Chapter 149: Chapter 149: Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee, The Sugar Threads Haven’t Snapped Yet?!
In the following two days, business at Jiangyue Terrace was as booming as ever.
Somehow, people came to believe that Jiang Feng had been a chef in training since childhood, with an extraordinary background. The key issue was that Jiang Feng couldn’t explain it away. This added an extra layer of mystery to his persona. People were even more eager to come to Jiangyue Terrace to taste the dishes he personally made.
Jiang Feng, on the other hand, was focusing on the other dishes. After all, a restaurant had to rely on its chefs. Luckily, the main chefs all had solid fundamentals, and they listened to everything Jiang Feng taught them. The reputation of Jiangyue Terrace was pretty good.
Jiang Feng thought to himself, Only after I leave in a few days will we truly know how the business at the restaurant is doing. I hope the reputation of the restaurant can be well established.
The dishes he had prepared these past days were all chicken, so today, Jiang Feng planned to switch things up. He’d make Stir-fried Kidneys during the day and Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee at night. The stir-fried kidney recipe was a popular one from his boxed lunch days, a favorite of his old fishing buddy, so he handled it with practiced ease.
At six in the afternoon, Jiang Feng called over Liew Mei.
"Change the sign. Let Old Ma stir-fry the kidneys; it’s time I made the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee," Jiang Feng said. "I need a breather."
Liew Mei immediately responded, "It’s already been changed, and I’ve informed the new customers too."
"That’s good." Jiang Feng let out a sigh of relief.
Now he had no more orders in front of him, and the rest for the stir-fried kidneys could be handled by Executive Chef Old Ma, giving him a rare moment to take a break.
However, after just a few minutes, orders for the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee kept coming one after another. Almost every table ordered it. There was no escaping it.
"Let’s start!"
Jiang Feng immediately got busy, slicing the yam, blanching it, evenly coating the pieces with cornstarch, and then deep-frying them in hot oil. Next was making the syrup. He boiled a pot of sugar water until it thickened to a light amber color, then poured it over the fried yams and sprinkled sesame seeds on top.
The steps for this dish might seem easy at a glance. In reality, just the act of "pulling threads" of sugar had stumped countless people. The key to this step was frying the sugar to the right color. If the sugar is white when poured, it gives a frosty look and won’t pull threads. If the sugar is fried too dark, it becomes the syrup used for candied haws and also won’t pull threads. Only with the sugar color just right could one achieve the perfect effect when poured. Jiang Feng’s mastery of sugar coloration was spot on.
After the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee was done, he added an extra step. He took a spoon, dipped it into the pot to collect some sugar syrup, then lifted the spoon high, turning it so the back faced upward. The syrup glided down the edge of the spoon, forming extremely thin sugar threads that finally landed on the prepared Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee. This step was called "Just Like the Milky Way Descending from the Heavens." Only exceptionally well-prepared Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee could have such an effect. The sugar threads wound round and round, covering the dish, adding a hazy charm to the whole plate of Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee.
Soon, plates of the prepared dessert were carried out and served to the customers’ tables.
One of the dishes was delivered by a waiter to a small table in the main hall. The two girls eating there were also regulars of Jiang Feng’s. One of them, named Qin Wen, would often eat Jiang Feng’s barbecue while working out at the gym. The other, named Zhao Hui, who took dance classes at a studio, also frequently ate Jiang Feng’s barbecue.
They had planned to come to Jiangyue Terrace today, so naturally, they ordered the delicious Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee.
As the waiter set the dish on the table, he gently explained, "This is the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee personally made by Boss Jiang of our restaurant. It has a sweet taste with delicate threads of sugar. Please enjoy."
After speaking, the waiter smiled, gave a nod, and then left.
The girls’ gazes were instantly drawn to the dish. The yam was a golden color, shiny and lustrous, with an almost translucent appearance. Around it wound rings upon rings of sugar threads. It looked quite artistic. They were already captivated by the dish before they even started eating.
"Try it quickly, this is Executive Chef Jiang’s creation."
"Take a photo first, then we can eat after the photos!"
"It looks so pretty, his craft is really amazing!"
"We really got lucky today!"
Although one worked out and the other danced, both had a sweet tooth. The Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee had a truly unique texture. After they finished snapping photos and posting them online, Qin Wen picked up a piece of yam, lifting it high. Instantly, many fine threads of sugar stretched out from the yam, connecting tightly with the other pieces.
"Wow, these sugar threads are so fine, how did he do this?" Qin Wen was quite amazed. "I want to see how long these threads can get."
