Shokuki: Start with an izakaya and make everyone cry

Speaking of Provence.

Many people’s impressions are those endless deep purple lavender fields and stone-built country houses!

In fact, in addition to the beautiful scenery, the Provence region also has many unique beauties.

For example:

The Marseille fish soup with good color, aroma and taste.

The mellow rosé wine.

The black truffle with a unique aroma.

The unique sauce garlic mayonnaise.

…

These wonderful delicacies make many diners say they can’t stop eating.

And facing the chef Saiba Chaoyang who is like a dark ghost, the dish that Mujichi Enka and Kadozaki Taki want to make is Ratatouille

Yes, it is the finale dish Ratatouille in the Disney movie "Ratatouille", that is:

Provence stew!

French food.

Cuisine.

Provence.

Dream.

Challenge.

Countryside.

Childhood.

These are all keywords of this dish.

But for Mujichi Enka, this dish has added more memories.

Although the word "stew" is in the name of Provencal stew, its core step is roasting, and there is no meat in the regular version. Of course, if you like meat, you can add it!

At the beginning, Provencal stew was a home-cooked dish of farmers in southeastern France.

Originally, farmers cooked a bunch of local freshly picked vegetables into a pot of improvisation. Later, with the passage of time, it was improved in many ways and became a very learned French dish.

Well!

The production process is relatively simple.

Only a few fresh vegetables are needed. For example, Mu Jiuzhi now cuts round eggplant, cucumber, tomato and carrot into round slices.

On the other side, Kadozaki Taki added potato slices and cucumbers.

Then the sauce is made. The scraps of the above vegetables, plus onions, garlic, bell peppers, etc., are blended into a paste in a food processor.

In terms of sauce, everyone should have their own merits.

Therefore, Mu Jiuzhi also added sweet and sour sauce and tomato sauce, and of course rosemary, pepper and salt.

Finally, it's time to plate and bake!

Sprinkle some olive oil.

For baking, choose 200 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.

…

"It's Provencal stew?"

"Should I say you are quite confident in your own strength, or do you think that the dish I'm going to make next..."

"Will you lose?"

The cooking table opposite.

Cai Bo Chaoyang, who didn't even prepare the ingredients, actually watched the cooking process of Yuan Guo and Taki in a daze.

The French are naturally romantic. If such a simple stew can make a unique taste, it will not lose its exquisiteness and surprise.

However, Provencal stew must be delicious.

The secret is to stir-fry the vegetables separately, so that each ingredient can retain its own flavor.

In other words, when eating, you can not only taste the original flavor of the ingredients, but also eat them together in another way!

In addition to history, there are many ways to make Provencal stew.

Generally speaking, they can be divided into three groups:

The first group believes that all vegetables can be stir-fried together; the second group believes that vegetables should be layered and then roasted, and there is another group that believes that vegetables should be stir-fried separately and then combined and cooked over low heat.

Obviously, the current approach of Kikuchi and Kadozaki is leaning towards the second group.

"Humph!"

"Why?"

"Does all French cuisine have to have a delicate taste, delicious sauces, and gorgeous tableware, turning the vulgarity of eating into an elegant art, to be qualified?"

"A country's food system cannot be only high-end and not down-to-earth."

"The same is true for restaurants!"

Taki Kadozaki, who had just finished his work, glanced at Chaoyang and said in a calm tone.

"Interesting, I did think about it."

"This exquisite Chunguoting restaurant will eventually bring out iconic delicacies such as foie gras and truffles to compete with me."

"In the end, you actually brought out Provencal stew, which surprised me a little."

Cai Bo smiled faintly at Chaoyang, but his eyes became sharp. He tightly grasped the "four palaces" knife in his hand and continued: "You are right, French cuisine cannot be only high-end, but not down-to-earth..."

...

For some families.

The taste of mother in the memory may be a bowl of onion soup with crispy cheese and rich flavor.

Especially in the daily life of Parisians, onion soup appears frequently, a bit like the tomato and egg soup on the table of the Chinese, very homely.

Onion!

