"Wow, this mutton is so fragrant and spicy, it’s really satisfying!"
Eating at the Fishing Platform restaurant, Sister Weiwei was sowhat reserved, but Chen Yan didn’t care at all. Once the dishes were served, she started eating heartily.
Anyway, Ren Jie wasn’t here, and her brother-in-law had seen her eating style, so there was no need to maintain any image.
Besides, facing this pot of tenderly stewed, fragrant, and spicy mutton, even if you wanted to maintain your image, you simply couldn’t.
Dai Jianli grabbed a large piece of mutton brisket and put it in his bowl. As he ate the steaming at, he gave Lin Xu a thumbs up:
"Mutton is best enjoyed in big bites, and the flavor control is quite spot-on!"
Having started with beef noodles in the morning and now enjoying this delicious and spicy braised mutton, he felt an exhilaration reminiscent of the boldness of Sichuan and Chongqing’s Jianghu cuisine.
The taste is truly exceptional.
Lin Xu, standing nearby, was equally amazed. He knew that stewing the lamb leg and brisket together would enhance the texture, but he hadn’t expected it to be this good.
The mutton wasn’t particularly tender, but it wasn’t tough to chew either.
Especially the brisket part, rich in sinew and fat; every bite was juicy, with a chewy texture. This kind of mutton paired with a spicy flavor instantly transports one back to when braised mutton was popular nationwide.
Xie Baomin remarked:
"I think it was around 1995 when braised mutton beca a trend, with each new place becoming a hit. I was still an apprentice back then, accompanying my master to Zhongyuan Province for a culinary exchange. He was a food judge, and I got exposed to it, leaving a deep impression of braised mutton—lined up eateries along the streets, with aromas of braised spice wafting during lunchti."
Back then, braised dishes weren’t cooked on induction or electric stoves but charcoal stoves, making the aroma more intense.
Intellectuals in Central Plains even composed poems in praise:
"Where the braised smoke once road, today’s morning market has no lamb!"
Sister Weiwei curiously asked:
"So why did braised mutton fall out of favor later on? Did it beco a has-been like other hyped foods?"
Xie Baomin shook his head:
"The quality of mutton declined. It used to be free-range, grass-fed sheep with high quality, but demand soon outpaced supply. As people lived better, at demand rose, causing prices to surge, forcing shop owners to cut costs by purchasing pen-fed sheep."
For mutton, free-range and pen-fed are essentially two different flavors and textures. Pen-fed sheep, with little exercise and a feed-based diet, have a heavier gamy taste.
The quality of mutton plumted, and with the rise of new restaurant chains, it naturally declined.
Now, only local places in Xinxiang have braised mutton shops; they’re scarce elsewhere.
Dai Jianli, well-versed in the restaurant industry, chuckled and said:
"During the decline of braised mutton, it was the rapid advancent and IPO pursuits of Little Sheep dining. Various buffets started booming, and foreign fast food began penetrating lower markets, leaving no room for braised mutton."
After eating a few pieces of mutton, Lin Xu picked out a carrot to taste.
After long stewing, these carrots had turned soft and glutinous, absorbed with the mutton’s flavor, tasting even better than the at.
It’s truly surprising how these commonplace carrots, stewed with mutton, could achieve such a magical transformation.
Reflecting on the beef stew he had yesterday and this morning’s beef noodles, which also contained carrots, this ingredient is indeed a golden partner for beef and mutton.
As they ate, Chen Yan looked at Xie Baomin and asked:
"Chef Xie, could you give us a simple critique of this pot of mutton?"
Lin Xu glanced at his sister-in-law, wondering if she’d had enough to eat.
Before his senior brother even criticized others, she had already invited him to assess their own dish first.
For other dishes, Lin Xu wasn’t afraid of criticism.
But this braising technique is only at an Excellent Level, not even reaching Superior.
Never mind senior brother, even another professional chef could pinpoint quite a few issues.
Xie Baomin smiled and said:
"Chen is stirring up things between us brothers, but my master asked to help my junior improve his cooking, so let’s start with this braised mutton."
He picked up a piece of mutton to taste, first affirming Lin Xu’s culinary skills:
"This braised mutton by my junior would fare well even if he started a business in Beijing, and if he positioned it as a signature dish, it could bring decent returns, but... there is still room for improvent."
Seeing that his senior brother was about to give advice, Lin Xu imdiately put down his chopsticks.
Such experiential talk is priceless and warrants attentive listening and careful note-taking.
"The spice ratio isn’t quite right. Cloves take a long ti to release their aroma; generally, they only develop a fragrance after more than an hour of simring. So when making stews, keep the use of cloves restrained, but since this mutton is only cooked for half an hour, the clove aroma hasn’t co through much, so a few more should be added..."
After discussing cloves, Xie Baomin critiqued the use and amount of the other spices.
At the end, he offered a suggestion:
"Reduce the amount of crystal sugar; too much isn’t good. You could add half a luo han guo instead, as its sweetness is milder, and the stew would have a subtle herbal aroma, better than using crystal sugar."
Just as Xie Baomin finished, Dai Jianli also comnted:
"Do you start by rendering fat from the mutton before stir-frying the aromatics? This thod works, but it demands very high-quality mutton. The best approach is to render the fat out completely, use vegetable oil to stir-fry the aromatics, and if you want to increase the mutton’s aroma, you could add lamb bone broth simred from lamb shanks, which provides an even better taste while reducing costs."
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