Huayu Chef

096 Sweet and Sour Braised Yellow River Carp with Baked Noodles

On the fishing boat.

Zhang Jinxuan, Reba, Jingjing, and Yaoyao squatted around the water tank, looking at the giant Yellow River carp. Jingjing asked, "Brother Xuan, how much does this Yellow River carp weigh?"

"About six pounds."

"Only six catties? There are seven of us, and each of us won't even get a catty. It's not enough, definitely not enough." Jingjing shook her head, then changed the subject and kindly suggested, "Let's buy the smaller ones too and make them into braised carp noodles."

Zhang Jinxuan rolled his eyes at Jingjing and said irritably, "What are you doing? Trying to work me to death so you can inherit my wild kitchen?"

Jingjing argued vehemently, "I'm doing this for everyone's benefit, to make sure everyone has a good time."

"The preparation of braised carp with noodles is complicated and it is a main dish at banquets. It is generally impossible for someone to enjoy this dish in one meal. Large restaurants and hotels usually use 1.5 to 2 pounds of Yellow River carp to make it. Each person can only take two pieces to taste the flavor before it is gone."

"What if you want to eat more after you've already eaten?"

"Just pay some money."

"Brother Xuan..."

Zhang Jinxuan poked the Yellow River carp hard with his hand. The Yellow River carp instantly turned red. "I was perfectly fine in the water, I didn't do anything to anyone, you guys pulled me out of the river, forced me to leave my home, and then stared at me for so long. I didn't even bother with you, but you dared to go too far and poke me. If I don't teach you a lesson, do you really think I'm made of mud?"

Take this "Carp Tail Swing" move!

"Splash!"

A spray of water flew in all directions, hitting Yao Yao, Reba, and Jingjing, who screamed and ran away.

"Jinxuan, are you crazy? Why are you messing with it for no reason?"

"Brother Xuan, ptooey! Water splashed into my mouth, ugh!"

Dilraba wiped the water off her face with a tissue, glared at Zhang Jinxuan, but upon hearing Jingjing's words, her anger immediately turned to joy, and she laughed gleefully.

Zhuangzhuang, the second senior student, and the senior student from the directing department recorded their embarrassing scene with a camera and found it quite amusing.

Zhang Jinxuan smiled, acting as if nothing had happened, as if he hadn't been the one playing the prank. He took out his phone to check the time and said loudly, "The time has come. Guard Ba, bring me my official robe. I'm going to start cooking."

Reba quickly got into character, clasped her hands in a fist and said, "Yes, sir."

A few minutes later, Zhang Jinxuan and Reba reverted to their original appearances, greeted Liu San, Liu Yushan, and Liu Yushan's wife, Sister Shan, pretended to show their health certificates, and entered the kitchen.

Yao Yao, Jing Jing, and the others followed in to watch the cooking process.

Everything is ready.

Filming has begun for the fifth episode's cooking segment.

Facing the camera, Zhang Jinxuan rolled up his sleeves and said, "I am very grateful to Guangyuan Foods for mobilizing their financial resources to help me find the bodyguard in time. Thank you."

"I underestimated the allure of Kaifeng's local delicacies. I almost let Guard Ba indulge in her culinary desires to the point of no return. If she had continued eating, Bafi the cat would have turned into a fat cat."

Dilraba couldn't hold back and lowered her head to laugh.

Haha~~

The people around burst into laughter.

"Guard Ba, do you know why I'm wearing my official robes while cooking?"

Reba said seriously, "There must be a reason why you did this, sir. I dare not make wild guesses."

"That's right, there's a reason I did it this way. It looks so cool to cook while wearing an official robe."

Haha~~

"As the chief chef of the capital's Wild Kitchen, cooking is my duty. My head may be cut off, but my official robes must not be disheveled; my leg may be lame, but the sense of ceremony must not be lacking."

Dilraba couldn't stop laughing.

Zhang Jinxuan rolled up his sleeves and said to the camera, "Let's cut to the chase and get down to business. The Book of Songs says, 'Why must we eat fish, if not carp from the Yellow River?' This refers to Yellow River carp, which has been a famous delicacy for a long time."

"During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, Yellow River carp were very valuable. Duke Zhao of Lu once sent carp as a congratulatory gift to Confucius for the birth of his son. Confucius was flattered and immediately named his son Kong Li, with the courtesy name Boyu."

