Chef at the University Canteen-Chapter 348 - 241: Far from Home, Stomach Still Longs for Hometown (3)

"In the afternoon, my agent called me saying there’s some urgent matter at the company that needs me to handle personally, so I have to go back."

After explaining briefly, Liu Xining continued,

"But although Chenchen is getting better now, she’s not completely recovered, and she seems to be addicted to the dishes you make. She can’t eat anything prepared by others at all.

So, she still needs to stay here for a while and gradually get used to food made by other people.

The matter at the company might take some time to sort out, and I’m not sure when I can return, so after I leave, I’ll need you, Xiaojiang, to help keep an eye on Chenchen whenever you have time..."

"Don’t mention any inconvenience, just rest assured, Senior Sister. Even if I’m busy, I will always find time to drop by occasionally as you instructed."

Jiang Yu thought for a moment and asked, "By the way, when are you leaving, Senior Sister?"

Liu Xining replied, "I’m waiting for my assistant to buy the ticket. If she can get one for tonight, I’ll leave tonight."

"I see, well, have her book a slightly later flight then. It’s nearly five o’clock now, you shouldn’t be rushing to catch a flight with an empty stomach."

Jiang Yu paused and said with a smile,

"Senior Sister, is your stomach inflammation better? If it’s okay, I’ll make some Jiangzhou dishes for you later. You’ve been here so long, and I’ve yet to cook you some hometown flavors!"

"Xiaojiang, you..."

Liu Xining couldn’t help but feel amused and exasperated. This little junior brother knows how to mess with people—luring her with hometown dishes when he knows she’s eager to return.

But she can’t resist the temptation!

She took a gentle breath and said,

"My stomach hasn’t hurt for a while. Since you want me to try some hometown dishes, I won’t hold back."

After a pause, she added, "I want to eat three-cup chicken, Gannan stir-fried fish, and pickled vegetables with Dongpo!" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Jiang Yu chuckled, "Just these three dishes?"

"Three dishes are enough—more would be wasted if we can’t finish them."

Liu Xining paused and sighed deeply, saying softly,

"Now I’m ’in a foreign land, with my stomach in my hometown’. There are so many hometown dishes I want to eat, but how could I have them all?

Being able to savor these three dishes to soothe my homesickness a little is already enough."

"Don’t be so sentimental, Senior Sister. It’s not like before, you can find Jiangzhou restaurants in Shanghai if you want some hometown taste."

Hearing her words, Jiang Yu couldn’t help but laugh and said,

"Alright, I’ll go prepare the dishes now. You and Sister Chen should come over soon. If there’s anything else, we’ll talk when we meet."

After hanging up the phone, Jiang Yu couldn’t help but shake his head with a smile, thinking, ’In a foreign land, with my stomach in my hometown’, is she trying to craft herself into a Lin Daiyu image?

Were it not for the times he cooked for her when she had stomach inflammation and saw her act coy, he might have believed her ghost stories!

Well, people in the entertainment industry mostly have dual nature—Liu Xining does, Xie Siqi does, and maybe Pan Jingchen too!

After putting his phone away, Jiang Yu stopped thinking about these matters, turned around, and entered the kitchen to start preparing.

Since Liu Xining needs to return to Shanghai tonight, he has to prepare the dishes for Liu Xining and the others first so they can eat and head to the airport.

Liu Xining ordered three dishes. He had made Gannan stir-fried fish several times, so doing it again wouldn’t be troublesome. However, three-cup chicken and pickled vegetables with Dongpo were new to him.

Three-cup chicken is one of Zhangjiang’s top ten classic dishes, and it’s not only a traditional Gannan dish but also a famous home-style dish in Taiwan.

Three-cup chicken uses chicken as the main ingredient, complemented with glutinous rice wine, green and red peppers, and more. After frying the chicken and caramelizing sugar, it’s stewed and finally poured over with sauce.

In an authentic Gannan recipe, the ’three cups’ refer to a cup of pork fat, a cup of rice wine, and a cup of soy sauce.

The method isn’t complicated: First, clean half of a fresh three-yellow chicken, chop it into pieces, and marinate with a tablespoon of rice wine, half a tablespoon of soy sauce, and a tablespoon of cornstarch.

Then clean the green and red peppers and cut them into rings, soak shiitake mushrooms and chop them into pieces, cut scallions into sections, slice ginger, and garlic into minced pieces.

Next, start by heating oil in a pan, stir-frying ginger slices and garlic until fragrant, then add the scallion sections, shiitake mushrooms, and marinated chicken pieces until they’re halfway cooked. Then add green and red pepper rings and stir to mix well.

Afterward, pour in a cup of pork fat, a cup of rice wine, and a cup of soy sauce, stir again to mix well, cover and bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer on low heat.

When the sauce is almost dried up, add a bit of sugar for flavor, and it’s ready to be served.

After cooking, this three-cup chicken should come out in a glossy red sauce, the meat tender and juicy, the taste sweet yet salty and fresh—a dish that leaves a lasting impression after tasting.

As for the other dish Liu Xining ordered, pickled vegetables with Dongpo, although not well-known, is actually a traditional specialty dish of Gannan, and it’s connected to the great literary figure Su Dongpo.

It is said that when Su Dongpo visited Gannan, he fell in love with this local dish ’Pickled Cabbage Stir-fry Pork Intestines’, and later, Gannan people named it ’Pickled Vegetables with Dongpo’ in his honor, also implying ’reading Dongpo’s poetry, savoring tastefully and meaningfully over time’.

The method for this dish isn’t difficult either. Just stir-fry pickled radish, pickled winter ginger, and pickled bulb garlic with washed and chopped pork intestines. But seasoning is the key.