"Gurgle gurgle gurgle..."
The braising sauce was bubbling, and the rich aroma of at wafted continuously, stimulating the nerves of anyone who could sll it nearby.
Even after eating at for almost a week, I couldn’t help but be tempted by the sll.
Second Uncle took the sign and earnestly wrote down the types and prices of braised ats and vegetables being sold today.
Wang Fan looked at the diners in front of him and could clearly tell they weren’t locals from Harbin.
Being petite was one thing, but their faces were also softer, appearing more gentle.
Traveling so soon after the New Year?
Not having registered for Weibo yet, he naturally didn’t know that part of the reason these tourists ca right after the New Year was because of him.
The person in front of him now was a little girl wearing a white rabbit hat, and he felt she looked familiar, probably soone who had co to buy braised pork from him before the New Year.
Chen Xi happily said to Wang Fan, "Hey there, I’m back for a second round! Your braised pork is just too delicious, and I didn’t have enough of it before the New Year, so here I am again, haha."
Wang Fan smiled and said, "Welco back, what would you like to eat?"
Chen Xi excitedly pointed at the sign, "I’ll have half a pound of ribs and half a pound of edama."
Her excitent wasn’t just for the food, but ever since she set foot on this land, she couldn’t help feeling excited, as if her true nature was being unleashed.
Wang Fan nodded and turned to get started.
He fished out ribs from the pot, noting that the size—two fingers wide and as long as a palm—might still be a bit big for the Southern girls, so he took a cleaver and with two chops cut it into three pieces. After draining the braised liquid and weighing them, he handed it to Chen Xi.
Chen Xi scanned the paynt and took her ribs to the side to enjoy her al.
After the events of the first afternoon, Wang Fan had left many seats here for these diners to eat.
The neatly cut ribs in the takeout container were slightly longer than Mahjong tiles and just perfect for eating with chopsticks.
Sitting on a little stool, Chen Xi didn’t start eating right away but instead took out her phone and began taking pictures of the takeout container.
Her photography skills were quite good, capturing the ribs and edama in a way that made them look juicy and glossy, and the naturally enticing reddish-brown of the ribs made the photos turn out exceptionally well.
Opening Weibo, she went straight to yesterday’s post, "Checked into Wang’s Braised Pork at Harbin snack street! Does anyone get it? I crossed nearly 3000 kiloters for this bite of at, but it was all worth it. This encounter with the ribs is the most wonderful. Is there any little foodie who wants to try it too? Wahahaha!"
After posting it, she quickly stuffed her phone back into her down jacket’s inner pocket.
This was a lesson learned the hard way. The first ti she ca, she kept taking pictures and sending ssages, and in just three minutes, she watched her phone battery drop from 98% to 20% with no ti to react before it shut down.
This ti, I absolutely won’t make the sa mistake!
Pats the phone on her chest, only then did Chen Xi pick up the takeout container to start enjoying the food.
The best part about braised dishes is that they’re not scalding hot, so you can start eating right away. Chen Xi eagerly picked up a rib and stuffed it into her mouth.
The last ti she ca, she had braised pork shank, and the taste of that soft and llow flavor seed to still linger on her lips.
Once in her mouth, a gentle swipe of her tongue was all it took for the at to separate from the rib bone, and the mbrane next to the bone had beco very tender.
Chen Xi chewed little by little, playfully using the tip of her tongue to tease apart the at fibers from the rib, like a child with a beloved new toy.
As the at fibers separated, more of the delicious braising juices were released and continuously lded together upon chewing, and the thin mbrane on the rib added a slightly crunchy texture. The savory richness of the at aroma and the spice flavors fused together, offering a taste and texture distinctly different from braised pork shank.
If Chen Xi were a bit more dramatic, she’d surely stand up and exclaim, "This trip to Erbin was worth it just for this braised at!"
No way, I haven’t even tried the edama yet.
Chen Xi spat out the bare rib bone and picked an edama from the takeout container.
Looking at the edama, Chen Xi once again marveled at Wang Fan’s skill, "I have no idea how they cook these edama. Every ti I cook them, the color turns out terrible, but they managed to cook and braise them while keeping that erald green color."
She took an edama, carefully placing it by her lips. The soft fuzz on the erald-green edama was coated in braising sauce, glistening in the sunlight and teasing her taste buds.
She gently bit down, cracking open the shell to reveal the tender beans inside. The beans’ fresh aroma filled her mouth instantly, a unique flavor with a mild grassy note.
She chewed slowly; the beans squashed between her teeth, their tenderness bursting with flavor in her mouth, making Chen Xi’s eyes widen.
Who understands, my friends? How can the crunchy skin of the edama hold such tender bean at like peas?
The fact that the edama beans could burst with juice, can you believe it?!
The refreshing aroma that erupted in an instant made her feel as if she had seen a vibrant green field of beans.
The classic ad slogan even started flashing in her mind, "Spring is here, everything is reviving, it’s ti for animals to mate... oops, no second half!"
She shook her head, the fresh aroma lingering in her mouth, a scent unique to spring.
How could we not share such deliciousness?
Pulling out her body-ward phone, she opened Weibo again to find lots of comnts under her post.
"Tell us, how high did you set the beauty filter, how many layers of filters did you use? These ribs even look refined and elegant!"
"Wow, these photos hit the spot; the color of those ribs looks so tempting!"
"Sister, you didn’t really go to Harbin just for so braised at, did you?"
Chen Xi giggled and replied directly under this comnt, "That’s just a small reason! Mainly it’s because I didn’t get to play enough in the snow last ti—it was such a rush. But honestly, these braised ribs and edama are too good; especially these edama. I have no idea how the owner cooks them; they have this crunchy bean you can bite into, and then they have that soft texture, and when you bite further, the edama even bursts a little like peas with super tender bean at—it’s incredibly delicious. To anyone visiting Harbin, I highly recomnd trying them; it’s definitely worth it."
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