Chapter 269: Chapter 254: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

“Chef Huang, the Indica rice we soaked yesterday, I’ve already poured out the soaking water as you instructed this morning. I put the rice in the blender with a little water to grind it finely into rice slurry. I made sure to add water in two batches, then used cheesecloth to strain out the excess water and wring it dry. Take a look, is this rice flour up to your standard?”

Qian Guoxiang and Aunt Lin brought several bowls of finished rice flour to the workbench for Huang Jun to inspect.

Huang Jun stepped forward.

He put on disposable gloves, picked up a handful of rice flour, examined it closely, and nodded with satisfaction, saying, “Very good, Assistant Chef Qian, you did an excellent job. The texture of this rice flour is very fine, and the moisture is just right, exactly what I needed.”

Hearing this, Qian Guoxiang and the others finally felt relieved.

Like a weight lifted off their shoulders!

Seeing this, Wan Zhenhong’s curiosity was piqued again.

Unable to resist, he leaned forward, itching in anticipation, and asked, “Chef Huang, what exactly are you going to make with all this rice flour?”

Liu Shiwei was also overflowing with curiosity, nodding in agreement, “Yeah, Brother Huang, now’s the time to reveal the mystery, don’t keep us hanging any longer?”

Lin Weilin was even more impatient and urged, “Yeah, yeah, Chef Huang, what kind of delicious food are you going to make? Tell us quickly!”

Seeing their “eager beaver” expressions, Huang Jun couldn’t help but chuckle, as he revealed the answer, “Steamed Rice Cakes.”

“Aha… so it’s Steamed Rice Cakes!” Wan Zhenhong, with a look of delight and expectation, complimented, “The Steamed Rice Cakes made by Chef Huang must have an extraordinary taste, very delicious! Haha, I definitely have to try some later…”

Liu Shiwei, full of anticipation, rubbed his hands together, saying, “Brother Huang, you’ve been hiding your skills well! I didn’t expect you to make Steamed Rice Cakes. I haven’t had them in a long time, so I must taste your craftsmanship today…”

“Exactly, Chef Huang, hurry up and get started, we can’t wait to taste…” Lin Weilin urged impatiently but then felt his words were a bit too blunt, exposing his true intentions, so he quickly added, “Oh, I mean, the kids can’t wait to taste your skills.”

Huang Jun: “…”

Well, well!

I thought you were here to lend a hand, but you’re just after my Steamed Rice Cakes…

Wasn’t it agreed you’d be helping out?

He chuckled helplessly and teased them, “Just to be clear, you’re here to help, don’t get any ideas about the Steamed Rice Cakes. After all, they’re for the kids, not for the adults. If any of you eat some and the kids don’t have enough, you’ll have to bear the consequences…”

Liu Shiwei: “…”

Wan Zhenhong: “…”

Lin Weilin: “…”

Really?

Not even a piece of Steamed Rice Cake for them?

Must it be so harsh?

If they’d known, they wouldn’t have offered to help out.

I mean!

Is it too late to take it back?

Huang Jun looked at their embarrassed faces that seemed to say “playing too smart can backfire,” and couldn’t help but laugh. He then started assigning tasks, “Director Wan, Brother Liu, and Pengpeng’s Dad, could you please fluff up this rice flour?”

Alright!

The “helping hand” they volunteered for, they had to see through with tears in their eyes…

The three of them took the tools Huang Jun handed over and began fluffing the rice flour in the bowls.

Lin Weilin, who often helped his wife with chores at home, tackled the task with ease.

But for Wan Zhenhong and Liu Shiwei, who wouldn’t even pick up a fallen ketchup bottle at home, they managed to perfectly avoid hitting any clumps of rice flour. It looked like they were putting in a lot of effort, but there was absolutely no result.

Splattering rice flour everywhere.

Huang Jun shook his head, regretting agreeing to let these two “clumsy hands” help out.

Wasn’t this just adding to the chaos?

He tactfully suggested, “Director Wan, Brother Liu, why don’t you take a break and let Aunt Lin and Aunt Li take over…”

Aunt Lin and Aunt Li couldn’t stand watching any longer, quickly chiming in, “Yes, Director Wan, Chairman Liu, let us handle it!”

Liu Shiwei: “…”

Wan Zhenhong: “…”

Could it be… they were being criticized for not working efficiently?

If it were anyone else, they’d start arguing right away!

But it’s Huang Jun…

Whether they’ll get to taste those delicious Steamed Rice Cakes today depends entirely on Huang Jun’s word…

Thinking of this…

They had no choice but to accept the reality—becoming a “Ninja Turtle” this once.

Liu Shiwei showed an awkward yet polite smile, shaking his hand, “It’s okay, it’s okay, practice makes perfect, I’ll get the hang of it after a few tries.”

Wan Zhenhong also gave an awkward smile, “Right, right, practice makes perfect! We just need to do it a few more times.”

Alright then!

Whatever makes you happy!

Seeing their determination, Huang Jun couldn’t say much more and just let them continue.

Of course.

To speed things up, he signaled to Qian Guoxiang with his eyes to help out with Wan Zhenhong and Liu Shiwei.

As the saying goes, when a veteran takes action, one person can do the work of three.

In no time.

The rice flour was all fluffed, presenting a loose and even state.

Wan Zhenhong couldn’t help but exclaim, “As expected of Chef Huang and Assistant Chef Qian, getting it done in an instant…”

Lin Weilin nodded in agreement, “Indeed, Mr. Lu Xun was right, it’s more reliable to leave professional work to professionals!”

