Chapter 829 - 730: Strange, Isn’t It? (Part 2)

Fu Yu deftly sliced the squid and started to prepare the restaurant’s special soy sauce.

The recipe for this soy sauce was originally developed by Elder Dong and was initially kept secret, handled only by Yao Shi. Once prepared, it would be used as needed.

However, sometimes Yao Shi couldn’t make it in time, and the prepared soy sauce would go bad. With no other choice, the recipe was eventually shared with Zhao Meng and Gu Yunwu.

Fu Yu managed to secretly learn the recipe by watching Zhao Meng. After seeing Zhao Meng do it once, he could recreate it exactly.

Later on, when Zhao Meng found out by accident, he was quite impressed, thinking that Fu Yu had a special talent for culinary arts.

Little did he know, in Fu Yu’s eyes, as soon as he touched the ingredients, all the formulas clearly appeared before him.

This extraordinary ability made Fu Yu feel at home in this aspect, effortlessly handling the process.

Zhang Jinyu, on the other hand, struggled.

He was truly just an ordinary kitchen assistant.

If anyone wanted to learn, especially the special sauces like this, it required sharp eyes and ears. Whether one could master it depended entirely on their luck.

Fu Yu took a bowl of seasonings and began to mix the soy sauce.

As soon as he began, Zhang Jinyu eagerly scooted over.

Fu Yu glanced at him sideways and deliberately slowed down.

Soy sauce, ginger juice, scallop juice, fish sauce, salad oil...

He gathered all necessary seasonings together and started mixing.

After mixing, he specifically picked a bit out and asked Zhang Jinyu to taste it: "Here, try the taste for me."

Zhang Jinyu quickly took a sip, sincerely exclaiming, "So fresh, this is the taste!"

Strangely enough!

Although Zhang Jinyu had repeatedly looked at the soy sauce recipe and remembered it by heart,

the soy sauce he reproduced just lacked something.

It was tasty and fresh but couldn’t compare to Fu Yu’s version.

Moreover, he never dared to say it, but the soy sauce made by Fu Yu was indeed better than the one made by Chef Yao.

He couldn’t pinpoint what made it better; nonetheless, it tasted especially fresh and fragrant.

The fresh squid was ready, Fu Yu began the grilling process.

Grilling squid is all about controlling the heat.

The squid at the store is pre-marinated and left to marinate quietly in the cold storage, needing to be turned every two hours.

This ensures the squid is evenly flavored.

It’s a grilling trick that Fu Yu learned from Master Chen during his barbecue training.

When grilling squid, it needs frequent turning, and the grilling time can be adjusted according to the squid’s size. When it’s 90% cooked, cut a few slices along the sides and apply sauce to season evenly.

Grilling squid isn’t difficult; what is challenging is the plating design.

The squid used at Qianlima is large and has thick, juicy flesh.

Fu Yu used a bamboo dining plate, a hollow rectangular tray, laid with thick, tender green lettuce leaves. The tray felt heavy even before adding the ingredients.

Then, he placed the grilled squid on top and decorated the ends with carved vegetable and fruit embellishments.

The entire dish looked very substantial; a common dish suddenly elevated by the changed plating container.

Especially the carved fruits he acquired from Li Shuli, each vividly lifelike with exquisite knife skills that even Fu Yu couldn’t help but privately admire.

After completing a dish’s plating, Fu Yu himself felt that this squid dish, served two ways, looked absolutely luxurious.

The plated dish was handed to a server to take away, and Fu Yu focused on grilling geoduck.

The best way to grill geoduck is over charcoal.

When exposed to high temperature, the geoduck quickly releases its juices, resulting in an incredibly fresh taste after grilling.

The prepared geoduck, dipped in sauce before grilling, dipped again midway, and sprinkled with some dry chili powder after grilling.

The grilling method is simple, no marinating, relying entirely on the unique sauce.

For plating, Fu Yu chose a square shallow porcelain plate with dark green patterns, bamboo leaves rolled and arranged across the plate, with a lemon slice and a small flower made from perilla leaves in the center, surrounded by skewered grilled geoduck seafood.

