The Cheat Emperor of the Culinary World

Fu Yu was about to start cooking, and Zhang Jinyu hurriedly followed with the order slip to prepare the ingredients.

Ao Hua is actually Mandarin Fish, but in Bei’an, they are accustomed to calling the cold-water Mandarin Fish grown in the river Ao Hua.

Cold-water Ao Hua are large, some reaching over ten pounds, with few bones and white, garlic clove-shaped flesh that tastes delicious; it’s a delicacy among the Three River Fish.

The Ao Hua at Qianlima had been kept in the water for over a week, barely alive, but looked like it was about to give out.

Fu Yu deliberately fried it a bit longer when passing it through oil, and also increased the sauce ratio when preparing it.

This way, when tasting it, the texture would be more crispy, and the rich sauce flavor could better neutralize the slightly fishy smell of the fish itself.

When the Squirrel Ao Hua came out of the pot, the Shrimp Celery Ball was also steamed.

Both dishes were carried away by the servers one after the other.

Fu Yu quickly stir-fried the Oil-Sprinkled Bird Clam and the Three Fresh Sea Intestine.

When he began to cook the Sturgeon Stew with Potatoes, the specialty fish head soup in the pot also turned a milky white.

Sturgeon is also called Seven Beads, a dish Fu Yu’s family often ate.

However, the home-style dish is actually called Seven Beads Stewed with Potatoes, while Qianlima’s menu has a more popular name: Sturgeon Stewed with Potatoes.

The flesh of Sturgeon is tender and resilient, and its bones are all crispy cartilage, entirely edible.

It’s also quite simple to cook.

Peeled and cubed potatoes, fried until golden brown.

Sturgeon cut into pieces the size of a matchbox, fried until both sides are golden brown.

However, because sturgeon is rich in collagen, even though Fu Yu had wiped it dry before frying, oil would still splatter during frying.

Zhang Jinyu came over to hand the plate, and as soon as he reached out, a splash of scalding oil hit him, causing him to yelp in pain and nearly drop the plate.

By accident, he turned his head and saw Fu Yu holding the spatula steady as a rock, like he was wearing an invincible suit of armor.

Wow!

Could it be that once you reach a certain level of culinary skill, hot oil no longer affects you?

Zhang Jinyu was almost amused by the absurd thought that flashed through his mind.

Oil splattering while cooking is a common occurrence.

Fu Yu wasn’t genuinely immune to the heat.

Instead, when performing such actions, he always let down the sleeves of his chef’s coat to protect his wrists securely.

The oil-resistant chef’s coat was like a bulletproof vest, a nemesis of splattering oil!

Without noticing all this, Fu Yu removed the fried fish.

He poured a suitable amount of oil into the pot.

Sauté some ginger, onion, and garlic.

Add white wine, soy sauce, and sugar, and mix evenly with the fried fish pieces.

The potatoes for the stew were not cut but broken; breaking them with a knife increases the surface area for the seasonings to adhere, making them tastier.

Cover the pot and wait for the juice to reduce before serving.

Watching the pot was left to Zhang Jinyu while Fu Yu started cooking Pickled Garlic Burning Worm Worms.

In Bei’an, there’s a saying when eating fish: Carp Head Catfish Tail, Carp Belly Worms Mouth.

It means that the carp head is the freshest, the carp belly is the fattiest, the catfish tail is the most fragrant, and the worm fish is best eaten at its mouth, rich in collagen and extraordinarily delicious.

And at Qianlima, this dish showcases the features of the worm fish to its fullest.

A whole plate uses no less than fifteen worm fish mouths.

A purely fish mouth dish, rather than cooking with worm fish like other places.

Upon first hearing how this dish was prepared, Fu Yu couldn’t help but joke with Zhao Meng: ”Our boss must be loaded!”

Zhao Meng laughed back, ”The one loaded isn’t the boss; it’s the customer trying this dish.”

After all, this dish’s price could order several other dishes.

It was just something to laugh about at the time.

Fu Yu never considered learning to make this dish from Zhao Meng.

Mostly because, all year round, no customer had ever ordered it.

The worm fish in the restaurant was always used in other dishes and served without affecting sales.

In cooking, Fu Yu fully followed the classic traditional recipe.

Heat the pot for oil and slow-fry the fish lips, reserving them after frying.

Start a new pot, add oil to sauté scallion and ginger slices, add a suitable amount of dark soy sauce and pickled garlic.

Add water, put in the fried fish lips.

Flip the fish lips, add rice cakes.

Scoop out the fish lips and ingredients to plate.

Boil the broth to a thick consistency over high heat and turn off the heat.

Drizzle the reduced sauce over the plated fish lips.

The unique freshness of the worm fish perfectly fuses with the pickled garlic, making the aroma delightfully enticing.

All dishes were placed on the table.

Only then did Fu Yu turn off the fish head soup, pouring it into a large porcelain bowl.

The fish soup was milky white, and although the fish head looked intact, it would break with a touch, all the essence from the fish brain boiled into the thick soup; a sip was overwhelmingly savory.

As he watched the fish head soup being carried away, Fu Yu sighed in relief.

Finally, he could take a break.

Room 303.

Father Li returned from the bathroom to see his son Li Yan looking impatient, while Lu Laining quietly coaxed him.

Father Li frowned, ”Who’s the sour face for? Xiaolu, you don’t need to mind him!”

In front of a friend, Li Yan was reprimanded by his father and didn’t retort; he just played with his phone.

Lu Laining quickly mediated, ”Uncle Li, he just got a little car sick earlier; he’ll feel better after eating something.”

Father Li snorted; he didn’t expose the clear fabrication.

The kitchen at Qianlima was quite fast at serving, with dishes coming out one after another.

To ease the atmosphere, Lu Laining glanced at the father and son in a standoff, thinking bitterly about why he ended up dining with them.

But he cheerfully commented, ”Uncle Li, these dishes seem great! Are these all their specialties?”

Father Li’s expression softened, and he said, ”Yes, they are very distinctive dishes, and their flavors are authentic, unmatched elsewhere.”

Lu Laining was simply being supportive, so he cooperated, saying, ”Then I must savor them.”

He offered chopsticks to Li Yan, waiting for Father Li to pick a dish before he took a piece of the dish closest to him.

It looked like fish.

Lu Laining examined the piece of food on his chopsticks and couldn’t help but look closely at the plate before him.

But...

Why is this fish stewed with potatoes?

Over there, Father Li had already tried a bite of the Squirrel Ao Hua—crispy on the outside, tender within, and richly flavorful.

It was the taste he remembered.

River fish just had a better texture and flavor than those farmed in ponds!

Having tasted delicious food, Father Li’s expression became even more relaxed.

Lu Laining eyed the fish on his chopsticks curiously and placed it in his mouth.

His eyes lit up instantly.

This tastes wonderful!

What dish is this?

Fish can have this texture?

Indeed, he’d never tasted anything like it before!