CIATB Chapter 41 What do you think of crayfish?
Chapter 41 What do you think of crayfish?
Chapter 41 What do you think of crayfish?
"crayfish?"
"Ah."
Xu Hui saw Yu Huan nod.
Suddenly, that gaze was fixed on him like a searchlight, his eyebrows furrowed, serious and focused.
Xu Hui became somewhat nervous, and his speech became increasingly slurred:
"From a chef's perspective, of course it can be used to make spicy crayfish. Spicy crayfish has four characteristics: vibrant color, rich broth, strong flavor, and spiciness. The best time to eat crayfish is from mid to late May, when the temperature rises, until September, when autumn arrives. During this period, the crayfish meat is at its plumpest and most delicious!"
"Flavorful crayfish" is a more authentic way of saying it.
Along with spicy snake and spicy crab, these Hunan dishes are the three giants of Changsha's late-night snack scene.
Especially the spicy snake, which is best eaten with the skin and meat separately. The snake skin is flavorful and chewy, and the snake meat can be torn into threads with a single bite, which is a great test of the chef's skill in controlling the heat.
Even if you're resistant to eating snake, once you've tasted authentic Chinese snake, you'll definitely change your mind.
Guangzhou and Changsha are probably the two cities that love eating snake the most.
But we'll never be able to eat it again.
Ahem, don't break the law!
After a moment's consideration, Yu Huan continued, "Anything else?"
"..."
Xu Hui hesitated for a moment before saying, "Besides our Hunan-style spicy crayfish, we also have Qianjiang braised crayfish, Cantonese garlic crayfish, Huaiyang thirteen-spice crayfish, oh, and braised crayfish!"
Hear the words.
Yu Huan nodded.
At this point, Xu Hui still had some knowledge about crayfish.
Crayfish entered my country via biological invasion routes such as ballast water from foreign cargo ships, and were subsequently severely stigmatized, with rumors spreading widely.
For example, crayfish were used by some people to clean up carcasses, and they were even genetically modified.
For example, crayfish grow in sewers, which are very unclean.
For example, crayfish may contain excessive levels of heavy metals.
News about crayfish being inedible surfaces every now and then, stirring up public sentiment.
It wasn't until next year that the media began to pay attention to the crayfish industry, and experts and professors published articles to strongly refute the rumors.
Through extensive media coverage, crayfish became more popular, and the rice-crayfish farming method also began to gain popularity in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
Rice is planted from June to October, and shrimp are raised from October to May of the following year. This rice-shrimp rotation has significantly increased the income of farmers.
After the industry chain matured, by 2017, crayfish had become the undisputed king of late-night snacks.
At this time, Wenheyou, which mainly sells fried skewers, seemed to have sensed an opportunity and began to transform. In the second half of this year, it tried to open its first lobster restaurant in Changsha.
With favorable timing, location, and people, Wenheyou established itself and developed over the years. As a unicorn with a valuation of over 10 billion yuan, its annual sales exceeded 200 million yuan, and it even became a tourism brand.
"My wealthy friend is thinking of investing in a crayfish restaurant." Yu Huan tapped her fingertips slowly on the table. "Xu Hui, what do you think?"
"Yuanfang, what do you think?" is a popular buzzword this year.
"Huh? What? How should I see it?"
Yu Huan felt that dealing with him was extremely uncomfortable.
Knowing that he could at least support a small restaurant on his own with his skills, he was definitely not stupid, just a bit dull-witted.
Let's try and see if we can give him a sudden enlightenment:
"The era of big fish, big meat, and big bowls of rice is over. My rich friend and I think the future of crayfish is very promising."
Xu Hui listened quietly, and after a while nodded and said, "Brother Huan, I understand. You mean you want to hire me to cook crayfish at your restaurant?"
Yu Huan couldn't help but sigh: "You just graduated from New Oriental. Even if you get into the kitchen of a big restaurant, you'll at most be doing prep and chopping. You're still a long way from cooking at the stove. Cooking crayfish in our restaurant? Can you even cook crayfish well?"
"Oh, Huan-ge, I know you guys are going to do big business." Xu Hui scratched his forehead.
“It’s not that I look down on you, but on the contrary, I have high expectations for you.” Yu Huan pondered, “My rich friend is planning to invest ten million by the end of next year. If I give you a year, can you bring your technology as equity? At that time, I can give you a ten percent share. Think about it carefully.”
Yu Huan's fingertips, which were tapping the table, suddenly paused, and she added:
"Of course, in terms of taste, it must be top-notch and not inferior to others."
He had foreseen Xu Hui's future, and this move could be considered as buying his bones with a thousand pieces of gold.
This guy is a real talent.
Xu Hui was just twenty years old, a shy young man who had never seen the world. He was stunned by what Yu Huan said, and his head spun when he heard about ten million.
He swallowed hard: "Where would I get this skill from?"
"The recipe for crayfish isn't some closely guarded secret. There are plenty of restaurants that serve it, and you, a culinary student, don't know which ones are good and which ones are bad?" Yu Huan said calmly, "Go learn, go study! If you can master this one thing next year, I guarantee you'll be a star!"
Even as he was reeling from the shock, Xu Hui still retained a sliver of clarity: "Brother Huan, why me?"
"Because our subsequent investment is quite large, we need someone trustworthy to ensure the quality of the dishes. If we hire those master chefs, there are too many intricacies involved; they are all seasoned veterans. My friend and I are both very busy and don't have time to deal with them."
"You mean, you want me to be the head chef?"
The kid finally came to his senses.
Yu Huan's furrowed brows finally relaxed, and she smiled: "That's right."
"Brother Huan, you're not kidding me, are you?" Xu Hui looked incredulous.
“I’m not kidding you,” Yu Huan clapped his hands. “Let’s start with this store. I’ll give you five thousand yuan. You can use it to do your own purchasing. Let’s see if you make a profit or a loss on that five thousand yuan in a month.”
Hear the words.
Xu Hui inexplicably felt that something was wrong.
Does that mean he has to manage the restaurant in addition to cooking?
Do I still need to go buy groceries?
Who is the boss?
The way things unfolded was too bizarre.
He originally just came here to sell some simple, low-skill rice dishes, hoping to earn five thousand yuan to make a decent living during the Spring Festival this year...
I inexplicably caught a key point: "Why, a month?"
"Don't ask that," Yu Huan waved her hand. "You'll be eating and sleeping at the shop for now. Tidy up the clutter in that small room and buy a folding bed to make do. By the way, what's your sister Xu Qian up to?"
“At home, she either sleeps, watches TV, and oh, eats.” Xu Hui’s face showed some resentment when he talked about his sister: “She’s gotten as fat as a pig.”
Xu Qian and Yu Songnian have a perfect physique.
A few years later, the parents of both sides discussed arranging a marriage between their families, and the two young people were also interested.
However, Grandpa Yu disagreed, complaining that Xu Qian was too lazy in the village.
My second uncle always listened to his father, so the matter was dropped.
Yu Huan's assessment is that young people these days have a hard time getting up; once they get home, they sleep until the end of time.
Xu Qian was just a little chubby, yet she was subjected to a lot of criticism for no reason.
Yu Huan immediately made the decision: "Call him over to work for me, two thousand a month!"
"Oh."
Xu Hui scratched his forehead and said tentatively with a cautious look:
"Is everything you said true, Brother Huan?"
(End of this chapter)