"The braised carp with noodles we're making is made primarily with Yellow River carp and dragon whisker noodles. Braised carp with noodles is an abbreviation; the full name of this dish is Sweet and Sour Braised Yellow River Carp with Noodles."

"As you can tell from the name, braised carp with noodles is different from sweet and sour carp. There is an extra step of stir-frying. The way to make the sweet and sour sauce is also different. I will tell you more details when I make it later."

"Every famous dish has some legendary color and interesting anecdotes."

"The same goes for braised carp noodles. There are many different stories about its origin. Here are a few simple ones for your amusement. If you are interested, you can study them in more depth."

"The first theory is related to Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin. Legend has it that braised carp noodles were created by Zhao Kuangyin's younger sister, Fu Rong. When Zhao Kuangyin launched the Chenqiao Mutiny and hesitated before donning the yellow robe, his ministers were very anxious. At this time, Fu Rong did two things: one was to secretly sew the dragon robe, and the other was to invent braised carp noodles."

"Everyone has probably heard the phrase 'carp leaping over the dragon gate,' right? Carp leap over the dragon gate, breaking free of their shackles, soaring into the sky, transforming into dragons, and bringing blessings to all people. Zhao Kuangyin's situation at this time was very similar to that of a carp leaping over the dragon gate; he was only one step away from the throne."

"The layer of golden noodles covering the carp symbolizes the dragon robe that only the emperor can wear. When this dish of carp with noodles was served to Zhao Kuangyin, he immediately understood its meaning and, under the earnest pleas of the crowd, 'reluctantly' became the emperor."

"When the dynasty changed to the Qing Dynasty, we have to mention Empress Dowager Cixi, a celebrity in our culinary world. When she and Emperor Guangxu were fleeing, they passed through Kaifeng. Kaifeng officials ordered the chef to make a dish called sweet and sour braised fish with Yellow River carp for them. Empress Dowager Cixi was delighted with the taste and asked someone to bring paper and pen. She wrote a couplet: 'Where does braised fish come from? In the ancient city of Bianliang in the Central Plains.' This dish became famous from then on."

"The second theory is that during the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a very popular dish in Kaifeng called 'Song Sao Vinegar Fish.' Several chefs summarized and improved upon 'Song Sao Vinegar Fish,' gradually creating braised carp with noodles."

"The third theory is that braised carp noodles is a combination of two dishes, and its creation date back no more than a hundred years."

"Around the late Republican era to the early post-liberation period, when life was not affluent, and adhering to the principle of diligence and thrift, several veteran chefs at a well-known restaurant in Kaifeng called 'Youyixin' felt it was a waste to throw away the leftover sweet and sour sauce after eating sweet and sour fish. So they came up with the idea of ​​dipping dragon whisker noodles in the sweet and sour sauce, which became very popular."

"In the 1950s, master pastry chef He Mengxiang made an improvement, changing the knife-cut dragon beard noodles to deep-fried ramen noodles, which are then dipped in sweet and sour sauce and eaten. This tradition has continued to this day."

"There's a story behind the name 'Baked Noodles.' It originally meant 'back side,' referring to the dragon whisker noodles carried on the back of a sweet and sour braised carp. Another explanation is 'quilt side,' as the dragon whisker noodles are like a quilt covering the carp, and in Kaifeng dialect, the outer side of a quilt is called 'quilt side.' At the time, there weren't many educated chefs, so these two very descriptive names were adopted. Later, some educated people felt it was too rustic, so they borrowed the cooking technique of 'baking' and changed it to 'Baked Noodles.'"

"Actually, the saying that literati changed their names is a bit of a veiled criticism of chefs, because the baking technique was used in the process of improving the baked noodles."

According to the *Ru Meng Lu*, the baked noodles at that time were boiled in water. Later, in an era of limited oil, they were baked until charred before eating, but this method left a raw noodle taste, so they were deep-fried instead. When ramen (pulled noodles) reached Kaifeng, local chefs combined the hair-thin ramen with sweet and sour braised fish, creating braised carp noodles.

"By now, you should have understood how to make the baked noodles. In short, it can be summed up in five words: deep-fried dragon beard noodles."

"For those of you who love Lanzhou ramen, pay attention! We're about to start making ramen, so follow along with me and let's learn how!"