On the day of the Beginning of Summer, there was wind and poplar catkins were flying in the snow.

Wandering around the city in loneliness.

A thought rose uncontrollably, and flames burst out from the bottom of my heart, licking my throat. I know there is only one place where my restless soul can become quiet again.

Yes, this is the only place.

It only takes 8 seconds, are you sure?

I'm sure.

What happens if it is slow?

That will only happen in one situation.

What happened?

I am old.

His face was originally expressionless, but a cunning light suddenly flashed in his eyes. I nodded slightly and turned around. He picked up the colander and pulled half of the snowflake beef steak off the plate. Then he quickly immersed the colander and the colander into the boiling pot. He quickly broke it up with long chopsticks and raised and lowered it three times in the soup while silently counting the seconds. In an instant, the thin slices of meat curled up, and the original red and white textured appearance turned into a rich pinkish gray. The white fat lace on the top of each piece of meat became more and more visible under the collision of the hot soup. It is crystal clear and flawless, like a teardrop falling to the world, or like a piece of fresh snow blown from the tip of a sword.

Different parts require different times. The waiter patiently introduced me, a new diner, to this kind of snowflake beef. Because each slice is cut very thin, we only need to blanch it for 8 seconds. This kind of five-flowered toe takes 10 seconds. As for the beef tongue, add 2 seconds more since the muscle tissue is a little more pliable.

So here, our eating time is in seconds, sir.

Does it need to be so precise?

Yes, otherwise I'm sorry for that cow.

The above conversation took place at noon on a weekend in early summer. In the restaurant of Nuoda, a Chaoshan beef hot pot restaurant located on Huayuan Street, diners each occupied a table, and the crowd gradually became louder.

The pot of beef bone soup on the table also began to boil.

The soup is clear in color, with two beef stick bones lying quietly at the bottom of the pot. Corn, white radish, wolfberry, fish balls, ginger slices, and refreshing and tonic seasonings are added, including Adenophora japonicus, Polygonatum odoratum, Polygonatum odorifera, Red dates sound like healthy ingredients. So before you officially cook the beef, you need to drink a bowl of soup first, and be sure to sprinkle a handful of green celery grains in the soup. A warm aroma thoughtfully irons the entire mouth, awakening the taste buds that are not yet active enough, and preparing for the next gluttonous meal.

When I opened the menu, I felt a little dizzy. I have to spend some time to understand and distinguish these unfamiliar terms: neck kernel, hanging dragon, key handle, fat parallel, chest...

Yes, these words all point to one end Cow, a small ox. The snowflake (also called the neck kernel) is the most frequently moved part of the neck and is also the top part. When cut, it has vertical and horizontal lines like marble, and the taste is soft, sweet and intoxicating. Diaolong refers to the layer of meat outside the tenderloin, which is equivalent to the sirloin steak in Western food. It is delicious, juicy and slightly chewy. The handle of the spoon is located between the neck and the leg. Because there is a very obvious tendon in the meat, it looks clear and has a strong character, and it tastes like a stretch. Fatty pork belly is a sandwich of beef belly meat. It is completely covered in light yellow fat. It is full of fragrant and oily flavor when you eat it. It is not afraid of cooking. The longer it is cooked, the crispier it becomes.

The order in which ingredients are put into the pot is also particular. You should follow the order of thinning first and then fattening, boiling the beef first, and then adding other vegetarian dishes to avoid the soup being cloudy, always maintaining the plain appearance of a pot of clear soup, and quietly absorbing all the flavors of the beef bit by bit.

It must be said that Chaoshan people are Niu’s close friends. The legendary Cook Ding is nothing more than that.

A place that did not originally produce cattle has developed the way and scope of cattle consumption to the extreme.

A cow, from head to toe, top to bottom, is finely divided into several areas and marked one by one. Not suitable for blanching, it is also used as raw material for beef balls and braised beef. Compared with the bold and enthusiastic Sichuan style hot pot, Chaoshan hot pot highlights a refined and restrained eating attitude. Like a fine brushwork of flowers and birds with iron pen and silver hooks, the lines are meticulous, the seams fit perfectly, and the aftertaste is long.

In the final analysis, never getting tired of fine food and never getting tired of fine cooking is the highest state of Chinese cuisine culture.

We are serious about making side stoves.

The cooked beef must be paired with appropriate dipping sauces to make it the icing on the cake.

The sauce recommended by the clerk is Shacha sauce, which has a lighter taste, slightly sweet and slightly spicy, and complements the umami flavor of the beef without overpowering the show. But I always feel that it seems too gentle and lacks the explosive power that blooms in the mouth. I chose two kinds, one was garlic, green onion, chili sauce and red oil, which was salty and spicy; the other was sand tea sauce, seafood soy sauce, sesame and peanut sauce, which was rich and fragrant. Take the complementary effect.

Beef tendon balls and beef balls are also must-order dishes in Chaoshan hot pot. Thanks to the chef's repeated pounding, the beef balls are very elastic. When bitten open, there are strands of honeycomb structure, and the meat is fine and firm.

The final staple is kale, beef and egg fried rice. I have to admit, this plate of fried rice is a bit overwhelming. The rice is shiny but not greasy, with distinct grains. It is paired with corn kernels, diced mushrooms, beef slices and crispy pieces of kale, plus garlic leaves. It will make you dream about it.

Halfway through the meal, I added some minced garlic and red oil chili sauce, which created a wonderful texture.

When eating Chaoshan hot pot, you must be clear about the focus of your trip. This is a paradise for carnivores, so you have to leave plenty of room in your stomach for beef. Therefore, except for various types of beef that cannot be named and whose parts are unclear, I do not recommend any other vegetarian dishes, cold dishes or soy products. If you find it boring, try some fried tofu skin. But be sure to put it in the pot at the end of the meal, otherwise it will take away its original flavor.

When I swallowed the last grain of rice, I knew that I would come here again soon.