1995: From a small restaurant to a culinary genius

Chapter 16 Learning a New Dish: Chengdu Dan Dan Noodles

Xu Liang adjusted himself and then began working on the next task.

He first tried to recall the location of the largest Dan Dan Noodle restaurant in Chengdu, based on his memories from his previous life. Where exactly was the Chen Family Old Chengdu Dan Dan Noodle Restaurant?

However, it had been a year since he last returned to Chengdu for the Spring Festival. In his memory, Xu Liang had eaten dan dan noodles in Chengdu, but now, reborn in the era of 1995, many things in his memory were blurred.

The restaurant closed for the morning today, and we made more money than ever before. This was inevitable, because when Xu Liang's restaurant first opened, nobody came to eat there.

Now that his small restaurant is attracting more customers, he needs to find new opportunities.

After Xu Liang washed the bowls and chopsticks used by the customers that morning, he temporarily locked the small restaurant. At this time, there were very few people on the street, and the passersby were mostly farmers who did not work in the factory and did farm work at home.

He headed straight to the bus stop in town; there was still half an hour before the next bus departed, which was exactly 9:30.

There are two roads leading from the town to the city. One of them has a bus stop, while the other does not. This is the road that Xu Liang took last time to look for the door and window shop. There aren't many cars on that road.

When Xu Liang arrived at the station, he found only two aunties carrying baskets on their backs, some leaders from other factories, and a few young men leaning against the station sign, reading a book attentively.

About ten minutes later, the shuttle bus arrived, and Xu Liang boarded it. He sat in the middle seat by the window, and then a girl came over and sat in the seat next to him.

She was a pretty girl, wearing a pure white plaid dress, and she came with a light fragrance that smelled a bit like some kind of floral water.

Overall, it looks just like a wild white chrysanthemum.

Xu Liang couldn't help but glance at the girl again.

However, according to his understanding from his previous life, girls who are sweet-looking and quiet are usually top-notch Sichuan-Chongqing tyrannosaurus rex.

But Xu Liang is living in 1995 now, so this kind of girl should be easy to get along with.

Xu Liang had another question: he might be able to find any random dan dan noodle shop in Chengdu, but it would be difficult to find the biggest one.

Moreover, Chengdu, as the largest city in Southwest China at the time, although not as prosperous as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, covered a large area.

Xu Liang would glance at the scenery outside the window every now and then, while also looking at the girl sitting next to him.

Seeing that she had settled down and the bus had started moving, he took out an extracurricular reading book from his bag. It was called something like "The Man in the Case." He looked at the cover and saw that the author was Chekhov.

Xu Liang immediately thought to himself, "This girl can read absurdist literature, and she carries so many books in her bag, she must be a top student."

The girl also noticed his gaze sweeping in her direction.

The girl must be wondering if Xu Liang also wants to read this book.

Xu Liang probably wanted to know if this girl could help him find the answer. Right now, he needed someone to tell him where the biggest Chen's Dan Dan Noodles in Rongcheng was located.

But he has social anxiety and doesn't dare to ask others.

At that moment, both of them held back from speaking.

Then, the girl turned to the side and politely asked Xu Liang.

"Well, since you're also interested in this book, how about I move it a little closer so you can read it more easily?"

The girl felt a little embarrassed.

Xu Liang acted like a simpleton at this moment, and when he saw someone asking him, he kindly asked if he wanted to watch it together.

However, after hearing this, he hesitated for a moment before speaking to the girl next to him: "Thank you, but no thanks. I was just a little sleepy and accidentally turned to the side."

The girl: "Oh, okay."

Then Xu Liang felt bored. He wanted to know if anyone on the bus knew the answer he was looking for, so he asked the girl again.

"By the way, what's your name?"

"My name is Song Ru."

"I am Xu Liang!"

Both sides exchanged pleasantries with slight smiles.

Are you a college student?

"Yes, from Rongcheng University."

Song Ru was a woman of few words; she would simply answer whatever Xu Liang asked her.

"Don't you get up at 8 AM?"

"I didn't have class in the morning, so I skipped the 8 AM class. Now I have to rush to the city for my afternoon class."

Are you from Huaikou Town?

"No, I'm from the neighboring town of Dayi, hehe!"

However, not long after, Xu Liang said what he wanted to say.

Do you know where the biggest Dan Dan Noodles restaurant in Chengdu is?

Song Ru thought for a moment, and realized that the largest Dan Dan Noodle restaurant in Rongcheng was right next to her school.

Near Rongcheng University, there is an old food street with not only traditional Dan Dan noodles shops but also other local delicacies.

