Chapter 1428 - 557: Pickled Spicy Kimchi, Roasted Pumpkin Seeds, Hundreds of Delicacies, but Braised Goose Reigns Supreme!

Chapter 1428: Chapter 557: Pickled Spicy Kimchi, Roasted Pumpkin Seeds, Hundreds of Delicacies, but Braised Goose Reigns Supreme!

With that jump, it startled the lion-head goose inside so much that it suddenly flipped over, the iron cage toppled, and Dundun also fell to the ground.

"You really are both noob and playful. I already told you this big goose isn’t something you can mess with, but you just wouldn’t listen..."

Shen Jiayue set the iron cage upright again, then picked Dundun up into her arms, letting the little guy keep some distance so it wouldn’t get bitten by the big goose later.

"A goose’s beak is really powerful. If it bites the fur off your butt, let’s see what you do then."

Hearing that made Dundun’s hind legs tremble, and the look it gave the lion-head goose changed as well.

Just as they were talking, Zhang Chunsheng drove his electric three-wheeler in, bringing a few geese and a few ducks into the restaurant courtyard:

"Lin Xu, I bought the fat ducks and geese. Are we slaughtering them now or waiting a bit?"

Lin Xu thought for a moment and said:

"Let’s do it now. I’ll first teach you how to make Salt Water Duck and Soy Sauce Duck, and close to noon we’ll do Flame Drunken Goose."

Chen Shaokang pointed at the lion-head goose in the cage and asked:

"What about that goose? What are we going to make with it?"

Lin Xu thought for a second and said:

"Let’s just slaughter it too and make braised goose."

He’d originally planned to keep it, but Dundun kept going over to poke at it, so better to eat it. And it would be a good chance to let him try goose blood and lion-head goose liver.

Yeah, he’d already had French goose liver; it was time to switch up the flavor.

As soon as Zhang Chunsheng heard that, he immediately started working with Shi Wenming. One of them boiled water, the other handled the bleeding, and in no time they’d finished slaughtering all the geese and ducks.

The duck blood and goose blood were kept separately in different containers.

Lin Xu scooped out a ladleful and put it in a pot to steam over water, while he added Rice Wine and salt to the duck blood and stirred it thoroughly.

At noon he’d stir-fry some firm tofu, and just before it was done he’d pour in the duck blood to make duck blood tofu.

They say this way of eating it is really tasty and delicious. Lin Xu hadn’t had the chance to try it before, and since they had duck blood today, he might as well make it and see how it tastes. If it’s good, that’s one more specialty dish on the menu.

By now Chen Shaokang and the others had already rinsed all the pumpkin seeds clean.

About a small basketful.

Lin Xu carried them into the kitchen. He added two bags of coarse sea salt into the wok and dry-fried it first, then poured in the pumpkin seeds.

There was moisture on the surface of the pumpkin seeds, and right after they went in, the salt inside showed signs of melting.

But with constant stir-frying, the moisture on the pumpkin seeds quickly evaporated, and the melted sea salt dried out again.

He kept frying, and soon the pumpkin seeds were dry; when stirred they made a rustling dry sound, and an aroma drifted out.

Worried about over-frying them, Lin Xu turned off the heat and used the residual heat in the wok to keep tossing them. Once the temperature dropped, he scooped the pumpkin seeds out with a large slotted spoon.

He pinched one and tasted it: the salty umami of the sea salt mixed with the aroma of the pumpkin seeds. It was pretty good, except the seeds were still a bit hot and the texture wasn’t that crisp yet.

He’d have to wait for them to cool completely before they tasted even better.

Once the pumpkin seeds were done, that giant lion-head goose had also been fully plucked with everyone’s help.

Zhang Chunsheng said:

"This goose is really something—big and plump, looks like a swan."

Compared to ordinary domestic geese, a lion-head goose is not only larger, its head is about the size of an adult’s palm, and its neck is about as thick as an arm.

Shen Jiayue measured it with her own hand and said:

"No wonder the head of a lion-head goose can sell for over a thousand. It’s so big, just looking at it makes you think it’ll be delicious."