It has a pungent smell.

When you peel it layer by layer, you will unconsciously choke out tears.

In China, most of them are used for cooking or as spices.

However.

In Paris.

Many people use onions to make soup.

And the pungent taste is removed very cleverly, and only a very sweet taste remains after cooking the soup.

Onion soup is often overshadowed by the romance and colorfulness of Paris, but this healing dish is actually not difficult to make. It only requires a lot of onions and some patient waiting time.

First, you need to prepare 2 large Vidalia sweet onions.

Although sweet onions are the best candidate for this dish, ordinary white onions, red onions, or a mixture will also work in an emergency.

Then, cut the onions into thin strips.

Put them into a soup pot with a thicker bottom, add butter, oil, and thyme and stir-fry until softened and slightly colored.

…

As the onions are slowly stir-fried in the pot, the unique burnt aroma gradually spreads.

This faint burnt aroma is the unique sweetness of the onion itself gradually released under the action of heat. As the stir-frying continues, the burnt aroma begins to become stronger.

Warm.

Kind.

Then, it becomes more and more apparent.

But it is not very pungent, but deep and mellow.

It is like a melodious melody, jumping and dancing in the pot, with a faint bitterness and smoky texture.

Mu Jiuzhi, involuntarily took a deep breath.

As a result, she could actually feel every moment of the onion jumping in the pot in the kitchen. The perfect fusion of the caramelized and sweet aromas made her feel as if she was in a field of harvest and felt the gift of nature!

"Is it impossible?"

"Is the caramelization process of onions... so outrageous?"

Finally, when Mu Jiuzhi Enguo woke up, her bright eyes were filled with disbelief.

...

The flavor of onion soup often depends on the performance of caramelization.

After all, before adding bread, the whole dish only has soup and onions, so making the soup delicious is the basis for the success of this dish.

Generally speaking, if the onions soften during the stir-frying process.

Then you can sprinkle some salt and sugar, turn up the heat a little, and raise the soup to another level. Keep stir-frying until the onions are a beautiful golden brown.

If you feel that the color is uneven, add some water and stir-fry again.

Finally, when the onions turn golden, add a few tablespoons of flour and continue stirring for a few minutes.

This step is like thickening.

You'll love how thick this soup is when the flour is mixed with the butter and oil, so it doesn't feel too watery when you eat it.

Of course, you can also add a little white wine and hot stock.

Then use a spoon to press against the bottom of the pot and stir carefully to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom.

Apparently, there are no hard and fast rules for the ingredients in onion soup, just like in Provencal stew!

Don't eat beef?

Then use chicken stock instead.

Like vegetarian?

Use mushroom stock, which is just as delicious!

…

At this step.

Caibo Chaoyang can finally cover the pot and simmer the soup for 30 minutes.

This process will make the flavors blend better, but you must come back and stir every once in a while to avoid burning the bottom.

Finally, when the 30 minutes have passed, you can prepare it in a bowl and complete the last step.

As we all know, the best part of French onion soup is the delicious crispy layer on the surface.

After tearing a few small pieces of French bread by hand, put them in the oven and bake them at low temperature until they are soft and no longer have moisture. At the same time, Cai Bo Chaoyang also tried to make the bread into the size of the baking dish so that the bread can stick perfectly to the sides of the dish.

Moreover, not only bread but also cheese is served.

He chose Parmesan cheese and Swiss Gruyère strong cheese, and the taste is not too prominent.

It is worth noting that cheeses with a little odor, such as Brie or Camembert, should not be used.

Otherwise, it will change the original taste of the whole pot of soup. Now wait for the cheese to start bubbling and bake until it is slightly burnt brown, and everything is done.

…

“As expected of a late-night cook.”

“Regardless of the ingredients or the cooking method, French onion soup can be said to have a set of standard procedures.”

“So the key here, in addition to the well-known caramelized onions…”

“It also lies in the quality of the broth!”

“Huh?”

“Wait, caramelized onions… Yes, that’s the most important part!”

