44 Chapter 44 Taste Test

Zhou Ying prepared all the ingredients she needed but couldn’t find any numbing pepper, so she could only grab some more peppercorns for later use.

After everything was prepared, Gu Chengrui’s fish was also ready. Zhou Ying went forward to marinate the fish.

She then asked Gu Chengrui to help keep the fire going while she started to cook.

The first dish was green bean sprouts stir-fried with vinegar, followed by green bean sprouts stir-fried with chives, and yellow bean sprouts stir-fried with diced meat.

After she finished filling the plates, she started to steam the fish.

Because the peppercorns and chilies had to be fried in advance, half of the restaurant was instantly filled with a spicy fragrance, making others choke and cough.

However, the smell was very inviting. Therefore, when Manager Liu smelled it, he couldn’t wait to rush over, even though he was choking with tears and snot flowing out.

Naturally, Zhou Ying and Gu Chengrui were choking on the spicy air. However, Gu Chengrui was used to spice, so he adapted to it quickly, and it lured out the hunger in his stomach.

So after Zhou Ying finished plating them, Gu Chengrui pulled on her clothes and asked, “Babe, shall we have steam fish for lunch?”

Zhou Ying saw his face and nodded. “Alright, let’s go find a place to buy fish later.”

Afterward, he saw Manager Liu hiding at the door and sneezing non-stop. “Manager Liu, it’s all done. Do you want to try it while it’s hot?”

“Yes, yes. But let’s talk in a private room. It’s too choking here.” After saying that, Manager Liu turned around and left.

He sneezed as he walked, looking very embarrassed.

Zhou Ying and Gu Chengrui looked at each other. Then, the two took the four dishes and informed the servers watching to help them with the bowls and chopsticks. They soon followed Manager Liu into a private room on the second floor.

After placing the dishes down, Zhou Ying and Gu Chengrui sat opposite him and smiled at Manager Liu.

When Manager Liu saw this, he knew they were waiting for his reply after tasting it. However, when he saw the red layer of chili on the spicy steamed fish, he didn’t dare to eat it and could only ask the waiter to help him taste it.

As for himself, he taste-tested the other three dishes. Although the stir-fried yellow bean sprouts with diced meat dish were creative, they weren’t particularly outstanding, so it was just a refreshing change of a meal.

The stir-fried chives with bean sprouts were delicious, and his eyes lit up immediately.

The last dish was green bean sprouts with vinegar, which he had thought would be very pungent.

He nodded and asked, “Did Mrs. Gu put white vinegar in it?” He didn’t expect that there would only be a faint spicy fragrance when it entered his mouth. The key point was that the faint vinegar allowed the green bean sprouts to be crisp and delicious.

“Manager Liu is undoubtedly a restaurant owner; you can tell with one bite.

“There are two reasons for adding white vinegar. One is that the color is clearer, and the other is that white vinegar has a simple taste and can improve the freshness of the vegetables.” Zhou Ying replied.

“The ingredients used are right.” Manager Liu nodded in agreement and looked at the young man wearing a conflicted expression. “Isn’t it just a dish? It’s not that scary.”

The waiter rolled his eyes secretly. If Manager Liu wasn’t afraid, why wasn’t he eating it?

However, at the urging of Manager Liu, the waiter picked up a piece of fish and put it into his mouth.

After a short while, his eyes lit up, tasting it earnestly. The fish meat didn’t have any fishy taste but instead had a numbing spice.

The most important thing was that it didn’t affect the freshness and tenderness of the fish meat. It was simply the most delicious fish meat he had ever eaten.

He couldn’t help but pick up another piece and put it into his mouth, wolfing it down.

Seeing this, Manager Liu knew that the dish’s taste wasn’t bad. After seeing that the waiter didn’t react to the spice, he picked up a small piece of fish and put it in his mouth.