Cute Beast Food Garden

After lunch, Qi Yan and the others came to the back kitchen of the restaurant with pine nuts and dishes prepared in advance at home.Boss Lan listened to their partnership initiative very seriously, and tasted the food products they brought one by one, including pine nut jujube paste cake, pine nut baked pie, pine nut mushroom ball and other snacks.

"Not bad, really good."

After Boss Lan tasted the food one after another, he nodded frequently.He wiped his lips carefully with a handkerchief, and then stated his conclusion: "Pine nuts are easy to get greasy when eaten alone, and easy to get fat if eaten too much. Therefore, they have always existed as an excellent accessory in recipes. In my opinion, the dim sum made of pine nuts can give full play to its advantages in taste, and make it more delicious with the dishes, such as this mushroom ball with pine nuts.”

Hearing Boss Lan's affirmation, Qi Yan and Si Dongmo looked at each other and smiled gratifiedly.

"Boss Lan, if you are willing, we would like to talk to you about making pine nut food."

Boss Lan observed that they were still carrying a full package on their backs, and presumably they were other pine nuts collected in the mountains.He smiled slightly, leaned slightly towards the guests, made a "please" gesture, motioned them to enter the room with him and sit down, and then sent the waiter to help make tea.

In the living room, Qi Yan explained his idea of ​​"partnership development" to Boss Lan in detail.

"Boss Lan, some of the pine nuts we brought have been roasted and roughly processed. They are not suitable for long-term storage. They need to be made into dishes as soon as possible and sold. The remaining pine nuts can be used as ordinary side dishes and made into pine nuts Dishes like corn, pine nuts and shrimps.”

Qi Yan explained: "We hope to make those fried pine nuts into the cakes and snacks that the boss saw today, and sell them in Fourteen restaurants, and share the profits. Other unprocessed pine nuts , if Boss Lan needs it, we will sell it to the boss at the original cost price, and if there is no need, we will sell it to Shanhuo Shop."

Boss Lan took a sip of hot tea and thought carefully: "Pine nuts are treasures in the mountains, but because they are not easy to collect, ordinary people rarely find them. They are very suitable as side dishes or snacks, and the price is not too expensive. I can afford it too.”

After thinking for a moment, he expressed his opinion: "I agree with your plan. The restaurant can provide you with other ingredients, and the pine nut snacks you make will be sold in the store. As for the profit, it is After excluding the cost price of the ingredients, you and the restaurant will share [-]-[-], what do you think?"

I have to say that Boss Lan's proposal of sharing is really kind.Qi Yan only needs to provide creativity, technology, and labor to get half of the profit, and the cost of kitchen utensils and the amount of sales for the store are all included in Boss Lan's share, which can be said to be very cost-effective.

Boss Lan added: "By the way, do you need to live in the town these days?"

Si Dongmo nodded and said: "That's true. There are too many pastries in this order, and they can't be finished in three or four days. Luoxia Town is far away from our village, and it takes a lot of time to come and go every day. It’s better to stay in the town. In addition, there will be a lantern festival in a while, and we plan to go there to have fun at that time, so we don’t have to run around.”

Boss Lan smiled and said: "Okay. There is a small inn not far from our restaurant, which is specially used for business travelers to rest. It is very clean and very cheap. It is a good choice to live there."

Qi Yan hummed, "Thank you, Boss Lan, for your suggestion."

After establishing a cooperative relationship, they started working conveniently.Si Dongmo washed his arms, put on an apron, and then walked into the kitchen, took out the prepared ingredients one by one, and placed them on the table.

Qi Yan was standing next to him, intending to help, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Le Hong standing blankly at the door, looking this way hesitantly.

Qi Yan poked Si Dongmo's arm, "Look, your brother is in a daze outside. Why don't you tell him not to stare here, go out and play for a while."

"Alright." Si Dongmo shouted to Le Hong, "Hong'er, take some money in my package and go out to buy some food and drink."

