Chapter 320 Squirrel Fish

Of course, no matter what, as a cook who was invited to help, Wen Mingtang was just a sous chef. Even if he had any questions... that was what Lin Fei should worry about.

Glancing at Lin Fei, who looked a little out of place in the kitchen full of fireworks, Wen Mingtang lowered his head and started cooking attentively.

The fish is cut into pieces, marinated briefly in wine, salt and ginger for about a cup of tea. After being coated in starch, the fish tail and body are carefully pinched and fried in a pan.

Wen Mingtang's fried squirrel fish, while Chef Xing's fried spicy chicken, and the aroma of oily smoke gradually filled the air.

Although the oil smoke was "down to earth" and had nothing to do with elegance, it was actually fragrant. Lin Fei, who was sitting outside the kitchen reading a storybook, smelled the smell and looked towards the kitchen again: Master Xing was holding chopsticks with one hand, stirring the oil. The chicken in the pot had a thin layer of sweat on his forehead. , obviously no matter how well prepared you are, it is still more difficult to cook with one hand.

Lin Fei squinted his eyes and looked at Wen Mingtang, who was picking up the fried fish and putting it on a long plate, and then starting to make the toppings and sauces. Compared to Master Xing's reluctance, the girl seemed much more comfortable cooking. During the break, he raised his eyelids and glanced at Master Xing beside him. He obviously noticed Master Xing's reluctance, but he didn't take the initiative to speak.

While they were watching the two people cooking in the kitchen, the boy ran in from outside, touched the fine sweat on his forehead, and said: "Second Young Master, Madam, the banquet is about to begin, why haven't you seen your people yet?"

Today is not a holiday. Marquis Jingyun and his sons are not at home. If Lin Fei went to the Yamen of Dali Temple, Mrs. Hou would not force her, but he took a leave of absence. It's a little unreasonable to see no one at the banquet but in the mansion.

Hearing this, Lin Fei nodded "Yeah", stood up, and glanced at the two people working in the kitchen again before leaving, and then turned around and went to the banquet with the boy.

After Lin Fei left outside the window, Master Xing, who was busy in the kitchen, stopped what he was doing and asked Wen Mingtang, who didn't even raise his head beside him: "Master Wen, Lin Shaoqing is gone!"

Wen Mingtang said "Hmm" as he simmered the sweet and sour sauce in the pot. He focused on the sauce in the pot and said, "Lin Shaoqing is the master. Since he is in the mansion, he naturally goes to the banquet."

Is it any wonder that Lin Fei was called away?

Master Xing looked at Wen Mingtang, who didn't even raise his eyelids, and asked, "Master Wen, did Lin Shaoqing like to watch the master cook so much in the past when he was a public chef at Dali Temple?"

Wen Mingtang, who was making the sauce, felt his heart skip a beat. Thinking of all the weird things in Master Xing's behavior, he paused and said, "Lin Shaoqing is always busy, but if he has time, he really likes to come to the public kitchen to see me." The cook is busy, but he still prefers the bite fresh from the pot."

Hearing this, Master Xing couldn't help but laugh twice and joked: "It's unbelievable that someone like the Second Young Master would have such hobbies!"

Wen Mingtang poured the prepared sauce on the prepared squirrel fish and continued: "We never thought that Lin Shaoqing's unworldly appearance was so down-to-earth. Otherwise, we wouldn't have. There are three meals a day, and all of them are served in the public kitchen instead of going to Hongyanlou."

After hearing what Wen Mingtang said, Master Xing seemed to be relieved. While looking at the expression on Wen Mingtang's face, he said: "To be honest, I just thought Lin Shaoqing came here just for the sake of being scrutinized like this. , it always makes people feel a little panicked.”

Wen Mingtang put the prepared squirrel fish on the dinner plate. When the maid outside came in and took out the prepared squirrel fish, he turned to Master Xing and smiled: "Lin Shaoqing just wanted to see my big pot dish." It’s just a matter of whether the master can make good small pot dishes, so Master Xing doesn’t have to worry too much.”

That's true! Master Xing nodded and continued to cook the unfinished spicy chicken.

After such a delay, you can imagine the taste of this spicy chicken. Wen Mingtang glanced at Master Xing who was not paying attention, lowered his eyelids, and lowered his head to handle the ribs.

…

When Lin Fei came to the banquet, most of the cold dishes on the table had been taken away. Mrs. Hou glanced at Lin Fei, who had come late, scolded "I didn't get up until this time," and then said to Mrs. Lu and others: " A Fei is usually busy with cases and often doesn't even have time to take a nap. Today, he took a leave of absence while entertaining guests, and actually slept until this time..."

Lin Fei did not expose Mrs. Hou's pretentious words, nodded and said "Not next time", and then his eyes fell on the dishes brought by the maid.

On a white long plate, a fish dish was served. Different from the "rules" of common fish dishes, the mandarin fish in this long plate raised its head quite "playfully", and the fish meat was like a blooming fish. It blooms like chrysanthemums, and the orange sauce is poured from beginning to end. Green peas and golden pine nuts are mixed in the sauce. The whole dish looks quite tempting.

Mrs. Jingyunhou boasts that she has participated in many large and small banquets in the capital, and has even been to palace banquets more than once, but this is the first time she has seen this dish. Looking at the "playful" appearance of the fish, She couldn't help but ask: "Which dish is this?"

Lin Fei said: "Squirrel fish, sweet and sour."

The preparation of this fish is really fresh, and the color of the orange sauce is really bright and festive. After the "squirrel fish" was put down, everyone unanimously raised their chopsticks to pick up the squirrel fish.

The flesh of the fish body is split open, but the skin is not broken. It does look like a fuzzy "squirrel". Because the bones are removed, the fish meat can be removed with just a pinch. When I put it into my mouth, the sauce was sweet and sour, quite appetizing. When my teeth bit into the fish, I realized that the fish had been deep-fried and crispy on the outside. When my teeth broke through the crispy shell, the fish inside was... It is extremely tender, and unlike the sweet and sour taste of the sauce, the fish tastes slightly salty.

Although the sweet, sour and salty flavors all appear in the same dish, it is not at all abrupt when you chew it carefully. Instead, the taste is rich and layered. After one bite, it is crispy on the outside and loose on the inside. The progressive texture is tempting and tempting. I couldn't help but raise my chopsticks again.

While Mrs. Hou was chatting with Mrs. Lu and others, she glanced at Lin Fei who raised her chopsticks again and looked at Lin Fei, who was eating slowly but not slowly: I didn't expect that Master Wen was not only good at making big pot dishes and home-cooked dishes, but also The banquet dishes are also good.

Although the two dishes just served did not resemble the artistic conception of Chef Xing's cooking, they tasted extremely good. On the other hand, Master Xing today took a look at the spicy chicken that was served when he was eating squirrel fish. Although the Lu family also praised it a few times, Mrs. Hou's tricky mouth and having eaten the dishes cooked by Master Xing, she knew his taste. After a quick taste of the spicy chicken he had eaten today, he knew that the dish was "poorly cooked" and the chicken was obviously overcooked.

What is going on? How could a person who was always very meticulous and never made any mistakes make a mistake in the banquet today?