hotmtlnovel 099 Lobster Tail
099 Lobster Tail
"Are you sure you don't need me to teach you how to make Mapo Tofu?" Ye Sheng asked worriedly after returning to school.
"No need, my Mapo Tofu skills can conquer the whole world!" Lu Mingfei said confidently. This was not just him bragging. Japanese food was too bland, so he had to try making some convenient and flavorful Chinese dishes himself.
Actually, it's not necessarily true to Chinese style. After all, due to limited resources, he could only slowly experiment with the method and continuously improve it to develop the Lu-style Mapo Tofu.
The participants all said it was good, and Misato kept drinking beer and eating spoonful after spoonful while screaming from the spiciness. She just couldn't stop!
"Hehe." Just imagining Rei Ayanami carefully picking through the minced meat, taking a bite of Mapo Tofu, and then drinking water non-stop until her face turned bright red, Lu Mingfei couldn't help but look forward to Rei eating Mapo Tofu.
"Surely the Russians aren't afraid of this little bit of stuff, right?" Lu Mingfei thought mischievously.
"So confident?" Ye Sheng looked at Lu Mingfei's self-assured expression and said, "I'd like to ask him for advice sometime."
"No problem, no problem."
Lu Mingfei said goodbye to Ye Sheng and carried the insulated box to Ling's dormitory.
She knocked on the door, but this time it was opened. She reached out to take Lu Mingfei's suitcase, but Lu Mingfei quickly said no, no, there was water on the suitcase, and you don't need to do anything today.
The student dormitories in Kassel are fully equipped. In one corner is a double bed, opposite which is a desk, and opposite that is a walk-in closet built into the wall. There's a separate bathroom with a wet and dry area. The kitchen is near the entrance, with cabinets above for storing various kitchen utensils, a range hood, an induction cooktop, an oven below, and a sink on the far right. A refrigerator stands upright, providing some privacy between the kitchen and living area, and a microwave is placed on top of it.
When I opened the refrigerator, I found milk, bread, some vegetables, noodles, and beer and vodka.
Great, no need to go to the cafeteria for beer and staple food anymore.
Lu Mingfei turned on the range hood, first cut the tofu, added salt, and put it on the induction cooker to cook. He then threw the lobster tails into the sink to thaw.
After the tofu is cooked, remove it from the pot and place it on a plate. Heat oil in the pot again, add chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns and sauté until fragrant. With a whoosh, oil splatters everywhere. After sautéing until fragrant, pour the mixture into a bowl to cool.
While the chili peppers were cooling, he started chopping garlic and scallions, but not ginger, as Lu Mingfei doesn't like ginger.
Then, start a new pot, add scallions and garlic, stir-fry until fragrant, then stir-fry with minced beef and fermented bean paste. After stir-frying for a while, add water and tofu. The induction cooker has low power, so it needs to cook for at least seven or eight minutes. While the tofu is cooking, Lu Mingfei starts chopping the previously cooled chili peppers, and the sound of chopping can be heard from the kitchen.
The smell of cooking oil was strong, and the range hood designed for American pre-cooked meals wasn't powerful enough. Ling put away Selma's and her own clothes, opened the balcony door and the room fan, picked up a book and fanned herself in the room to speed up air circulation.
After chopping the chili peppers, the tofu will be cooked. Thicken the sauce once with cornstarch, then add the chopped chili peppers back in and cook for a while. Thicken the sauce again, and it'll be ready.
Traditionally, Mapo Tofu requires thickening the sauce three times, but Lu Mingfei always struggles to get the timing right, so he simplified it to two times, which is roughly the same.
After plating the Mapo Tofu, do not sprinkle with chopped green onions and Sichuan peppercorn powder yet, because other dishes will be made later. The Mapo Tofu, which is made first, needs to be reheated in the microwave before it can be eaten.
"How is it? Does it smell good?" Lu Mingfei placed the Mapo Tofu on the table for Ling to see.
"It looks very professional. I didn't expect you to be such a good cook." Zero looked at the bright red Mapo Tofu and couldn't find any fault with it.