Taki Kadozaki stared at Chaoyang Caibo across from him for a few seconds, and finally tried to recall the process of making this onion soup in his mind, vaguely thinking of something.

Yes!

Caramelized onions, the most important thing!

The "caramelized onions" we usually talk about are, to be precise, the products of onions undergoing caramelization and Menard browning reactions.

In simple terms, making caramelized onions is to heat onions so that the protein and sugar in the onions slowly turn into brown substances.

This process involves two stages:

Water release and browning.

Because the water content of onions is as high as 70%, onions will "sweat" first.

After the cells burst, water releases and the onions become soft. If heated continuously, the sugar and protein in the cells begin to decompose and produce dark brown substances, and the color of the onions changes from yellow-white to brown.

And the richness, complexity, and depth of taste of onion soup are Layers, all of which are inseparable from caramelized onions.

But it is not easy to make perfect caramelized onions.

Fire!

Too big.

Not only is it difficult to control, but it is also very likely that the outer layer of the onion will start to burn before the substances in the onion cells have time to be released.

This kind of "burned" onion is definitely not the caramelized onion we want.

So you have to cook it slowly over medium and low heat to let the onion brown slowly.

To what extent?

How long does the whole process take?

On these issues, many people may think that the deeper the browning, the better, but this is not the case!

If the onion is too browned, it is easy to have the risk of bitterness.

In short.

As both sides cooked, the meal gradually came to an end.

Whether it was Mu Jiuzhi or Kadozaki, they both began to experience the terribleness of Saiba Chaoyang.

…

In France, only by going to Provence can you understand where the leisurely spirit of the French people comes from?

The movie "Summer in Provence" said: Parisians don't understand the passage of time. They get up during the day and sleep at night.

In Provence, the morning light is blue, the sun is scorching at noon, and the curve of the Alps is overlooked at night. Only from this can you feel the passage of time and the change of seasons.

When the Provence stew is served, you can feel the colorful colors at a glance, which makes you hungry.

First of all, what catches your eye is the bright colors of the vegetables in the stew:

The orange-red of carrots.

The light yellow of onions.

The emerald green of green peppers.

And the bright red of tomatoes.

They penetrate each other and form a unique color combination.

The stew soup is an attractive dark brown color, exuding a faint sweet fragrance and rich meaty aroma.

After a long period of processing, the meat has become tender and juicy. You can feel the smooth taste with a light pinch, while the vegetables maintain their original crispness, forming a sharp contrast with the taste of meat.

With every bite, you can taste the unique flavors brought by different ingredients, which is endless aftertaste!

"A little disappointed!"

"I thought that as a former graduate of Totsuki, even if I made a Provence stew, it would make me..."

Before he finished speaking, Cai Bo Chaoyang shook his head.

In his heart, perhaps the evaluation of this Provence stew may not be too bad, but it is not as amazing as imagined!

...

Yu Hou.

His onion soup was also served.

Under the light, the whole dish exudes an attractive color.

The light golden color is revealed with a subtle orange-red, which is the natural color released by the onion after careful cooking, just like the afterglow of the autumn sunset, warm and charming.

As I approached the soup bowl, a strong onion aroma came to my nose.

This aroma is different from the spiciness of raw onions. It becomes soft after stewing, with a sweet and delicious taste.

A slight sniff is as if you are in an onion field, surrounded by the rich aroma. Then stir it slightly, and the onion shreds in the soup blend perfectly with the soup, forming a dense and smooth taste.

Every bite can also feel the mellowness of onions and the richness of the soup.

They interweave rich layers on the tip of the tongue, and in addition to the deliciousness of onions, this thick soup also incorporates the fragrance of cream and the subtle seasoning of spices.

The addition of cream makes the soup more mellow, and also adds a touch of smooth taste to the aroma of onions.

The spices cleverly enhance the overall flavor, making this onion thick soup more distinctive.

"This..."

"Is this really onion thick soup?"

Swallowing, Mu Jiuzhi Yuanguo's eyes widened.

She could feel the chef’s ingenuity and respect for ingredients from this dish, and every bite was the ultimate care for her taste buds!