Soon, the pork stomach in the pot was cooked until just done. Lin Xu turned off the heat, but he didn’t immediately remove the pork stomach; instead, he let it continue to soak in the pot.
This was to make the pork stomach’s texture even more tender and smooth, while also enhancing its flavor. However, it shouldn’t soak for too long, as the pork stomach would absorb too much water, causing the texture to deteriorate. Generally, soaking it for about fifteen minutes after cooking was sufficient before taking it out to cool. When making Hot and Sour Pork Stomach Soup, the cooked pork stomach shouldn’t be used immediately; it must be completely cooled. This way, the pork stomach would be flavorful and tender, and the resulting hot and sour soup would be more delicious. If it was sliced while hot, it would be hard to cut the pork stomach into thin strips, and the taste of the hot and sour soup would also suffer.
"Soak it for fifteen minutes, then take it out and put it in the walk-in to cool. Don’t soak it for too long," Lin Xu instructed an assistant chef beside him, then planned to go downstairs to check on the status of the braised chicken.
Leaving the kitchen, just as he reached the stairwell, he saw his senior apprentice brother, Xie Baomin, and his sister-in-law, Su Peipei, coming up the stairs to the second floor with Chun Brother.
"Brother Baomin? You didn’t go out for the holiday?"
"We went to Pinggu for a trip," Xie Baomin said dejectedly. "It felt like the mountains were even more crowded than Sanlitun. We had to queue up at every farmhouse restaurant, and there was traffic everywhere. We barely managed with some bread at noon so we wouldn’t starve." He hadn’t anticipated such an ordeal from a trip to the outskirts of Beijing. And that didn’t even include going to popular places like Changping or West Mountain; the crowds there would probably be even bigger.
Everywhere was a sea of people. Ironically, the city center was less crowded. When they came down from the North Fourth Ring flyover, there was, surprisingly, no traffic jam.
Su Peipei asked with a smile, "Did you and Yueyue not go out?"
"No, everywhere’s crowded. We can go after the holiday; it’s not too late then."
They reached the second floor, where Lin Xu greeted Chun Brother, "Hey, Chun Brother, have you eaten?"
"My sister and brother-in-law have eaten. I haven’t eaten yet. I went to their house a bit late, and they’d already scrubbed the pot clean..."
Xie Baomin chuckled speechlessly and then asked Lin Xu, "Do you still have breakfast here? If so, could you serve some for Chun Brother? He’s been rambling the whole way here."
Today, he had an appointment with a urology specialist who wasn’t traveling. If dietary therapy was already failing, then it was time to try a scientific approach. He had initially asked Chun Brother to come over so that he, as their uncle, could take his two nephews to the swimming pool. However, the kids had made plans with classmates and didn’t need supervision, so Chun Brother ended up without breakfast. Considering this, Xie Baomin decided to send Chun Brother here to his junior apprentice brother. This guy had a knack for saying embarrassing things and had been pestering him about Lin Ji’s fried noodles since he arrived. It seemed like a perfect opportunity to treat him today and also let the kids try the food here. He was always complaining that the meals he, a State Banquet head chef, prepared weren’t tasty. Today, it was time for a change of pace.
"We’ve got plenty of breakfast left. Chun Brother, please hold on a moment... Chezai, bring out the leftover Eight Treasure Porridge and potstickers from this morning, and add some refreshing pickled vegetables."
Lin Xu had made a bit too much breakfast today. He originally planned to save some for Zeng Xiaoqi and Dou Wenjing, but now that Chun Brother was here, the two ladies would miss out.
Before long, Chezai walked over from the kitchen, carrying a small basin of Eight Treasure Porridge. An assistant chef followed him, holding a platter with the remaining potstickers and pickled vegetables.
"Chun Brother, see if that’s enough. If not, I’ll have someone grab a few Shengjian Buns from Ziqiang Shengjian," Lin Xu offered.
Chun Brother curiously asked, "Is Ziqiang Shengjian really a business you invested in?"
"Yes. Chun Brother, have you heard of Ziqiang Shengjian?"
"You bet I have!" Chun Brother exclaimed. "Right before the holiday, a few of our school’s athletes even snuck out during their P.E. class, climbing over the wall to buy them. I caught them red-handed."
WOW! Chun Brother turned out to be a seriously responsible teacher.
Lin Xu curiously asked, "What did you do after catching them?"
Normally, they ought to be sent to the guidance office and then write a self-reflection, right? I remember back in middle school, that’s pretty much how the school dealt with students climbing over the wall. If it was something more serious, they’d use the scariest tactic of the middle school era—calling the parents.
Chun Brother took a big slurp of the Eight Treasure Porridge. "What else could I do? I just joined them. Those Shengjian Buns were really tasty. It’s just too bad it’s so far from our school; they weren’t very hot by the time we ate them."
This way of handling things is really... unconventional. It seems like Chun Brother is a teacher well-liked by his students.
Lin Xu said, "Regardless, they shouldn’t be climbing over the wall. Going that far for food is even less appropriate. How about this? I’ll talk to the company later and see if we can open a branch right outside your school. That way, they won’t have to run back and forth. If they want to buy some, they could even discreetly get it through the school railings."
Chun Brother’s eyes widened. "Damn, that would be awesome! Thank you so much, Lin Xu! This Eight Treasure Porridge is cooked perfectly. Sister, why don’t you and your husband have some more?"
You’ve been holding that basin and drinking for ages, and only now you remember us? Xie Baomin was already accustomed to his brother-in-law’s ways. He turned to Lin Xu and said, "Just let Chun Brother stay here with you. Your sister-in-law and I have some errands to run. Our whole family will eat here for lunch today. Chun Brother told the two kids that your fried noodles are incredibly delicious, and they’re really excited to try them."
Lin Xu looked at his senior brother’s resigned face and felt a strong urge to laugh. The head chef of the State Banquet, capable of conquering the stomachs of international leaders, yet failing to win approval from his own family—to be honest, that was quite demoralizing. Thankfully, the other head chefs at the Fishing Platform had no idea about this. If they knew, they would definitely set off a barrage of fireworks to celebrate.