Chapter 415 - 206: Zhou, You’re in the Paper

The tangy, fragrant notes of pickled chili and ginger intertwined with a fiery heat on the tongue. The spiciness was so prominent, so unique.

Halfway through a bite, my hand had already reached for my rice bowl, ready to dig in.

I reflexively brought the rice bowl to my lips and took a huge mouthful. The oils from the dish had seeped into the grains, and the spicy flavor tantalized my taste buds. A single bite of the chicken gizzards was enough to carve a crater out of the rice in my bowl.

It was the perfect dish to shovel down with rice!

"Master, your stir-fried chicken gizzards are amazing!" Zhou Yan put down his bowl, looking at Xiao Lei with admiration. "The textures of the gizzards, intestines, and liver are all perfect. It's incredible! The perfect dish to eat with rice!"

"For a dish stir-fried all in one wok, you have to use your Knife Skills to manage the Fire Control," Xiao Lei said with a smile. "The gizzards need to be sliced thin, the liver a little thicker, the intestines just need to be cut into sections, and the hearts should be sliced too. This way, it's hard to mess up when you stir-fry them on high heat. Your shop goes through several chickens a day. Just cut them to these standards and take your time figuring out the Fire Control. You'll get the hang of it soon enough."

"Got it. I'll give it a try later," Zhou Yan nodded. He made cold-tossed chicken, so he certainly had a daily supply of gizzards and other parts. But the way he'd stir-fried them before was worlds apart from his master's. It was like they weren't even the same dish.

In this era, there was no such thing as frozen chicken gizzards, so the availability of the dish was too inconsistent to put on the menu.

Still, it was a great dish to make for themselves.

"Zhou Yan! You have to try this Explosively Stir-fried Chicken Blood! Master Xiao is on another level! It's so tender!" Zheng Qiang exclaimed, his face a picture of amazement as he picked up another piece of chicken blood and put it in his bowl.

Zhou Yan was always one to take advice. He fished out a piece of chicken blood from the pile of dried chili segments.

The chicken blood was incredibly tender, like a block of silken tofu. It wobbled precariously between his chopsticks, looking like it might fall apart at any second. It was coated in a layer of red chili oil and sauce. He blew on it a couple of times before putting it in his mouth.

WHOA!

'Tender' didn't even begin to cover it!

The chicken blood, completely coated in chili oil, melted in his mouth with just a slurp and a gentle press of his tongue. It was fragrant, spicy, and flavorful, exceptionally smooth and tender. The numbing fragrance was absolutely addicting!

Because it was made with knife-cut chilis instead of broad bean paste, its flavor profile was indeed a bit different from the explosively stir-fried pork liver.

The spiciness and the numbing sensation were more pronounced.

Delicious!

Before he knew it, his rice bowl was empty.

Today's dishes were all just too good with rice.

Everyone had lost the will to chat, burying their heads in their bowls to eat.

Zhou Yan got himself another bowl of rice. He grabbed a spoon and ladled several scoops of the thick gravy from the taro chicken stew over the rice, then added two pieces of taro and mashed them. He mixed it all together with a swirl. Eating it was just pure bliss.

After three bowls of rice, Zhou Yan let out a satisfied burp.

"Wow, Brother ate three bowls of rice today too!" Zhou Momo said, clapping her little hands. "We're both so amazing~~"

"Yup, we're both amazing," Zhou Yan agreed with a smile and a nod.

Even though everyone had eaten their fill, the three dishes were so good with rice that they couldn't finish everything. Half a pot of the taro chicken stew was left, though the chicken gizzards and chicken blood had been devoured completely.

"You chefs are all so skilled. We were really lucky today. This was as good as any banquet feast," Mrs. Zhao said with a smile as she cleared the bowls, her face full of admiration.

"That's right," Comrade Zhou added with a nod.

Xiao Lei and Luo both laughed at the praise. After a few pleasantries were exchanged, customers began to trickle in.

As the local factory let out for lunch, the restaurant quickly got busy.

Lin Zhiqiang walked into the restaurant clutching a newspaper. He made a beeline for the back kitchen and announced from the doorway, "Zhou! You're in the newspaper!"

The restaurant fell silent for a moment as all the customers turned to look at Lin Zhiqiang.

"Huh?" Inside the kitchen, Zhou Yan turned around at the sound, looking confused.

Lin Zhiqiang unfolded the newspaper with a grin. "The Jiazhou Daily. That story about Mr. Qian looking for his family. It takes up all of page two, and a third of it is about you."

"It's in the paper already?" Zhou Yan was surprised. The interview was just the day before yesterday, and it was already published today. That was much more efficient than the quarterly *Sichuan Cuisine* magazine.

"You get back to work. I'll leave it on the counter for you. You can read it when you have a free moment," Lin Zhiqiang said with a smile.

"Okay, thanks, Lin!" Zhou Yan called out with a smile. It was the lunch rush, and they were indeed swamped.

"So it's already in the paper. I'll have to go buy a couple of copies later. The magazine is hard to find, but newspapers are easy enough to buy," Xiao Lei said, laughing.

"I'll buy a couple too," Luo chimed in with a laugh.

"I wonder if my name's in there. Let me bask in some of that glory too!" Zheng Qiang joked.

After a few more jokes, everyone got busy again.

Today, Xiao Lei was mainly responsible for two dishes: Explosively Stir-fried Pork Liver and Stir-fried Cabbage with Pork Cracklings. The first was for practice, and the second was a dish Zhou Yan was getting him to cook for free.

His master's stir-fried cabbage with pork cracklings was better than his own, so this also let the customers experience an occasional, high-level upgrade of the dish.

Zheng Qiang had taken on the jobs of plating and tending the stove. Whenever he had a free moment, he would sidle up to Zhou Yan to watch him cook and pick up a few tricks.

Zhou Yan didn't feel right getting Master Zheng's labor for free, so his policy was to answer any and all questions.

Luo watched as the dining hall filled up in no time and saw how everyone in the restaurant was so busy they were practically flying off their feet. For a moment, he was in a daze.

'Is this really a small restaurant in a town?'

'How does it feel even busier than Le Ming Restaurant?'

Of course, it didn't have as many customers as Le Ming Restaurant.

But this restaurant only had one Chef: Zhou Yan.

His dad was, at most, a prep cook in charge of selling the braised meats. His mom manned the large pot, selling Kneeling Beef, while also handling the cash register.

The waitress was his sister-in-law, who was responsible for taking orders, serving dishes, and clearing tables.

The whole family kept this restaurant running.

They were truly, genuinely busy. No one had a moment's rest. Zhou Yan's spatula was moving so fast it looked like it might strike sparks.

His speed at getting dishes out was just too high. He churned out stir-fries one after another, faster than any of the Chefs in Le Ming Restaurant's back kitchen—including Xiao Lei, who was currently stir-frying the explosively stir-fried pork liver right beside him.