Siheyuan: Buyers get rich from hunting

In the warm and harmonious atmosphere of the courtyard, Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang have been immersed in the passion of learning cooking.

The praises from the neighbors were like the sound of a trumpet, constantly inspiring them and making them more and more motivated to learn cooking, as if they had endless energy. Every day, when the sky outside was still dark and the whole world was still shrouded in the night, most people were still sleeping soundly in their warm beds and dreaming sweet dreams, but Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang had already jumped out of bed.

You know, they are famous for loving to sleep in on weekdays. In the past, even if the sun was shining on their buttocks, they would still stay in bed for a while before getting up.

But now, in order to get to He Yuzhu's house earlier to learn more cooking skills, they completely abandoned their previous lazy habits, quickly washed up, and rushed to He Yuzhu's house impatiently.

They walked in a hurry, as if they were afraid of missing out on some secret book if they went too late. Along the way, the quiet courtyard was filled with only the sound of their slightly hurried footsteps.

He Yuzhu, on his part, was also very satisfied with the learning attitude of his two apprentices. He secretly made up his mind to teach them the culinary knowledge and exquisite techniques he had accumulated over the years without reservation and in a complete manner.

After all, in He Yuzhu's opinion, since the other person wanted to learn so sincerely and he had agreed to teach, he had to do his best and not hide anything.

Every time, when teaching a new cooking knowledge point, He Yuzhu will be particularly careful and meticulous. He will first sort out all the aspects involved in this knowledge point in his mind, and then start to demonstrate it in person, and this demonstration is often repeated several times. Take the processing of ingredients for example, it is not just a simple matter of washing and cutting the ingredients, there are many tricks involved.

For example, different ingredients have different cleaning methods. Some need to be carefully rinsed with clean water, while others need to be soaked for a while to remove impurities. When cutting, they need to be cut into different shapes and sizes according to the requirements of the dish, and every cut must be extremely precise.

As for the precise amount of seasoning, it is a big deal. A little more or a little less will make a big difference in the taste of the dish. He Yuzhu will patiently tell them how many spoons of salt to put in a certain dish, how much soy sauce to put in, and what proportion of vinegar to use. These numbers seem to be engraved in his mind and he can recite them at will. He will also repeatedly emphasize the reasons behind them, so that they can understand why they should put in such amounts and what the consequences will be if they put in too much or too little.

There is also the subtle control of heat during cooking, which is a key link in cooking.

High or low heat, when to turn down the heat, and how long to simmer, all these need to be determined according to the characteristics of different dishes and ingredients. He Yuzhu explained while gesturing with his hands, with a focused look, as if he was carrying out an extremely important artistic creation. He only hoped that the two apprentices could remember all this knowledge firmly, become masters as soon as possible, and create a vast world of their own in this world with their superb cooking skills.

Among the many dishes he taught, He Yuzhu once decided to teach them how to make a typical braised carp. Don't underestimate braised carp. Although this dish is often seen on the table, it seems easy to make. But in fact, it has very high requirements for each link, just like a rigorous symphony performance, every note must be correct, otherwise it will destroy the beautiful melody of the whole song.

Killing the carp is a technical job. He Yuzhu first fished out a lively carp from the bucket, placed it steadily on the chopping board, and then demonstrated the complete process of killing the carp. As he did so, his movements were steady and neat, and he patiently reminded them: "This fish needs to be handled carefully. The first step is to scrape off the scales. Don't leave any scales. Otherwise, it will affect the taste and look ugly when you eat it."

Also, the black film in the belly must be removed completely, because it is one of the sources of the fishy smell. If it is left, the taste of the dish will be affected and it will not taste as fresh and delicious. "

As he spoke, his hands did not stop moving. The knife in his hand moved flexibly on the fish's body, and the scales fell down like snowflakes. After a while, all the scales on the fish's body were scraped clean.

