I'm the Culinary God-Chapter 511 - 257: Burn the Turtle! Stew the Turtle! Another Happy Father-in-Law Meal Tonight! [Subscribe Please]_2
"Girl, your cooking skills are really amazing, way better than your mom’s. She can only make simple home-style meals and still often messes them up," Lin Hongqi said.
Shen Guofu glanced guiltily towards the stairs, then chuckled dryly. "Well, she’s not here right now..."
After tasting the steamed egg, Chen Meijuan and Lin Hongqi couldn’t stop praising it.
This time, the praise was genuine.
This was because the steamed egg, whether in terms of texture, flavor, or presentation, was perfect. You wouldn’t necessarily find a dish this good even in a typical restaurant.
After all, restaurants had to consider costs and wouldn’t use ingredients as lavishly as Shen Baobao could.
For the hot oil-drizzling step, she had various Seasoning Oils to choose from, such as pork lard, chicken fat, and shrimp oil.
After the meal, Shen Guofu and his daughter accompanied Lin Hongqi and his wife to the residential area out back. They planned to drink tea and chat while waiting for dinner.
After seeing his parents off, Lin Xu was just about to go upstairs to check on the dinner preparations when Shu Yun approached him, smiling.
"Boss, how do we drink that fruit vinegar? Could you teach us?"
Teach? I think you just want to taste it, right?
"It’s not busy right now. I’ll mix some for you, but don’t drink too much. A small cup a day is enough."
"Okay, okay."
The fruit vinegars had already been moved to the upstairs storage room. Lin Xu took a glass pitcher, the kind usually used for Pumpkin Soup, and filled it with some of the vinegar.
The fruit vinegar was a beautiful amber color, and in the glass pitcher, it looked quite high-end.
Lin Xu added a few spoonfuls of honey to the pitcher, adjusting the amount based on the vinegar, then stirred it thoroughly with a long chopstick until the honey was evenly dispersed.
Once it was well mixed, he poured a small cup for himself to taste.
The flavor was sweet and sour, with a strong fruity aroma.
Lin Xu didn’t know if it was actually good for one’s health, but it certainly felt pleasant to drink.
"How is it, Boss? Tasty?"
"It’s quite good," Lin Xu replied. "Take this and let everyone try some. If they all like it, I’ll buy some good quality fruit later and make another batch."
Hearing this, Shu Yun’s face immediately lit up with a delighted surprise.
"Ha! I must have done something truly wonderful in a past life to deserve a boss as good as you!"
"No, it must be *I* who did something truly wonderful to have such an excellent employee like you."
After this round of mutual flattery, Shu Yun carried the glass pitcher downstairs to share the fruit vinegar with the waitresses.
A daily cup of fruit vinegar might have minimal effects on one’s complexion. However, if it could lift everyone’s spirits and positively contribute to their work, then it was worthwhile.
Lin Xu planned to find some time to buy some better quality fruit and make more at his father-in-law’s villa. The villa’s second basement level, much like a cellar, was ideal for making these kinds of fermented beverages.
After Shu Yun left, Wei Qian curiously asked, "Fruit vinegar can be homemade, so fruit wine should be possible too, right?"
Lin Xu nodded and told him, "It’s possible, but I wouldn’t recommend making your own fruit wine. Homemade versions can easily produce methanol. Fruit vinegar is comparatively simpler; at worst, it might spoil, but there are no other harmful side effects."
Hearing about methanol, Wei Qian, who had been contemplating brewing some grape wine, immediately gave up the idea.
Forget it, forget it. My life is more important. It’s better to just buy it if I want to drink some in the future.
"Ah, this fruit vinegar is delicious! So sweet and sour!"
"I feel different already, just from drinking it."
"Exactly! Just look at Manager Shu—her complexion is glowing! It must be from drinking the fruit vinegar."
"..."
At the first-floor service counter, after drinking the fruit vinegar Shu Yun had brought, the waitstaff looked as though they had just consumed an Elixir.
The fruit vinegar itself wasn’t the main point. What truly mattered was that the boss remembered to share good things with his employees. This feeling of being valued was what everyone cherished most.
Ever since they started working here, the boss almost never ate separately. Whatever he wanted to eat, he would eat it together with the employees.
Staff meals at other restaurants were typically capped at five yuan per person, or even less, but Lin Ji had never imposed a cost limit on them.
Who wouldn’t appreciate a boss like that?
After everyone had finished their small cup, Shu Yun announced, "Alright, now that you’ve had your drink, get back to work diligently! I’ll try to prepare a pitcher for you all every day."
This beverage wasn’t meant for heavy drinking. Even after everyone had one small cup, half a pitcher still remained. At this rate of consumption, a good amount would likely still be left even when the boss finished brewing the new batch of fruit vinegar.
Hearing that it might become a daily treat, the waitstaff were even more delighted.
"Thank you, Manager Shu!"
"We’ll work hard!"
"Manager Shu, Boss, please rest assured!"
「Four o’clock in the afternoon.」
Xie Baomin burst through the shop door, full of energy.
Instead of going upstairs, he made a beeline for the seafood tanks near the service counter.
Catching sight of the softshell turtles inside, he couldn’t help but exclaim, "Mm, these are definitely wild! And look at the size—absolutely top-grade among wild turtles!"
As he was observing them, Lin Xu walked over.
"My father-in-law wants to eat ’Farewell My Concubine,’ and he’d also like turtle soup. Senior Brother, could you teach me?"
"Can I? Of course, I can! Absolutely!"
The so-called ’Farewell My Concubine’ is essentially a dish made with softshell turtle and chicken. It’s quite common, with regional variations like braising, simmering in a soup, or clear stewing.
Xie Baomin used a hand net to scoop the largest softshell turtle out of the tank. "This one is fat and large. We’ll braise it with chicken later."
Then, he netted another one—not as large, but quite firm and well-proportioned. "This one is good for soup. We’ll steam it in the steam cabinet. While it’s steaming, add some angelica root, goji berries, and such. Drinking that soup is so potent, it’ll practically make your nose bleed!"