Le Hong stood still sullenly: "Forget it, you two are busy here, and I go out to spend money on food and drink, what's the matter?"

"You idiot, you're actually sensible now." Si Dongmo chuckled, "By the way, there's a zoo in the town that sells exotic beasts, and there are all kinds of strange and weird beasts locked inside. , for people to watch. Why don’t you go there to have fun, no money.”

"Well... okay." Staying here was of no help, so Le Hong ran away in a hurry.

It was rather stuffy in the back kitchen, but unexpectedly, the thick smoke from the woodpile did not fill the room, but was sucked out from the vents on the roof.Qi Yan looked up while mingling, and found that there was a brown strange beast lying there.

This strange beast has a huge mouth and a body like a big cloth bag.It hangs upside down on the roof with its short paws, and it is breathing non-stop with its mouth wide open, sucking the thick smoke in the house into its stomach.

Qi Yan pointed upwards and exclaimed excitedly: "Dongmo, look! What is hanging on the roof?"

Si Dongmo glanced at it, and said with a smile, "It's a wind blowing beast. This thing likes to eat all kinds of smoke the most. It must be specially raised by restaurants to suck away cooking smoke."

Qi Yan rolled his eyes, "So convenient? Hey, why don't you put one on the roof at home? It won't make your face black from the oily smoke."

"This wind blowing beast is a rare species. It can't be caught casually. You have to buy it from the animal hall, and it's expensive."

Qi Yan frowned slightly, "The animal house...is the place you asked Le Hong to go to just now, is it a trading place specializing in selling exotic animals?"

"Exactly. The exotic beasts in the animal hall are all relatively rare species, captured by special animal catchers, and sold in the hall. There are all kinds of exotic beasts in the hall, with various skills and talents, but The price is too expensive for us ordinary people, so we can only stand outside the cage and watch the strange things."

The two chatted for a while, the words gradually became less and less, and they devoted themselves to their respective labors.Si Dongmo focused on cutting shiitake mushrooms, shredded meat, and kneading the meatballs in one go. Finally, he collected the kneaded shiitake mushroom balls with pine nuts and steamed them together.

The preliminary process has been completed, and now it is waiting for the meatballs to be steamed.The man wiped his sweat with a towel, and planned to go outside the kitchen to get some air and take a rest.

"It's hot enough in this room. Qi Yan, would you like to go out with me to cool off?"

Asked, no reply.When the man turned his head, he realized that Qi Yan was not helping him wash the vegetables, but instead helped him make pastries.His movements are also quite nimble. After kneading the pine nut jujube paste cake piece by piece, they are neatly placed in the steamer and steamed into shape.

Seeing the young man's skillful and swift movements, he felt a little surprised in his heart, so he teased and asked, "Qi Yan, you're doing pretty well. When did you learn how to make soft cakes?"

Qi Yan turned his back to him and didn't make a sound.

"Qi Yan?"

The man called him several times, but the boy didn't respond.He frowned suddenly, secretly said that his voice was not good, he rushed to Qi Yan's side with a stride, and gently turned his face away.

"Qi Yan!"

The boy's eyes were tightly closed, but the movements of his hands did not stop for a moment.Si Dongmo stared at him for a while, and found that Qi Yan was really making cakes with his eyes closed. Even if he grabbed his shoulders, he was still kneading the dough with both hands.

"Qi, Qi Yan..."

The man looked at the young man who seemed to be working unconsciously, and he was a little stunned for a while.Not daring to drag Qi Yan's body at will, Si Dongmo struggled for a while, and ran towards the outside of the house.

As soon as he left the house, he ran into Boss Lan head-on.

"Hey, brother Mo, you are in such a panic, what's the matter?"

Si Dongmo pointed to the kitchen behind him, and said in a hasty tone: "Boss Lan, come and help me, Qi Yan is cooking with his eyes closed!"

"Close your eyes?" Boss Lan looked at him in bewilderment, "He is so powerful, can he do things without opening his eyes?"

