Baozi Xishi's Struggle

The next day, Shen Yu came early and watched Chef Dong make the Five Blessings Flower Cake. Then she knew how to make it.

Prepare the silver thread noodles needed for the day, cut them, shake them and set them aside for later use, then start making the restaurant's specialty, the Five Blessings Flower Cake.

This kind of flower cake is baked in a special flat iron pan. It is similar to modern crispy moon cakes, but more delicate and compact. Many customers not only order a box of it when they come to dine for good luck, but also often take a few boxes away for the elderly and children at home. It is a very special snack in the restaurant.

The fillings do not need to be prepared in the kitchen. The fruit shop that supplies a variety of fruits will deliver the ordered fillings early in the morning, which is very convenient.

It is summer now, and five kinds of fillings are in season: mung bean paste, pea yellow, date paste, walnut kernels, and lotus seed paste.

The water-oil dough was kneaded by Chef Dong early in the morning and set aside to relax for later use.

The secret to making this kind of puff pastry is also simple. After kneading the dough with water and oil, let it relax for a while before using it. Do not knead the dough excessively when using it, otherwise it will not be crispy enough after being strengthened.

Divide into small pieces, roll into round pancake skins, wrap the fillings and seal the tops, use wooden molds of various colors to press into beautiful flower shapes, brush the surface with egg white and honey, put into a flat iron pan brushed with oil, cover with a lid, and bake slowly over low heat.

After baking and cooling, they are packed into a carved wooden box, called Five Blessings Flower Cake. The box is carved with auspicious patterns. It is square, exquisite and gorgeous. Through the hollow patterns, the sweet smell wafts faintly. When opened, the small flower-shaped cakes have different postures, with crispy crust and soft and sweet fillings inside. It is understandable that they are so popular.

The cakes looked good, but the price was even more attractive. Such a small box of cakes, with each cake no bigger than an egg, cost a hundred coins. Shen Yu was shocked when she heard the price. This was almost as much as her day's wages. It was so expensive.

Thus one box counts as one portion, and Chef Lu asks her to make twenty boxes a day, and double the amount on market days.

When she was in Dongxi Village, she heard Li say that the price of grain had risen again recently. A dou of wheat cost ninety cents. However, a dou of wheat ground into wheat flour was enough to feed a family of four for two days.

In other words, buying a box of flower cakes would cost a family of four two days' worth of food. This is something only rich people can afford. It seems that the people in this town are quite wealthy.

Cooking food can make money, and Shen Yu once again reaffirmed his belief in cooking his own food.

But now, I have no capital, so I can only work quietly and save some capital first.

Shen Yu pinned her fallen hair behind her head, put aside all the messy thoughts in her mind, and concentrated on making pancakes.

The kitchen is always busy at noon, and the busiest people are the thin cook and the waiter Xiao Liuzi who follows him.

The thin chef's surname is Chai, he is like a stick of firewood and doesn't like to joke, but he is very quick and efficient when working. He is responsible for making all kinds of side dishes ordered by customers. Xiao Liuzi follows him, he should be his apprentice. Under his command, he cuts and prepares the necessary ingredients. The two of them cooperate well, it seems that they have been working together for quite a long time.

The food smelled delicious. Shen Yu had never eaten oily food since he came here, so he couldn't help swallowing his saliva.

While working, Shen Yu watched the two chefs cook to see what flavors and dishes were available here.

The dishes prepared by the wood-fired chef are mainly various stews, or fried marinated meat slices and skewers. Occasionally, there is a plate of vegetables, which are blanched in water and seasoned with oil, salt, sauce and other ingredients before being served cold.

Chef Lu is responsible for the soups that need to be boiled for a longer time, including lamb, chicken, duck, fish and vegetarian broth. Whatever flavor of noodles you need, he just cooks the noodles, adds the soup and meat slices, and sprinkles some chopped green onions and coriander.

There was no trace of pork during the entire lunch serving time.

There is no pork, no stir-frying, boiling, frying, deep-frying and cold mixing are the main ways of cooking.

