I Am A Gourmet: Just Eight And You Want Me To Start A Roadside Stall Novel! - Chapter 165
Chapter 165: Pineapple Fried Rice
“Li Shengsheng?”
There was an imperceptible tremble in Xu Le’s voice, but he quickly forced himself to calm down and asked, “Is it a man or a woman?”
“He’s a man.” Lu Yumin smiled and said, “You also think his name sounds gender neutral, right?”
Xu Le nodded slightly.
After the oil was heated, the pig liver was poured in and cooked on high heat. Two minutes later, the sliced meat was added. The ginger and garlic were removed, the tabasco pepper was added to make it spicier, and the red bell pepper was added to enhance the colors.
Before serving, he added salt, pepper, and a little oyster sauce.
After pouring it into the plate, a spicy stir-fried pig liver that looked, smelled, and tasted good was ready. After the dark red pig liver was stir-fried, its surface was glossy. The red chili was bright and emitted a spicy smell. Stir-fried pig liver was all about dry fragrance. The moisture inside was forced dry, and it was chewy and fragrant, but it was not dry at all.
“Let me tell you, he’s my university classmate. We’re not in the same grade, but he’s in the same club. That person is really, tsk… It’s a long story. There are too many things to complain about.”
Lu Yuxi saw that he had finished cooking a dish and a soup in less than half an hour. The temperature of the vermicelli soup was just right. She picked it up and took a sip.
The noodles were soft and tender, the duck blood was smooth and tender, the soup base was fresh and spicy, and the saltiness was just right.
…
“It’s delicious!”
After Lu Yuxi praised him from the bottom of her heart, she cheered Xu Le on. “Don’t worry, there won’t be a problem in the finals. Your cooking has never failed. Besides, you were only short of one vote in the previous competition.”
“Yes.” Xu Le wasn’t worried about this, but he couldn’t explain it in further details. He nodded and said, “There’s stir-fried pig liver and duck blood soup. They’re all things that replenish blood. Eat more and go back to rest.”
“I promise to complete the mission!”
Lu Yuxi winked playfully. The pig liver was the same as the stinky tofu and stewed rice noodles. Some people enjoyed the smell and liked it so much that they went crazy. Some people could not stand it at all and felt that it was extremely fishy.
…
Lu Yuxi was in between the two. To be honest, she did not really like to eat internal organs, but it was not that she could not eat them at all. She originally wanted to force herself to eat a few more mouthfuls for Xu Le’s sake, but after the first mouthful, her expression immediately changed.
Xu Le, who was sitting opposite her, could feel that Lu Yuxi clearly did not like pig liver, so he said, “If you don’t want to eat it, you don’t have to force yourself…”
“Damn, it’s really superb! Previously, I thought that the smell of pig liver was very bad. It’s very different since it’s made by you. It’s not fishy, but it’s similar to that kind of fragrant stench. It smells very spicy. If there’s a staple dish, it would be super satisfying!”
Lu Yuxi’s last sentence hinted at him.
Xu Le said, “Hurry up and eat. We still have to wait for a long time if I had to steam rice.”
Besides, he did not find any rice in the ingredients.
“It doesn’t have to be rice. It can be a staple dish, carbohydrates, or others. I just want to eat this at night.”
Lu Yuxi softened her tone and rolled up her sleeves to show him the wound on her arm. “Little Master Chef? Boss!”
Xu Le’s bowl of soup was empty. He couldn’t stand her acting coquettishly. He stood up and said, “I’ll go take a look.”
Although there were many types of ingredients prepared by the organizers, after the recording ended, the staff stuffed them into the fridge. There was no labelling, so it was difficult to flip through and find.
Many of the ingredients from the competition had been flown in hours in advance. The rest were about to be disposed of.
Xu Le rummaged around and pulled out a takeaway box containing clean leftover rice, pineapple, green beans, and carrots. On the table in front of him were unused high-quality marinated meat.
In the heat of the moment, he had an idea.
Lu Yuxi drank the soup happily. When she looked up, she saw Xu Le peeling pineapple. She did not pay attention to him and continued to scoop up the vermicelli.
Xu Le cut off the outer skin of the pineapple and cut off the soft and sweet flesh around it. The core inside was cut into small pieces and soaked in salt water first. The soft and sweet outer flesh was cut and soaked.
The marinated meat was rich in oil and there was still a faint pine scent on it. After cutting it into small cubes, he placed it aside. He cut the carrots into cubes and grabbed a handful of green beans. The side dishes were done.
Seeing that his cooking steps were complicated, Lu Yuxi asked curiously, “Aren’t you going to steam rice? Hey, since there’s ready-made rice, can’t you just heat it up?”
“I plan to make pineapple fried rice.”
“That?” Just hearing the name, Lu Yuxi subconsciously swallowed her saliva. She picked up a piece of pineapple meat and stuffed it into her mouth. “Sure, sure.”
After eating the sweet and sour pineapple, her tongue suddenly felt bitter and slightly painful.
She smacked her lips, her face crumpling.
When Xu Le turned around to get the eggs, he saw her frowning expression and was amused. He said, “The pineapple needs to be soaked in salt water for more than 10 minutes. Did your tongue get stung?”
Lu Yuxi felt embarrassed. “Hmph.”
“There’s a kind of proteinase in pineapple. The proteinase will hydrolyze the protein on the tongue, causing it to feel numb. That’s why it has to be soaked in salt water. Firstly, it can reduce the activity of the proteinase. Secondly, it can also preserve moisture in the pineapple to make it taste crisper.”
Xu Le explained seriously.
Lu Yuxi said, “It’s not like I don’t know. I just forgot… Where did you learn this knowledge?”
Xu Le thought to himself, ‘It’s clearly something taught in junior high.’
He replied half-jokingly, “I’m hardworking and studious, unlike some people who are just gluttonous.”
Lu Yuxi was so angry that she argued with him and avoided the topic.
The two eggs were scattered. In order to make the stir-fried egg more fragrant, Xu Le used a piece of snow-white lard and melted it at the bottom of the pot.
The egg was poured into the oil from a high place. Under the high temperature, they immediately swelled up, golden and fluffy.
He slowly fried it at the bottom of the pot for a while, allowing it to absorb the fragrance of the lard. After it had solidified, he flipped it over and scattered it with a spoon before putting it on the plate.
The marinated meat, green beans, and carrots were all added to stir-fry. Smoke quickly rose from both sides of the pot.
Lu Yuxi interrupted, “Is it burnt?”
“No, it’s the wok gas.”
The appearance of tiger skin patterns on the green beans meant that the heat was about right. At this moment, he could pour in the fried rice and fried egg and switch to the highest temperature to stir-fry. The loose rice grains exploded with the fragrance of rice in the frying pan and fused with the bright side dishes.
After it was stir-fried, the soya sauce was poured into the pot. This was because the marinated meat itself was salty and fresh, and the pineapple fried rice required a balance between salty and sweet. There was no need to add salt again.
Finally, he poured in diced pineapple and stir-fried them. Then, he sprinkled a handful of spring onions evenly.
The remaining temperature of the rice could completely allow the sweetness of the pineapple grains to be released. After it was scooped out, it was covered in red, green, and yellow. It looked very appetizing.
“I asked you to make a staple dish for dinner, and you made this?”
Lu Yuxi teased him on purpose and forcibly pointed out a flaw.
Xu Le smiled angrily. “Eat your food.”
The sourness and sweetness of the pineapple would not take over the main dish. Instead, the appropriate sweet and sourness would balance out with the grease of the fried rice.