Lu Mingfei took out the thawed lobster tails and drained them.
"The lobster tails need to be deep-fried beforehand; that's how they taste best," Zero reminded him.
"I know, Ye Sheng told me." Lu Mingfei poured half of the oil into the pot, turned the induction cooker to the highest power, and waited until the oil was hot before pouring in the lobster. Instantly, smoke rose up and sizzled.
Zero, quick as a flash, covered the pot with a lid and said, "It can only cook for two or three minutes. Did you time it?"
Lu Mingfei saw a clock on the wall and said, "It's not timed, but if we time it now, cooking it for about a minute and a half should be enough."
"Move aside, I'll do it." Ling pulled Lu Mingfei aside, took an apron from the side of the refrigerator and tied it on. The hem of the apron dragged on the ground. She lifted the middle of the apron hem and tucked it into the drawstring at her waist, looking like a little adult.
He turned off the heat, scooped out the crayfish, picked up the hot pot base, and stir-fried it with the seasonings and rice cakes. Smoke rose up again, making Lu Mingfei cough.
"Give me a beer!"
Lu Mingfei quickly opened the refrigerator, handed out a can of beer, and then ran to the balcony, panting heavily. After a while, the smell of smoke dissipated. Looking back, he saw that Ling had already served the dishes.
"So fast!" Lu Mingfei quickly heated up the Mapo Tofu in the microwave, sprinkled it with chopped green onions and pepper, and served it on the table.
Finally, using the oil in the pan, I stir-fried some bok choy.
"Let's eat! Let's eat!" Lu Mingfei couldn't wait to take a bite of the Mapo Tofu. "Mmm, it tastes just like before!"
"Oh, right," Lu Mingfei quickly put on his gloves, "I'll peel the shrimp for you."
"I can do it myself." Zero picked up the gloves and put them on.
"It's already peeled. You always take care of me, I can't just do nothing." Lu Mingfei handed the shrimp meat to Ling, intending to put it in her bowl.
Zero stared in surprise at the shrimp meat being offered to him, then instinctively leaned his head over...
"It smells so good! I could smell it from downstairs..." Selma suddenly opened the door, holding a few books. "Zero, what delicious food are you making?"
Seeing Lu Mingfei feeding Zero, Selma's pupils dilated in shock, but she quickly recovered and said, "Oh dear, I just realized I haven't finished reviewing yet. I'm going to the library. Bye-bye."
With a bang, the door slammed shut.
"Zero, do you drink beer? Crayfish goes perfectly with beer." Lu Mingfei awkwardly avoided looking at Zero, opened the refrigerator, and took out a few cans of beer.
"I'll drink vodka, give me a glass," Zero said from behind.
Lu Mingfei got Zero some vodka, found a clean glass, and said, "Hey, what a coincidence, didn't you say Selma wouldn't be back until late tonight?"
Zero poured himself half a glass of vodka and drank it down in one gulp, then expressionlessly ate a spoonful of bright red Mapo Tofu, which terrified Lu Mingfei.
"Selma said she's going to the library to study all night," Zero said, blushing. "I should have known she wouldn't have the willpower."
"Oh, I see. I'll continue peeling shrimp for you then."
"Don't worry about me, just eat first." Zero poured another half glass of vodka and held the glass up in the air.
Lu Mingfei quickly opened a beer, clinked glasses with her, and Ling downed it in one gulp.
"You...you drink slowly." This was the first time Lu Mingfei had seen Ling so unrestrained. The sight of a minor drinking felt strange. If this were outside, he would probably have been arrested by the police long ago.
"Your Mapo Tofu is delicious." Zero raised his glass, and another vodka was poured.
"Thank you, your lobster tails were delicious too." Lu Mingfei clinked glasses again.
"We did it together."
"what?"
"We made the lobster tails together." Zero raised his glass again.
Cheers!
Lu Mingfei shakily picked up the beer can, beginning to worry that he wouldn't be able to leave this room that night.