"Isn't that why I'm counting on you?"
"Me?"
Lucas pointed at himself, "Aren't I a lifetime freebie?"
Lin Chen: ......
With the ingredients settled, next comes choosing the right recipe.
There's no way these foreigners would be able to handle the strong smell of intestines; the fat inside definitely needs to be cleaned thoroughly.
Speaking of masking the smell, it must be braised, right?
I had this idea before, so I might as well experiment this time.
Pulling out the Recipe Exchange Coupon obtained yesterday, I exchanged it for a spicy braise formula.
Lucas had nothing better to do and wanted to see how he cooked, so Lin Chen decided to take him along to the supermarket as extra labor.
Just selling intestines won't suffice; other braised items need to be sold too, as all profits are their own.
"Chicken wings, chicken legs, duck legs are a must, a few duck necks, chicken hearts and duck hearts are so cheap? Let's get two boxes."
"And beef tendons? Wow, pork trotters are also cheap, doesn't matter, let's buy them all, worst case we eat them ourselves!"
Making braised food is different from other dishes; braised soup is about reusing, the more it's used the more fragrant it becomes, and delicious braised food absolutely needs an old braise pot.
Since I'm doing it, I'll keep the braised soup, so there needs to be a variety of meats to enhance the flavor profile.
Of course, the main ingredient, intestines, can't be left out.
Besides pig intestines, chicken intestines, duck intestines, and goose intestines are also suitable for braising, but goose meat is rarely seen abroad, only available at Cantonese BBQ shops, and even Chinese supermarkets don't stock raw ones, so I had to give up.
The purchased chicken and duck intestines are rubbed repeatedly with baking soda and flour, adding a bit of water to form a thick paste, then rinsed thoroughly with clear water. Repeat this process to achieve a pinkish, semi-transparent appearance.
The intestine walls have fat, and it's impossible to clean them completely; as long as the water is mostly clear and free of foreign matter, it's fine.
Pig intestines are relatively more troublesome; besides the same cleaning steps, each section needs to be turned inside out and the inner fat removed.
The most overwhelming part is the pungent smell.
Lucas couldn't hold it in and pinched his nose, retching outside for several minutes before reluctantly coming back.
To be honest, Lin Chen almost couldn't hold it in either.
He's been eating intestines for over twenty years, but it's his first time cleaning them himself, and the smell indeed hits hard.
Foreign pigs aren't castrated, so the stench is notably stronger; with double the impact, his face turned green. But thinking of his mom lying in a hospital bed, he grudgingly endured the whole process.
Apart from the chicken and duck intestines, all the meat is placed into a pot with cold water, green onions, ginger, and peppercorns for deodorizing, along with some strong white liquor.
There's no need to bring it to a full boil; once small bubbles keep rising to the surface, turn off the heat, scoop them out, and rinse clean for later use.
Add a large spoonful of lard to the pot; he bought a ready-made canned version from the supermarket since he didn't have time to render it himself.
Sauté the green onions and ginger for aroma, add a few pieces of beef hot pot base for its tallow aroma, and if time permits, simmering beef bone broth would be even better.
Then, in sequence, add sweet bean paste, Pixian Douban Sauce, dried chili peppers, and a bit of Sichuan peppercorns to stir-fry for fragrance. Followed by light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, rock sugar, chicken essence, MSG, and salt for seasoning.
Don't add too much Sichuan pepper; too much will make the braised flavor bitter, which is a core secret of the braised flavor formula.
Once all the spices and sauces are fully fragrant, pour in a 1:1 ratio of water and beer; the cheapest beer will do, as the expensive ones make it bitter.
Besides the base, an additional spice bag must be made.
Star anise, cinnamon, bay leaves, fennel, angelica root, cardamom, cumin, grass fruit peel, licorice, clove, Codonopsis, and Angelica are wrapped into a small bundle with cheesecloth, thrown into the pot, and pressed down with a spatula to prevent floating.
Bring the soup base to a boil on high heat, then switch to medium heat; first add duck necks and braise for ten minutes, then add the other meats to braise for fifteen to twenty minutes.
Braise the pig intestines separately in a pressure cooker for fifteen minutes before adding them to the pot with the duck neck for braising, greatly reducing the time needed.
Duck and chicken intestines cook quickly; if boiled for too long, they'll turn rubbery and hard to chew, so they must be added last.
After simmering the braised items for over half an hour, remove the spice bag and reduce to low heat.
Quickly blanch the duck and chicken intestines in boiling water for 5 seconds, and then throw them into the braise soup.
With a gentle low heat, the braise sauce won't boil, maintaining around ninety degrees, allowing longer cooking time for the duck and chicken intestines while retaining flavor.
Five minutes later, turn off the heat, letting various braised items soak in the braise sauce for fifteen to thirty minutes for flavor.
After all this time simmering without a lid, the braised sauce is considerably reduced, resulting in a rich, concentrated flavor.
Intestines that might be overcooked can be pre-emptively pulled out to cool, and afterward, drizzled with cooled braise sauce for a similar effect.
When the braised items were done soaking, it was already past three in the afternoon.
The entire backyard was filled with the aroma of braise, enticing nearby neighbors to sniff the air in their own backyards though hindered by the wooden fence, unable to pinpoint whose house it came from.
Lucas had long been salivating, unable to wait for the soaking; he grabbed a chicken leg straight from the pot to gnaw on.
The hot braise wasn't as fragrant as cooled, but the spicy aroma had thoroughly permeated the chicken leg, making it taste like a spicy braised chicken leg, intensifying its appeal.
Lin Chen covered the pot with a lid to prevent dust during transport and then drove with Lucas to the primary school at the East District.
Foreign schools don't have weekend classes, but they occasionally hold various interest activities like soccer, basketball, music, or art, which are optional.
During the previous interview, they heard that a sports event was happening at the school today, expected to end around dusk.
It took almost an hour to reach the school gate, where the braise had cooled completely, making the aroma even stronger.
Most foreign schools lack security guards and even gates in some renowned schools' cases.
Elementary and middle schools are more regulated, with iron fencing for student safety.
As soon as the cart parked, dense figures could be seen running and cheering on the nearby field, lively as ever.
Not far away, a police car was parked roadside, with two burly uniformed officers watching and occasionally waving and smiling at passing kids.
"Hey, Maryi, do you smell something good?"
"(Sniffs) I do smell something, and it's fragrant, but where's it coming from? I don't recall... a food cart nearby?"
The two exchanged a glance and walked over simultaneously.
"Sir, may we see your business license, please?"