I'm the Culinary God

The love-struck Zeng Xiaoqi, proud as a peacock these days, plans to return home and hold her head high.

Being in a relationship not only means having a partner, but in the eyes of elders, it’s seen as turning over a new leaf, worthy of praise and a lucky money reward for encouragement.

Chen Yan said:

"Even in Beijing, I can’t escape being pressured into marriage. It’s more traditional in the countryside, so being pushed to marry is even more normal there. If you work hard, buying a house in Beijing shouldn’t be a problem."

While buying a house in Beijing doesn’t exempt one from marriage pressure, at least people back home won’t matchmake their daughters with just anyone.

Even in searching for a partner, they have to own a house in Beijing.

That narrows it down a lot, bringing at least some tranquility.

The next morning, Lin Xu didn’t go to work but stayed home to prepare the ducks that Lao Huang sent, getting ready to make Tea Oil Duck.

"So many ducks?"

Shen Jiayue looked at the hundred ducks delivered by Lao Huang, thinking the kitchen was turning into a sea of ducks.

Lin Xu chuckled:

"Later, when the guy delivering the pickling jars arrives, remember to go downstairs and let him in so he doesn’t get stuck outside."

"Okay, wow, are these two large jars tea oil? They smell so good."

Tea oil and duck are the primary ingredients for Tea Oil Duck, and Lao Huang delivered both along with a few slaughtered geese.

Lin Xu was busy cleaning the ducks.

Although these ducks were already slaughtered, there was still some blood clots and leftover lymphatic tissues inside that needed to be cleaned out.

Additionally, the duck feathers and the membranes on the duck webs weren’t removed properly, so each one needed a thorough cleaning.

Once cleaned, they would be rubbed with table salt and pressed down with something heavy.

There’s a shortage of stone slabs at home, but plenty of weight plates. Shen Guofu, with nothing to do, bought some fitness equipment, and those heavy weights could serve as substitutes.

Well, this inadvertently unlocked the proper use of fitness gear.

In the midst of the work, Shen Guofu suddenly called:

"Lin Xu, why didn’t you and Yueyue come to the shop?"

"I’m preparing Tea Oil Duck at home today, the ducks just arrived."

Upon hearing this, Shen Guofu immediately said:

"Then I and your mother-in-law will come over to help now."

With that, he hung up the phone.

Lin Xu smirked bitterly, what help is needed for this?

Is the father-in-law eyeing the meat and using the pretense of helping as an excuse to come over?

However, when pressing the ducks with weight plates later, maybe father-in-law could lend a hand.

The ducks needed to be pressed for two days, Lin Xu originally thought of using a wooden board upstairs, but it seemed too troublesome and prone to accidents.

So he planned to handle it in the kitchen.

The kitchen’s central island is spacious enough to easily hold a hundred ducks.

There’s also a sink on the island, perfect for using the perimeter to channel the pressed juice into the central sink.

After cleaning the ducks, Lin Xu picked up a kitchen knife and split them open from the back, just like air-dried ducks.

This way, they’re easier to lay flat when pressing, and later when pickling in jars, space can be saved.

While busy, Shen Guofu and Han Shuzhen came in with some fruit.

Seeing a kitchen full of ducks, the couple was stunned.

But Han Shuzhen was taken aback, whereas Shen Guofu couldn’t stop smiling.

"So many ducks, how many meals will this take?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Jiayue knew what her dad was thinking and couldn’t help but throw a damper:

"These ducks need to marinate for four months before we can eat them. If you count from now, it won’t be until around May Day, dad, are you disappointed?"

Shen Guofu opened his mouth, gave a dry laugh:

"Why would I be disappointed, anytime is fine... By the way, the Soy Sauce Duck and air-dried duck made earlier, are they ready to eat?"

If Tea Oil Duck is off the menu, those previously made ducks should be fine, right?

Lin Xu said:

"They’re ready to eat, how about we have them for lunch at home today and try the difference between air-dried duck and Soy Sauce Duck?"

Soy Sauce Duck is usually steamed to best preserve the duck’s flavor and the soy sauce’s taste.

Whereas air-dried duck has multiple ways to enjoy, it can be simmered in soup, cooked with bamboo shoots ala Braised Pork Belly, steamed, or briefly boiled and stir-fried in chunks.

Shen Guofu swallowed a bit, noticing a few geese nearby, he was about to say let’s cook the geese too but caught his wife’s eyes and quickly said:

"One Soy Sauce Duck and one air-dried duck are enough, no need to cook the geese, Lin Xu, we won’t finish it."

Lin Xu said:

"I plan to make these geese into air-dried geese so we can enjoy them whenever we want later."

"Alright, sounds good."

He had all the ducks split open from the back and started draining them. Then he took the coarse sea salt that Lao Huang had previously sent over, ready to salt the ducks.

When curing meats, it’s best not to use fine table salt.

Fine salt is too salty and dehydrates too much, which can make the cured product slightly bitter.

Coarse sea salt is preferable, enhancing flavor with just the right amount of saltiness.

And it gives a better feel when rubbing it in.

He poured the salt into a basin, and Shen Guofu and Han Shuzhen joined in to help.

Old Shen took charge of drying the moisture off the ducks to ease Lin Xu’s salting, while Han Shuzhen laid the salted ducks flat on the kitchen’s central island.