Chapter 65: Chicken Noodle Soup p1
Entering the kitchen, Mi Hongdou saw the two chefs huddled over a stove, jostling each other. She stopped and coughed softly, not wanting to see anything strange.
Oh, right, two greasy-mouthed chefs, she didn’t want to see that either!
Gesturing for them to continue eating, Mi Hongdou checked the untouched chicken soup in the large pot, turned on the heat, and started warming it up. She filled two large woks with cold water and put them on high heat, then went to the ingredient area and got some thin noodles and bok choy. After a moment of thought, she also grabbed an egg.
With Mi Hongdou’s return, the two chefs felt awkward about continuing their fight over the last few pieces of meat, especially the chubby chef, who had a piece of beef brisket in his mouth. Seeing the little girl who had cooked the meal, he quickly swallowed it, his face turning crimson, either from choking or embarrassment. The thin chef, who had been trying to befriend Mi Hongdou and even helped serve the dishes, discreetly wiped his mouth and looked much more composed.
Seeing Mi Hongdou gathering ingredients, they both knew she was going to cook something. They had devoured the dishes she left for them, fighting over every last piece of meat and every last spoonful of soup. Now, only a few pieces of beef brisket curry and the pot of chicken soup remained. Although they hadn’t tried the chicken soup yet, they knew it was too much for them to finish. But seeing Mi Hongdou heating it up, they both felt a pang…
“Need any help?” The thin chef, who had tasted Mi Hongdou’s spicy chicken, wagged his imaginary tail and trotted over to her.
The chubby chef also shuffled towards Mi Hongdou, then hesitated and stopped, looking at the thin chef circling her like a large dog. He snorted disdainfully, but his own face turned even redder.
“No, I’m just making some noodles.” Mi Hongdou placed the ingredients on the counter and glanced at the suddenly attentive thin chef. “Maybe you can help me carry them out later?”
The thin chef nodded happily, as if given an important task.
Mi Hongdou didn’t understand. She didn’t know that the thin chef was wondering if there would be any leftovers this time. She had left them quite a bit of food, but it wasn’t enough! Not enough!
The water in the large wok was simmering. Mi Hongdou glanced at it, then took a small bowl, added some flour, mixed it with cold water to form a thick paste, added an egg, whisked it, and finally seasoned it with salt, MSG, and sugar. A bowl of thick batter was ready, and the water in the two woks was now boiling. She added a pinch of salt to each wok, and after it dissolved, added a bundle of noodles.
While Mi Hongdou was working, the thin chef watched intently, not wanting to miss a single step. It was practically blatant stealing of techniques. But Mi Hongdou didn’t mind. The chubby chef, however, couldn’t stand it and dragged the thin chef away.
After the noodles were added, the boiling water calmed down. Mi Hongdou stirred them and then turned to other tasks. She took a few large stockpots, filled them with boiling water, then took ten large bowls, rinsed them, and finally blanched the bok choy in a separate pan and divided it among the ten bowls. By the time she finished, the water in the woks was boiling again. She added a small bowl of cold water to each, calming the boil. When it boiled again, the noodles would be done.
Mi Hongdou quickly took the chicken out of the large pot, put on disposable gloves, and shredded a generous amount of meat into nine of the bowls. Then, with a mischievous smile, she added a tiny piece of chicken breast, smaller than her index finger, to the tenth bowl, sprinkled a pinch of salt in each bowl, and finally added chicken broth, filling them almost to the brim.
By the time she finished, the water in the woks hadn’t boiled again. Mi Hongdou quickly took a clean pot, scooped a few ladles of chicken broth, brought it to a boil, and then, spoonful by spoonful, added the thick egg and flour batter. The batter, hitting the boiling broth, quickly formed small dumplings. Adding the blanched bok choy and shredded chicken, it was a fragrant and comforting dumpling soup. Children easily choked on noodles, and it was difficult for adults to feed them. This dumpling soup was perfect for a child like Yang Miemie.
Mi Hongdou ladled the soup into a bowl and asked the thin chef to take it to Yang Miemie first. After all, she had just saved Qiao Rubai from the disaster of feeding a child noodles. Mi Hongdou mentally gave herself a “good person” award.
