Mapo Chen's is famous for its baked tofu that has the best flavor.

The curtains on the Wanfu Bridge move, and the drunken Mr. Chun in Guchun.

This is the poem "Bamboo Branch Poetry: Ode to Mapo Tofu" written specifically for Mapo Tofu by Feng Jiaji, a poet from the Qing Dynasty.

The Wanfu Bridge on the Waifu River in the north gate was washed away by the floods in Chengdu in 1947, so the store was moved to the current Shangheba Street. However, for the former regular customers, this was nothing more than an extra trip.

Just a few miles.

The name of the restaurant was also changed from the former Chen Xingsheng Restaurant, which lasted for nearly a hundred years from around 1862, to the current Chen Mapo Restaurant.

"Wow~"

The sound of meat being cooked brought back the old thoughts.

High-end ingredients often only require the simplest cooking methods. After a busy day, Master Xue has now started teaching mode.

He quickly put the marinated beef cubes into the pot. His face was illuminated by the fire in the stove, and the fine beads of sweat on his forehead were obviously signs of fatigue after working all day long.

But even so, Xue Xiangshun's expression remained focused.

With one hand, he held the handle on the edge of the iron pot, and with the other hand, he waved the shovel, which had been worn for many years and was only half-worn.

The beef that was originally cut and stuck together quickly separated after being rolled in oil and turned into beef cubes the size of soybeans. After being heated by the high temperature of the oil, the appearance of the fresh bright red beef began to quickly turn grayish white.

The unique meaty aroma of yellow beef came to the face, which made Chen Nian's belly, who had been busy all day without eating, couldn't help but issue an ultimatum to Chen Nian himself.

At this time, the beef cubes that are jumping and jumping under Master Xue's spatula are like firecrackers, constantly exploding their own fragrance.

Different from when I was busy before, my mind was not on this just now, so I didn’t feel much yet.

Now observe carefully, after the beef in the pot turns white, the color gradually begins to darken, and the final charm also begins the ultimate offensive, just like a sister with a broad mind and her skin gradually turns red under shyness.

"The oil should be slightly wide. When the temperature rises, add the beef and stir-fry slowly over low heat. The fresh beef grains will have moisture and will become crispy and chewy after frying. The more you chew, the more fragrant it becomes."

Smash it and smash it in your mouth as you listen to it, as if the beef cubes are in your mouth.

Although there is no real thing in his mouth, Chen Nian still feels the artistic conception.

"Indeed, it smells very good."

Master Xue nodded: "Wait until the beef spits out the oil and then it will be completely crispy. Then add an appropriate amount of salt, more chili powder, more Sichuan peppercorns, a little soy sauce, tempeh, and color and seasoning."

After adding these seasonings, the flavor quickly changed from the meaty aroma to a rich and spicy flavor.

Chen Nian understood the next steps. While he was watching, he had already boiled water on another stove, put the tofu in, and added a little salt.

The purpose is to remove the beany smell and the smell of brine.

The difference in taste between blanched tofu and unblanched tofu can only be clearly understood after eating more than 100 kilograms of aged tofu as a late-night snack.

Moreover, Chen Nian, who is a food professional, also knows that the high temperature of the water can also coagulate the protein in the tofu.

After Master Xue's beef cubes are fried, take out the tofu and simply drain it.

Master Xue added a little water to the pot, brought it to a boil, and poured all the tofu into the pot.

"Remember, when frying tofu, you can only push it. If you pull it back and forth, the tofu will break." As he said this, he added some Sichuan pepper powder again.

Watching Master Xue push the tofu gently, the bright red soup gradually penetrates into the tofu, slowly seeping in, silently and domineeringly.

The next step is to thicken the gravy. Chen Nian handed the prepared gravy to Xue Xiangshun.

The other party cleverly poured it along the wall of the pot.

The soup begins to thicken quickly and hangs firmly on the tofu, locking all the flavors inside.

Finally, sprinkle in a large amount of chopped green onion.