Wan Zhenhong looked at Lin Weilin with a puzzled expression: “Pengpeng’s dad, did Mr. Lu Xun really say this? How come I’ve never heard of it?”

Lin Weilin looked at Wan Zhenhong, who had a deadpan face, scratched his head, and didn’t know how to respond for a moment.

Liu Shiwei smiled and explained: “Director Wan, haven’t you heard this saying? No matter whether Lu Xun said it or not, as long as the saying sounds philosophical, just assume Lu Xun said it.”

Oh, who knew!

Chairman Liu, you’re quite the internet surfer…

Huang Jun listened to their conversation, smiled, and didn’t interject. Instead, he began preparing to make traditional red bean cakes.

He added water to the loosened rice flour in small amounts, stirring continuously until the rice flour and water fully blended into a uniform paste.

He turned and walked toward the stove.

He poured an appropriate amount of clean water into a washed pot, added sugar, and cooked it over low heat, stirring slowly until the sugar completely dissolved and the water boiled, then slowly poured the sugar water into the already prepared bowl of flour paste.

As he poured, he stirred constantly to ensure the sugar water and flour paste mixed thoroughly.

As the sugar water was added, the paste gradually became thicker and emitted a faint sweet aroma.

When the prepared paste had a smooth and silky texture, like silk, Huang Jun nodded in satisfaction, knowing that the batter had been perfectly prepared.

He poured the paste into a container convenient for pouring…

“Chef Huang, the high-temperature baking bowls are preheated!” Qian Guoxiang reminded from the side.

Huang Jun nodded: “Okay, add some of the cooked red beans in.”

“Got it!”

Qian Guoxiang took the pre-cooked red beans and began adding a suitable amount into each preheated high-temperature baking bowl.

Meanwhile, Huang Jun held the container of paste and steadily poured it into the high-temperature baking bowls filled with red beans.

A male duo works with high efficiency!

Soon, all the small bowls were filled with paste and red beans, placed into the steamer, and steamed on high heat for 15 minutes.

In the meantime.

He began preparing the paste for other flavors of red bean cakes.

“Chef Huang, I’ve seen many internet-famous red bean cakes on the street with cartoon designs. Can we make those?” Lin Weilin curiously asked.

Wan Zhenhong chimed in: “If we make cartoon designs, the kids will surely love it, but isn’t it quite challenging to do? Can you really pull it off, Chef Huang?”

Liu Shiwei also asked expectantly: “Brother Huang, can you make those?”

“No problem!”

Huang Jun smiled confidently: “I’m planning to make a panda molten center red bean cake.”

Lin Weilin exclaimed with delight: “Wow, that’s possible! Just the name sounds adorable; it must be so cute the kids won’t want to eat it…”

Wan Zhenhong was slightly surprised: “Oh, I didn’t expect you to know how to make such a complex cartoon red bean cake, and with a molten center. It must taste amazing!”

Liu Shiwei, full of anticipation, said: “Now I’m tempted to try it myself. Get started, Brother Huang!”

After all, custard mooncakes with molten centers are so delicious; the panda molten center red bean cake’s flavor surely won’t disappoint!

Huang Jun smiled: “It’s actually not difficult; as long as the mold is ready, everything falls into place.”

Speaking, he first dissolved the white sugar completely in boiling water, then added cold milk, stirring until evenly blended.

At this moment.

Steam rose steadily in the steamer, accompanied by wafts of enticing aromas, filling every corner of the workspace.

He saw it was about time and turned to Qian Guoxiang nearby: “Assistant Chef Qian, it’s about time. Please take out the red bean cakes to cool.”

“Alright, Chef Huang.”

Qian Guoxiang carefully opened the steamer lid, releasing an even richer fragrance.

Liu Shiwei, Lin Weilin, and Wan Zhenhong couldn’t help but lean forward, their eyes glued to the neatly smooth, faintly sweet-scented red bean cakes.

The next second…

They couldn’t help but swallow.

“It smells so fragrant, looks great, it must taste delicious too!” Liu Shiwei licked his dry lips.

“Yeah, I feel like I’m about to drool,” Lin Weilin swallowed hard.

Wan Zhenhong completely forgot Huang Jun’s words, reaching out to grab one to try, but was stopped by Qian Guoxiang in time.

“Not yet, it’s too hot. It needs to cool for a while.”

Wan Zhenhong’s hand was left hanging mid-air: “…”

Alright!

Patience is needed to eat hot tofu, so let’s wait a bit before eating…

What?

Huang Jun doesn’t allow them to eat?

Even so, they’ll eat first and deal with a potential scolding from Huang Jun later!

Huang Jun used a dropper to draw in charcoal powder, dropping it into the panda mold’s ears, eyes, and nose. Then he used the dropper to draw in red velvet, dropping it onto the panda mold’s mouth and cheeks.

After completing the coloring, he placed the mold into the steamer to steam for three minutes, allowing the panda shape to solidify.

Once the time was up, he quickly poured in about a third of the height of white paste as the panda’s body base.

He divided the remaining paste into three parts, mixing each with strawberry sauce, blueberry sauce, and osmanthus sauce respectively, stirring them evenly to create three different flavors of paste.

He first poured a little paste into the high-temperature baking bowls, placing them back into the steamer to steam for three more minutes, allowing the bottom to cook.

After they were cooked, he placed the frozen custard molten center filling inside, poured paste over it until it was submerged, and continued steaming for 10 minutes.

As time passed, the steamer also began releasing a tantalizing aroma…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep