Huang He was quite excited. Huang Bing had returned after breakfast and told him that Zhou Yan was launching braised beef today.
Huang He, still lying in bed, jumped up and immediately had Huang Bing take him to Suji on his motorcycle.
Feiyan Restaurant couldn't be without braised beef.
So many regular customers were asking about the braised beef, especially since braised pig's head meat had been reintroduced to the menu; people asked about it everyday.
When will the braised beef be back?
He was anxious too.
Braised beef used to be Feiyan Restaurant's best-selling braised meat, selling over a hundred jin a day at its peak.
Recalling that glorious period, his father had told him more than once that if Aunt Zhang ever sold braised meat again, braised beef had to be brought back.
Aunt Zhang probably wouldn't sell braised meat anymore, but Zhou Yan had inherited her mantle, braising pig's head meat that tasted exactly the same.
The regular customers who have come these past few days have all praised the food, saying that the taste hasn't changed at all over the decades.
Huang He knew in his heart that this praise wasn't for their Feiyan Restaurant, but for Zhou Yan.
This young man's culinary skills are not to be underestimated; at such a young age, he has already completely inherited Aunt Zhang's braised pork dishes.
Huang He was a little unsure about his braised beef, after all, he had just told him two days ago that he still needed to practice, but his expectations were definitely high.
Before coming, he had already discussed it with Zhao Shulan; if the taste could reach 70-80% of Aunt Zhao's braised beef from back then, they would place an order immediately.
Even if it was only 70-80%, the taste would still be better than braised beef from other places.
If any discerning regular customers asked, they would simply say that the braising liquid was still aging and would get better with time.
Feiyan Restaurant was willing to grow with Zhou Yan and ordered some beef from him so that he could continue to improve during the braising process.
"Boss Huang, you've come a bit faster." Zhou Yan came out of the kitchen, looking at Huang He, whose fat was jiggling, and said with a smile, "I just turned off the fire; the braised beef will be ready in a while."
"Good meat is worth the wait. I can sit and wait patiently." Huang He waved his hand dismissively.
"Alright, then please have a seat. I'll make you some tea." Zhou Yan nodded, gesturing for the Huang father and son to sit down, and took out tea leaves from the cabinet, brewing three cups of tea.
Zhou Yan brought over tea and sat down. Huang He looked at him impatiently and asked, "Boss Zhou, didn't you say last week that you needed to practice making braised beef for a while longer? Why is it so sudden today?"
"I've been practicing for another week. Is that sudden?" Zhou Yan blew on the tea leaves on his tea cup and said with a smile.
"I'm so happy! Waiting for your braised beef has been agonizingly long." Huang He was a little nervous: "I wonder how it tastes? How does it compare to Aunt Zhang's?"
Zhou Yan shook his head slightly: "It's hard to say if I'm just praising myself. You'll know once you try it."
"Alright." Huang He nodded, then changed the subject, "By the way, Boss Zhou, what about the exclusive supply of braised beef we discussed before? What do you think?"
"Boss Huang, let me tell you the truth, my restaurant will open in Jiazhou one day. Even if I don't sell it to someone else, I'll definitely have to sell it myself eventually." Zhou Yan looked at him with a smile:
"I know that your Feiyan Restaurant has had a decades-long partnership with my grandmother. You went through the most difficult times together, so I don't want to cheat you out of an exclusive fee. I'll sell you as much as you want."
Huang He fell silent upon hearing this; it was somewhat beyond his expectations.
Feiyan Restaurant and Zhang Ji Braised Food had cooperated for decades, with almost no conflicts during that time.
Zhang Ji Braised Food, based in Jiazhou, had consistently provided braised meat for decades, never leaving the city.
He was becoming somewhat reliant on this model; if Zhou Yan was to open a restaurant in Jiazhou, the situation would naturally be different.
In other words, they would become competitors.
"When are you planning to open a restaurant in Jiazhou? Where do you plan to open it?" Huang He asked.
"It's still early, at least a year from now." Zhou Yan said with a smile. "The specific location hasn't been decided yet, but I'm just opening a restaurant, not a big restaurant, and I don't host large banquets."
"That's alright, we can talk about things a year from now." Huang He breathed a sigh of relief, a smile returning to his face. "I think the decoration of Feiyan Restaurant is too outdated. I might move to a new restaurant a year from now, a larger one with better decoration, to make it a benchmark for banquets in Jiazhou. Our positioning is different, so it won't affect us at all."
"Boss Huang is quite capable." Zhou Yan laughed.
Now that things were out in the open, the atmosphere had become much more harmonious.
The three of them sat drinking tea and chatting, and time passed quickly.
Zhou Yan checked his watch and took out the soaked braised meat in batches.
After letting the braised beef shank cool, Zhou Yan sliced a portion, plated it, and brought it out.
Huang He watched Zhou Yan come out of the kitchen carrying the braised beef and subconsciously stood up.
Huang Bing, who had been sitting with his legs crossed, eating sunflower seeds, hesitated for a moment when he saw his father's serious expression.
Slap!
Huang He's hand landed on the back of his head: "Show some respect for the braised beef!"
"Huh?" Huang Bing looked puzzled.
But forced by Huang He's oppressive power, he could only rise to greet the braised beef... the grand arrival?
Huang He's eyes were fixed on the white porcelain plate in Zhou Yan's hand. He saw the braised beef arranged in a spiral on the plate, cut into pieces the thickness of a copper coin, thin yet with a little thickness. The texture of the beef, soaked in the braising sauce, was so beautiful. The translucent tendons were like amber decorations on it. The meat wrapped around the tendons, and the color was bright red and full.
"This color! This texture! It looks perfect! It's just right!"
Huang He's eyes shone even brighter, his breathing becoming rapid.
This was the Zhang Ji's braised beef he had been longing for!
It was exactly as he remembered.
It was back!
Zhang Ji's braised beef was truly back!
"Boss Huang, would you like to try some and see if it tastes right?" Zhou Yan smiled, handing over chopsticks, and also a pair to Huang Bing.
Huang He took the chopsticks, his hands trembling slightly. He took a deep breath to calm himself down before picking up a slice of braised beef. He carefully turned it over and examined it, nodding repeatedly: "Exactly the same, absolutely identical. The caramel color is so beautiful, it's completely absorbed and not black at all."
After admiring it like a precious treasure, he fed it to his mouth, chewing it slowly, his eyes shining even brighter.
The beef had a firm texture, with slightly chewy tendons, neither dry nor tough, and a rich, savory braised flavor. The beefy taste was particularly prominent, becoming more fragrant with each chew!
Huang He felt as if he had returned to his childhood.
His father took him to Suji Bridge to find Aunt Zhang. He insisted on going home, and Aunt Zhang casually cut two pieces of braised beef and handed them to him, smiling and saying, "Little chicken, take this and eat."
To this day, he still remembered the taste of those two pieces of braised beef.
It was so delicious that it changed his opinion of braised beef forever.
As he grew up, he always loved Aunt Zhang's braised beef.
This piece of braised beef tasted exactly the same as he remembered.
He remembers that back then, he always liked to go to Suji with his uncle, and sometimes he could even buy braised vegetarian dishes made by Aunt Zhang.
Feiyan Restaurant doesn't sell braised vegetarian dishes because they're not considered high-class.
But he loved them! Braised lotus root, braised dried tofu, braised potatoes… and they were only available in the right season.
"Dad?" Huang Bing was so startled when he saw a tear slide down Huang He's cheek that he didn't dare pick up his chopsticks.
Did this braised beef make his well-informed father cry?
"That's right! Absolutely right!" Huang Xiaoji ignored him and excitedly looked at Zhou Yan, saying, "Boss Zhou, you've mastered Aunt Zhang's braised beef to perfection! The taste is amazing, flawless! It's absolutely delicious! I'm ordering ten jin today!"
Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I only braised fifteen jin today. You can take five jin to try first. If you need a lot tomorrow, you can order in advance."
"Okay, then prepare twelve jin for me tomorrow, which is thirty servings. I'll start by building up my reputation." Huang He nodded, unable to resist picking up another piece of braised beef and putting it in his mouth, nodding repeatedly, "Great! This is truly a perfect dish to accompany drinks!"
Huang Bing also picked up a piece and tasted it, his eyes lighting up as well. The beef was firm and chewy, indeed becoming more fragrant the more he chewed—delicious!
However...
Although the taste was indeed good, but his father's tears of joy seemed a bit exaggerated, didn't they?
Huang Bing didn't quite understand and didn't dare ask, so he ate two more slices of braised beef.
Zhou Yan didn't charge an exclusive fee for the braised beef, but promised not to sell it to other restaurants in Jiazhou City for three months.
In return, Huang He bought the braised beef for 3.2 yuan per jin (500g), only 0.3 yuan cheaper than the selling price.
It seemed like he was losing money.
But this price was actually lower than what he had discussed with Zhao Shulan before coming.
Zhou Yan's braised beef was priced lower than he had expected.
At 0.5 yuan more expensive than braised pig ears and braised pig snouts, it would definitely sell like hotcakes in Suji.
A serving at Feiyan Restaurant is four liang, served with a side of chili powder dipping sauce and garnished with two cilantro leaves. It can easily sell for 2.2 yuan, making the profit margin quite considerable.
The braised meat was placed into two baskets, covered with gauze, and the Huang father and son looked at it from the left and right, feeling quite smug, before riding away on their motorcycle.
After they left, Aunt Zhao, looking at the menu, couldn't help but ask, "Isn't the price of this braised beef a bit low? Three yuan and fifty cents a jin, can you even make a profit?"
"The gross profit is about 50%, making money is no problem. If the price is set too high, we won't sell more than two jin a day, so it's better to lower the profit and sell more." Zhou Yan said with a smile. He glanced at his watch; it was already 10:20. He turned and walked towards the kitchen: "We're having tofu for lunch. I bought two blocks of tofu this morning."
Aunt Zhao followed him into the kitchen, looking curious. "What are you planning to make? Do you know how to make Mapo Tofu? I heard that Rongcheng's Mapo Tofu is very famous, it's spicy and numbing, so delicious!"
"I haven't learned how to make Mapo Tofu yet. Today I'll make some home-style tofu first, and then a crucian carp and tofu soup." Zhou Yan said with a smile, taking two bowls of tofu from the shelf.
[A Perfect Piece of Tofu]
[A Decent Piece of Tofu]
Zhou Yan considered it carefully. The decent tofu was used to make home-style tofu, and perfect tofu was used to make crucian carp and tofu soup. The main idea was to use the lightest flavor and the best ingredients.
Let's get started!