A beloved Izakaya is not easy to find.
Because of the popularity of short videos in recent years, those small Izakayas with decent flavors and decor often quickly become internet-famous spots, turning into noisy check-in landmarks!
Living in a constantly changing super-first-tier city, it's even harder to experience something like the plots in gourmet movies and TV shows.
To get to know a group of neighbors in a long-standing Izakaya on the street corner.
Over the years, trust and tacit understanding grow.
Fortunately.
There's Sosuke's Izakaya.
There are many dishes here, but most of them are small dishes to go with drinks.
From the simplest egg fried rice, cold Tofu, and sake-steamed clams, to slightly more complex grilled skewers, Shumai, and Sashimi.
It takes less than an hour to get an extremely delicious meal!
… …
After wiping clean the entire sparrow's rhythm set of kitchenware.
Sosuke, now with a little free time, secretly glanced at Nakiri Erina and Nakiri Mana, the mother and daughter.
He remembered the original plot, where their relationship was very bad, always arguing and blaming each other whenever they met.
But in the Izakaya.
One wave of customers after another had left.
Yet, they kept confiding in each other, chatting non-stop!
"Heh heh, the progress of their relationship is quite unexpected," Sosuke muttered to himself as he withdrew his gaze.
Soon, a new customer appeared in the Izakaya; he was slightly short, with a deliberately dyed golden-yellow forehead, and often walked with his hands clasped behind his head, exuding a certain "playboy" demeanor.
As soon as he entered, he kept scrutinizing Sosuke, before finally stepping forward and asking, "You are Zhang's Restaurant, the Chef of this Izakaya, right?"
"Yes!"
"I am."
Sosuke nodded in response.
"It really is you. Just as Beijo Miyako said, your looks are indeed not far from Eishi Tsukasa."
Kuga Terunori's eyes flickered, and after straightening his clothes slightly, he continued seriously, "Let me introduce myself. I am the current Elite Ten's Eighth Seat of Totsuki, the captain of Totsuki's largest Chinese Cuisine Research Association, the First Chinese cuisine Master… Kuga Terunori!"
"Just state your name."
"Here, all customers are treated equally, regardless of their status."
Sosuke frowned, feeling a little embarrassed. He thought the original "protagonist" Yukihira Soma was already childish enough, but…
This Kuga Terunori was even more so.
Of course, their personalities were indeed very similar, both like young calves unafraid of tigers.
Kuga, as a first-year student, dared to directly challenge Eishi Tsukasa to a Shokugeki at the Autumn Election.
Although the final result was a complete defeat with a score of 5:0, his boldness and courage earned him a solid reputation at Totsuki!
"Ahem."
"I heard you have a rule here where customers can order anything they want?"
Kuga Terunori suddenly felt awkward, perhaps he also thought his previous words were very frivolous and out of line.
So, he could only pretend to cough and ask Sosuke.
"That's right, there is such a rule. I heard you mention Beijo Miyako earlier, so I presume she introduced you?" Sosuke asked back.
"She said you are the true Chinese cuisine Master."
"I certainly don't agree with that, so I wanted to come and see your cooking skills."
After speaking, Kuga Terunori stroked his chin with one hand, thought for a moment, and then said, "Can I have a plate of Gong Bao Chicken first?"
"You can."
"Please wait."
Sosuke shrugged, then returned to the kitchen counter.
… …
Cluck cluck cluck!
Soon, a crisp and clear chicken crowing sound appeared in the Izakaya.
And Sosuke, who had grabbed a live chicken from the underground ingredient storage, had a hint of killing intent in his clear eyes.
The chicken he held, probably aware of its impending fate, kept flapping its wings, trying to struggle free.
Seeing this, Sosuke twisted the chicken's neck even harder.
"Cluck cluck cluck, cluck cluck cluck…"
The chicken cried out again.
It was even louder than before, truly a voice practiced for two and a half years!
Sosuke, with a serious expression, took out another red string, tied the chicken's feet, and then firmly pressed it onto the cutting board.
Immediately after, without a word, he picked up a kitchen knife and slit the chicken's throat to drain its blood.
Killing a chicken might be commonplace for a chef, but seeing how smoothly and decisively he performed the entire process, Kuga Terunori couldn't help but stare in awe.
After draining the blood, Sosuke wiped the tiny bit of chicken blood remaining on the kitchen knife with a disinfectant wipe, then plucked the feathers, and proceeded to cut it.
He placed the chicken with its belly down, made a small incision on the left side of its right wing on the back, removed the crop, and finally pulled out the internal organs from the lower incision for the next step of processing.
After that, he cut off the two chicken wings.
He deboned them, peeled off the skin, and washed them clean.
Then, using the back of the kitchen knife, he gently patted the chicken thigh meat, and finally proceeded to cut it.
Only dazzling flashes of knife light were seen, and the chicken thigh meat on the cutting board was instantly cut by Sosuke into chicken cubes only 1 cubic centimeter in size!
"So fast… I couldn't even see his knife skills."
Staring intently at the perfectly square and uniform chicken cubes, Kuga Terunori couldn't help but show an expression of disbelief.
… …
Water and fire cannot coexist, but their harmony is the essence and soul of cooking.
Chinese cuisine, by its nature, emphasizes the importance of heat control in its diverse and colorful cooking techniques.
However, knife skills are also very important.
And it's no exaggeration to say that knife skills can completely change the texture and taste of a dish.
For example, carrot; if it's cut into carrot shreds as fine as vermicelli, it becomes tender yet not mushy, greatly improving the texture and making it easier to absorb flavor.
Therefore, Kuga has always advocated knife skills more than others, and he also deeply understands that a true Chinese cuisine Master should possess proficient knife skills.
The knife skills displayed by Sosuke before him.
Made him feel inferior, and he was even more eager for the upcoming Gong Bao Chicken dish.
After that, Sosuke picked up a bowl.
He added half a spoon of oil, cooking wine, and pepper, then added the chicken cubes and stirred, followed by starch mixed with water and stirred, finally setting it aside to marinate for 10 minutes.
During these 10 minutes, he quickly diced the cucumber.
He cut the green onion into sections, then took another bowl and added salt, sauce, vinegar, sugar, cooking wine, and ginger slices, mixing and stirring them.
A black wok was already hot, he poured a little oil into it, added Sichuan peppercorns, and after the spicy aroma came out, he added the green onion sections, then the marinated chicken cubes, and began to stir-fry.
Finally, when the chicken cubes turned golden, he added peanuts.
He continued to stir-fry a few more times, and finally thickened the sauce with a cornstarch slurry before serving.
Thus, a steaming hot plate of Gong Bao Chicken was completed.
… …
Upon closer inspection, this plate of Gong Bao Chicken had a particularly beautiful appearance.
The chicken, slightly glistening with oil, and the plump peanuts coated with chili, seemed to be wearing a red robe, like a painting of a human paradise.
Its aroma was so intoxicating that even a slight sniff could make one almost fall into a daze.
At the same time.
The sauce, thickened three times, was a deep brown color.
Oil blossoms floated on top, making every ingredient tender and juicy.
The long, thin chili peppers were vibrantly colored, and a subtle spiciness permeated the rich sauce, bringing the passion contained within this dish to Kuga Terunori, who was close by.
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