refreshing, together with the refreshing crisp-tender young ginger, the pickled lettuce stems crackling loudly... simply a perfect match.

Wu Gong ate with great satisfaction, while secretly cheering for himself!

— What a clever response!

Even worth writing a play to praise; he had already thought of the play script title, rhyming nicely, called — Old Wu Cleverly Seizes the Goose Liver and Intestines!

How could Song Miao know that the moment she left, such a grand drama unfolded behind her.

But as soon as she returned to her seat, she noticed something was off.

— On the table before her, there was actually half a plate of braised goose liver placed.

She had just sat down when Auntie Xia across from her urgently said, "Young Lady likes eating this goose liver, why didn't you say so earlier!"

"Exactly! Had we known earlier, we would have put this whole plate in front of Young Lady long ago!"

"No need for their table's share, we have plenty here! Young Lady eat more — we don't like eating it!"

"I don't eat it much either! Everything's delicious, just this goose liver... ugh..."

"Too slippery and greasy!"

"Right! Too slippery, too greasy! Though tasty, in the end it's not as good as the other dishes!"

Song Miao listened, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, and hurriedly explained at length, first saying she liked many things, then saying one person eating too much goose liver wasn't good after all, it was too oily and greasy and so on.

After much effort explaining, everyone finally believed her, and let out the two largest, plumpest, most tender slices for her, only then did the rest scramble to divide the others.

The meal was eaten slowly; by the end, the whole table was "crunch-crunch," all the sounds of everyone eating pickled lettuce stems, pickled ginger, pickled garlic chives and the like; clearly already full, they ate these things for fun, holding half bowls of porridge water, they could sit for a long time.

Finally when they had eaten about enough, someone at the table boldly asked, "Young Lady, how exactly is this white-cut goose made, and this dipping sauce? If I want to learn it myself, is it hard? Is there a secret recipe that can't be passed on?"

Song Miao smiled and said, "Hard it's not hard; actually white-cut's most crucial point is ingredients, the goose is good, everything's easy to say, actually there's no need to be rigid about method; like this time the goose was small, outside one can only buy large geese, most suitable for braising, stewing, roast goose is even extremely delicious, only today it's hot and the goose is tender, so I chose the white-cut method."

She explained in detail how to do it.

"The neck is best given a cut too, so hot water can go in and out, cooking it even better."

"... Stuff the goose's two webbed feet upside down into the belly; once they meet hot water, the feet prop themselves up hard, expanding the goose belly from inside, better for water immersion and heating; though a small detail, every detail done, the meat would find it hard not to be tender!"

"The dipping sauce's rest is simple, but the salt-cured old Lai Mengzi inside is very troublesome; it must be old, if the curing years aren't long enough, the astringency can't fully transform, it may even carry a bitter taste, the texture becomes wrong, it turns into a completely different thing."

She counted them one by one; naturally she wouldn't reveal everything, just casually picked a few points, and it made the whole table listen with amazement, inevitably sighing that this seemingly simple dish actually had so many intricacies.

Suddenly, someone asked in a low voice, "Young Lady, once this new river channel is dug, will you still return to the Capital? Actually opening a food shop or restaurant here in Hua Prefecture would be just as good!"

The moment these words came out, someone beside her spat at her, saying, "Talking nonsense, I'm afraid you've lost your mind, who goes downward — perfectly fine, why come from the Capital to Hua Prefecture!"

This person finished spitting, then looked at Song Miao, face reddening, and said, "Young Lady, I've been in the kitchen for a month or two now, you see what kind of person I am, how I work — presentable, right?"

"Young Lady does street vending business in the Capital, but don't know if you need a helper? My children are grown, both my natal family and husband's family have brothers above, not afraid to leave, I'm willing to follow Young Lady to the Capital, sign a ten-year or twenty-year contract, enter Young Lady's service to work, diligent in everything, no need for wages, just don't know if it's possible?"

The moment these words came out, the whole table, including Auntie Ma and Zhang Siniang, all held their breath, looking at Song Miao, as if once this mouth opened, everyone would pounce.