There are many Chinese dishes that showcase the mastery of knife skills.
However, if we talk about rankings, the classic tofu never dares to claim the top spot, but it definitely ranks high up there!
First,
Get a piece of firm tofu.
The reason for not using soft tofu is because firm tofu has a finer texture, is stronger in terms of flexibility, and is less likely to break when cut.
After that, Zane wets the blade of the knife.
His left hand holds the knife while slowly moving backwards, and his right hand continuously lifts and then quickly drops the knife onto the tofu.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The sound of the knife hitting the cutting board is continuous.
Perhaps because he was cutting the tofu so quickly, it seemed to Anne and Miku Yuano Fruit as if he was chopping recklessly!
But in fact, Zane's speed and strength for each cut were carefully calculated.
Eventually, when he finished cutting the tofu, the piece on the cutting board remained perfectly square, showing no signs of being cut by a knife!
"It's strange."
"After so many cuts, why does the tofu look intact?"
Seeing this scene, Anne felt puzzled.
As a first-class executive at WGO, she has evaluated many Chinese cuisine chefs and seen various ways of making classic tofu.
However, without a doubt, the mastery displayed by Zane, especially the skill of cutting firm tofu, is truly outstanding!
...
"Next."
"Don't blink."
"This is a moment where you can witness a miracle!"
With that, Zane gently soaked the cut tofu pieces in a pot of water.
Soon, each delicate strand of tofu began to slowly spread out in the pot, resembling a small thistle with numerous thorns or a chrysanthemum with countless petals, a truly spectacular sight!
"Huh?"
"Is this tofu?"
"Are... are they this fine?"
Anne was immediately startled and covered her mouth with disbelief in her eyes!
The most significant aspect of Chinese cuisine is definitely knife skills and timing.
But controlling the timing is quite manageable, while knife skills come after years of practice, more like muscle memory.
For knife skills like Zane's, based on her experience, it would probably take at least 10 years, no, at least 15 years of practice to achieve, right?
"Owner."
"How old are you this year?""
Then, Anne couldn't help but look up and ask Zane.
"On the day the tavern opened, I happened to celebrate my 20th birthday." Zane shrugged and responded without much thought.
"20 years old?"
"And already this skilled with a knife?"
After hearing this, Anne's face instantly showed shock and confusion!
...
She had been really busy at work recently.
So, tonight, she just wanted to come to the tavern to have a drink and relax!
She certainly didn't expect the tavern's owner to be so mysterious and powerful.
Then, without paying attention to Anne, Zane continued to finely shred clean shiitake mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, chicken breast, and green vegetables, one by one.
He placed the pot on the stove, poured in carefully brewed chicken broth, brought it to a boil, and then added the shredded mushrooms, bamboo shoots, chicken breast, and green vegetable leaves, added salt, and boiled again.
Next,
Another pot was prepared.
Clear broth was boiled, and then the tofu strands were added. Once they floated to the surface, they were scooped up with a ladle and put into soup bowls.
Finally, a bowl of classic tofu was completed!
Fine!
That's the characteristic of classic tofu.
But Zane's classic tofu was taken to an absurdly meticulous extreme.
"You cut the tofu so finely."
"And it doesn't affect the taste of the dish at all. I really don't understand you!"
Seeing this magically exquisite bowl of classic tofu, Anne couldn't help but choke on her words as she complained to Zane.
...
There's no denying that the purpose of knife skills is to make the food more flavorful, evenly heated, or change the texture of the ingredients to influence the overall taste of the dish.
So, slicing or shredding ingredients for stir-fries thinner and finer results in them cooking faster.
For stews, on the other hand, because they're cooked for a long time, ingredients are generally cut into large pieces, or else they would disintegrate into the dish!
In other words.
Knife skills ultimately come down to how they affect the flavor and texture of the ingredients.
Thus, in Anne's view, any knife skills that don't aim to make the food more delicious are just pointless.
Looking at this bowl of classic tofu in front of her, apart from cutting the tofu block very finely, which looked different from other chefs, she couldn't understand how cutting firm tofu so finely could help enhance the taste and texture!
"Is that so?"
"I thought you were a first-class executive at WGO."
"In the face of this bowl of classic tofu, I expected to have some deep thoughts about it, but it turned out to be quite shallow!"
Hearing this, Zane just shook his head, then his lips curled up slightly, as if he was mocking Anne with this half-smile.
"Huh?"
"Could this bowl of classic tofu..."
Listening to Zane's words, Anne didn't get angry.
She paused, then quickly scooped up a tiny bit of tofu strands with a small spoon and stared at them with wide eyes.
"What?"
"What's going on?"
"All these tofu strands were cut so fine."
"But after being stewed at a high temperature, they didn't dissolve, break, fall apart, or disintegrate!"
Finally, realizing the most terrifying aspect of this classic tofu dish, Anne couldn't help but feel shocked and pale!
So, the tavern owner in front of her was skilled not only in knife work!
...
Unable to resist, Anne eagerly put a spoonful of tofu strands into her mouth.
In that moment of tasting, her mind was suddenly flooded with many thoughts.
"How does it feel?"
"Huh?"
"Well..."
Faced with Zane's question, Anne seemed a bit embarrassed!
After all, she was a first-class executive at WGO, but in the end, she couldn't even taste a simple classic tofu dish!
"I was in a hurry with the first bite, and couldn't taste anything."
After saying that, Anne continued to take another small spoonful of tofu strands and slowly tasted them under Zane's gaze.
Yes!
It was slow.
Then, she frowned.
Hmm!
How to put it?
The taste wasn't as amazing as she had imagined!
It felt very subtle, to the point where it was almost like drinking plain water, without any impressive qualities!
Wait a minute!
This feeling of melting in the mouth.
The feeling of each tofu strand breaking quickly in the mouth, what's... what's the deal with that?
"No!"
"This feeling."
"I... I... I can't take it!"