"What are you doing?" Lan Xin was actually a kind-hearted little girl, except when it came to food. With her left hand clutching a chicken wing she was gnawing on, her right hand blocked the chopsticks the little boy was reaching over.
The little boy didn't have the courage to argue, as if he'd been caught doing something wrong. He drooped his head dejectedly and murmured, "I saw you all eating, and I wanted a piece too."
Xixi tugged at Lan Xin's hand. The little girl had eaten herself into a mess, but she was still a pretty little mess. "It's okay, Xin'er. My daddy made a lot, so everyone can have some!"
Lan Xin reluctantly withdrew her hand, but she quickly grabbed the second chicken wing she had her eye on and tucked it into her lunchbox, then glanced smugly at the little boy.
However, he didn't pay her any attention. The little boy happily picked up a chicken wing and thanked Xixi.
A simple "thank you" made the little girl's big eyes squint into little crescent moons of joy.
...
While Xixi was having lunch with her friends, Yang Yi and Mo Fei were enjoying some time alone.
After returning home, Mo Fei was still a bit worried about her daughter. She turned on the TV but couldn't focus on what was playing. Meanwhile, Yang Yi slipped into the kitchen, mysteriously busy with something.
Of course, at that moment, Mo Fei had no mind to wonder what Yang Yi was up to. He had said he'd make her a special lunch, but she hadn't thought much of it.
Yang Yi, however, was preparing meticulously. He had come up with this idea a while ago and had planned it out for a long time, even secretly practicing to make sure it was foolproof. But he hadn't expected the opportunity to come so soon—now he could finally unveil it!
≮PS: Below is a tutorial segment. I originally planned to skip it, but considering many male readers might find it useful, I'll introduce it.≯
It all starts with mincing the meat, just like making dumplings. Once the meat is finely minced, add diced carrots, then适量的 five-spice powder, salt, fresh ginger mince, MSG, and sesame oil. Stir in one direction while slowly drizzling in soy sauce, mixing it all into a bowl of filling.
Yang Yi didn't plan to add cabbage or mushrooms because he wasn't actually making dumplings—mixing them in would affect the final result.
But he did take out the cabbage, cutting off the leaves and keeping the stems, along with carrots and cucumbers. The latter two were sliced diagonally into thin, translucent, elongated pieces.
He lit the fire, heated the pot, and boiled water. Once the water was bubbling, he added the cabbage stems, carrot slices, and cucumber slices. The carrot and cucumber slices were blanched for about thirty seconds before being removed to drain. The cabbage stems were boiled for two minutes to ensure they were soft, then also removed and drained.
Next came the test of knife skills. Even with Yang Yi's technique, he could only slice a cabbage stem diagonally into two thin, translucent sheets, discarding the middle part. These thin vegetable skins looked crystal-clear and had a texture even better than rice paper!
Or rather, they looked like flower petals!
That's right. Next, Yang Yi shaped the meat filling into small, elongated strips and wrapped them in the cabbage stem skins. The top was left wide open, while the bottom was slightly cinched.
It didn't look like much at first, but when Yang Yi arranged these "lily flowers" made of cabbage skins wrapped around meat filling along the edge of a large white plate, the shape began to emerge.
Then, the blanched carrot and cucumber slices were used to wrap the meat filling in the same way.
"Green roses" formed the second ring, and the center was filled with "pink roses"! For decoration, Yang Yi sprinkled some yellow pepper granules in the middle.
This wasn't the final step, though. The meat filling still needed to be steamed!
That took about fifteen minutes. Once steamed, it was essentially ready to eat, but Yang Yi was a perfectionist!
He poured the broth from the steamer into a wok, heated it until boiling, and then added a water-starch mixture—a process called thickening. After the broth boiled again, he turned off the heat and evenly drizzled it over the "flowers."
Suddenly, the colorful "blooms" seemed to come alive, their crystal-clear "dewdrops" irresistibly charming!
...
"Time for lunch!" Yang Yi led Mo Fei to the dining table, and they both sat down on one side.
Mo Fei snapped back to reality. She looked at the table, where a dish covered by a dome-shaped lid sat, along with a clean plate and a bowl of prepared sauce in front of each of them.
It was... too simple! In all the meals Mo Fei had eaten at Yang Yi's place, she'd never seen anything this plain. There was no staple food, and only one dish.
But Mo Fei didn't mind. She was curious about what was under that large, hemispherical lid, since Yang Yi had said it was something he'd carefully prepared.
"Hmm, did you make steak? No, that can't be right—I don't smell any steak aroma," Mo Fei asked curiously.
It really did look like a steak meal! Very Western-style dining, with the sauce meant to be drizzled over the steak, though some people preferred to dip. But it wasn't quite right either—Mo Fei noticed chopsticks beside the plates, not a knife and fork.
"It's not steak." Yang Yi gallantly pulled out a chair, seating Mo Fei, then poured freshly squeezed orange juice into a wine glass for her—yes, it seemed a bit wasteful for the glass, but Mo Fei hadn't touched alcohol since that incident.
"Thank you!" Seeing Yang Yi so serious, Mo Fei found it amusing and matched his elegance.
Yang Yi leaned slightly forward, pressing his right hand on the dome lid, and said gently, "Mo Fei, this dish today, I made it specially for you. I hope you like it."
With that, Yang Yi lifted the lid.
There was no dazzling light, but vibrant colors greeted Mo Fei's eyes—a "bouquet" of flowers suddenly appeared before her.
Mo Fei froze for a moment. At first glance, she thought it was a real bouquet, and while touched, she wondered, "Are we eating flowers for lunch?"
But since she wasn't nearsighted, Mo Fei quickly realized these were fake flowers, with even the stamens made of meat filling!
"Pfft!" Mo Fei was both touched and amused. She lightly tapped Yang Yi's arm and said, "You, always coming up with these creative ideas! Last time it was 'Flying in Pairs,' and now what's this?"
"Uh..." Yang Yi scratched his head. He hadn't actually thought of a name for this dish. "Flying in Pairs" was a play on chicken wings, but this "bouquet"—did it even need a name?
Seeing Yang Yi's flustered expression, Mo Fei couldn't help but laugh again. "Alright, alright, don't overthink it. Even without a name, I love it. Thank you for preparing this bouquet for me!"
Yang Yi had been trying to keep up his gentlemanly act, but now he broke into a smile. Mo Fei's delight was the greatest encouragement to him.
"But how do we eat this?" Mo Fei asked.
"Just like eating dumplings." Yang Yi picked up Mo Fei's chopsticks, grabbed a "pink rose" made from carrot slices in the center, dipped it in soy sauce, and held it out to her.
"Oh, don't ruin it!" Mo Fei exclaimed anxiously. "I haven't taken a picture yet!"