30 Preparing dish

After Ming Er left the kitchen I start thinking about what kind of this I should prepare for the lunch. I want to make something simple, easily made but delicious and can be used when I'm starting the food business using a food truck. So this dish should be affordable and liked by people. Selling food in the street somehow makes me remember my past life, long before I become a junior cook in the palace. I was also selling food in the street by pulling cart. Ming Er that time is an orphan, not marry me yet, and often help me push the cart with leftover food that I sell as her payment helping me sell the food.

The food that I sell that time is thinly sliced cow's beef offal like lungs, tongue, heart, innards, and other cheap parts from beef, cooked with spices and chili oil. Although sold in cold condition but still can give hot sensation and warmth to anyone who eats that dish. Little kids that we meet on the street often teasing me and Ming Er that time, shouting 'husband and wife lungs sliced' but thanks to that teaser, my dish become popular and attract many buyers. And when we grow up later and she reaches marriage age, I propose her to marry me and she accepts it. We become the actual husband and wife since then and still keep selling food on the street. 'husband and wife lungs sliced'become a trademark for my dish, Ming Er always helps me selling the food and I always thinking she's my lucky star. We live a simple but happy life at that time

Later when my delicious dish becomes popular, I receive an invitation to become a cook in the Palace, which I gladly accept. My family also delighted with this invitation, but who knows the job as a cook in the palace brings me to my bitter end.

So, since this new business is her proposal, I'm thinking to use this dish as one of the menus on our food truck. Since the cooking time is quite long, I decide to make two servings of this dish for lunch and dinner while preparing the ingredients for now, which is preparing the meat and braising ingredient. For one serving to 6-8 person, that will need:

INGREDIENTS

• 3 to 3.5 lbs beef brisket, chuck, tongue, and/or tripe

Braising ingredient:

• 1/4 cup light soy sauce (or soy sauce)

• 1/4 cup Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 4 dried chili peppers

• 3 green onions, halved lengthwise

• 2 large slices ginger

• 1/2 cinnamon stick

• 1 bay leaf

• 1 teaspoon Sichuan peppercorns

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder

Place the beef in a big pot and add water to cover by 1 inch. Cook over medium-high heat until boiling. Turn to medium heat and boil for 10 minutes. Skim the surface using a fine mesh strainer and discard the foam until the broth turns clear. Add all the braising ingredients. Turn to medium-low heat. Simmer, covered, until the beef turns tender but not tender enough to fall apart, 2 hours or so.

Once the beef is done, transfer to a plate to cool enough to handle. Slice the beef against the grain into 1/8-inch (4-cm) pieces. Now I can serve the beef or store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days before serving.

After that finish, I only need to prepare the sauce and sliced meat into the plate and pour the sauces. Drizzle with plenty of sauce, top with cilantro, sesame seeds, and peanuts will give the dish more attractive appearance.

For the sauces, the ingredient that I needed is,

• 4 tablespoons homemade chili oil with 2 tablespoons chili flake residue, or to taste

• 3 tablespoons braising liquid

• 2 tablespoons homemade flavored sweet soy sauce

• 2 teaspoons Chinkiang vinegar

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon ground toasted Sichuan peppercorns, or to taste

• 3 cloves garlic, grated

• 2 green onions, chopped

• 1 teaspoon ginger, grated

Mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl. For an even better result, mix the sauce in advance and let sit for a couple hours before serving.

Preparation time for this dish only takes time around 30 minutes, and since the cooking time a little long (2 hours), I have much spare time until the cooking done, I decide to see how my lovely wife doing with her cleaning duty.