If you want to compare tofu with beauty, red makeup and green beauties are always suitable.

Chen Nian was already very hungry. He didn't feel this way when he was busy with Master Xue before, but now he just felt that this was a torture.

But this time, Chen Nian had already memorized all the steps.

For the next two nights, Chen Nian's late-night snack changed from tofu to Mapo Tofu, and the remaining dishes they had during the day and night were basically two plates of Mapo Tofu.

It wasn't until the next day that Chen Nian finally understood that the tofu he used to practice every night was not the unfinished tofu, but that Master Xue deliberately added some more and left it for him to practice.

I have been working as a chef for decades, so I know exactly how many dishes I use every day.

How could there be more?

Even if it's extra, why do you keep exactly one or two kilograms of tofu every day?

And now it’s exactly the amount of two plates of tofu.

"You have worked so hard, Master!" Chen Nian looked out the window at the night. Although it was the first day of the New Year, there were still few people wandering around the streets at night.

Chen Nian seemed to hear the master's voice waking up at night again.

I can't help but wonder if I will look like this when I reach middle age.

He turned around and looked at the two plates of mapo tofu that he had just fried. They were both in good color. When he took a piece of it with a spoon, it was steaming hot.

The tofu needs to be boiled, and the wife needs to gain weight.

"Aww."

"Hold the cock...hot, hot, hot..."

After all, Chen Nian was tricked by his own tofu.

Finally, I opened my mouth and kept breathing out the mist. After it cooled down a little, I swallowed it into my stomach with a gurgle.

Smash it, smash it.

"Tsk."

"It's salty."

Try another portion.

"Numb..."

I found a steamed bun and finished the two plates of mapo tofu. Although it was a bit salty, it didn't matter because of the steamed bun and water.

"Practice is over today and will continue tomorrow!"

In this way, Chen Nian started the work that was basically repeated every day.

The only differences are that the customers who come to the store are different every day, and the mapo tofu made every night is different.

Because in Xue Xiangshun's mouth, every condiment is in the right amount, and all these actions have become instinctive after cooking day after day.

Therefore, aging can only be considered by oneself.

After all, Master Xue's willingness to teach him these things without reservation is worthy of gratitude. In Chen Nian's heart, no matter whether this world is real or not, perhaps the real Xue Xiangshun in history has nothing to do with him.

But Xue Xiangshun is his master.

...

In the following days, Chen Nian's progress became greater and greater.

In just two months, the mapo tofu was ready to be served to guests’ tables.

Behind this is the sacrifice of 120 plates of mapo tofu aged for two months.

And in the process, he discovered that in his dream, whether he ate one or two kilograms of tofu every day for half a year, or two plates of strange-flavored Mapo tofu every night for two months, the home front was not lost.

Those who work hard will always receive gifts from God.

Chen Nian regards this as a small benefit.

In the first year after traveling to this world, Chen Nian spent time with Master Xue and the landlady.

A table of New Year's Eve dinner, two kilograms of bulk liquor, three people.

The familiar announcer with an emotional voice was still on the radio, and his words contained a bit more joy for welcoming the New Year.

The sound of firecrackers outside is endless, perhaps because of the legend of the Nian beast, or perhaps because this is the first Spring Festival after liberation.

But Master Xue put a piece of tofu into his mouth. After tasting the taste, he raised his head and sighed, and whispered: "After the New Year... I have to go to the army to cook. There was no food in the store before.

I just kept dragging him with him, and now he is calling me again, and Xiao Chen can get started, so after the Chinese New Year, I will..."

After the words fell, the two people on the other side fell silent.

After a while, the proprietress Lu Junqing raised her head and showed a relieved smile. She seemed to have known it for a long time: "Go ahead. Cooking in the army is a good job. Maybe you can get a pension when you retire."

Chen Nian silently got up and went back to the room where he was resting. After a while, he walked out again, holding a bag in his hand.
Chapter completed!