Cooking Videos

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For anyone looking to master the delicate art of traditional Shandong cuisine, 传统鲁菜 | 【红烧四喜丸子】如何做得软烂鲜嫩还不失脆爽的口感？ is an absolute must-watch. Master Chef Chen Zongming demonstrates how to make spectacular, melt-in-your-mouth “Four Joy” meatballs that are incredibly soft and jiggly, yet retain a satisfying, crispy contrast.

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Recipes & Tutorials

On the channel 鲁菜老厨陈宗明, the chef shares a masterclass in regional Shandong cooking with his recipe for authentic 传统鲁菜 | 【红烧四喜丸子】如何做得软烂鲜嫩还不失脆爽的口感？. He carefully guides viewers through hand-chopping a 60/40 blend of lean-to-fat pork belly into soy-bean-sized cubes, mixing the meat with crunchy water chestnuts (transcribed as matong), lightly frying them to a beautiful golden brown, and braising them under a heavy blanket of fresh cabbage leaves for nearly an hour. The final touch is a glossy, low-heat starch glaze infused with Sichuan pepper oil poured over the meatballs to make them shine beautifully on the plate.

Food Science & Tips

Master Chef Chen reveals that the secret to achieving a remarkably fluffy and juicy interior is incorporating a small amount of water-soaked, squeezed steamed bun (mantou) directly into the meat mixture. He warns home cooks against using a food processor, explaining that hand-chopping to a granular texture prevents the protein from overworking into an overly dense, rubbery paste. Most interestingly, he notes that while restaurants are forced to pack their meatballs with extra starch and over-knead them to ensure they don’t break during commercial kitchen handling, cooking at home allows you to create a much looser, tender, and structurally delicate meatball that practically dissolves on the tongue.

🥟 I can compile Master Chef Chen’s exact ingredient ratios, preparation steps, and braising secrets into a clean, printable step-by-step cooking guide for you to keep on your kitchen counter.