Chapter 278: 13 Spices

Gu Zhong had just taken a bite when Bao’er looked at her dad and started crying. She wailed and shouted, "Waaaah, Daddy’s stealing my meat—"

This made Gu Zhong blush deeply, but the lamb skewers were just too delicious. He couldn’t help but take another bite before reluctantly handing the small remaining piece to Bao’er.

"Delicious. This is really delicious."

"It is delicious. This is sure to sell well."

While everyone was still eating, Gu Fei started grilling the squid.

Ping’an City wasn’t far from the sea, so there was plenty of seafood, both dried and fresh.

Gu Fei hadn’t seen anyone eating oysters yet. She planned to ask around about it in a few days.

’Grilled oysters, sprinkled with minced garlic... My god, just thinking about it makes my mouth water.’

A short while later, the squid was also grilled and handed out to everyone. Gu Fei then started grilling potatoes and chives.

Boss Zhang’s wife, from the Yu Family, had been watching from the side for a while. She suddenly spoke up, "Little Fei, how about you let me give it a try?"

Gu Fei nodded. "Sure, Aunt Yu. Give it a try."

Aunt Yu delightedly stood before the grill. Imitating Gu Fei, she brushed on oil, flipped the skewers, and sprinkled on salt and chili powder, looking quite skillful.

Gu Fei took a skewer of grilled potato slices to taste. She nodded and said, "It’s pretty good, but you could let them get a bit more charred."

She turned to the crowd and said, "This barbecue... this is pretty much the whole process."

"When the food is cooked through and how much seasoning to add—that will all depend on your own technique and judgment."

Making food also required talent. Whoever made it taste better would naturally sell more. This was as much as she could help them.

Gu Fei then pointed to the lamb and squid. "For the meats, I marinate them first. One or two hours is about right."

She then pointed to the chili powder and said, "I’ve also added some spices to this chili powder. You could call it a secret recipe, I suppose."

"If any of you need it, you can buy it from my shop. I’ll just charge you for the labor."

The chili powder contained cumin powder, pepper powder, and her own blend of Thirteen-Spice.

The Thirteen-Spice was a mix of various spices, containing more than ten types like amomum, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, Sichuan peppercorns, and star anise, all bought from an apothecary.

Gu Fei didn’t plan on telling everyone this recipe.

After all, with so many people, secrets don’t stay secret for long. If someone got greedy and sold the recipe, everyone’s business would suffer.

The village chief’s second daughter-in-law, Hongxia, also felt her hands itching to try. She walked over to a grill, picked up a few skewers of chives, and said, "Let me try, too."

Gu Fei nodded. "Everyone should take a turn and try it out."

She had brought plenty of ingredients today precisely so that everyone could practice.

Bao’er threw down the bamboo skewer in her hand and tugged on her mother. "I want more meat! Grill some meat for me."

Ms. Qian saw there were still plenty of uncooked lamb skewers on the small table nearby. She wanted to go up and grill them, but there was no room.

So Gu Fei pointed to several barbecue grills under the veranda. "There are some grills over there. I had them custom-made at the blacksmith’s. There’s one for each family. Consider it a gift from me to all of you. Anyone who wants to try, go grab a grill and have a go."

Everyone was overjoyed at this wonderful surprise.

One by one, they rushed to the veranda to get a barbecue grill.

Once the grills were moved into the courtyard, everyone looked at the iron frames, thinking they must have been expensive. An uncle said gratefully, "How can we ever thank Little Fei? This must have cost a lot of money."

Tie Niu boomed, "You’re right! I’m the one who ordered them. Each one cost 800 cents!"