Chapter 904: Chapter 384: Young Talent Is the Future! Father-in-law Brings Golden Pomfret, of Course It’s Pan-Fried!

Dry frying and dry burning may have the same names, but their flavors and textures turn out completely different.

Dry burning is a braising method; however, it uses less broth. After cooking, the broth is reduced to just the oils, making the dish rich and the meat tender.

On the other hand, dry frying involves marinating the fish in advance and then pan-frying it until both sides are golden and crispy.

Compared to deep-fat frying, dry frying has less of a greasy feeling and a more intense fragrance.

It’s already four o’clock. Lin Xu brought some snacks and brine dishes for Shen Guofu to enjoy first, while he took the fish to the kitchen. Whether dry burning or dry frying, both require marinating the fish in advance.

The Golden Pomfret has its fins, which are prone to burning, trimmed off, and its tail cut into a "V" shape. Then it is gutted and thoroughly cleaned.

After finishing that, score the fish body with crosshatch cuts using a kitchen knife, then begin marinating.

Take a large piece of ginger and smash it with the back of a knife, place it in the basin, and then take a handful of washed scallions, knead them into a ball, and put them in the basin as well.

Next, add three small spoons of salt and rub the scallions and ginger with your hands to extract the juice.

Drizzle the extracted scallion and ginger juice over the fish body, followed by a large spoon of Rice Wine, a tablespoon of Light Soy Sauce, and a small spoon of white pepper, then mix everything to ensure the fish is coated with the marinade.

Finally, cover the fish with the rubbed scallions and ginger, cover it with cling wrap, and refrigerate it.

Refrigerating allows for deeper marination of the fish, making it more delicious when eaten.

Dry frying the Golden Pomfret requires at least half an hour of marination, but for dry burning, only a short marination is needed before cooking.

While Lin Xu was busy, he didn’t forget to arrange for the kitchen to prepare some good meals for the family.

"Wei Qian, save me a serving of Ginger Duck; my mother-in-law likes this, make sure it’s well cooked."

"No problem."

"Xinghai, give me a serving of sizzling fatty intestines; my father-in-law hasn’t had meat in a long time, give him something indulgent to boost his spirits."

"Sure thing, that’s easy."

"Yizhou, prepare a serving of Wensi Tofu; Uncle Tan is a man of taste, it’s rare for him to visit, make him a more refined dish."

"Okay, Boss, I’ll prepare it now."

"Chezi, is the mutton soaked enough? Once it’s ready, I’ll start making Braised Mutton; we’re having mutton for dinner tonight."

Upon hearing they’re having Braised Mutton, everyone in the kitchen got excited.

It’s quite cold now in the evening, the temperature has even dropped to single digits, it’s indeed time to have some mutton to replenish the body.

With so many people in the shop, they’ll be eating twenty to thirty pounds of mutton in one meal.

This is something other shops wouldn’t dream of, but at Lin Ji, it’s just a routine meal.

When Guo Xinghai first came, he wasn’t used to it; the employee meal doesn’t restrict cost and allows employees to eat even better than the customers, such wasteful behavior.

But later he realized, the wasted cost is negligible compared to the increase in efficiency.

Only when employees eat well will they be motivated to work hard, and life would seem hopeful and promising to them.

If you play tricks with the employees, ultimately, you end up disadvantaging yourself.

Surely, after this meal, when customers ask the waitstaff what they had for dinner, they will proudly speak out the words "Braised Mutton."

This pride and dignity are something you don’t see on the faces of other restaurant employees.

In a short few months, Lin Ji has become a new star in the Beijing dining industry and is seen as a "work haven" by countless culinary professionals, largely due to this pride and dignity.

For decades, every industry has emphasized "home at the factory," "home at the shop," "home at the company," but genuinely treating employees like family is something very few enterprises do.

Lately, Guo Xinghai has felt deeply about this and believes the management of his own restaurant should learn from Lin Ji.

After Shen Baobao gets off work, Han Shuzhen, Chen Yan, Zeng Xiaoqi, Dou Wenjing, and others also finish their shifts to come to have dinner, all knowing they will be having braised mutton tonight, hence no one wants to miss it.

Lin Xu has the Braised Mutton stewing and also begins to prepare the dry-burn fish.

Then he takes the marinated Golden Pomfret out of the refrigerator, wipes off the surface moisture with kitchen paper, and begins the dry frying.

Heat the pan, add oil to coat it.

Repeat the coating twice, add a little bottom oil to the pan, heat it, and then place the Golden Pomfret in to start frying.

Before frying, the marinated Golden Pomfret needs its surface moisture wiped dry to prevent oil-splattering accidents, causing potential mishaps in the kitchen.

The fish is added to the pan, must not be flipped, use medium heat to fry slowly, lightly shake the wok while frying.

This not only allows the bottom oil to better fry the fish but also helps to release the fish skin from the pan, preventing tearing and sticking.

When the fish body is nearly done frying, you need to tilt the wok to fry the fish head and tail as well.

This step is often overlooked in the frying fish process.

When one side is done, use the flipping technique to fry the other side as well.

Once both sides are fried to a crispy golden, use a spoon to tap for a crunching sound, then it’s ready to be plated.

"Come, come, try today’s dry-fried Golden Pomfret; it needs to be eaten hot, the crust loses its crispy texture once it cools, that’s the essence of dry frying fish."

Upon hearing this, everyone started sampling the dish with their chopsticks.

Shen Baobao inserted her chopstick into the fish body, hearing the crispy crunchy sound, immediately seduced by the noise:

"I love the crispy crusted fish; the sound alone is mouthwatering."

She picked up a large piece, tasted it in her mouth, the crust was still hot, filled with rich roasted aroma, chewy and crispy, while the meat inside was remarkably tender.

The meat was well-marinated, with a subtle salty-sweet flavor and the taste of scallion and ginger.

"Wow, this Golden Pomfret is super delicious, the crust is so crispy, it just melts right into my heart."

"Indeed, this fish skin is fried so deliciously."

"Tasty, tasty, come old Tan, let’s have one."

"I haven’t been here for a meal in a while, unexpectedly, Xiao Xu’s skills have progressed so much, even making something seemingly simple yet challenging like dry-fried fish so well."

Tan Yajun clinked glasses with Shen Guofu, then continued eating the crispy golden dry-fried fish.

While eating, Chezi brought over a serving of Ginger Duck:

"Just off the stove, it’s a bit hot, everyone be cautious."

Lin Xu placed a table mat on the table, Chezi put down the large clay pot on it, then used a cloth to lift the lid, letting the aroma of ginger mixed with duck meat waft out of the pot.

Han Shuzhen loves ginger; smelling it, she couldn’t help but take a deep breath:

"This Ginger Duck smells just comforting."

Tan Yajun, a gourmet, is familiar with the Ginger Duck from the Southeast Coast; he said with a smile:

"Ginger Duck is perfect for autumn and winter; never mind the strong spiciness of old ginger and its fiery character, paired with the cold nature of duck cooked together, it’s aromatic and delicious. The heat from the old ginger gets entirely balanced by the duck, and the chill of the duck also dissipates thanks to the ginger, making them perfect partners..."

While he marvels, Lin Xu’s mind was racing.

If old ginger can neutralize Muscovy Duck’s chill, surely, it can also counterbalance kelp’s coldness?

How about experimenting with using old ginger for it?

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