Then, He Yuzhu skillfully cut open the fish belly, cleaned out the internal organs, and then carefully removed the black film in the belly. The whole process was smooth and smooth, and the carp was handled cleanly and properly in his hands. After handling these, He Yuzhu began to change the knife. He picked up the knife with a focused and serious look. When the knife fell on the fish, the depth and spacing were just right. Each cut seemed to have been precisely measured, not more or less. The cuts on the fish were neat and even, as if it was a carefully carved work of art.

Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang watched intently, not wanting to blink, for fear of missing any details. They were secretly in awe, thinking that these seemingly simple steps involved so many details and techniques. At the same time, they hurriedly concentrated their energy and tried to remember all the key points He Yuzhu had said, repeating in their mouths from time to time what He Yuzhu had just said, for fear that they would forget them in the blink of an eye.

Finally, it was their turn to start working. Yan Jiecheng stood in front of the chopping board, looking at the carp that had been cleaned and neatly arranged by He Yuzhu. His heart was beating like a little rabbit, and the nervousness spread all of a sudden. When he reached out to take the knife, his hands couldn't help but tremble slightly. The action that seemed quite simple on weekdays seemed to become extremely difficult at this moment.

When he finally mustered up the courage to move the knife towards the fish, his hand seemed to be out of control and the knife went a little off point, almost cutting the fish into pieces. If a good fish was really done like that, it would lose all its appeal.

He Yuzhu saw all of this and hurried forward with a gentle and encouraging smile on his face, and said softly: "Don't panic, Jiecheng, keep your hands steady. Just do it as I taught you just now. Think carefully about the steps in your mind and take it one step at a time. There's nothing to be nervous about. Everyone is like this when they first start learning." He Yuzhu's voice was like a sedative, which gradually calmed Yan Jiecheng's originally panicked heart.

After listening to He Yuzhu's words, Yan Jiecheng took a deep breath, and the breath slowly circulated in his chest, as if releasing all the tension and anxiety with the exhalation.

He tried to calm himself down, picked up the knife again, recalled every movement and every detail of He Yuzhu's demonstration, and began to handle the fish carefully. This time, although his hands were not as steady as He Yuzhu's, and his movements were a little unfamiliar, he finally handled the fish smoothly. Looking at the fish in front of him, although it was not as perfect as He Yuzhu's, it was still a decent fish. Yan Jiecheng felt a little sense of accomplishment in his heart, and his nervous expression was gradually replaced by a gratified smile.

On the other side, Yan Jiefang was also in a mess. He stood in front of the stove, looking at the hot pot, and began to worry in his heart, thinking that he had to be careful when frying the fish, and make sure nothing went wrong.

However, the more you fear something, the more it will happen. When he poured oil into the pan and prepared to fry the fish, he was probably too nervous and did not control the strength of his hands well, so he turned up the fire too high. The flames jumped up, and the oil in the pan was instantly enraged, "crackling" and rolling violently, splashing a lot of oil stars and splashing in all directions.

Yan Jiefang had never seen such a scene before. He was so frightened that his face turned pale. He subconsciously took several steps back. It was as if his feet were out of control. He did not stop until he felt safe. He was still in a state of shock.

He Yuzhu saw this and rushed over, quickly reaching out to turn down the heat, letting the raging oil pan slowly calm down. Then, he turned around and looked at the frightened Yan Jiefang, still with a reassuring smile on his face, and said with a smile: "Jiefang, you have to control the heat when frying fish. If the fire is too high, the outside will burn immediately, but the inside will not be cooked yet, and then the fish will be inedible. But don't be afraid, I'm watching here, it's no big deal, just adjust your mentality and try again."

After listening to He Yuzhu's words, Yan Jiefang's panic gradually calmed down. He calmed down, encouraged himself secretly in his heart, and then mustered up his courage again, slowly walked to the pot and stood still. This time, he didn't dare to be careless again. He carefully picked up the spatula, shook the pot slightly to evenly distribute the oil on the bottom of the pot, and then gently put the fish into the pot.