Shen Yu was thinking about all this in his mind, but he did not delay his work at all. From time to time, he cooperated with Chef Lu to hand him the required amount of silver thread noodles, or occasionally he needed freshly cut wide or thin noodles, which would be cooked in boiling water, scooped into a large bowl, poured with the pre-cooked broth and meat slices, sprinkled with chopped green onions, and asked the waiter waiting on the side to bring it out.

Maybe the original owner was busy with embroidery and didn't exercise much, plus she didn't eat well and was malnourished. By the time lunch time came, Shen Yu, who had been busy all day and only had two dry biscuits in the morning, was so hungry that her stomach was sticking to her back and she was so tired that she didn't want to move at all.

Chef Chai and Chef Lu were taking a break on the side and directing Xiao Liuzi and Liu Wu to make the restaurant's rice dumplings. On the one hand, they were the masters, and on the other hand, they wanted to practice with making the rice dumplings first. If the rice dumplings were not tasty, it would not damage the restaurant's reputation.

There is no fixed menu for meals. Most hosts have set a standard for the cost of a meal. Today's lunch is a big pot of cooked brown rice and a big bowl of stewed cabbage, radish and tofu.

Shopkeeper Fan doesn't eat here, so the atmosphere is very relaxed when the guys eat together.

Because Shen Yu came today, and with the presence of a pretty and shy girl, the young boys also restrained themselves and ate their meal quietly. They no longer laughed and played, but wolfed down their food.

Although it couldn't compare to the food in a restaurant, this ordinary meal, which even looked rough in the eyes of the waiters and chefs, allowed Shen Yu to have a full meal for the first time since he came here.

The brown rice is cooked thoroughly, with just the right amount of dryness and moisture, so it doesn't stick to your teeth. When you chew it carefully, you can taste the unique sweet taste of the grain.

The stew contained crispy cabbage, thick slices of radish that had been cooked thoroughly and tasted soft and slightly sweet, fried tofu cubes that were golden on both sides, and translucent and chewy vermicelli. Although there was no meat, it was very oily. Each person had a large bowl, and they could help themselves to the amount they wanted to eat.

Shen Yu was chewing a piece of tofu that was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and soaked in soup. Moists welled up in his eyes and he quickly lowered his head, trying to cover up the problem by scooping up the rice with chopsticks.

The oily food tastes so delicious.

Although he felt very hungry before eating, Shen Yu was full after eating a small bowl of rice and half a bowl of stewed vegetables.

No wonder the original owner was so thin, it turns out she had such a small appetite.

In modern times, Shen Yu was a good girl who was not picky about food and loved to eat.

Because of the nature of my job, I have to run around every day, and I get enough exercise. I eat a lot but don’t get fat, so I have always been a hidden foodie.

It seems that I need to eat more in the future to keep my body healthy. I can't do without energy to knead dough, cut noodles and make cakes every day.

Shen Yu decided to increase the intensity of his exercise every night.

There were not many people at dinner time in the evening, and less noodles were needed. Shen Yu felt a lot more relaxed, but he could not leave early, as he had to wait for the noodles or snacks that were needed at any time.

She felt it was not good for her to be idle while others were busy, so she took the initiative to help the two chefs prepare the side dishes or arrange the plates.

She was quick and experienced. Once she had arranged the dish, she would add a carved radish slice on the edge, or a border of cucumber and carrot slices, and the dish would immediately become more colorful.

The normally taciturn chef Chai showed some appreciation on her face. The other people in the kitchen also liked her better.

After all, it is a small town, and few people stay outside at night. There are only one or two tables of guests coming to drink and have fun. The party ended before it got completely dark.

After the guests left, everyone gathered together to have dinner, cleaned up and washed the kitchen utensils, extinguished and checked the fire, ended a busy day, and dragged their tired bodies back home.

Shen Yu thought he would not be able to sleep in a new place, but he fell asleep as soon as he finished washing up and touched his head on the pillow made of clothes wrapped in the bag.