"You have no idea how much trouble I went through to buy these shrimp," Chen ide declared. "I ran all over Seafood City and visited several shops before I finally found them. It took a ton of effort!"
Lin Xu’s maternal grandmother, Old Lady Chen, couldn’t help but glare at her son. "Your nephew is just paying you a complint. Just accept it, will you? Why do you need to boast about your efforts?"
Chen ide hastily offered so Soft-baked Tofu to his mother. "Mom, please have so food. Are you thirsty? Should I pour you a cup of tea?"
Old Lady Chen scolded him with a laugh, "You cheeky boy, can’t even handle a bit of criticism, can you?"
Chen ijuan and her two brothers, Chen ide and Chen iliang, were the three siblings of their generation in the Chen family. The eldest, Chen ide, held a minor bureaucratic post in Yinzhou City’s Cultural Affairs Bureau. The second, Chen iliang, had in earlier years been known as a prominent poultry farming magnate in Yinzhou City, owning the largest chicken farm there.
An outbreak of avian influenza decimated his business overnight, even saddling him with over a million yuan in debt. After years of living frugally and with help from relatives, he had finally paid off all his debts. After his daughter, Chen Yuanyuan, began working at the scenic area, Chen iliang, who had just started to relax, also ca over and willingly took on the role of reservoir manager. When he had nothing else to do, he would row around the reservoir in a small boat, almost like a recluse.
After preparing all the large shrimp, Lin Xu picked up a piece of ginger and sliced it, then diagonally chopped so scallions. As he worked, he said, "For Oil Braise Large Shrimp, you don’t need tomato sauce or vinegar, but you do need scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil."
Scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil? Not only were the aunts and uncles confused, but even Shi Wenming, the village banquet chef, seed puzzled by the unfamiliar term.
Lin Xu explained with a smile, "Scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil is oil fried with scallions, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorns. It removes fishy slls and other unwanted odors. You can make so and keep it at ho. Add a bit when cooking seafood, and the flavor will be exceptionally brilliant."
As soon as they heard it could be added to seafood, everyone’s interest was piqued.
"How do you make it, Lin Xu?"
"What’s the ratio of these three ingredients?"
"What kind of oil is better? Can I use Soybean Oil?"
Lin Xu put the chopped scallions and ginger into separate bowls, then grabbed a handful of Sichuan peppercorns. "The ratio of scallions, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorns is 6:2:1," he said. "Proper scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil should sll of Sichuan peppercorns but have no numbing taste. This is ideal for seafood. As for the oil, any kind works except for rapeseed oil."
"Why can’t we use rapeseed oil?"
"Rapeseed oil darkens too easily. The scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil would co out with a dark color, which affects the appearance of the seafood."
After explaining, Lin Xu added so peanut oil to the pan. Then he switched on the stove to heat the oil. When the oil was about 30% hot, he poured the Sichuan peppercorns into the pan and fried them over low heat.
When the oil in the pan heated further and started to smoke, he moved the pan away from the heat and imdiately added the ginger slices. This not only reduced the oil temperature, preventing the Sichuan peppercorns from burning, but also released the ginger’s aroma, which infused into the oil as its temperature fell.
Once the oil temperature in the pan had dropped, he returned the pan to the stove. Over low heat, he added the diagonally sliced scallions, frying them at a low temperature. This thod extracted the ingredients’ fragrance without altering their color.
"Properly made scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil will retain its original color after frying; this ensures it won’t affect the dish’s appearance."
When the scallion slices in the pan turned golden brown, Lin Xu placed a fine-sh sieve over a large bowl and poured the oil from the pan through it. The filtered oil was the scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil.
The fried scallions, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorns didn’t need to be discarded. They could be added to dishes cooked later in the afternoon to make the food even more fragrant.
After the scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil was ready, the preparations for the Oil Braise Large Shrimp were complete, and it was ti to cook.
Lin Xu set up a wok. First, he heated the wok, then added cool oil and swirled it around to coat the surface; this prevents the shrimp from sticking during frying. Then he added a large spoonful of cooking oil and a small half-spoonful of the scallion and Sichuan peppercorn oil to the wok. He stirred them a bit to combine the two oils.
Next, he carefully arranged the prepared large shrimp one by one in the wok with the hot oil.
"Ouch, doesn’t that scald your hand, Lin Xu?"
"That’s right, don’t burn yourself!"
"I’d never dare do this at ho; I’m too afraid of getting badly burned."
"They say a good chef isn’t afraid of heat. Looks like our Lin Xu has reached that level too!"
"Wenming, you’re a chef too. Are you afraid of getting burned?"
"? I’m just a village cook with amateur skills, not a professional."
"..."
By the ti Lin Xu had arranged all the shrimp, the oil in the wok had heated up completely. The large shrimp were seared to a vibrant red, and a rich, savory aroma wafted from the wok. Lin Xu held the wok and gently swirled it, ensuring the oil coated all the shrimp. Then, with a sudden, expert flick of his wrist, he perford a grand toss. The shrimp flew high into the air, flipped over, and landed back in the wok, still perfectly arranged without a hint of disarray.
"Wow, that was a beautiful move!"
"Every ti I watch those master chefs toss food on TV, I’m so envious. I never thought our family would have soone who can do a grand toss too!"
"I wish I’d recorded that just now! Posting it would attract a ton of likes, wouldn’t it?"
"Definitely! You know how popular Little Xu is online."
"Wenming, can you do that?"
"Well, I can... but after I toss them, I have to quickly pick up the shrimp that fell on the floor."
"..."
As everyone was chatting, Lin Xu began to explain the key points. "After flipping the shrimp, use a spoon to gently press down on the head of each shrimp. Squeeze out the tomalley into the oil, turning it into shrimp-infused oil. This makes the fried large shrimp even more savory."
He pressed down on the shrimp heads as he spoke.
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