Everyone had been chatting for quite a while without realizing it, and their mouths were dry. Su Jinrong asked Feng Yifan and Su Ruoxi to go together and prepare some tea and snacks.
"Yifan, bring some snacks and tea."
Feng Yifan and Su Ruoxi also agreed and walked towards the kitchen together.
While the couple was busy, Lin Ruifeng, at Lu Cuiling's invitation, also sat down. After a while of getting familiar with each other, he and Zhuang Zhebin chatted in whispers.
The three old men are still chatting together, reminiscing about the past and talking about the changes and experiences of the city.
Zhuang Zhebin was chatting with Lin Ruifeng, and he began to ask Lin Ruifeng questions, wanting to ask about Feng Yifan's cooking process in the kitchen.
Lin Ruifeng is a rather down-to-earth person, and when he heard Zhuang Zhebin's curious question, he told him everything he knew.
"When Master first came back, he was busy in the kitchen by himself, from morning till night, but he would prepare every ingredient and condiment in advance, so he could handle it by himself."
When Zhuang Zhebin heard this, he was actually not very interested. He was more interested in Feng Yifan's cooking skills.
"My uncle must be very good at knife and fire work, right?"
Lin Ruifeng didn't realize that this was a deliberate trap set by Zhuang Zhebin to get him to tell him about the situation in the kitchen. Hearing this, he felt that Zhuang Zhebin looked down on his master, and immediately said seriously: "Of course it's amazing, Master's knife skills are amazing."
Zhuang Zhebin then asked: "Oh? What about Yi Jue? Can you tell me more about it?"
Lin Ruifeng first asked back: "Have you ever seen chicken wings wrapped in rice?"
Zhuang Zhebin nodded and said, "What's so special about chicken wings wrapped in rice? Of course I've seen it, and I can make it, too."
Lin Ruifeng then asked: "So, when you make chicken wings wrapped in rice, can you remove the bones from the wing tips without damaging the skin and flesh at the wing tips?"
Zhuang Zhebin was stunned when he heard this, and then asked, "You mean, we can remove the bones at the tip of the chicken wings without damaging the skin and flesh at the tip of the wings?"
Seeing Zhuang Zhebin was stunned for a moment, Lin Ruifeng nodded proudly: "Yes."
Stunned again, Zhuang Zhebin hesitated for a while before shaking his head and saying, "I can't do this."
Lin Ruifeng was even more proud, and he raised his chin and said, "My master can do it, and I saw it with my own eyes. The master removed the bones from the wings and the wing tips without damaging the chicken wings, and then made chicken wings and rice for Ruoruo to eat."
Zhuang Zhebin was really confused. He was also learning cooking from his grandfather and father, and had seen his great-grandfather cook with his own eyes. He was also learning and practicing deboning.
But when it comes to removing the bones from the middle and tip of the chicken wings and keeping the skin intact, Zhuang Zhebin really can't do it. He doesn't even know if his great-grandfather can do it.
Before Zhuang Zhebin could open his mouth to ask, Zhuang Daozhong, who was sitting nearby and listening, replied: "It will take some effort for me to do this now."
Without waiting for Zhuang Zhebin to come back to his senses, Zhuang Daozhong continued, "In fact, this can be considered a basic skill. In many cases, the cuisine in our country emphasizes this kind of delicacy. As the saying goes, 'the finer the food, the better.'"
Zhuang Zhebin felt that it was the right decision to ask for leave from school and come here with his great-grandfather.
At this moment, Feng Yifan and his wife came out with tea and snacks.
When the snacks were placed in front of everyone, Zhuang Zhebin first looked at the snacks and said, "Hey, it's pea yellow? I didn't expect that you, uncle, can make such traditional snacks?"
But Zhuang Daozhong took a closer look and suddenly said with a smile: "This is not pea yellow, it should be pea cake, right?"
Feng Yifan nodded: "Yes, it is pea cake. I incorporated some elements of Western desserts into it. Please taste it, uncle."
Lin Ruifeng was very curious because he had never seen it before, so he asked Zhuang Zhebin in a low voice: "What are these pea yellow and pea cake?"
When Zhuang Zhebin saw Lin Ruifeng asking him, he immediately felt very proud and felt that he finally had a chance to show himself. So he cleared his throat first, and then introduced himself seriously.
"Pea yellow is a traditional snack in the imperial city. Later, it was improved by the imperial chefs at that time and became more delicate and soft. It is really delicious."
As Zhuang Zhebin spoke, he couldn't help but start to miss her.
He also introduced the production process to Lin Ruifeng. The whole process, from boiling the peas to adding sugar and mashing the peas into a sticky paste, was exactly the same as what Lin Ruifeng had seen his master do.
However, there is one step that is different, which is that Zhuang Zhebin said that screening is needed to filter out impurities and large particles.
Lin Ruifeng couldn't help but feel strange when he heard this: "But when I saw Master making this, he didn't sift it?"
Feng Yifan smiled and said, "Because I am not making pea yellow, but pea cake that has to maintain its grains and have a chewy texture. Okay, stop talking, come and try it."
After eating a piece, Zhuang Daozhong was surprised: "Oh? Your pea cake is very special. It has fruit juice and fruit added to it?"
Feng Yifan nodded and said, "Sure enough, I couldn't hide it from my uncle-master. Yes, I made some improvements by adding fruit juice and fruit pieces to it. This makes it more sweet and sour and can also reduce the amount of sugar."
Zhuang Daozhong nodded and said, "Well, your idea is very good. It is not only delicious but also healthy."
At this point, Zhuang Daozhong couldn't help but ask with a smile: "You should be making this for your daughter, right? Haha, everyone in Su's loves their daughters. Don't be like my Senior Brother Su and not let your daughter learn to cook?"
Hearing this joke, Feng Yifan laughed and said, "No, if my daughter really wants to learn in the future, I will naturally teach her."
Zhuang Daozhong nodded: "Well, times have changed, and some changes are indeed needed."
While Zhuang Daozhong was speaking, Zhuang Zhebin had already quickly picked up the second piece and started eating.
Lin Ruifeng couldn't help but say, "You've eaten too much, haven't you? Don't eat everything that Master made. If you do, Ruoru will have nothing to eat when she comes back. You need to be more restrained."
Zhuang Zhebin took two bites at a time, swallowed the pea cake in his mouth and said, "I can't help it, this tastes so good."
Zhuang Daozhong also picked up the second piece and said, "It really tastes good. It has a crunchy texture and the sweetness of fruit. It is traditional yet has some fresh elements. It's delicious."
Su Ruoxi smiled and said, "It's okay, you guys can eat yours, he has left some for my daughter, and what he gave to my daughter is different from what we eat."
Zhuang Zhebin couldn't help but ask curiously, "Is it still different?"
Su Ruoxi glanced at her husband and said, "He dotes on his daughter so much, he must make something better for her. It's impossible for him to make the same thing as us."
Seeing his wife spoiling things, Feng Yifan could only say, "You can't say that. Didn't you eat the same thing as your daughter?"
Zhuang Zhebin shouted, "Uncle, I should be considered a guest, right? And I am a junior, so can you give me a piece of the snacks you made for your daughter to taste?"
Feng Yifan refused decisively: "No."
Zhuang Zhebin was stunned by such a decisive rejection, and then asked: "Uncle, we are relatives, aren't you too direct?"
Feng Yifan smiled and said, "My daughter's food cannot be given to others without her consent."
Although Zhuang Zhebin was unwilling, he still could not get consent no matter how much he begged. In the end, he could only stare at the pea cake on the table, grab a piece and eat it in big mouthfuls to satisfy his craving.