As she spoke, Dundun also stretched out a paw and slapped the goose’s beak, successfully taking revenge with a bit of Ah Q spirit.

Chen Meijuan asked:

"Lin Xu, is making braised goose troublesome?"

"Not really. As long as you’ve got enough ingredients, it’s not difficult to make."

After Lin Xu finished speaking, he started the butchering.

Once a goose is plucked, you have to open it up and remove the innards quickly, or the smell from the organs will seep into the meat.

He pulled out all the internal organs, yanked out the windpipe while he was at it, then rinsed the cavity with clean water to remove the clotted blood. With that, the fat goose was tidied up.

Looking at the huge goose liver, Shen Jiayue laughed and said:

"This goose liver is as big as Dundun’s head. Can he even finish it?"

"Definitely not. We’ll steam half of it for him later, and when the goose meat is almost done braising, we’ll put the other half into the pot to braise as well."

Lin Xu picked up the goose and headed back to the kitchen, ready to start braising.

Braised goose isn’t just a famous Chaoshan dish, it’s also on the list of the top ten Cantonese dishes; throughout the Lingnan Region, braised goose holds a very high status.

As for Chaoshan, there’s even a saying: "No goose, no banquet."

This delicacy is extremely popular. Many Chaoshan folks miss it dearly even after going abroad, and Chaoshan braised goose is firmly in their top three must-eat dishes when they return home.

Once in the kitchen, Lin Xu first scrubbed the goose skin with salt. This not only removes the dirt from the pores, it also makes the braised goose skin smoother and more tender.

In addition, scrubbing with salt firms up the meat, making it taste better.

After scrubbing the goose and hanging it aside, Lin Xu started preparing the braising liquid.

The braising liquid used for braised goose is different from that used for other dishes. Here it’s mainly Soy Sauce and Crystal Sugar, supplemented with Nanjing, dried onion, Cardamom, Fish Sauce, garlic, Pork Fat and other seasonings and ingredients, all simmered together.

Compared with ordinary braising liquid, the one for braised goose has a deeper color and a stronger sweetness, even giving a kind of intertwined sweet-and-salty sensation.

At the same time, the proportion of spices is relatively lower than in regular braising liquid, focusing more on the original flavor of the ingredients. Only with this kind of broth can Chaoshan braised goose stand out on its own and become one of the representative dishes of Cantonese cuisine.

Lin Xu put the spices he needed—such as Sichuan peppercorns and star anise, bay leaves, cinnamon, Cardamom, tsaoko fruit and so on—into a pot to toast their aroma, then packed them into a spice bag.

The proportion of spices is quite small; the main flavor of this dish comes from Nanjing, also known as galangal. This medicinal herb gives the braised goose extra character and is an indispensable ingredient in its preparation.

Besides galangal, you also need whole garlic cloves, dried onion, coriander roots, lemongrass and other aromatics.

With everything ready, Lin Xu poured stock into the pot, added the spice bag, aromatics and fatty pork, and began simmering.

While it simmered, he added Fish Sauce, Dark Soy Sauce, Light Soy Sauce, Crystal Sugar and salt, first building up the flavor of the braising liquid, then letting it gently simmer over low heat so the aromas of the aromatics and seasonings meld together.

Only then can the braised goose come out especially delicious.

While the braising liquid was simmering, Lin Xu washed the fat taken from the goose’s belly, put it into a wok with a splash of water, and rendered goose oil from it the same way you’d render lard.

Planning to learn the craft from her son, Chen Meijuan asked curiously:

"Is this goose oil useful?"

Pointing at the braising liquid, Lin Xu said:

"Later, when we put the goose into the pot, we’ll pour this goose oil in. The braised goose will turn out richer and tastier."

Very soon, the goose oil was rendered.

Time to officially start making Chaoshan delicacy—braised goose!

————————

Chapter Three is here. I’ve been typing a lot these past two days, and my fingers are a bit numb—I hope it’s not tendonitis. This Chapter is 5,200 words; asking for a Monthly Ticket, brothers!