"I know, the biggest Dan Dan Noodle shop you mentioned should be the Chen's Dan Dan Noodle shop next to my school."

Upon hearing this, Xu Liang nodded repeatedly and said to her, "That's right, this is the shop. I was just thinking of going there when I came into town, and I didn't expect to find it so easily."

"What a coincidence."

"That's alright, I can take you there when you get off the bus later."

Xu Liang hummed in agreement.

……

The bus had been traveling for an unknown period of time and was already within the urban area of ​​Chengdu.

After getting off at Rongcheng University, Song Ru took Xu Liang to the food street next to their school.

Afterwards, guided by Song Ru, Xu Liang found the Chen's Dan Dan Noodles restaurant.

He looked at the location; the location of this largest Dan Dan Noodle restaurant in Chengdu was extremely advantageous.

First, this is the location at the very beginning of this food street, where the flow of people is the greatest. Second, next to this largest restaurant is a prestigious university, namely Chengdu University. Third, the management system in this area of ​​the city is excellent, with little litter and cleanliness on the streets.

Another reason is the enduring fame of Dan Dan noodles, which naturally attracts diners.

Xu Liang couldn't wait to find out what was going on, only to find that Song Ru had brought him here, but then she had secretly run away.

Xu Liang had originally planned to buy some candied hawthorn berries or fried skewers to thank the girl, but now that Song Ru had returned to school, she had things to take care of.

He didn't want to trouble others too much.

Standing in front of Chen's Dan Dan Noodles restaurant, Xu Liang looked at the ancient inn-style building with its cultural charm and couldn't help but sigh, "What a restaurant with such a vibrant local culture!"

With its upturned eaves and carved wooden windows, this place doesn't resemble an ordinary street shop; it's more like a palace of a timeless, vibrant metropolis.

When Xu Liang entered the store, he saw that there were quite a few customers inside.

The store had a retro feel, but there were also modern elements. He heard, from some direction, what sounded like a speaker playing the climax of Beyond's "Boundless Oceans, Vast Skies".

Anyone can betray their ideals.

At the cashier's counter was a man who looked to be around thirty years old. He was wearing a white uniform and looked like a typical waiter.

Then, Xu Liang walked to the counter and asked the cashier.

The waiter was reading a newspaper and didn't notice Xu Liang. However, when he heard a customer's footsteps slowly approaching, he put down his newspaper.

He said, "Please come in, sir. Our shop is the largest Dan Dan Noodles restaurant in Chengdu, and even in the entire Southwest region."

In fact, the popularity of Dan Dan Noodle restaurants in Sichuan and Chongqing is in no way inferior to restaurants derived from other cuisines.

During the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty, Dan Dan noodles were very popular in Zigong, Sichuan. At that time, the Chen family would carry a shoulder pole and sell the noodles along the street, with a coal stove and copper pot on one end and bowls, chopsticks, seasonings, and noodles on the other.

Later, it spread to Chengdu and Chongqing along the salt transport waterway from Zigong, and it wasn't until the Republican era that it entered restaurants and was remembered by many diners from all over the country, which led to a continuous stream of food lovers coming to visit.

Xu Liang greeted the waiter and asked, "Excuse me, do you teach how to make Dan Dan noodles here?"

As the question was asked, the waiter picked up the thermos, turned on the button on the cap, poured water into the thermos, and slowly sipped it.

Upon suddenly hearing Xu Liang's speech, he spat out the water and then looked at Xu Liang.

"Holy crap, this is the first time I've heard of such a request. You're the first person in our shop to come in not to eat Dan Dan noodles, but just to learn the craft."

"Does your shop accept people who want to learn a craft?"

Then, the waiter gently touched his chin with his fingertips, as if weighing how to say it. In fact, he was not sure either, so he thought of a way to ask the owner of the dan dan noodle shop.

"Excuse me, sir, please wait a moment while I go ask the boss!"

After Xu Liang nodded slightly, the waiter ran to the kitchen and found the boss.

The boss who came out of the kitchen was a woman wearing sunglasses on her forehead, a red leather coat, and black women's thigh-high boots.

Her hair is still wavy, super cool and trendy.

This is probably the mental state of people in 1995.

Then, the female boss saw Xu Liang, but all guests are guests.

"Come on, young man, have a seat inside!"

Xu Liang casually found an empty seat in the shop and sat down.

The female boss sat opposite him and started chatting with Xu Liang.

"Young man, why do you want to come here to learn a craft? Have you ever heard that martial arts skills in the martial arts world are all secrets, but our Dan Dan Noodles craft is never passed on to outsiders?"