The thin chef happily took the bowl and left.
Soon, Yang Miemie became the envy of everyone at the table.
It smelled so good, even better than the chicken soup earlier… Everyone watched, both politely and eagerly, as Qiao Rubai, urged by Yang Miemie’s chubby paws, scooped a spoonful of the dumpling soup. The light yellow, plump dumplings in the spoon looked so delicious!
Qiao Rubai, feeling everyone’s gaze on her, carefully blew on the soup, feeling like she was about to be devoured.
Yang Miemie, her eyes fixed on the soup, was oblivious to everything else, her little head leaning forward impatiently. Qiao Rubai could only blow harder, the sound amplifying, and she felt the gazes intensifying.
When Yang Miemie finally got the spoonful of soup, her mouth bulging, everyone’s attention shifted to her, and Qiao Rubai was finally free from the pressure. Yang Miemie quickly swallowed the soup and then patted Qiao Rubai’s hand, urging her to blow on the next spoonful.
Was it good? How good? Say something! Everyone’s gaze returned to the spoon in Qiao Rubai’s hand, filled with a hint of resentment.
Mi Hongdou, who had just given herself a “good person” award, didn’t understand Qiao Rubai’s earlier suffering.
Now, the water in the two woks was boiling again. Mi Hongdou waited a few seconds before turning off the heat. She quickly rinsed the noodles in a pot of cold water to remove any alkaline taste, then drained them and added them to the bowls with bok choy and chicken. After tossing them in the chicken broth, the chicken noodle soup was ready.
Another large bowl of noodles each should be enough! Eating too much wasn’t good for digestion… Mi Hongdou looked at the ten bowls neatly arranged on the table, feeling a sense of accomplishment.
The thin chef hadn’t returned from delivering the dumpling soup, so Mi Hongdou rolled up her sleeves, preparing to carry the bowls out herself. But before she could even pick them up, a large tray appeared on the counter. Mi Hongdou watched as the chubby chef, his face red and not saying a word, filled the tray with eight bowls of noodles. Then, without any effort, he carried the tray out, not even glancing at Mi Hongdou.
Mi Hongdou touched the bowl of noodles she had specifically made for Jiang Lingling and thought that the people in the restaurant Jiang Lingling bought were indeed special.
She had chosen large bowls, each filled with noodles and broth, and even the remaining two bowls were too much for her to carry at once. Fortunately, the thin chef returned just then, and they each carried a bowl out.
It was the same chicken broth, and just ordinary store-bought noodles. The bok choy was crisp and tender, perfectly blanched, showcasing basic culinary skills. But if that was all, for those who had been impressed by the pure chicken broth earlier, this chicken noodle soup was just delicious broth with ordinary noodles. But when they tasted the chicken, they knew they were wrong…
Anyone who cooked knew that making soup was a delicate balancing act. Focusing on the texture of the ingredients often meant compromising the flavor of the broth. If you focused on the broth, the ingredients would often be bland. Take chicken soup as an example, for the chicken to be flavorful, you had to season it heavily during cooking, which would make the broth too salty or greasy. If you wanted a delicious broth, you could only add seasonings just minutes before serving, which would make the chicken bland. This was in terms of flavor. In terms of texture, it was the same. For a rich broth, you had to simmer it for a long time, extracting the essence from the ingredients, which would often turn them into mush. If you wanted to preserve the texture of the ingredients, you had to reduce the cooking time, resulting in a less flavorful broth.
Making soup was a difficult balancing act.
Mi Hongdou’s chicken soup was rich but not greasy. And the earlier pot of pure broth suggested that she had prioritized the broth over the chicken.
But this bowl of chicken noodle soup, after tasting the noodles and the broth, just as they thought it was just delicious broth with ordinary noodles and bok choy, they took a bite of the chicken without any expectations.