Two shallow round dishes in dark green accompanied the plate, holding one sweet and one spicy dipping sauce.

The plating of this dish, once finished, turned out to be quite elegant.

Fu Yu thought the pattern he chose was rather nice; without prompting, he wouldn’t have thought to devise such a creative plating.

Who would’ve thought bamboo leaves could yield such an effect?

Unsure how customers would react, Fu Yu himself was quite satisfied.

He instructed Zhang Jinyu to bring over the marinated crucian carp.

The carp was placed directly on the grill, uncooked and unbrushed with oil, relying mainly on its natural oil secretion.

Nevertheless, Fu Yu intentionally brushed a thin layer of oil over the surface while grilling.

Although the fish releases oil during grilling—particularly the crucian carp, which is quite oily—not brushing it results in a slightly inferior taste and a more likely ruptured fish skin.

Grilling doesn’t require overly complex seasonings, but cumin is indispensable; cumin is the soul of grilled crucian carp, along with a bit of chili powder to transform the flavor.

Fu Yu, in his grilling process, even adds a bit of pepper—a small amount, just enough to mask any fishy smell without alerting sensitive-tasting customers.

This amount is difficult to gauge, but used correctly, the grilled carp becomes extraordinarily flavorful.

Fu Yu tasted the crucian carp he grilled—crispy skin with tender meat, immensely satisfying, not even sparing the fish head bones, which are sucked for the fish oil between the crevices, the essence of grilled crucian carp.

For plating, Fu Yu initially chose a round shallow porcelain plate, lined with lettuce leaves as the base, placing the grilled fish on top, decorated with tomatoes, lemons, cilantro leaves, and similar side dishes.

Yet Zhao Meng’s prior reminder sparked some decorative creativity in him.

Fu Yu selected a light gray oval porcelain plate and arranged two crucian carp diagonally.

Following this, he sliced mangoes, bayberries, guavas, lemons, star fruit, all into orderly shapes—square, round, sliced, or diced.

Only using a few pieces from each fruit to mix with salt, sugar, licorice powder, and chili powder.

This method, which Fu Yu previously saw online by chance, is a Southern eating style called "suan ye."

Widely popular among the youth, it serves as a pre-meal appetizer or post-meal palate cleanser.

Barbecue smells great but can be greasy if indulged too much; using "suan ye" as a decorative garnish is perfectly timely—it decorates the plate and can be consumed as a side dish.

Fu Yu meticulously arranged the fruits in order, surrounding the grilled fish.

Zhang Jinyu couldn’t help but exclaim: "Chef Fu, the plating design for this grilled fish is truly beautiful, a blessing for those with OCD!"

Fu Yu’s pursuit of perfection in cooking has reached an almost obsessive level.

Yet, it was merely a plating design. Look at these fruits; each from the same kind is shaped identically and arranged in a regular order and position.

It gives an immediate sense of orderliness and is quite pleasing to the eye.

Upon finishing the final plating, Fu Yu admired his work.

Indeed, it was delightful.

He chuckled and said, "This was conceived thanks to Chef Zhao’s tip; it looks alright, doesn’t it?"

Zhang Jinyu sincerely replied, "It’s just perfect, looks beautiful!"

Fu Yu contentedly placed the plate on the food delivery counter.

Leaving the grilling area, Fu Yu glanced at the time.

There we go!

A rare break had been completely overtaken.

As it was nearing the time for customers to dine in again.

Fu Yu checked the prep work done by the kitchen helpers and urged Sun Qingning to check the pickle preparation.

All prerequisites sorted, just as the order form arrived from the front hall.

Fu Yu began cooking with a hint of anticipation regarding whether the final plating design of his improved seafood barbecue would satisfy customers.

But once occupied, the thought slipped completely from his mind.

Eventually, Jiang Mo intentionally took the time to run to the back kitchen and inform Fu Yu that customers were very satisfied with the newly ordered three dishes.

Upon hearing this, Fu Yu let out a deep sigh of relief.

Good to know they are satisfied!

At last, the effort wasn’t in vain!