When Xu Liang heard the female boss say this, he was startled and his expression became quite awkward.

Seeing Xu Liang's reaction, the female boss chuckled for a moment before saying, "Young man, I was just teasing you. Since you want to learn how to make dan dan noodles, we warmly welcome you and will absolutely teach you without reservation."

Immediately afterwards, a silent slap seemed to land on Xu Liang's face. He hadn't expected that the owner of such a large dan dan noodle shop would be so generous.

Seeing that many seats were packed with diners, he was genuinely envious of the proprietress's management skills.

Then, the female owner casually said, "There's a chef named He in our kitchen, he's my uncle. You can go find him; he's the inheritor of our Chen family's Dan Dan Noodles craft."

"Come here, little Li, take him to find my uncle."

Immediately, another waiter ran up and called out, "Boss, yes, please!"

The waiter arrived, and the female boss completely let loose.

"I need to go serve the other customers now!"

"You can learn it on your own at your own pace."

She said goodbye to Xu Liang in a cheerful manner, and then went to another table to chat and boast.

They also made some humorous and witty remarks that made the diners laugh, providing them with plenty of emotional value.

Having witnessed this scene firsthand, Xu Liang couldn't help but admire the female boss.

Before he could even settle in, Xu Liang followed the waiter to Master He's place.

Master He was wearing a striking white hat, a white coat, and an apron. He was talking to some apprentices around him and looked kind and approachable.

However, Xu Liang was also lucky, as he arrived just as Master He started kneading the dough.

The waiter led Xu Liang to Master He's side, gently patted his arm, and said, "Boss Yao has found you another apprentice."

"Good heavens, another one! How can this old man manage so many apprentices? And the boss herself doesn't even mentor them!"

Seeing this, Xu Liang explained, "No, Master, you don't need to teach me. Actually, you only need to teach me once, and I will already know it."

"What? Impossible! How could you learn it after I teach you once? This skill requires hard work and perseverance."

However, Xu Liang had his reasons for saying this. In his previous life, he was a chef at a hotel and had seen a lot of the world. Moreover, he had a simulator that could help him become a culinary master.

Master He demonstrated the art of making Dan Dan noodles, and all the steps involved in its creation could be copied onto his brain using retinal information.

In this way, I learned it myself.

"Then let me demonstrate it for you first."

At this point, Master He had already started.

Pour a large bag of all-purpose flour into an extra-large iron basin, fill a bowl with a large bowl of water, add a little salt to the water first, and then add half a bowl of salt to the basin.

Then, Master He poured water while stirring the flour, breaking it into small clumps, which he then gradually kneaded into a dough.

The next step is to knead and massage the dough. Master He's hands are skillful, pushing, kneading, and grasping, giving the dough a firm grip on its elasticity.

Cut into long, thick strips, coat with salad oil, and roll into strips about the thickness of a thumb.

Then, the long strips of noodles, under the powerful rotation of his arms and wrists, gradually transformed into stretchy noodles.

Is this the ramen-making process?

Next, of course, comes the most crucial step in making Dan Dan noodles: preparing the sauce.

The apprentices were busy preparing the dishes.

The chef first chopped the pork belly into small pieces.

Then, heat the wok until it's very hot, pour in vegetable oil, and as soon as the oil starts to smoke, add the minced meat.

Stir-fry over high heat.

The minced meat in the pot is slowly stir-fried until it breaks up and releases its richest oil, turning from red to brown and sizzling with aroma.

Then he grabbed a handful of Yibin pickled mustard greens from the sink and threw them in.

Soon after, turn the heat down to low and stir-fry slowly.

Add only a little light soy sauce for flavor.

However, once the minced meat is stir-fried until dry and fragrant, and the pickled mustard greens are fully cooked, the whole house is filled with the aroma of meat.

Only then is the sauce ready.

The final preparation process is the most ordinary way of cooking noodles: scooping them into a bowl with a strainer, adding broth, and sprinkling some meat sauce on top.

Xu Liang watched Master He's production process with complete concentration, completely absorbed in the process.

However, Xu Liang absorbed every bit of the information that Master He demonstrated to him.

Now it's time for Xu Liang to show his skills.

He followed Master He's demonstration of the steps, first mixing the dough, kneading it, pulling the noodles, and then stir-frying the sauce...

This seamless transition surprised Master He. Even the final step of cooking the noodles and putting them into the bowl was exactly the same. Isn't this a natural imitator?

Or is he a genius who learns in one go?

The apprentices around them were also dumbfounded.

Xu Liang's presence had a significant visual impact on them.