usatvline Chapter 77 They must be like-minded people
Chapter 77 They must be like-minded people
The moment the lid was lifted, an extremely strong, complex, and domineering aroma, yet one that felt incredibly familiar to Yang Yan's soul, rose with the billowing steam and rushed straight into his nostrils!
It wasn't the bland taste of boiling, nor the soft texture of steaming, nor the charred taste of roasting.
That's a wonderful chemical change called the Maillard reaction, which occurs when oil vaporizes instantly at extremely high temperatures and violently collides with the moisture and sugar in the food itself in the flames!
Yang Yan's hand, holding the chopsticks, abruptly stopped in mid-air.
He stared intently at the plate of greens, his pupils contracting sharply, and his mind went blank for a moment.
This is impossible!
He studied history, specifically the Sui and Tang dynasties, so he was well aware of the cooking methods during the Sui dynasty, which mainly consisted of four methods: boiling, steaming, roasting, and raw consumption.
Whether it was the elaborate cooking of nobles or the simple earthenware pots of commoners, most dishes were slow-cooked.
Because in this era, two crucial things are missing:
First, there was the widespread use of vegetable oil. At that time, animal fats (oil) were mostly used, which had a high melting point, were easy to solidify, and had a fishy smell, making them unsuitable for high-temperature stir-frying.
Second, and most importantly—the iron wok!
Although the Sui Dynasty already had iron smelting technology, it was pig iron (cast iron), which is brittle. If it was cast into a thin-walled pot, it would easily crack when subjected to intense heat and sudden cooling; if it was cast into a thick-walled cauldron, it would conduct heat slowly and would not be able to provide the high temperature required for stir-frying in a short time!
While wrought iron has good ductility and can be used to make thin pans, it is a strategic material used to forge weapons and armor! Who would be so extravagant as to use wrought iron to make a cooking pan?
Of course, stir-fries were already appearing on the tables of the nobility, but due to limitations in cooking utensils and ingredients, they were still rarely seen.
But this dish...
Its vibrant green color, its perfectly cooked yet tender texture, its rich, caramelized aroma…
That means it can only be stir-fried!
Moreover, it is a dish that requires an extremely thin iron wok to be used and stir-fried quickly over a high flame within a few breaths!
The problem is that this kind of dish should never have appeared on the table in the seventeenth year of the Kaihuang era!
"Third Uncle..."
Unable to hide his inner doubts, Yang Yan slowly raised his head, his gaze fixed on Yang Jun's nonchalant face, his finger pointing at the plate of vegetables trembling slightly.
"What is this dish called? The aroma is truly unique."
Yang Jun glanced at the plate of bright green, glistening cabbage, waved his hand dismissively, as if talking about something trivial: "Oh, you mean this? This stuff is nothing special, it's just stir-fried cabbage."
炒！
This simple word, like a thunderclap, exploded in Yang Yan's ears.
He admitted it himself!
Yang Yan's heart clenched suddenly. In that instant, it felt as if all the blood in his body was rushing upwards, straight to the top of his head, and the hairs on his body stood on end.
The word "stir-fry" is simply a non-existent concept in the culinary dictionary of this era!
Only a soul from a later era, a time of abundant resources and widespread use of iron pots, would take this skill for granted.
Yang Yan stared intently at his third uncle, whose face was greasy and who was completely unguarded. The absurd conjecture in his mind was expanding at an alarming rate:
Could this Qin king, who died in despair in history, also be a fellow being possessed by a time traveler?
If so, then wasn't the "kneeling friendship" shown in front of the Liangyi Hall just an act?
If so, then his advantage as a "prophet" would be completely lost, and he might even face an even more formidable competitor!
Calm down! You must calm down!
Yang Yan took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turbulent waves in his heart, and tried his best to control his facial muscles so as not to reveal the slightest flaw.
He slowly put down his chopsticks, pretending to be purely curious about the food, even with a hint of awe from someone who had never seen anything like it.
"Stir-fry? That's a new word."
Yang Yan's voice was steady, yet carried a perfectly appropriate hint of doubt.
"Nephew, this dish is a vibrant green, unlike the mushy and yellowed kind that's boiled. It's exceptionally crisp and refreshing, with a... indescribable smoky aroma. This is completely different from how the imperial kitchen usually prepares it. Could it be... that some special cooking utensils and techniques were used?"
This question instantly triggered Yang Jun's "tech geek's desire to show off."
"Hey! Looks like we're kindred spirits, uncle and nephew. You could tell the difference without even eating it!"
Yang Jun's eyes lit up. He slammed his wine glass on the table, slapped his thigh triumphantly, and leaned back in his chair with an excited look on his face, as if he had finally found someone knowledgeable.
"This is certainly no ordinary method! I spent three whole months figuring out how to make this crisp and refreshing treat back in Bingzhou!"
Yang Jun stretched out his hands, gesturing an arc in the air, and described with great enthusiasm: "First of all, ordinary pots and cauldrons are absolutely unsuitable! The walls are too thick, they heat up too slowly! By the time the pot is fully heated, the food will have already turned yellow!"
"Therefore, I had the craftsmen specially make an extremely thin iron vessel, with a round bottom, like a hemisphere! Place it over a raging fire, pour in refined oil, and heat it until the oil starts to smoke, that's when the temperature is highest!"
"Then, with a 'whoosh,' they tossed the vegetables in—the sound was so satisfying!"
As Yang Jun spoke, he loosely clenched his right hand, as if he were holding a large ladle, and flexibly flipped and shook his wrist, which was the standard ladle-flipping motion.
"You have to be quick! In just a few breaths, you have to make the vegetable tumble on the flames, heating every leaf instantly without losing moisture, and then sizzle it out of the pan!"
"Dishes stir-fried this way are crispy and fragrant, with a hint of smokiness! They're a hundred times better than those mushy, tasteless dishes that are boiled until they're mushy!"
Yang Yan listened quietly, his expression maintaining a perfect balance of amazement and admiration, but the shock deep within his heart did not diminish at all.
Thin-bottomed iron pan, high heat, hot oil, stir-fry quickly...
This is indeed the wok technique used in later generations.
But as a student majoring in Sui and Tang history, Yang Yan's focus instantly shifted from food to a more crucial issue—the ingredients!
During the Kaihuang era, when iron smelting technology was still in its early stages, what did it mean to forge an iron pot that could withstand intense frying, was extremely thin, yet would not crack?
This means that the pot is not made of ordinary cast iron, nor is it easily deformable wrought iron.
It has to be steel!
Moreover, it is a high-quality steel with excellent ductility that can only be obtained through repeated forging and even the use of techniques similar to "forging" or more advanced hydraulic forging technology!
Keep in mind that this was during the Sui Dynasty, and historical records from that era do not mention such smelting technology. Woks did not appear until the Song Dynasty.
In this era where less than 50% of people wear armor, if you lay this pot flat, it becomes a top-grade bright armor breastplate! If you roll it up, it becomes the prototype of a long-handled sword capable of cutting through enemy spears!
Yang Jun actually has such skills?