I'm the Culinary God

This weight is just right, perfect for making red stewed pork hock.

Lin Xu was about to check the quality of the pork hock when his phone suddenly rang.

Upon answering it, he realized it was the Haidian Administrative Service Center calling about the matter he was most interested in and had been worrying over these past two days... residency.

"Is this Lin Xu? Please bring your household registration book and ID to the administrative service hall within a week to handle your naturalization procedures. Congratulations on successfully gaining residency in Beijing."

Lin Xu: ??????

Is the surprise coming so suddenly?

He went to the Yanjing Hotel yesterday, but Ye Lixin happened to be doing a report outside so he couldn’t inquire about the residency matter.

He had originally planned to visit again today, but didn’t expect to get notified already.

Isn’t this too fast?

"By the way, don’t forget to bring the recommendation letter from the Chinese Cooking Association when you come, as we need to keep it on file."

What?

Chinese Cooking Association?

Wasn’t this settled by Yanjing Hotel?

Lin Xu’s mood gradually shifted from surprise to confusion, feeling that things were beyond his expectations.

After hanging up, he calmed himself before calling Xie Baomin:

"Senior brother, was my residency matter handled by master?"

"Yes, your application was submitted on the day you opened your business, I only found out two days ago, has it been approved now?"

"Yes, I need to bring my household registration book and ID within a week to handle the naturalization procedures."

"Then hurry up and go, do you have the household registration book? If not, ask your parents to send it over and get this done quickly, better sooner than later."

As expected, it was handled by master.

Thinking back to when I became an apprentice, I was a bit confused, but now it seems that ever since calling him master, I’ve been under protection.

Such a master really is touching.

Xie Baomin said:

"Give master the good news, so he doesn’t worry while he’s out playing, and ask when he’s returning to Beijing, your wedding is quite soon."

"Hmm, I’ll call right now."

Lin Xu took a deep breath, filled with gratitude towards his master.

After reporting it over the phone, Master Gao was quite happy:

"Finally, it’s been approved. When you see old Guo next time, remember to thank him; he’s made quite a few trips, and it’s not easy for him with old arms and legs."

"Okay, master, when will you return to Beijing? I’m waiting to report my recent learning progress."

Master Gao chuckled:

"Soon, I’m in Chengdu right now, just had a chat with the elders of the Dai family. Once we finish here, we’ll drive the RV to the provincial capital of Southern Yunnan, Spring City, then fly directly to Beijing."

The itinerary is quite packed.

Lin Xu chatted a bit more before hanging up and promptly reported the news to both parents and the elders in the family.

For Lin Xu, gaining residency in Beijing is a small leap in his life. With this status, no one will look at him as an outsider again.

"Xu Bao, can we register our marriage now?"

Shen Jiayue was very happy, having cohabited illegally for so many days, finally about to be legal.

Lin Xu pinched her cheek and said:

"Once I get the household registration book, I’ll naturalize, then we’ll get the certificate... I’m going to make the pork hock first, otherwise we’ll miss lunch."

"Okay, okay, hurry up, I’ll share this good news with everyone."

Back in the kitchen, Lin Xu saw the pork hock that Lao Hu delivered. Right now, Che Zai was using a blowtorch on the pork skin with Qi Siliang and a few helpers.

This step is almost indispensable in making pork hock-related dishes.

Not only because the pork skin can have an odd smell, but mainly because hairs can remain on the skin, and without searing, they can feel prickly in the mouth and uncomfortable.

After searing, the bone has to be removed from the pork hock. Lin Xu thought about it and asked:

"For red stewed pork hock, we need to remove the bone, does Lao Hu have deboned hock?"

"Yes, boss. Lao Hu asked this morning if you wanted deboned ones. I couldn’t decide, so I went with these."

Che Zai said as he worked.

Lin Xu boiled half a pot of hot water, placing the seared pork hock in to soak.

Soaking in hot water can maximally clean the dirt both inside and outside the pork skin, as cold water causes pores to shrink and dirt can seal inside the meat.

After soaking for about ten minutes, he used a kitchen steel brush to carefully scrub the pork skin clean.

Next, he rinsed the pork hock again, cut it open from the thinnest part of the meat, and removed the bone.

Red stewed pork hock needs to be deboned, as it not only facilitates cooking but also improves the appearance of the dish.

As for the removed bones, they won’t go to waste. Later, they’ll be added to the pot when making pork bone broth, improving the broth’s quality.

After deboning all pork hocks, Lin Xu placed them in a pot of cold water, added scallion, ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, and star anise, and poured in a big bowl of rice wine before starting the blanching process.

Though called blanching, the process is essentially to cook the hock to medium-well.

This process takes over half an hour, ensuring the hock is thoroughly cooked before moving to the next step.

While cooking the hock, Lin Xu specially prepared some stew broth using pork bone broth. This broth was colored with caramel and red rice, then simmered with over ten common stew ingredients and crystal sugar, salt, and light soy sauce.

After simmering for about half an hour, it became the essential broth for making red stewed pork hock.

While he was busy in the kitchen, Shen Jiayue sat outside, chatting on her phone with Geng Lele.

"Sister Yue, my oral English teacher’s Chinese name is Wang Cuihua. She says it was given by a good friend, and asked if the name symbolizes elegance and purity."

Shen Jiayue: ??????

She must have been tricked, right?

She curiously asked:

"Anyone can tell from the name that they’re not very clever. With so many foreign oral English teachers, why did you specifically choose her?"

Geng Lele sent a gossip emoji:

"Because Teacher Cuihua’s English name is Lucy, and she’s looking for a guy named Robin, so, not one to miss out on the drama, I hired her."

Shen Jiayue was utterly shocked.

WTF?

This happens?

However, thinking about the number of foreign teachers in Beijing, it’s not surprising to come across Lucy.

While they chatted, Lin Xu brought out some roasted honey sweet potatoes from the kitchen, and Shen Jiayue giggled:

"Xu Bao, do you want to hear some good news?"

"What good news?"

Shen Jiayue said while peeling the sweet potato:

"Lele’s oral English teacher seems to be Lucy!"

Lin Xu’s mind immediately came up with an idea:

"How about... inviting Lucy to the wedding?"

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This Chapter is 5,200 words, asking for a monthly ticket!