Si Dongmo said anxiously: "That's not the case. Boss Lan, Qi Yan doesn't know how to cook at all, but I just saw that he is very proficient in making soft cakes, and he still does it with his eyes closed, still, still thinking about it." Is he bewitched..."

After listening to his description, Boss Lan was stunned for a while, then suddenly nodded thoughtfully.He followed the man into the room, and he saw Qi Yan with his eyes closed, vigorously kneading a large piece of dough on the chopping board, wheezing so passionately.

Boss Lan looked at Qi Yan and then at Si Dongmo.He suddenly smiled, walked behind Qi Yan, and tried to grab his arms.But Qi Yan didn't seem to feel the slightest hindrance in his movements, he was still kneading the dough step by step, kneading the poor dough into various shapes.

"His strength is so great, can he knead the dough like that?" Boss Lan held Qi Yan's arm, but it was difficult to hold him steady.

Si Dongmo's tone was affirmative: "He doesn't have that much strength, I'm sure."

Boss Lan rolled his eyes and let go of his hand.He clapped his hands and signaled Si Dongmo to go out with him.

"Brother Mo, you don't have to worry, this is one of the special abilities of the little ocher magpie. He is not bewitched, but he is learning how to cook from you."

"what?!"

Si Dongmo was taken aback.Boss Lan looked into his eyes, "Brother Mo, you should already know that he is a young man in the form of little ocher, right?"

The man nodded: "Well... yes. He told me everything."

Boss Lan said leisurely: "The ocher magpie is a rare spirit beast. One of its specialties is to learn the skills of other people or strange beasts without a teacher. It stands to reason that as long as he pecks it when he transforms into a beast With your brain, and watching the whole process of your cooking, he will be able to learn your cooking skills without any obstacles."

Si Dongmo stared at the back of the young man busy in the back kitchen, a little unbelievable: "So, he is learning how to make pine nut soft cake?"

Boss Lan pointed out: "Recall, when you were making this dish, did Qi Yan look at you from the side?"

"It seems to be true..." Si Dongmo whispered, "When I was making pastries, he was always watching by my side. So, he has already learned all the dishes I cook?"

"It is logically so."

Si Dongmo was speechless: "Spiritual beasts are too amazing. It took me a lot of time to research the cooking skills, but this little ocher magpie can 'remember it' and make them exactly the same."

"Spirit beasts, after all, are very miraculous." Boss Lan smiled secretly, his dark eyes seemed to have other meanings, but he didn't say much.

Si Dongmo's eyes fell back to Qi Yan's back involuntarily, "He looks like that, he can't see with his eyes closed, is there really no problem?"

Boss Lan patted his wrist, "Don't worry, spirit beasts are tough creatures with super perception and coordination abilities. No matter what kind of environment they are, they can adapt tenaciously. From this point of view, they Stronger than many ordinary people."

He also said: "Qi Yan's current cooking skills are still unintentional imitation, which is equivalent to a state of 'sleepwalking'. He can neither control nor have any impression of what he does. This is a normal performance in the early stage. When he cultivates well After enough time, he will be able to control and use his learning ability autonomously."

Si Dongmo nodded slightly, but his eyes still did not move away from Qi Yan.Qi Yan was busy in the kitchen in a sleepwalking state, working hard.Finally, after finishing the meatballs, soft cakes, pies and small glutinous rice balls in one go, the boy's body froze, his movements stopped abruptly, and he fell backward unexpectedly.

"Qi Yan!"

Si Dongmo quickly ran forward from behind him, and took Qi Yan firmly into his arms.The boy fell limply in his arms like a puppet with a broken string, his eyes were still tightly closed, and his face was a little pale.

The man carefully picked up the boy and let him sit on the bamboo seat in the small courtyard of the restaurant.Seeing that Qi Yan was still sleeping peacefully, Si Dongmo didn't intend to wake him up.He borrowed a clean towel from the back kitchen, soaked it in water, gently held Qi Yan's hand, and wiped the flour and oil on it for him.

