Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 870 - 433: Mission Accomplished

If Qin Huai's first attempt at making egg tarts was due to his unfamiliarity with his own abilities and some nervousness from not having made them before, now he was very much in control.

Those days watching Zhao Cheng'an make the auspicious Cloud Pattern Roll gave Qin Huai a deeper understanding of pastry snacks. Even if he hadn't made egg tarts since, he was still very adept when kneading the dough.

Shi Dadan was leaning against the kitchen door, watching.

"Old Shi, what kind of tart crust texture do you prefer? A bit hard, or with a hard edge and soft bottom, or maybe thin and crispy?" Qin Huai asked while kneading dough.

Shi Dadan usually only focused on eating and rarely offered his opinions. After a moment's thought, even if Qin Huai couldn't see, he gave a simple smile: "Anything's fine. As long as Xiao Qin makes it for me, I love to eat it."

As Qin Huai kneaded dough, he said, "Then I'll make a very thin and crispy one with a soft filling. Old Shi, you love strong flavors and high sweetness, so I'll add a bit more sugar to the tart mix... How about I make caramel ones for you directly?"

Shi Dadan was taken aback: "Xiao Qin, how do you know I like sweet things?"

Qin Huai chuckled: "Old Shi, you've eaten so many snacks here, of course I know what you like."

"You prefer pure white steamed buns without any extras. Compared to Fermented Rice with Steamed Buns, you actually prefer white buns. These buns should be soft yet chewy, and you especially love the bun's skin. Every time you eat white buns, you always peel off the skin first before eating the rest."

"You like shumai with glutinous rice mixed with diced mushrooms; lamb shumai is what you eat the least."

"As for sweets... Although many people think less sweet is the highest compliment for desserts, it's clear you love sweet things. You adore strong flavors; with meaty dishes, you like ones with thickening sauce to mix with rice, spicy stir-fried meat should be hot, sweet and sour pork should be sweet, even stir-fried bitter melon must be bitter."

"Did I get it wrong?" Qin Huai asked, glancing back at Shi Dadan.

Shi Dadan was stunned; leaning against the kitchen door, his chubby body appeared like a sidekick in a comedy film. Having gained more than ten pounds recently, his formerly slightly smaller-than-before eyes opened wide, filled with shock, emotion, and indescribably complex feelings.

Seeing Shi Dadan slow to respond, Qin Huai turned directly around, puzzled: "Did I say something wrong?"

Qin Huai silently reviewed it in his mind, thinking it shouldn't be; his judgments about the tastes and habits of people around him have always been quite accurate, he's never been wrong.

"Not wrong," Shi Dadan said, "it's just... I have a big appetite and eat almost anything, so rarely does anyone notice what I truly love eating."

"Only Xu Nuo noticed I love the bun skin, and every time he eats buns, he'd peel off his bun skin for me."

Qin Huai understood; this touched upon Shi Dadan's sadness, so he immediately stopped talking about it and focused on making snacks.

The challenge with egg tarts lies 99% in the pastry. During the wait for the dough to undergo low-temperature fermentation after kneading the oil dough, Qin Huai quietly prepared the tart mix and casually asked:

"Old Shi, is there any snack you particularly want to eat lately?"

"I'm not asking you to work hard to trigger another side mission for me. You've triggered too many side missions already, I can't keep up. I just realized while kneading dough, even though I've been making snacks this period, you haven't eaten much of what I made; they're mostly hedgehog buns which kids like."

"Is there a snack you haven't eaten in a while but want? Tomorrow, when I go to Zhiwei Restaurant, I'll apply to Master Zhou and find some time to make it for you." 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Even while still leaning against the kitchen door, Shi Dadan openly replied: "I've eaten the hedgehog buns you made, Xiao Qin. Every morning and afternoon, I go queue and buy them; the ones with red bean filling, they're tasty."

"Moreover, I've noticed the hedgehog buns you made, Xiao Qin. The first day was regular-sized, the second day was small hedgehogs, the third day were chubby hedgehogs, and from the fourth day onwards, they were a mix of hedgehogs each day."

Shi Dadan's observations were quite careful and earnest.

"I don't have any particular snack I want; if I must say, the white buns from Zhiwei Restaurant aren't as good as those you make, Xiao Qin. If you have time tomorrow, could you make a batch of white buns, or Fermented Rice with Steamed Buns?"

The buns from Zhiwei Restaurant are mostly made by elite apprentices or direct disciples, and their craftsmanship can't compare to Qin Huai's. Shi Dadan's favorite basic snack was indeed buns, and not being able to eat good buns all this time was a bit hard for him.

"Sure," Qin Huai agreed, continuing with the egg tarts.

At 9:47 PM, the tarts were ready.

Despite aiming to make fewer, Qin Huai still managed to produce as many as 28 egg tarts in one batch. Basic snacks are like that; they come in bulk, making many is easy, making few is challenging.

Ultimately, Qin Huai didn't make caramel tarts, lacking a blow torch at home for that.

Freshly taken out of the oven, the egg tarts were in their most perfect status.

Qin Huai deliberately made the crust thin and crispy, the slightly browned filling looked bouncy and soft, both tender and chewy.

Of course, the best part was the aroma.

A rich scent from the mixture of eggs, milk, sugar, and oil that could stir primal human appetites. Just taking a deep breath of this scent felt like tasting the egg tart's sweet flavor already.