Cut the wood ear mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms into strips, peel and dice the tomatoes, cut the tofu into small cubes, shred the enoki mushrooms, beat the eggs, chop the green onions, mince the ginger, and finally, slice the lean meat into strips. Add green onion and ginger juice, cooking wine, sesame oil, and mix evenly, then set aside to marinate for flavor...
Jiang Yu's knife skills can actually be considered average. Initially, the wood ear mushrooms were cut large and small, and sometimes needed additional cuts, but as he cut more vegetables, his knife skills visibly improved.
For others, this kind of progress might not be very noticeable, but Jiang Yu could clearly feel that his knife skills had improved.
This also confirmed from another angle his earlier speculation: carrying the Gourmet System indeed improved his culinary talent in a roundabout way.
However, Jiang Yu had no time for detailed reflection at this moment, as there were already students queuing up outside his window, and he needed to get the soup ready quickly.
"Are you making hot and sour soup?"
Seeing Jiang Yu handle all the ingredients properly, even Hu Zhihai, who didn't like eating vegetarian dishes, could tell what he was making. After all, this soup was too common and all southerners have tried it.
Jiang Yu nodded and said, "Yes, drinking hot and sour soup in summer boosts appetite and aids digestion, removes dampness and greasiness, and is much healthier than drinking beverages."
"That's right, a steaming hot and sour soup, with a sip that's both sour and spicy, paired with a soup-filled bun, it's absolutely amazing!"
Talking about it, Hu Zhihai immediately became animated, almost drooling as he urged,
"Hurry up, hurry up, save me a big bowl later!"
As for him previously claiming to be a carnivore and not eating these dishes, he had long forgotten about that.
Jiang Yu ignored him, placed the prepared ingredients aside, turned on the gas stove, lit it, and then poured cooking oil into the pot.
Once the oil in the pot heated up and smoked, he poured in the diced tomatoes and constantly stir-fried them until they turned into red oil, then added water to the pot and brought it to a boil, after which he successively added the sliced shiitake mushrooms, wood ear mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, tofu, and the marinated meat strips.
After boiling the ingredients on high heat for a minute or two, Jiang Yu took out a metal spice can from the side and added two large spoonfuls of pre-prepared seasoning paste into the pot.
This seasoning paste wasn't made casually; it was a secret recipe he exchanged with 2,180 Fortune Points from the System Mall. It can be said that the recipe for this seasoning paste is the key to making delicious and appetizing hot and sour soup.
As soon as the two large spoonfuls of seasoning paste dissolved in the pot, a rich and fragrant, sour and spicy aroma wafted into the air, making people drool irresistibly.
"Whoa! This is both sour and spicy; the smell is just so damn fragrant, I can't take it!"
Watching from the side, Hu Zhihai couldn't resist it upon inhaling the aroma and shouted loudly,
"Lao Jiang, I beg you, hurry up, I haven't eaten breakfast yet, and smelling this just makes me even hungrier!"
"Don't rush; it still needs a bit more cooking!"
Jiang Yu himself couldn't resist, quietly swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and quickly poured the already-beaten egg liquid into the pot while stirring it into shreds. Then he added water starch twice for thickening, turned down the heat, and simmered until it slightly boiled, after which he sprinkled the chopped green onions into the pot.
A fresh and pleasant onion fragrance instantly pierced through the nostrils.
At this point, the hot and sour soup was essentially done.
"Go ahead and taste how it is!"
Turning off the heat, Jiang Yu first ladled a small bowl, handed it to the impatiently waiting Hu Zhihai on the side, and smilingly reminded him,
"Take it easy, don't get blisters!"
"I won't, I won't!"
Hu Zhihai grinned from ear to ear, quickly took the bowl, and looked at it closely.
The appearance of the hot and sour soup was extremely appealing.
The tender white tofu, glossy black wood ear mushrooms, pink tomatoes, and golden shredded eggs...
These brightly colored ingredients with different textures came together from all directions, floating and sinking in the rich soup.
Adorned with tender green chopped green onions, the whole bowl of soup seemed to have been given life, becoming vibrant as a whole.
The soup had been thickened, the heat and aroma seemed to be locked in by a thin layer of film. Only when you got close could you smell the faintly sour and spicy scent.
This tantalizing presentation of wanting to resist yet desiring more made people even more unable to resist, just like a small hand scratching at your heart, making you itch uncontrollably.
Smelling this fragrance, Hu Zhihai couldn't hold back anymore. Without even using a spoon, he pursed his lips, blew a few times, then picked up the bowl and took a big sip.
Once the sip of hot and sour soup entered his mouth, his face instantly flushed red, and fine sweat beads visibly appeared on his forehead, soon merging into bean-sized droplets that slid down his temples.
After a good while, he finally swallowed the sip of soup, then immediately opened his mouth, panting, and exclaimed with surprise:
"So sour, so spicy, so satisfying! It's so damn exhilarating!"
At the end of August, Jiangzhou was still sweltering. As the temperature rose, the whole person felt drowsy and lacked energy.
With a mouthful of hot and sour soup, it forced out a whole body of sweat, making the person feel much more refreshed, even the body felt lighter.
Just as Hu Zhihai was amazed by the flavor of the hot and sour soup, someone suddenly came to the window:
"Boss, I, I'm here, can I come in now?"
Hu Zhihai turned to look and it turned out to be the girl from last night who came and volunteered to work as a server.
"Oh, you're here, come in first."
He smiled and nodded to Yan Tongtong, then turned around and shouted inside,
"Lao Jiang, the girl who came for work-study has arrived."
Jiang Yu was just about to continue making buns when he heard this. He put down what he was doing and came out.
It was already late last night, so he actually didn't ask in detail and didn't even know the basic information about the girl, so he needed to get to know her again now.
Upon coming out and taking a look, Jiang Yu then realized that this girl looked quite pleasant.
She was tall and well-proportioned, with a neatly cut short bob hairstyle and her sun-kissed skin made her appear healthy and energetic. Her oval face featured two big, lively eyes, making her look both expressive and spirited.
At this moment, the girl was standing with confidence, chatting with Hu Zhihai.
"Come, let me introduce you, this is the owner of our bun shop, Jiang Yu, and he personally makes the soup-filled buns."
Seeing Jiang Yu approach, Hu Zhihai first gave that brief introduction to the girl, then turned back with a smile to Jiang Yu and said,
"This is Yan Tongtong, a third-year student in the Literature Department, and she's a local from Jiangzhou. She came to apply for the server position to improve her skills.
Of course, the main reason is that she loves our shop's soup-filled buns and hopes to share them with more food enthusiasts through her own efforts."