dkrc Chapter 5 Grand Opening
Chapter 5 Grand Opening
The next day, before dawn, Xu Liang got up.
The first thing I did was head to the kitchen at home. The groceries I bought yesterday to try out for the opening had already been completely sold out.
Knowing that the small restaurant's refrigerator was empty, with little food prepared inside, except for a bag of rice in the cabinet under the stove, Xu Liang decided to go out and visit the market first.
When Xu Liang arrived at the same small market as yesterday, he found that only a few shops were open because he had gotten up early.
But the lights in the meat shops will always be on, because freshly killed and sold ingredients are valued for their freshness, and they are the first to arrive each day to sell. The same goes for fish, shrimp, and all kinds of seafood; people come to sell them very early in the morning.
If you want to buy the freshest produce, you must arrive half an hour early.
Xu Liang was interested in seafood, but the only recipes he could think of were spicy beef noodles and preserved egg and lean pork congee.
Just like yesterday, he bought a few more kilograms of beef than yesterday, plus a beef bone set meal.
Xu Liang did not buy from that man this time.
Why? First, the man wasn't setting up his stall; he was probably sleeping in. Second, he had already missed the newbie gift pack discount.
He carefully considered his options and decided to try another company.
We negotiated with another company to take advantage of the new customer discount; the main goal was to lower the price as much as possible.
After all, since their own dishes hadn't been sold yet, and the so-called ingredient suppliers weren't exclusive, they could only make money first, pay the deposit demanded by the wholesaler, and then purchase from this fixed wholesaler every month.
That way, you won't have to buy things from here and there.
You can buy pork from any store with good quality, such as the first store you see when you enter the market.
After buying the meat, it seemed that the other grocery stores were not open.
Xu Liang had no choice but to wait. About ten minutes later, it was past 5:30.
Most of the people who came to buy groceries also came.
Xu Liang looked at the vegetable farmer's basket, which contained all kinds of vegetables, bundle after bundle, one after another, displayed on the stall.
After all the work was done, the aunties started hawking their wares. Perhaps the loudest hawkers, the most enthusiastic ones, would attract many people to come and take a look.
Xu Liang only buys what he needs.
He noticed a stall selling incredibly tender baby bok choy, and the stall owner was a very kind-looking auntie, so he went up to ask the price.
"Hello, ma'am, how much do you sell this baby bok choy? It looks so tender!"
"Young man, it's two cents a pound. It's grown in our garden. The tender ones can rejuvenate you young people. Also, take some home. If you have elderly people at home, it's a good vegetarian dish to help them digest their food."
"Give me three jin!"
"Okay!"
He looked east, guessing that sunrise was just around the corner.
Xu Liang hurriedly bought some preserved eggs, wood ear mushrooms, green peas, carrots, and alkaline noodles.
In addition, I bought some seasonings that small restaurants don't have, cooking ingredients, and a set of kitchen cleaning supplies from the supermarket.
They arrived at the small restaurant carrying several large bags of things.
Xiao Liangzi Restaurant looks much more comfortable than before. After all, his uncle's old restaurant has been given a new lease on life.
Xu Liang put down the vegetables in his hand, first squeezed some dish soap onto a dry cloth, then rinsed it with water from the tap and wrung it out.
I repeatedly wiped the kitchen countertops, as well as the new dining table and chairs outside the kitchen, and then neatly arranged the chopsticks, spoons, vinegar, tissues, and other items in the wooden tube that should have been on the dining table.
Although Zhao Hongzhi helped yesterday, today is different from usual. The opening needs a fresh start, which means a thorough hygiene check and respect for the diners.
After cleaning, Xu Liang began making the spicy beef noodles and preserved egg and lean pork congee that he had just learned to make.
The spicy beef noodles are still made with the same few simple steps: first, fry the chili oil, and then process the beef and beef bones.
This time, a pressure cooker was used for the beef and beef bones because it saved a lot of time. The beef was cooked until tender, and the beef bone broth turned white.
The same applies to alkaline noodles. Pour them into another pot of water and stir them constantly with long chopsticks to prevent them from sticking to the pot.
Next, I made congee with preserved egg and lean pork.
He selected some indica rice stored at home, scooped out a few spoonfuls and put them into a large water ladle, then rinsed it twice with the tap.
The outer shell of this rice cooker is made of white plastic, and there is an inner pot inside. Generally speaking, they are all common materials that are easy to heat and do not deform.
Take out the inner pot of this old-fashioned rice cooker, and with a strong tug, throw it back in. Use four or five drops of water to wash away the rice that is left on the inner wall of the large ladle.
The third injection of water exceeded one-third of the normal water level.
On the cutting board, he busied himself, chopping the peeled preserved eggs into pieces.
There were also some wood ear mushrooms, carrots, and baby bok choy, all chopped very finely.
After chopping, I poured the green peas from the bag onto the wooden sieve on the stove, rinsed them with water, and then put them in an iron bowl.
Of course, you can't have congee with preserved egg and lean pork without lean pork. Whatever is in the name of a dish should be reflected in the dish itself.
Take out a large piece of lean meat, cut it into short, thin strips with a cleaver, and put it in a blue and white porcelain bowl.
After preparing the ginger, scallions, and garlic, add thin strips of pork, along with vegetables such as chopped wood ear mushrooms, carrots, and baby bok choy.
Throw all the green peas from the iron bowl into it.