Unlike the mushy chicken they had imagined, it was incredibly fragrant, tender yet still slightly chewy, the perfect seasoning enhancing the chicken’s natural flavor. It was the perfect stewed chicken. The chicken, mixed with the noodles and broth, even elevated the ordinary store-bought noodles. For a moment, the room was filled with the sounds of slurping noodles and sipping soup, no one paying attention to Qiao Rubai, who was feeding Yang Miemie.
Qiao Rubai seized the opportunity and quickly fed Yang Miemie, who cooperated and ate quickly. One diligently feeding, the other diligently eating, Qiao Rubai finally breathed a sigh of relief after the last spoonful and could finally eat her own noodles.
Qiao Rubai’s vigilance and adaptability were excellent. Just as she finished feeding Yang Miemie, putting the satisfied little girl back in her high chair, and started eating her own noodles, a few fast eaters had already finished their bowls, soup and all. Qiao Rubai could feel several gazes fixed on Yang Miemie’s empty bowl, then shifting away with a hint of disappointment after seeing that it was clean.
Qiao Rubai breathed a sigh of relief, praising herself for her earlier foresight.
Mi Hongdou had chosen large bowls, each filled with noodles and broth, and a generous amount of chicken. Coupled with the dishes they had already devoured, the first few to finish the noodle soup were already quite full. However, this didn’t stop them from looking at Yang Miemie enviously.
The noodles in their soup were clearly store-bought, a last-minute substitution due to time constraints. But Yang Miemie’s was different. The chicken broth dumpling soup, those dumplings must have been made by Mi Hongdou herself, they must be a thousand times more delicious than their noodles! They were incredibly envious… but having already eaten so much, they couldn’t ask Mi Hongdou to make another bowl of dumpling soup, it was too heartbreaking.
While those who were full were still feeling heartbroken, Jiang Lingling, who had only found a tiny piece of chicken in her bowl after much searching, and had found that tiny piece incredibly delicious, felt her heart shatter into a million pieces.
Weren’t single dogs and CPs supposed to be friends? Weren’t they supposed to be each other’s angels! From this angle, that was the eighth piece of chicken Ji Junxin had taken from the soup pot! Each piece three times the size of the one she had! And she was still finding more! Could they still be friends! Jiang Lingling watched Ji Junxin eat with a pained expression, each piece a piece of meat that could have been in her own bowl.
Wait… A thought struck Jiang Lingling, and she started typing on her phone.
Fifteen minutes later, the thin chef’s naive apprentice rushed into the kitchen and grabbed his master, asking if there was any chicken soup or chicken left.
The thin and chubby chefs exchanged glances and wiped their mouths simultaneously.
When the apprentice, led by the thin chef, saw the spotlessly clean stockpot, he said to his master with a heavy heart, “We’re doomed.”
But that was another story.
In any case, regardless of the chaos in the kitchen, everyone in the dining room was satisfied. Except, of course, Jiang Lingling, who still had some expectations for the kitchen.
The last bowl of warm chicken noodle soup warmed everyone up and filled their stomachs. They all expressed their sincere gratitude to Mi Hongdou, the culinary genius, their heartfelt thanks making Mi Hongdou a little embarrassed. Everyone had thanked her, except for Ji Junxin. Mi Hongdou wanted to change the subject, inexplicably not wanting to hear Ji Junxin thank her. It felt… too formal.
As if sensing Mi Hongdou’s thoughts, Ji Junxin just blinked and asked softly, “Will you make me dumpling soup next time?”
Being needed was also a form of affirmation. Mi Hongdou happily nodded.
Everyone at the table pretended not to hear this heartbreaking exchange.
After the meal, life went on. Director Pan, having received the braised pig’s feet and enjoyed a free meal, quickly resumed his stern demeanor. And Jiang Lingling didn’t try to bribe him again. After all, with the filming schedule getting tighter every day, even without him saying it explicitly, everyone could tell that he was trying to speed things up.
Under Director Pan’s pressure, everyone in the crew became more focused. After all, meeting both quality and speed requirements meant double the effort. Ji Junxin, Mi Hongdou, and Jiang Lingling were still doing well, their completion rates high, except when they had scenes with Jiang Duo, which often resulted in NGs.
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