Si Dongmo squatted in front of Qi Yan, and while helping him wipe it carefully, he inadvertently raised his head to look at the boy's sleeping face.The man has never carefully observed his sleeping appearance. After all, the room is dark at night, and even if they share the same bed, they can't see the other person's sleeping appearance clearly.

When the boy closed his eyes and fell asleep, his long eyelashes cast deep shadows under his eyes, and the skin on his face was fair and delicate, like a delicate porcelain doll.He secretly sighed, what A Jin and Le Hong said was really true, Qi Yan's eyebrows and eyes are very delicate, and when he grows up, he will definitely be a great beauty.

"Um..."

Si Dongmo stared blankly at him for a while, only to see Qi Yan shrinking his body like a kitten, whimpering softly.Muttering a few times, the boy slowly opened one eye, and looked blankly at the squatting man in front of him.

"Huh... Si Dongmo? What are you squatting here for?"

Qi Yan turned around slowly, looked down at the place where he was sitting, and then at the towel in Si Dongmo's hand, and asked in a daze, "Dong Mo, why did I fall asleep here? And, Why is there so much white flour on your hands..."

"You fell asleep while making cakes in the back kitchen." Si Dongmo gently put the boy's hand back on his knee, and relayed to him Boss Lan's speculation about Zhe Que's special ability.

"This...isn't this just sleepwalking?" If he hadn't heard Si Dongmo's words, Qi Yan wouldn't have believed that those things were done by himself.He held his forehead, feeling a little dizzy, and carefully supported the armrest of the seat, trying to stand up.

Si Dongmo pressed his arm and told him to sit still: "Qi Yan, you should rest first, and leave the rest of the work to me. When you closed your eyes just now, you have already finished all the tasks for today. "

Qi Yan found that his body was limp and weak, and his limbs were sore and numb, so he stopped insisting and sat down obediently.

After Si Dongmo settled him down, he turned and walked towards the back kitchen.

It's also interesting to say that Qi Yan only "copied" Si Dongmo's cooking skills, but he didn't copy his consciousness of cleaning up the mess.Although the cakes are ready, the room has become a mess because of Qi Yan's "sleepwalking", and the finishing work is still waiting for the man to finish.

Regarding the display of his special ability, Qi Yan felt half pleasantly surprised and half worried.I didn't expect him to have this "photographic memory" ability. It seems that there will be a shortcut to learn new skills in the future.His current "copy" action is completely unconscious. It would be great if he could control this ability autonomously in the future.

After making the first batch of pine nut food, Boss Lan quickly rewrote his menu, and grandly introduced the new pine nut product to every guest who came to the restaurant—snacks, cakes, fried rice made of pine nuts , Health porridge... and so on.

As expected, these new dishes have received a very good response from the regular customers of Shishi Restaurant, and have earned considerable profits.However, Qi Yan's thoughts don't stop there.

The Fourteen Restaurant is not a particularly popular restaurant in Luoxia Town. Due to its special cooking style, the restaurant has gradually developed a group of small diners with fixed tastes during the years of operation.

Qi Yan has observed that the people who come and go in this restaurant are these light-tasting customers who like "health-preserving meals".They usually have a light taste, pay attention to their own health, have a certain life style, and have good spending power, so they have a good acceptance of the slightly expensive pine nut food.

However, although the new pine nut product sold at a very good price, its influence has always been limited to these old customers, and it cannot effectively attract more new customers, spreading the "net" to other potential customers in the town. customer.

In response to this situation, Qi Yan thought of an opportunity to attract more new customers—that is, the Lantern Festival that will be grandly held in the whole town in three days.

At that time, there will be a large number of customers concentrated in Luoxia Bay.Qi Yan, Si Dongmo and others will serve as culinary representatives of Fourteen restaurants, and together with Boss Lan, they will present unique fresh food to the public, competing with the food displayed by other restaurants.

This Luoxia Town Lantern Festival will definitely be an excellent opportunity not to be missed for Fourteen restaurants who want to promote special delicacies and display exclusive signs.