Gourmet: Midnight Vending-Chapter 287 - 275: Northeast Bro, Just Go for It! (Part 2)

Chapter 287: Chapter 275: Northeast Bro, Just Go for It! (Part 2)

Hou Qingyun slapped his thigh, "That’s wonderful! At least it gives Old Hu a chance to perform. If he really can’t stay, we won’t have any complaints!"

Hu Jian Country nodded vigorously with excitement.

This job was of utmost importance to him.

His son had been working for five or six years but couldn’t save much money after daily expenses. If he could work for a few more years, he could save for his son’s house and still receive a pension in his old age.

At that time, even if he couldn’t help his son, at least he wouldn’t be a burden to him.

Facing a competitor twenty years younger, getting a trial opportunity made Old Hu very happy.

Zhang Zhenhua stood up with a smile, "We just need to scan the code over there, right?"

Hu Jian Country quickly stopped him, "No, no, how can you treat us? Besides, this young owner’s barbecue requires payment before ordering; otherwise, with so many people, he wouldn’t be able to handle it alone."

Qin Xiufen also stood up, "So, the job is settled for now. In my opinion, the four of us should get in line; we’ll never get the barbecue at this rate sitting here."

The four of them laughed heartily and happily joined the long queue.

Chen Mo was busy in the car, and after grilling two hundred eyeballs, he immediately switched to meat skewers.

Initially hesitant customers, now all transformed into Hundred-Eyed Demon Monarchs, couldn’t be satisfied until they devoured all the grilled eyeballs.

Occasionally, exclamations erupted from the crowd. Some got burned by spurting eye fluid, while others, not following the eating rules, opened their mouths while chewing and squirted the eye fluid everywhere.

The atmosphere in front of the food truck was very lively!

With the meat skewers grilling on one side, Chen Mo came out to check, and true to reputation, the Northeast brother was incredibly efficient, having skewered two hundred cicada pupae in just over ten minutes.

"You’re really good at this, feels quite professional."

The Northeast brother laughed heartily, "Back home, when we’re idle, we love barbecuing. This stuff, we all skewer ourselves, it’s all experience."

The skewered cicada pupae were sharply pointed at both ends and round in the middle, looking plump and juicy, skewered through on both sides with two bamboo sticks, each skewer holding four pupae.

Even though their bodies had been pierced, these little pupa babies struggled vigorously in the basin, seemingly protesting Chen Mo’s inhumane actions.

But, it was all in vain.

Chen Mo grabbed a handful of bamboo sticks, placing the two hundred skewers of cicada pupae on the grill, while recalling the key points of grilling cicada pupae in his mind.

The pupae, feeling the intense heat from below, struggled even more furiously, while the onlooking diners showed sympathy on their faces.

The Northeast brother pointed at the pupae, "Young owner, you need to brush oil on these; otherwise, they’ll get charred."

Every Northeastern person is a natural barbecue master. In terms of grilling skewers, they seem to possess an instinctive talent, and this brother is no exception. During family gatherings back home, he alone could handle grilling for more than ten people, his skills were profound.

However, what he thought was a friendly suggestion was met with a prompt headshake from Chen Mo.

"Why not? They’ll get charred or burst if you don’t," the brother was puzzled.

If it were someone else, Chen Mo might not say much, but since this brother had helped skewer so many, it was no harm to explain a bit more.

"I use a low flame for grilling cicada pupae; at this temperature, they won’t burst or char."

"So, how long do you grill them for?"

Chen Mo bent slightly to observe the pupae, "Grill until they’re almost dry."

The inside of a cicada pupa contains a lot of protein; if the outer shell isn’t handled well, it will taste dry and be hard to swallow.

"Look," Chen Mo pointed at the skewer’s penetration point, "it’s starting to bubble."

The Northeast brother looked closely and saw it too, "But we used to grill them with high heat until they burst, then sprinkled spices on top; they tasted awesome."

Chen Mo shook his head awkwardly, "No way, you should try mine today."

Those barbecue places that grill with high heat from the start are quite irresponsible.

Cicada pupae need to be initially grilled slowly with a low flame, allowing the internal moisture to gradually evaporate, while the outer shell dries thoroughly in the process.

That is the secret to a crunchy cicada pupa shell.

Noticing the bubbling at the penetration point getting more intense, Chen Mo knew it was the rapid evaporation of moisture inside, signaling it was time to quickly flip them over.

Otherwise, the side nearer the flame might end up charred.

After flipping all the pupae, with bubbles still forming at the puncture sites, Chen Mo began sprinkling salt, and a lot of it!

Seeing the Northeast brother’s surprised expression, Chen Mo casually explained, "Cicada pupae are different from other meats; how else can they absorb flavor? Even with this much salt, it might not be salty enough later."

About another thirty seconds elapsed, and finally, the small holes stopped bubbling, indicating that the internal proteins had almost solidified.

Time to apply oil!

This time, regular vegetable oil was used primarily to raise the temperature further, cooking the interior without charring the shell.

"It’s cracking!" The Northeast brother excitedly pointed to one of the pupae, "It’s starting to crack!"

Chen Mo just smiled slightly, indicating it was only the beginning.

As soon as the brother spoke, the pupae began bursting one after another!

Of course, this bursting was not one sudden explosion but rather a gentle tearing of the skin, with the internal protein expanding due to higher heat.

The solidified protein squeezed out from the cracks began emitting a peculiar aroma under the continued low flame.

It’s hard to describe, a little appealing but also slightly fishy?

A thirty-seven-year-old lady standing in the crowd unknowingly blushed upon smelling it.

When most of them had burst, Chen Mo resumed wielding his brush, applying a second layer of oil.

This time, besides brushing off the extruded protein, the oil mainly served the purpose of enhancing the aroma.

Immediately after applying the vegetable oil, without waiting for it to heat up, Chen Mo whipped out his barbecue trio: sesame, cumin, and chili powder!

With the cumin adhering to the cold oil and the chili powder coating them, sesame was sprinkled to garnish each cicada pupa’s surface.

Only then did the oil temperature gradually rise!

As the temperature rose, it completely released the fragrance of the spices, causing many to take deep breaths, for the aroma was indeed captivating!

It reached that level where one would take a detour just to catch a glimpse during a nighttime stroll.

Only at this moment did Chen Mo finally realize.

’Why, when I used to eat barbecue, did the stall owners just grill the skewers, sprinkle some spices, and serve it straight away? What were they thinking?’

The spices need to be fried in oil to release a more intense fragrance, allowing better integration with the food!

The second application of oil was precisely for this!

The dry spices became moist and adhered closely to the cicada pupae under the oil’s influence.

"Alright, grilled cicada pupae, ten Yuan per skewer, grab them quickly!"

Just like with the pig eyes earlier, most of the food was approached with slight skepticism; the Northeast brother alone, without any hesitation or need to count, immediately reached out to grab!

His enormous right hand grabbed an uncountable amount, seemingly taking away about a third of the skewers on the grill.

The brother couldn’t be bothered to count, "I’ll scan five hundred Yuan, if not enough, I’ll pay more after finishing."

No choice, he had been away from home too long.

The craving had lingered for far too long!