Then add the ginger and garlic, along with half a spoonful of salt, a spoonful of soy sauce, and a pinch of pepper.
Start simmering over low heat.
After an unknown amount of time, following this repetitive process, Xu Liang made three large bowls of spicy beef noodles and five bowls of preserved egg and lean pork congee.
At this moment, he realized that it was already dawn. Today happened to be Monday, the start of a new week. The factory had to go to get off work and get off work, so it was a good time for Xu Liang's small restaurant to sell its dishes.
There are many factories near my small restaurant, and the workers live nearby and have to pass by here on their way to work.
A great opportunity to promote your dishes.
However, after a few minutes, he looked at the clock hanging in the restaurant.
It was around 7 a.m.
He watched as more and more people took this path.
But no one went into his small restaurant.
A short while later, he encountered Xu Tian carrying her schoolbag on her way to school.
Xu Tian is nine years old and is in the third grade at Huaikou No. 1 Primary School. Because her home is not far from the school, Xu Liang's parents let her commute.
It was also a way to train her.
Seeing that other children were being picked up and dropped off by their parents, Xu Tian looked dejected and sullen.
When she saw Xu Liang, her mood suddenly improved.
She was too small and not tall enough, so she could only bury her head in Xu Liang's belly.
"Brother, Sweetie's hungry!"
Xu Tian bumped into Xu Liang's stomach through his clothes, rubbing it with her hands. After a while, she realized something was wrong.
Generally speaking, a person's belly is soft and elastic, but Xu Liang's belly was different. Xu Tian felt that his belly was like several hard lumps.
"Brother, your belly is so hard! It hurt Sweetie's head."
Xu Liang usually enjoys sports, so it's normal for him to have these hard blocks.
Seeing Xu Tian staring blankly at him, he recalled his encounters with girls from Sichuan and Chongqing in his previous life. They were either Sichuan-Chongqing milk dragons, Sichuan-Chongqing tyrannical dragons, or some who were disguised milk dragons but were actually tyrannical dragons.
He didn't want his sister to become a nightmare for men when she grew up, so Xu Liang decided to educate her from a young age to make her a graceful and refined lady.
Then, Xu Liang tenderly rubbed Xu Tian's head, squatted down, and stroked her rosy face, asking comfortingly, "Tian Tian, I rubbed it for you, does it still hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt anymore."
She shook her head.
"Aaaaaah, Sweetie's so hungry! Sweetie's starving!"
"Okay, I'll go get you breakfast right away."
After saying that, Xu Liang brought out a bowl of congee with preserved egg and lean pork that he had just scooped out from the kitchen.
Considering that Xu Tian is too young and her digestive system is not fully developed, so she can't eat spicy food, we didn't plan to make her spicy beef noodles. Instead, we opted for a milder congee with preserved egg and lean pork.
Xu Tian was already sitting in a chair by then.
Xu Liang brought over the congee with preserved egg and lean pork, and Xu Tian took a spoon from the wooden tube on the table.
She smelled the bowl of congee with preserved egg and lean pork.
"It smells so good! It looks incredibly delicious."
"This is my first time making this, so the taste might be a little off."
"It's okay, Sweetie will like anything your brother makes!"
It was because yesterday, Xu Liang was in the kitchen trying out a dish that Zhao Hongzhi approved, while Xu Tian was outside and hadn't finished her homework.
But out of curiosity about Xu Liang's cooking, all they could do was eavesdrop outside the kitchen window and smell the aroma of the food through the crack in the window.
She still had a desire to try the food Xu Liang had prepared. Smelling the aroma of the preserved egg and lean pork congee, she thought it looked quite good.
"Sweetie, please taste it for me."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xu Tian scooped up a spoonful.
She put it directly into her mouth, chewed it carefully, and found it to be delicious.
"Brother's cooking is so delicious, Sweetie wants to eat it every day!"
Xu Liang was incredulous. This game panel—no, it was a gift from the cheat system—not only earned him Zhao Hongzhi's approval, but even his sister Xu Tian praised it highly.
"If it's delicious, then eat more!"
Xu Tian looked at Xu Liang, who had been busy all morning and probably hadn't had breakfast yet, and said, "Brother, why don't you try a bite? It's really delicious."
Then, Xu Tian scooped up a spoonful and handed it to Xu Liang.
Xu Liang took a bite and found it to be delicious, even better than what he had made before his rebirth. Of course, people always have to improve, and no one can change that.
"It's really pretty good."
"See? If Sweetie says it's delicious, then it's delicious."
Immediately afterwards, Xu Tian drank the century egg and lean pork congee in big gulps. In the last few gulps, she seemed to choke on the congee broth and kept coughing.
"Drink slowly, no one's going to take it from you!" Xu Liang said, patting Xu Tian on the back.
After finishing her congee with preserved egg and lean pork, Xu Tian skipped off to school, full of energy.
After seeing his sister off, Xu Liang went outside for some fresh air.
But then he discovered that there were three breakfast stalls across the street competing with him for business: one was frying scallion pancakes, one was steaming buns, and the other was selling tea eggs.
All three stall owners were acquaintances of Xu Liang.
Old Wang, Old Li, and Aunt Zhang.
Old Wang and Old Li's scallion pancakes and steamed buns rarely attracted customers, while Aunt Zhang's tea eggs were doing booming business.
However, the three of them will definitely be Xu Liang's formidable rivals.
In any case, we must defeat them and raise the profile of our small restaurant.