Qin Wen lifted the yam even higher over her head, stretching her arms straight up. Even so, the sugar threads hanging from the yam still didn’t break. Each thread was crystal clear, incredibly fine, like spider silk. Looking closely, there were about eight or nine such sugar threads under each piece of yam, securely connecting the lifted piece to the others in the dish.
"They haven’t snapped, oh my goodness!" Qin Wen was in high spirits; she simply stood up and lifted the piece of yam again, eager to see if the sugar strands would break. But even so, the sugar strands still clung together. They just looked thinner and thinner.
The onlookers didn’t find this odd at all. After all, Qin Wen wasn’t the only one doing this. Many people wanted to see just how high the sugar strands could be pulled. One guy even stood on a chair to do the sugar pulling. Everybody clicked their tongues in wonder.
"Executive Chef Jiang really is different; he brings such a level of skill even to a dish of Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee."
"It still hasn’t broken!"
"Spin it a few more times with your chopsticks, then it’ll break easily."
"Wait for it to cool a bit, and it will break more easily!"
Qin Wen, holding the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee with her chopsticks, twirled it around several times and finally managed to break the sugar strand. Then, she immediately put the piece of yam into her mouth.
The sweetness was instant upon tasting. The yams had been fried, so their exterior was crispy. With a gentle bite, the thin crispy shell shattered, revealing the fragrant and glutinous inside of the yam. The yam was sweet too. The presence of the sugar coating was strong, bringing a subtly scorched sensation, and after just a few chews, the sugary juice melted on the tongue. The sweetness of the sugar and the fragrance of the yam mixed together. It was both crispy and soft, with a sweetness that was just right—neither too cloying nor too bland. After devouring one piece, her whole mouth felt sweet.
"Oh my gosh, so delicious!" Qin Wen’s eyes sparkled with excitement, her entire being thrilled, with her hands fluttering at her sides like a moth flapping its wings.
Just then, Zhao Hui also picked up a piece of the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee and pulled up many strands of sugar. She twirled it a few times, pulled once again, then twirled some more. Afterward, she stuffed a piece of yam into her mouth. The sweetness was so enjoyable that she too savored it fully.
Indeed, sugar is the motivation to keep going. The willpower people show when cutting sugar for dieting is truly extraordinary. My mouth is filled with sweetness, and it isn’t even cloying. Sweeter than a kiss! she thought.
"It really is delicious." Both of them picked up more Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee and continued eating.
Jiang Feng was quite versatile in his cooking skills and also had experience with sweets. So making Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee was truly a simple task for him. Creating caramel is difficult for those who don’t know how, but easy for those who do. With the right technique, there was no difficulty in making this dish.
In the kitchen, Jiang Feng worked with gusto. Making Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee was really too simple for him. Deep-fry the yams, pour over the prepared caramel, and it’s all done. Every detail involved was a walk in the park for him. At last, things seemed a bit more relaxed.
It’s always simpler to make dishes like these, Jiang Feng thought to himself.
He didn’t feel tired. But in the eyes of the other chefs, Jiang Feng was a model of hard work! Who else would start cooking at noon, take only a little break, and keep going until the evening!
A true master! Youth does come with great Staminia! they thought.
In the dining hall of the restaurant, the guests were still praising Jiang Feng’s Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee. Laughter rose and fell throughout the hall.
"Every single time, Executive Chef Jiang creates such exquisite dishes!"
"It has to be Executive Chef Jiang, look at how fine those sugar strands are!"
"Got it, Executive Chef Jiang is very meticulous!"
"How does he achieve such a light, sweet, and non-greasy texture!"
The guests discussed with smiles.
Qin Wen and Zhao Hui were big eaters; they devoured the plate of Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee completely.
"It’s over, I’m going to gain weight again, my workout these past few days was all in vain!" Qin Wen, who had a physique that gained weight easily, started to regret eating the Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee.
"Just exercise it off again. How could you not eat such delicious Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee?" Zhao Hui said with a laugh.
Upon hearing this, Qin Wen nodded. "I know, I definitely need to finish such delicious Chinese Yam in Hot Toffee."
"I just said that to scare the fat away," she continued.
Zhao Hui was left speechless for a moment. That’s so you! As if saying that would actually stop the weight gain! she thought.
"This Moo Shu Pork is also quite tasty and goes well with rice, are you having some?" Zhao Hui asked again.
"Of course! It’s not often I come here," replied Qin Wen, her chopsticks never pausing.
The dishes at Jiangyue Terrace Shandong Cuisine Restaurant tasted great and were quite satisfying to eat. Every dish ordered by the customers was almost always eaten completely. This circumstance also suggested that the business of Jiangyue Terrace would definitely be good.