Arriving at the entrance, Li Xiao quickly noticed a very special sign next to the door.
[A Recommended Delicacy from *Breakfast in Xia Country*]
Li Xiao had seen this show, *Breakfast in Xia Country*, while doing research before.
It was a rather good program about breakfast, produced by CCTV. The show’s crew traveled all over the country, filming all sorts of delicious breakfasts.
He never expected that this unassuming little shop in front of him would be one of the featured locations.
Li Xiao had originally just wanted to grab a simple, ordinary breakfast, but now he was quite looking forward to seeing what this so-called pork offal soup was really like.
He leaned in curiously and pointed to the golden sign next to them:
“Excuse me, sir, is your shop really one of the restaurants recommended by *Breakfast in Xia Country*?”
Evidently, countless customers had asked the owner this question before. The busy owner looked up without the slightest hesitation, a confident smile on his face.
“Of course! Back in the day, the assistant director of *Breakfast in Xia Country* searched all over Shantou before deciding to film at our shop.”
“You have to understand, in the Chaoshan area alone, there are hundreds of shops selling pig’s blood soup. The director chose only us, filmed for a full two days, and ended up with a six-minute segment.”
“It’s in Season 1, Episode 3. From the 15-minute mark to the 21-minute mark, it’s all about our shop.”
Seeing that the owner didn’t flinch while answering, Li Xiao knew he must be telling the truth. Otherwise, a lie like that would be exposed with a simple search.
The owner saw Li Xiao curiously observing the situation inside the kitchen stall and asked with a chuckle:
“Hey, young man, interested in learning? Our shop takes apprentices. 800 a month, room and board included. You can learn everything in three to six months.”
Hearing the owner’s offer, the corner of Li Xiao’s mouth twitched. ‘Well, now. This owner is something else.’
Nowadays, a regular kitchen assistant’s salary was around 4,500. For a breakfast assistant, the pay was even higher, typically between 5,000 and 6,000.
The reason was easy to understand. Breakfast shops generally had to open around 6 a.m.
And preparing the breakfast ingredients required two to three hours of prep work beforehand. This meant the kitchen assistants had to start work at three in the morning, which was incredibly grueling.
For this owner to offer 800 a month right off the bat… he was a capitalist among capitalists.
No wonder everyone said the Chaoshan People were good at business. Trying to tie down an able-bodied worker for just 800 a month.
Anyone who has ever looked for a job would know that if a recruitment ad lists the salary as 3,000 to 6,000, it’s definitely going to be 3,000.
The owner said you could learn in three to six months, which meant it would definitely take at least six months before he taught you everything.
Furthermore, Li Xiao didn’t even have to guess. He knew the owner would never hand over all his secrets to an apprentice. At most, he would only teach the basics of how to run the business and prepare the food.
Based on a breakfast assistant’s base salary of 5,000 per month, this meant that anyone wanting to learn the secret to their family’s pig’s blood soup would have to spend at least 30,000 yuan.
And to ensure his own business wouldn’t be affected, what this so-called apprentice learned, while not insignificant, would certainly not be the whole story.
The owner would definitely hold back a trick or two during the process, maybe even several.
And with something like gourmet cooking, the slightest deviation can lead to a world of difference.
Even if an apprentice completed their training and opened a shop nearby, they would never be able to significantly impact the original shop’s business.
Li Xiao couldn’t help but sigh internally. ‘This business model is practically foolproof.’
Although he saw Li Xiao’s silent refusal, the owner still noticed his curiosity.
So, he enthusiastically invited him to watch up close and began to explain:
“Our shop has been open for 40 years now. It used to be just my mother running it by herself, because my father worked at the nearby slaughterhouse.”
“Back then, the Chaoshan Region was quite poor. Anyone who could go abroad to make a living went to Nanyang. As for those who stayed behind, many went to work on construction sites or in factories.”
“Many people working in the ceramic factories and on construction sites were constantly in dusty environments, which was definitely bad for their health.”
“Some workers who spent a long time in the ceramic factories and on construction sites would develop pneumoconiosis.”
“But the older generation had a way to deal with this. Their magic bullet was pig’s blood. They firmly believed that drinking pig’s blood soup could expel the dust and toxins inhaled into the body.”
“Therefore, many people working in those environments would drink pig’s blood soup at least once a day. It was the cheapest detox soup available.”
“That’s why there are so many breakfast shops around here that make pig’s blood soup. They’re a tradition passed down from that time.”
“Since my father worked at the slaughterhouse, he could always use his connections to get first-rate supplies.”
“So the pig’s blood and offal my mother got was not only the cheapest, but also the best quality.”
“There wasn’t much good food to eat back then. Pig’s blood and offal were considered a real meaty treat. For many people, a bowl of pig’s blood soup was a rare and wonderful indulgence.”
As he spoke, the owner presented a large basin of fresh pig’s blood to Li Xiao.
“Look how red this pig’s blood is. I just brought it back from the slaughterhouse.”
“Even though my father is retired, I still have some old connections there. The old-timers still give me the very best pig’s blood and offal.”
“You can tell just by how red the color is.”
Looking at the bright red pig’s blood, Li Xiao nodded repeatedly.
It was true. If pig’s blood was stored for too long, it would quickly oxidize and turn black. It would be impossible for it to have such a vibrant red color.
After the brief introduction, the owner went back to processing the pig’s blood.
He first cut the pig’s blood into moderately sized cubes, then placed them in boiling water.
Upon entering the boiling water, the bright red pig’s blood quickly turned a deep crimson.
After skimming the foam from the surface, the owner quickly used a strainer to scoop out the now-solidified blood curds.
This was a crucial step, as it removed the gamey taste and a large amount of impurities from the blood curds.
After being scooped out, the dark red cubes of blood curd were immediately plunged into a basin of cold water nearby. Although the owner didn’t explain, Li Xiao knew why. The cold water was meant to rapidly draw the heat out of the curds.
If this wasn’t done, the internal temperature of the blood curds would remain high for a long time, which would ruin their texture.
After preparing the blood curds, it was time to make the soup base.
Only after the blood curds had completely cooled did the owner scoop them out.
Li Xiao watched as the owner lifted the lid off a second, enormous stainless steel stockpot.
Instantly, the rich aroma of chicken broth washed over them. The owner began to stir the pot with a long-handled ladle.
As he stirred, chicken bones and pieces of semi-dissolved chicken meat from the bottom of the pot were churned up, bobbing in the broth.
The owner explained:
“The reason our pig’s blood soup is so delicious… well, the fresh blood and offal are only part of it. The other major reason is this pot of our secret old hen broth.”
“This broth has more than 20 different nourishing medicinal herbs in it, and the chickens we use are old hens, over five years old. This pot has been simmering since 6 p.m. last night—that’s 12 hours already. This is a true, slow-simmered, nourishing soup.”
Li Xiao glanced at the chicken meat being moved by the ladle and nodded seriously. The owner wasn’t exaggerating.
Without an exceptionally long cooking time, the chicken in the soup couldn’t possibly be in its current state.
Then, he noticed the hollow metal sphere in the chicken broth.