Chapter 211: Let You Open a Food Shop, You Open for Business at Three in the Morning

·

·

·

Protagonist:

Lu Feng

Lu Feng lit the stove flame and poured some vegetable oil into the pot.

As the stove continued to heat, the oil temperature in the pot gradually rose.

He held his hand above the oil pot, feeling the temperature inside, confirming the oil temperature was just right.

Lu Feng picked up the meatballs formed in the basin and dropped them into the pot one by one.

The moment the meatballs fell into the oil, a crisp "sizzle" sound came from the pot.

Holding a spatula, he carefully turned the Lion's Heads in the pot.

The surface of the meatballs fried in oil gradually turned a faint golden color, with a hint of crispness.

Before long, every Lion's Head in the pot was coated with a layer of faint golden color.

The air began to drift with the distinctive roasted aroma of oil and the rich fragrance of pork.

He scooped out the fried Lion's Heads one by one with a slotted spoon, each one round and plump.

The golden shell exuded a pungent roasted aroma; smelling it made people unable to help but swallow their saliva.

Lu Feng placed the fried Lion's Heads aside to drain oil for later use, and heated another pot of oil.

After the oil temperature rose, he grabbed a few pieces of rock sugar and put them into the pot; as they simmered slowly over low heat, the rock sugar gradually melted.

Then he reached over and took the various spices prepared earlier at Yi Pang, quickly put them into the pot, and stir-fried them for a while.

The flavors of the spices in the pot were gradually released, various tastes intertwined, drilling into the nasal cavity.

Seeing that the stir-frying was about done, Lu Feng picked up the kettle at Yi Pang and slowly poured boiling water into the pot.

With continuous heating over high heat, the water soon came to a boil.

Lu Feng picked up the fried Lion's Heads at Yi Pang and slid them into the pot one by one.

After all the Lion's Heads were in the pot, the soup/juice in the pot just covered up to two-thirds of the position.

Then Lu Feng poured two spoons of dark soy sauce and edible salt into the pot.

The deep brown of the dark soy sauce spread in the soup, turning the original amber-colored soup/juice into a more tempting date-red color.

After doing all this, Lu Feng covered the pot lid and turned the fire to the smallest.

The soup/juice in the pot no longer boiled violently; only fine small bubbles were still rising in the middle of the pot.

To make the Lion's Heads fully absorb the flavor, they need long stewing.

This way the fatty meat will gradually melt into the lean meat, making the Lion's Heads both crispy and tender.

When eaten, one can feel the elasticity of the meat granules, as well as the perfect texture of melting in the mouth.

Rich fragrance began to waft from the pot on the stove; Lu Feng smelled it and was very satisfied with the fragrance.

Although the ingredients provided by the System Mall for making Lion's Heads were a bit more than for Red Braised Pork, visually they could sell about forty portions.

Judging by the number of diners yesterday, it was far from enough, so some other ingredients also needed to be prepared.

The Lion's Heads still needed some time to stew; taking advantage of this opportunity, Lu Feng began busying himself with making other things again.

…………

This was the peak period for dinner; the Food Street was filled with all kinds of fragrances.

But just then, an even more tempting aroma rushed out from the direction of Lu Family Restaurant, instantly overpowering the other tastes in the air.

That fragrance drilled out from the gap in the pot lid stewing Lion's Heads in the Kitchen, slowly passed through the Hall, and finally dispersed outside the Door.

The diners queuing at the Door were originally chatting idly; when they smelled the fragrance drifting out from inside the Shop/Store, they stopped one after another.

The meat fragrance in the air, carrying the scents of scallion, ginger, and Huadiao Wine, became richer and more mellow.

After mixing with the aroma of spices in the soup/juice, it formed an irresistible taste.

"Hiss... this flavor doesn't seem to be yesterday's Red Braised Pork; it must be a New Dish, right?"

"This rich meat fragrance smells extraordinary! It must be another hearty dish!"

"Why isn't it nine o'clock yet? Still have to wait an hour for Business Hours; this is going to starve me to death!"

Smelling the tempting fragrance in the air, the diners began to swallow their saliva one after another.

Just then, a somewhat urgent voice came from the back of the Queue: "Hey, has anyone seen that Scalper from yesterday?"

The speaker was the refined office worker from yesterday who had planned to spend eight hundred yuan to buy the position from Scalper Uncle.

He waved at the people in front and asked loudly again: "That Scalper who sold positions yesterday, hasn't he come today?"

Yesterday he was just one step away, about to buy Scalper Uncle's position at a price of eight hundred yuan.

As a result, a doctor snatched it away, making him unable to eat Red Braised Pork yesterday, and he had been thinking about it all day.

Today he deliberately set off from the Company half an hour early, but who knew he would encounter a traffic jam on the road.

By the time he arrived at Food Street, the Queue was already very long.

Looking at the length of the Queue now, judging by the number of people in front of him, let alone today's New Dish,

even yesterday's Red Braised Pork, he might not be able to eat.

He originally wanted to find that Scalper Uncle from yesterday and buy a position closer to the front again.

But he looked through the Queue from beginning to end twice and didn't see the person, so he couldn't help but become somewhat anxious.

"Don't know, I'm looking for him too! Normally he would have come long ago; it's this late today and still no sign of him, really strange!"

Several diners in the Queue shook their heads, frowning and echoing.

The office worker's eyes were full of anxiety; he hardened his heart and simply shouted loudly toward the front.

"Big brothers and sisters at the door, who's willing to swap spots with me? I can pay!"

He shouted several times, but the diners at the front of the line acted like they hadn't heard a thing — not a single one responded.

He went forward and asked several people, wanting to pay extra to exchange positions with them.

The batch that came early today were mostly those who didn't get to eat the Red Braised Pork yesterday.

They originally came with the determination to eat it no matter what; not a single one cared about his temptation of extra money.

"Brother, give it up."

The diner standing in front of the office worker turned his head and said to him with a helpless look.

"Before you came, I already asked everyone up front; those guys are like they've swallowed a scale weight — not a single one paid me any mind."

The office worker felt somewhat dejected and let out a heavy sigh; the look of it was that today's New Dish and Red Braised Pork were hopeless again.

He had never missed a scalper this intensely before, even though he had once sneered at the scalper profession.

Now, smelling the alluring fragrance in the air, the delicacy was right before his eyes, yet he didn't even have the chance to spend money to buy a spot.

The office worker shook his head somewhat dejectedly, only able to hope he could come earlier next time.

…………

On the other side, Tong'an Hospital.

Zhang Xianyang, just off work, changed out of the hospital's white coat in the locker room with an excited face, his mood quite good.

After Sun Lao left, he finally didn't have to accompany the two Big Shots to Food Street anymore.

The first two times, due to various reasons, he hadn't been able to eat Lu Feng's cooking; he had bitterness in his heart but couldn't voice it.

Today he could finally eat a meal alone in peace and stability.

Although he knew that by now there were definitely already many people lined up outside Lu Feng's Shop, and he probably wouldn't make it in time for these two days' New Dishes.

But he didn't care too much either; to him, as long as it was something Lu Feng made, anything was fine to eat.

Zhang Xianyang hummed a tune, and after changing clothes walked out of the locker room, just preparing to go downstairs.

"Doctor Zhang! Wait a moment!"

Nurse Feng Jiao's somewhat urgent shout suddenly came from the corridor.

Zhang Xianyang stopped his steps, and with a turn of his head saw Feng Jiao running quickly toward this side.

"What's wrong? Emergency?" Zhang Xianyang asked subconsciously.

Although he was already off work at this time, a doctor's professional instinct made him ready to respond to sudden situations at any moment.