Chapter 137: The Joy of Cooking with the One You Love

After briefly recalling how his mother and Bai Fan prepared stir-fried Chinese kale with beef, Chen Zhe sprang into action. He first washed the Chinese kale, separating the leaves and stems onto separate plates for later use.

Next, he picked up the remaining piece of Angus steak. After carefully examining the marbling on the steak, Chen Zhe grabbed his washed kitchen knife and sliced the beef thinly against the grain, setting it aside.

Once all the beef was sliced and placed into a large bowl, Chen Zhe washed both the knife and the cutting board before continuing with the rest of the preparation.

After slicing the beef, Chen Zhe had roughly weighed it; the slices totaled around three hundred grams. Knowing the approximate amount of beef, he was ready to mix the marinade.

He first added two spoonfuls of oyster sauce to the bowl of beef, then brought out Bai Fan's secret shacha sauce, pouring about forty grams of it into the bowl. Donning disposable gloves, Chen Zhe mixed the beef, oyster sauce, and shacha sauce together evenly.

After letting the well-mixed beef rest for ten minutes, Chen Zhe poured corn oil over the beef and stirred it evenly again. This step would lock the flavors inside the beef slices as they waited.

With the beef prepared, Chen Zhe took out a small iron skillet, poured in an appropriate amount of oil, and heated it over a flame. Once the oil was hot, he added smashed garlic cloves, stirring to release their aroma, being careful not to burn them.

As soon as the garlic became fragrant, Chen Zhe picked up the plate of Chinese kale. He first added the stems into the wok and stir-fried them until they turned a vibrant emerald green.

Only then did Chen Zhe toss in the Chinese kale florets and leaves, stir-frying them together with the stems until the leaves shrank and turned vibrant green. He then added light soy sauce for seasoning. After stirring everything evenly, he transferred the Chinese kale to a plate and set it aside.

Just as he finished stir-frying the Chinese kale, the preset alarm for the rib soup rang. Chen Zhe motioned for Krystal Jung to turn it off for him, then turned his attention to the corn and pork rib soup.

After removing the valve to release the pressure, he opened the lid of the pressure cooker. Instantly, a rich, savory aroma of pork bones wafted into the air, and the once-clear water had transformed into a rich, milky-white broth.

"We can't eat it just yet. The ribs might still be a bit too tough right now, and they'll take some effort to chew. Once it stews a bit longer and becomes tender and soft, that's when it will be at its absolute best."

Inhaling the rich aroma of the pork bone soup, Krystal swallowed involuntarily—a small gesture that Chen Zhe caught entirely, finding it rather amusing.

He raised his index finger toward Krystal, gently waved it, and explained that the ribs were not yet at their prime and needed to simmer for a little longer before they could be eaten.

"I know. Did you really think I'm such a glutton? I just thought the soup smelled way too rich, so I couldn't help sniffing a few extra times. Don't go thinking I was craving it!"

Hearing Chen Zhe's explanation, Krystal's eyebrows immediately shot up as she raised her voice in defense. But upon seeing Chen Zhe's smiling expression, her voice gradually grew softer until it was barely a whisper.

Seeing Krystal lower her head after being caught, Chen Zhe smiled, shook his head, and resumed preparing the rib soup.

He first poured the prepared chunks of corn and carrots into the pot, then picked up the nearby plate containing wolfberries and the water they were soaked in, pouring everything into the soup.

With that done, Chen Zhe put the lid back on the pot to let it continue simmering, and instructed Krystal to set another timer for thirty minutes.

Having completed the final steps for the corn and pork rib soup, Chen Zhe returned to the dish of stir-fried Chinese kale with beef. The kale was already done; next came the beef.

After reheating the wok, Chen Zhe poured the marinated beef slices into it and tossed them a few times with a spatula.

Seeing that about half of the beef slices in the wok had changed color, Chen Zhe took out the pre-prepared starch water, poured a circle around the edge of the wok, and sprinkled the remainder evenly over the beef.

He then began stir-frying the beef and starch water together until they blended seamlessly with an even color. At this point, the beef slices were around seventy to eighty percent cooked.

It was time to take them off the heat. Beef slices should not be stir-fried for too long, or the meat would turn tough and excessively chewy, making it difficult for anyone with weak teeth to bite through.

He poured the beef and its sauce directly over the plate of Chinese kale that had been prepared earlier, making sure to drizzle the sauce evenly so the kale would taste even better. With this step completed, the home-style dish of stir-fried Chinese kale with beef was officially finished.

"My dear girlfriend, come try my stir-fried Chinese kale with beef and see if it satisfies you!"

After wiping away the splashes of sauce around the rim of the plate, Chen Zhe picked up a pair of chopsticks, clamped down on a piece of beef, cupped his other hand underneath it, and held it out to Krystal, who had been waiting so eagerly that water was practically pooling in her mouth.

"Mhm, it tastes pretty good. I can pass you on this dish. But if that's all you've got, it still won't meet my standards for forgiving you. Oh right, I haven't tried the Chinese kale yet—I want to eat that!"

Looking at the brightly colored, fragrant slice of beef before her, Krystal didn't hesitate for a second. She popped it straight into her mouth, immediately letting out little gasps as the heat burned her tongue, yet she kept chewing through the pain.

After chewing carefully for a moment and swallowing, she paused to savor the lingering taste before finally giving her evaluation, though she still put on a reluctant front.

Glancing back at the enticingly vibrant green stems and leaves of the Chinese kale on the plate, Krystal poked her lips out toward the plate and pointed at her mouth, signaling Chen Zhe to quickly pick up some kale for her to try.

"Alright, I'll pick some up for you right now. I'll make you a combo version!"

Hearing Krystal's words, Chen Zhe shook his head with a helpless smile. He found her penchant for playing hard-to-get or saying the opposite of what she meant quite amusing, but there was no helping it—that was simply part of her charm.

Reaching out with his chopsticks toward the dish once more, Chen Zhe picked up a combination of the Chinese kale florets and leaves coated in sauce, and fed it to Krystal once again.

"I feel like this sauce-soaked Chinese kale is way better than the plain beef from earlier! The rich, fatty flavor of the beef combined with the fresh, sweet crispness of the kale—it's honestly the most perfect pairing ever!"

This time, it took Krystal a little longer to reply to Chen Zhe. She chewed thoughtfully for quite a while, swallowed, and kept her eyes closed to savor the taste for a long time before opening them again, her tone tinged with genuine admiration.

The beef in this stir-fried Chinese kale dish hadn't brought her much surprise; it was quite standard. But the Chinese kale, to which she had paid little mind, ended up blowing her away with pleasant surprises.