Chapter 216: Strange-Flavor Eggplant
Chapter 216: Chapter 216: Strange-Flavor Eggplant
After breakfast, the Bai Family’s delivery truck arrived again.
After unloading the ingredients and signing the invoice, Shen Lu sent Bai Wanwan a message.
Shen Lu: Just signed for today’s delivery. Your family’s eggplants look great. I’ll make you some stuffed eggplant when you get back.
Bai Wanwan: Yay! I can’t wait to come back! Just three more days, and I’ll be back in the Imperial City!
Shen Lu replied with a sticker and ended the conversation.
She adjusted the side dishes based on the ingredients that had been delivered.
She kept the shredded potatoes and baby bok choy, but replaced the other two with Strange-Flavor Eggplant and stir-fried cucumber.
She also added a soup of the day, which customers could buy for just 5 Star Coins a bowl.
This was one of Shen Lu’s minor countermeasures against the Commerce Association, though it wasn’t much.
Strange-Flavor Eggplant was a personal favorite of Shen Lu’s. The dish was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a sweet and sour flavor that whetted the appetite. Served with rice, she could wolf down two bowls of it.
"Strange-Flavor Eggplant? Is it any good? I don’t like eggplant. I think it’s tasteless," Xin Yu stated his preference bluntly.
"Well, I’ll make a batch in a bit for you all to try."
Shen Lu called Lin Zhou in. Just like with the Steamed Fish Head with Chopped Chilies last time, she needed his help to film a video.
Lin Zhou was helpless to refuse, but he was still quite cooperative. After all, he was also curious what Strange-Flavor Eggplant tasted like.
She removed the stems, cut the eggplants in half, then halved them again, removed the core, and sliced them diagonally into thin pieces.
Under Lin Zhou’s control, the thin slices flew in an orderly line into a basin of salted water. After soaking for five minutes, they were removed, drained, coated in a moderate amount of starch, and then deep-fried in a wok until they firmed up and changed color.
For this part, Shen Lu zoomed the camera in, getting a bunch of shots of the wok.
When scooping out the fried eggplant, she even did a little flourish with the spider strainer, pulling out all the pieces in one go while everyone was distracted.
Next came stir-frying the sauce. She poured in the fried eggplant, stir-fried it quickly to coat each piece evenly, and sprinkled sesame seeds on top before taking it off the heat, adding aroma and color.
To finish, she struck that classic Kitchen King pose with her arms crossed.
After editing the Steamed Fish Head with Chopped Chilies video last time, she was quite satisfied with the final shot and planned to use it as her signature ending from now on.
"Boss, is this the Strange-Flavor Eggplant? It looks delicious," Xin Yu said, playing the part of an appreciative audience.
Shen Lu pushed the dish forward. "You all try some. See if the flavor needs any adjustments."
The staff all picked up their chopsticks, grabbed a piece of eggplant, and popped it into their mouths.
The first sensation was crispiness, immediately followed by a sweet and sour flavor. As they bit through the crispy shell, their teeth met the soft, tender inside, and a faint spiciness spread through their mouths.
"This is incredible!" Xin Yu couldn’t help but grab another piece. "I just had breakfast not long ago, but after two bites of this Strange-Flavor Eggplant, I’m hungry again."
Deng Ying nodded in fervent agreement. "I’ve never had eggplant with this kind of flavor and texture before. I’m sure a lot of people will love this dish."
Shu Meng savored the taste, guessing most of the seasonings Shen Lu had used.
She sighed inwardly. ’Boss Shen is so imaginative. If it were me, I never would have thought of preparing eggplant this way.’
Song Zhigao took one bite and put down his chopsticks. He didn’t show it on his face, but he was deeply moved.
He had only seen eggplant prepared in common ways, like simply stir-fried or steamed and served cold with a dressing.
This was the first time he’d seen a method like Shen Lu’s, where it was fried first and then seasoned.
It was unexpectedly delicious.
’Could other vegetables be prepared this way too?’
After the taste test, seeing that no one had any suggestions, Shen Lu had everyone start their work.
Since this was the first time they were making Strange-Flavor Eggplant, Shen Lu was in charge of coating the slices and making the sauce, while the others handled the other steps.
[Ding! New mission issued: Sell 580 sets of Braised Pork Belly, 480 sets of Kung Pao Chicken, and 130 sets of Steamed Fish Head with Chopped Chilies. Achieve a total revenue of 110,000 Star Coins, with customer satisfaction at three stars or higher. Time limit: eight hours.]
The mission was issued just as the food prep was nearly finished.
Seeing that there wasn’t much left for her to do in the kitchen, Shen Lu sat down behind the front counter to edit the video.
Just as she finished uploading it, it was time to open. Wang Daguo opened the doors, and customers started trickling in.
The number of customers was visibly smaller.
Even though she had anticipated this, Shen Lu couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.
But she quickly shook off her disappointment and greeted the customers with a smile.
"Huh, there are new side dishes today!"
A customer immediately spotted the Strange-Flavor Eggplant and stir-fried cucumber. "Those look good. I’ll have those two side dishes."
Cai Su efficiently served her and asked, "We have a new soup of the day today, available for just 5 Star Coins. Would you like a bowl?"
"5 Star Coins? That cheap? It’s not just hot water with some salt, is it?"
Xin Yu chimed in, "You shouldn’t joke like that! Our boss is the most conscientious person around; she’d never do something so unscrupulous. It’s pickled cabbage and tofu soup. It’s nice and sour, really whets your appetite."
"I’ll take a bowl then."
"I’ll have a bowl too. Can I get some extra rice? I want to make soup-soaked rice."
...
The customers took their seats after getting their food and started with a sip of the hot soup.
As the weather was turning cooler, having a mouthful of hot soup was incredibly comforting.
The customer who ordered the Strange-Flavor Eggplant eagerly picked up a piece and ate it. The sweet, sour, crispy, and tender eggplant instantly captured her heart.
"This eggplant is so delicious!"
Her companion hadn’t ordered the eggplant, choosing two other dishes instead. Hearing this, she quickly said she wanted to try some too.
"You can only have a little bit."
"I know, I’ll just take two pieces."
Under her companion’s watchful, hawk-like gaze, the girl didn’t dare take more, grabbing only two pieces as promised.
Mmm!
’This eggplant is sweet and sour, with a tiny hint of spice at the end. The texture is crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It’s strange, but it makes you want to keep eating more and more.’
’Waaah, I regret it! I shouldn’t have gotten the shredded potatoes and baby bok choy!’
’I wonder if they’ll still have Strange-Flavor Eggplant as a side dish tomorrow. It won’t be for today only, will it?’
"Don’t worry, everyone, we’ll continue to offer Strange-Flavor Eggplant tomorrow," Shen Lu assured every customer who came to ask. "However, the side dishes will be rotated irregularly, so you can look forward to new dishes in the future!"
Customers might not have loyalty, but she could give them a reason they had to come back.
Just as business in the restaurant was booming, three people arrived outside.
To be precise, it was a middle-aged couple carrying a stretcher. Lying on it was a young man with a bruised and swollen face, his right arm twisted at a bizarre angle, with blood dripping down.
Because the customers were blocking her view, Shen Lu didn’t notice the three people at first. Ye Fan and Lin Zhou assumed they were just passersby until they blocked the restaurant’s entrance, and the two realized something was wrong.
"What’s going on? They’re blocking the doorway, we can’t even get in."
The couple said nothing, just lowered their heads and wiped their eyes. The young man on the stretcher kept groaning "Ow, ow, ow," irritating everyone who heard him.