Free Web NovelChapter 1145: Chapter 464: Chen Meijuan: Isn’t It Reasonable to Flex a Little in Front of My Son? Whole Duck Bone Removal! [Monthly Ticket Requested]
"Mom, does the meat flavor in the glass noodles come from the stock?"
Shen Jiayue looked at the prepared ingredients and seasonings, thinking it was a bit exaggerated for glass noodles to taste like meat. It was still using stock. If it were meat broth, wouldn’t the flavor be even milder?
Although Shen Jiayue was a kitchen novice, having been with Lin Xu for such a long time, she had picked up some culinary knowledge through observation.
Chen Meijuan smiled and said:
"In the past, when making Glass Noodles Meatballs at home, having meat broth was naturally the best. But we only ate meat two or three times a year, and not every time there was broth. So most of the time, we didn’t even use meat broth. Having meat broth was considered high-end."
Shen Jiayue was even more surprised. No meat broth, yet it tastes like meat?
She felt like she was encountering an incredible subject of study—vegetarian dishes made to taste like meat. Isn’t this the main offering of Gongdelin?
Chen Meijuan took some Star Anise Powder that was ground at the store and said:
"Adding Star Anise Powder can give the ingredients a meaty flavor, and if you add Scallion and Ginger and Five-Spice Powder, it will taste even more fragrant."
Actually, Star Anise is already part of Five-Spice Powder, but the amount isn’t prominent, so you need to add a bit more so that the meaty aroma comes out, transforming the glass noodles completely.
Star Anise Powder?
Sounds quite magical.
Chen Meijuan poured the minced ginger cut by Lin Xu into the glass noodles, and couldn’t help but praise:
"My son’s knife skills are getting more impressive."
Lin Xu smiled:
"Yueyue doesn’t like eating ginger, but it’s a necessary ingredient here, so I tried to mince it as finely as possible, so the noodles have the ginger flavor without the texture."
When adding Scallion and Ginger to the filling, the ginger should be minced as finely as possible to allow its aroma to be released perfectly.
Of course, you could use ginger juice, but in this dish, it’s not quite suitable. Ginger juice is easily absorbed by the noodles, leading to uneven ginger flavor, so ginger mince is more appropriate.
When mixing the filling, ginger can be added first, but not the scallions. They should be added last.
If added too early, the salt in the filling will draw out the moisture from the scallions, giving the filling the raw onion’s distinctive smell, which can make the fried balls taste slightly off.
After adding the ginger mince, add salt, Light Soy Sauce, Dark Soy Sauce, Star Anise Powder, Sichuan peppercorn powder, and Five-Spice Powder, mix well, then add half a bowl of stock, and continue to mix.
The deliciousness of the Glass Noodles Meatballs at old home events came from the addition of meat broth when mixing the filling.
Now with stock available at the store, it’s natural to add some.
When you first add the stock, the noodle filling becomes a bit runny, but as you stir, the noodles absorb the stock, making the filling thicker and thicker.
This is actually similar to how the meat filling becomes gelatinous when making Meatballs.
Once the right consistency is reached, bring the soaked sweet potato starch, pour off the water on top, and scoop out the sediment at the bottom to add to the glass noodle filling.
You don’t need a lot of starch; two handfuls are enough for half a basin of noodle filling.
If you add too much, the fried balls won’t have that tender, springy texture.
This may be a "poor man’s food" from the Central Plains region, used by the impoverished to satisfy cravings, but the method is meticulous—you need to use the least starch to find the critical point where the noodles hold together but don’t fall apart.
Only this way can the fried Glass Noodles Meatballs be more delicious and tasty.
Lin Xu actually knows these steps too and even does it better than Chen Meijuan.
But for some reason, watching his mom make the sweet potato noodles always brings a sense of urgency from childhood, waiting by the stove at home during New Year, eager to eat.
Whether it’s fried meatballs, glass noodle balls, crispy meat, or chicken pieces and ribs, as soon as they’re out of the pan, he’d grab a piece right away and stuff it into his mouth.
And what he would often get is a not very harsh slap:
"A reincarnate starving ghost, stealing from the Kitchen God too? Wait to starve in the future!"
The rule at home was that the first batch of fried food couldn’t be eaten immediately; a small piece had to be pinched off and fed into the stove as an offering to the Kitchen God, so as not to go hungry the next year.
Young Lin Xu often stole the Kitchen God’s share and was repeatedly scolded.
But now he’s not only not starving, but has become a chef who "doesn’t starve even after three years of drought."
Shen Jiayue stood to the side, listening to Chen Meijuan recount how Lin Xu used to get scolded for being greedy, and she joked to Lin Xu with a smile:
"Our mom’s cooking is really good. If my mom were frying something in the kitchen, I’d probably stay far away, afraid the oil would splatter on my face..."
Tsk tsk, in front of her mother-in-law, she really doesn’t save any face for her own mom.
Lucky for Han Shuzhen, she couldn’t come this noon and could only join the dinner later, otherwise, she’d definitely be internally hurt by this girl’s words.
Chen Meijuan chuckled:
"No one’s cooking skills are innate. I still remember the year Lin Xu turned four. We moved to Yinzhou City, and while the neighbors were busy frying foods for the New Year, my workplace didn’t give us a holiday, so we couldn’t return to our hometown, and Lin Xu craved the neighbors’ Glass Noodles Meatballs, clamoring to eat them."
Once the noodles were mixed evenly, she set them aside to cool, then put the oil pan on to heat.
"When a child wants to eat something, you have to make it. I recalled how the elders did it and tried to fry a batch of Glass Noodles Meatballs. I fried while Lin Xu ate, and only after finishing frying did I realize they weren’t cooked through at all, still starchy inside. This silly child didn’t notice, kept saying mine were delicious, and even went to brag to the neighbor’s kids..."
