louisehourcade Chapter 134 Side Quest
Chapter 134 Side Quest
The communal kitchen was small, with mottled white tile walls and very obvious oil stains.
The sign reads, "Use with courtesy and clean up promptly."
There was a wooden cabinet at the very back, containing pots and pans that could be used in public. Chen Yuan took out what he needed from it.
These tableware pieces are rather old, but they are kept very clean.
The air was filled with a faint smell of cooking smoke and a barely perceptible whiff of disinfectant.
The stainless steel pot was already boiling.
Next to it were half-sacks of loose millet and several empty bowls.
Chen Yuan glanced around briefly, then put down what he was holding and chose the stove closest to the side.
Then, skillfully, he rinsed the rice, chopped the ginger, and sliced the fish.
The movements were clean and efficient, without any hesitation or slackness.
The stove in the communal kitchen had a weak flame, and Chen Yuan had to try several times to get the flame evenly distributed along the bottom of the pot. This way, the food would be heated evenly, making it taste better and easier to control the heat.
Since no one was around at this time, Chen Yuan shamelessly took over an extra stove and steamed rice.
The other pot was filled with stewed beef.
With food simmering on both stoves, Chen Yuan quickly prepared the sea bass and various vegetables he had bought.
Once everything is ready.
He found a stool, sat down, and watched the fire.
The person who was supposed to cook the porridge never came.
Seeing that the fire was burning too fast and there might not be much water left in the pot, and that he couldn't wait for anyone to come, Chen Yuan was afraid that something might happen, so he quickly turned the fire down a bit.
Not long after.
Slow footsteps came from outside the door, and an elderly man, about sixty or seventy years old, pushed the door open and came in.
His hair was half white and half black, and he was wearing an old jacket with bulging pockets that looked like a stack of hospital bills.
He hurriedly went to the pot where the porridge was being cooked and lifted the lid.
"Oh dear, it almost boiled dry."
Judging from this old man's actions, he doesn't cook often.
Even turning off the gas stove was a flurry of activity.
After the lid was lifted, there was a faint aroma of millet in the air, but it was rather weak, unlike the strong aroma that Chen Yuan had made.
The old man scooped up a little with a stainless steel spoon, blew on it, and slowly put it into his mouth.
After just one bite, his brows furrowed, his shoulders slumped, and his eyes were filled with anxiety and frustration.
"Why does it have no aroma at all, and it's a bit undercooked? Why is the heat always off?"
He muttered to himself and threw the spoon into the bowl beside him.
Chen Yuan initially didn't intend to blindly step forward to help. But then, the long-unheard system notification sounded in his ears.
[Congratulations, host, for unlocking the hidden side quest.]
[Could you help this elderly man make the millet porridge he desires?]
[Task Reward: Complete Guide to Culinary Knowledge (World-Class)]
Chen Yuan agreed without even thinking about it.
Making millet porridge is a piece of cake, isn't it? He makes it every morning, a dozen or twenty pots at a time.
After accepting the mission, Chen Yuan immediately stood up.
He didn't even need to walk to the pot; just getting closer, he could smell the raw rice.
Looking into the pot, I saw that there was a thin layer of burnt residue on the bottom.
"Hello sir, is this porridge not cooked through?"
The old man turned his head and saw Chen Yuan. He was stunned for a moment, then sighed.
"Yes, why is this porridge so hard to make? I see other people just grab a handful of rice, add some water, and boil it, but I can never make it right."
As if someone had struck up a conversation, the old man began to ramble on and on, seemingly trying to pour out all the bitterness in his heart.
"You said my husband is in the hospital, just had surgery, and can't eat hard food. The doctor said to drink some millet porridge to soothe his stomach, and said that the layer of rice oil on top is the best. I thought I'd cook it myself to make sure it's clean and safe."
"I've never cooked since I was young. You see, even when I'm just making millet porridge, I can never get the heat right. I've tried three times, and it's either watery or burnt."
"My husband was in so much pain last night that he didn't sleep well, and he didn't even drink water this morning..."
The old man's voice grew softer and softer, filled with sighs and lamentations, making him seem pitiful to behold.
"All I wanted was to make her something hot and comforting, why is that so difficult?"
Chen Yuan didn't speak.
He glanced at the pot of failed porridge in the pot.
"Sir, please rest for a while. If you trust me, leave this to me, and I'll teach you how to cook it."
As Chen Yuan spoke, he had already rolled up his sleeves.
The old man was somewhat taken aback, so Chen Yuan quickly pointed to the stove where he was cooking.
"My dad is also hospitalized here. I just made him rice and stewed meat. I run a breakfast shop, so making millet porridge is no problem."
"This...this is too much trouble, you're busy too, I..."
"It's just a small thing. You just need to start cooking the porridge. No one needs to keep an eye on it."
The old man glanced at Chen Yuan, then at the half-bag of millet.
My guard immediately dropped.
He said it with particular sincerity.
"Young man, how about this? You teach me, and I'll learn right here. Don't worry, I'll learn it in no time."
"OK."
Chen Yuan first cleaned the stainless steel pot.
"The bottom of the pot is burnt," he said as he cleaned it.
"Grandpa, cooking porridge isn't like boiling water. It has to be cooked slowly. The rice has to be soaked in advance, and all the water has to be added at once. The heat has to be high at first and then low, and the cooking process can't be interrupted."
"Sir, your porridge doesn't look quite right. Did you not soak the rice thoroughly?"
The old man nodded vigorously.
"You have to soak the rice? Oh dear, how would I know that? I just thought I could just put the rice in and turn on the heat to cook it. I even added water twice."
"That's right. If the rice wasn't soaked, water was added twice, and the heat was too high, it's easy for it to be undercooked and burnt at the bottom."
After the pot is washed.
Chen Yuan scooped out two more bowls of millet from the bag the old man had brought.
Rinse twice with warm water.
"Grandpa, this rice can't be rubbed or kneaded; you have to preserve the nutrients in the outermost layer."
After washing the rice, Chen Yuan didn't rest while waiting for the water to boil.
"Add the rice after the water boils. The ideal rice-to-water ratio is 1:12. After adding the rice, wait until the water boils again before turning the heat down to low."
As Chen Yuan spoke, he stirred the pot with a spoon.
"When cooking millet porridge, never frequently lift the lid to check the contents."
"The rice oil is slowly simmered over low heat to bring out the flavor. You have to be patient. Auntie just had surgery, so her spleen and stomach must be very weak. The best rice porridge is cooked until the rice and water are fully integrated and melt in your mouth."
The old man nodded vigorously, listening very attentively.
"So that's what happened. No wonder I couldn't get it right no matter what I did."
"Thank you, young man, you're such a kind person."
Just at this time.
It was lunchtime, and more people started coming in one after another.