During the frying process, he never dared to take his eyes off the pan, always paying attention to the state of the fish, and his hands moved gently and carefully, turning the fish over and adjusting its position from time to time as He Yuzhu taught him. In this way, with his careful operation, he finally fried the fish smoothly this time. The golden and crispy fish body gave people a sense of accomplishment.

After such a flurry of hassles and problems, the braised carp was finally ready. Although the appearance of the dish after it was ready was indeed a little less charming than that made by He Yuzhu, the braised carp made by He Yuzhu was complete and beautiful, with a bright red color and attractive appearance. Every part of it was just right and exquisite, as if it was a carefully crafted work of art. The ones made by Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang were also similar, but they lacked the natural feeling, and the details were still a little unfamiliar.

However, the aroma was unmistakable. As soon as it came out of the pot, it quickly filled the whole house as if it had wings. The rich aroma kept drilling into everyone's nose, making people's hearts itch and their appetites were aroused. Other neighbors who were busy or chatting in the yard could not help but stop what they were doing when they smelled the tempting aroma. They stretched their necks and came over here, wanting to see what the braised carp made by the two brothers looked like.

After everyone gathered around, they chatted with each other, and some even joked: "Wow, this smells so good, Jiecheng, Jiefang, it seems that you have learned cooking skills very effectively."

Then, an enthusiastic neighbor picked up the chopsticks, picked up a piece of fish and tasted it. After tasting it, he immediately showed a look of surprise on his face. While chewing the fish, he praised: "Oh, you know what, this tastes really good, much better than the previous one. It seems that you two have put in a lot of effort."

After hearing this, the other neighbors also started to taste the food. After tasting, they kept praising Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang for their progress, saying that their cooking skills were getting better and better.

Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang were so happy when they heard the compliments from everyone, as if they had eaten honey. The smiles on their faces suddenly blossomed, and they couldn't stop smiling. They looked at each other and saw the irrepressible joy and sense of accomplishment in each other's eyes. At the same time, their confidence in learning cooking became stronger. They thought to themselves that as long as they studied hard, they would definitely get better and better. They had to work harder in the future to practice their cooking skills more exquisitely.

Days passed slowly, just like the gurgling stream. During these days, Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang did not slack off at all. Their cooking skills were like the thriving saplings, constantly improving. As they became more and more proficient in the basic cooking knowledge and skills, they were no longer satisfied with just following the dishes taught by He Yuzhu, but began to try to come up with some new dishes on their own.

In their spare time, they often get together to think about what unique flavor they can make by combining this ingredient with that ingredient, or whether a different cooking method can give the dish a different flavor. Sometimes, they will take the initiative to find He Yuzhu to discuss and exchange ideas, and then humbly ask He Yuzhu to see if this way is feasible or that way is good.

He Yuzhu was very pleased to see them studying cooking so hard and actively. He felt that his hard work in teaching them cooking during this period of time was not in vain. These two children really loved cooking and were willing to spend time to learn and study. He believed that in time, they would be able to carve out a niche for themselves in cooking.

Later, a family in the courtyard held a wedding and wanted Yan Jiecheng and Yan Jiefang to show off their cooking skills. The brothers were excited and nervous when they received this task. They started preparing the menu several days in advance and repeatedly practiced the dishes they were going to make.

On the day of the wedding, the kitchen was bustling with activity. Yan Jiecheng was in charge of cooking, while Yan Jiefang was helping by cutting vegetables, preparing side dishes, and passing seasonings. The two worked very well together. One dish after another, delicious in appearance, aroma and taste, came out of their hands. After it was served on the table, the guests tasted it and kept praising it, saying that the dishes were authentic and almost as good as He Yuzhu's.

When the third uncle Yan Bugui heard the praises, he couldn't stop smiling and said to everyone in the yard: "Look, my two sons, thanks to Zhuzi's careful teaching, their cooking skills are now quite good. They will have bright futures." And He Yuzhu stood aside and watched the lively scene with a proud smile on his face. He knew that these two apprentices were truly successful and with this skill, they would surely live a smooth life in the future.