Apocalypse Foodie System: Watch Her Cook!-Chapter 36 - 32: Secret Recipe Pork Skin Jelly

The sharp claws had yet to make a close encounter with the kitchen door, but Sun Jian seemed to hear the sound of it shattering. When Wang Jian lived in this house, he loved to smash things whenever he was in a bad mood. The kitchen door alone had been replaced several times, so Sun Jian was exceptionally familiar with the sound of a door breaking.

However, the sound from his memory never came. Just when the sharp claws of the husky mutant puppy were about 1 millimeter from the door, they suddenly froze and remained still. Sun Jian glanced at it in surprise and then noticed this mischievous mutant husky puppy, which was usually exceptionally temperamental in front of him, obediently withdraw its claws, wagging its tail rapidly like a fan, while emitting soft "woof woof" sounds. Its dogged demeanor was filled with an unmistakable hint of flattery.

Sun Jian was entranced by the sight, yet suddenly saw the mutant husky puppy turn its head and glare at him fiercely with a pair of large, blue eyes! Despite its fierce gaze, it lacked some imposing presence due to its small body, even adding an unexpected cuteness in contrast.

Sun Jian silently lowered his head, struggling hard to suppress his laughter, not daring to look at it again, fearing that he might accidentally laugh and end up being resented by this little puppy whose heart was even smaller than a needle’s point. Milk Tea mistakenly thought Sun Jian was afraid of it, proudly lifted its chin, gave him another warning glare, and then ignored Sun Jian altogether. It then focused intently on the tightly closed kitchen door, constantly sniffing and breathing in the enticing aroma wafting from the kitchen, longing to break in.

In the kitchen, Tang Yiyi took out the cooked pigskin, scraped off the remaining fat, and directly cut it into thin strips, mixing them with various ingredients to be processed into a juice with the blender. Don’t be fooled by the mere one pound of pigskin; after processing, it weighed almost ten pounds. Tang Yiyi made different flavors, packed them into storage boxes, and placed them in the fridge, setting the temperature for rapid cooling.

A minute later, when taken out, the originally boiling broth in the storage boxes had turned into aspic. Since different auxiliary ingredients were added, the resulting aspic came in various colors: enticing milky white, beautiful red-brown, bright orange, and fresh green, all with a semi-transparent effect, somewhat resembling jelly at first glance.

Tang Yiyi took some, cutting them into small 2-centimeter cubes, stacking them in a pyramid formation on four small plates, and poured four different sauces over them. The crystal-clear aspic wobbled when the sauce was poured over it, causing the entire ’pyramid’ to loosen instantly. The sauce seeped into the gaps in the aspic, gently enveloping it, merging two distinct flavors into a richer one over time.

Thus, the four secret pigskin aspics were complete.

After being frozen, the aroma was locked within the aspic, becoming restrained, less pronounced than when boiling, while the aroma of the later prepared sauces was more evident. Only when sniffed closely could one discern the alluring scent unique to the aspic.

Tang Yiyi sniffed lightly, confirming the aroma was no different from what she made before. She picked up a small fork she had prepared in advance and began tasting each one. The finished pigskin aspic was semi-transparent, resembling jelly at first glance, but upon entry, it revealed a texture more bouncy and smooth than jelly, with a rich taste. Pigskin itself, rich in collagen, had beauty-enhancing properties. As long as the fishy smell was removed and seasoned properly, not only was it not unpleasant, but also quite delicious.

The secret pigskin aspic had always been one of Liu’s Restaurant’s signature dishes, sold in limited quantities daily. Anyone craving it had to pre-order, and though its price was extraordinarily high, some people especially liked it, visiting Liu’s Restaurant just to order it every time.

Logically, such a signature dish shouldn’t have been taught to Tang Yiyi by Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan. They indeed didn’t teach her and instead always guarded against Tang Yiyi. However, in the Liu Family house, it was always Liu Shuya playing the bad guy and Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan playing the good guys. Even though they were wary of Tang Yiyi, she stubbornly didn’t notice due to Liu Shuya’s stark contrast.

It was only when she overheard the will and experienced the schemes of Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan that she saw their ugly true colors, gradually recalling and discovering from previously unnoticed small details that they had long been on guard against her. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The secret pigskin aspic wasn’t taught by Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan but was instead something she learned on her own after having it at Liu’s Restaurant in the past. At the time, she was underage and unaware of the sinister ambitions of Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan, mistakenly regarding them as benefactors due to their upbringing and exhibited ’kindness,’ always thinking about repaying them.

After several attempts, when she finally mastered the secret pigskin aspic recipe, she joyfully made a batch and invited Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan to taste it, even thinking if she couldn’t awaken her superpower, she would help at Liu’s Restaurant. It was only in hindsight that she realized the momentary twist in their expressions, even their smiles were unnaturally forced and rigid. Then she realized that it was probably from that moment they decided to have her life.

Tang Yiyi slowly chewed, her tongue savoring the increasingly rich flavor as the aspic broke apart, while her thoughts had long drifted away. The familiar, wonderful flavors spreading in her mouth made her heart both ache and swell, regretting her past foolishness and ignorance, and hating the greed and malice of Liu Pengyi and Liu Zhenlan!

Gradually suppressing her emotions, Tang Yiyi took a deep breath, holding the fork, intending to try the other flavors. But with one glance, she noticed that all four small plates were empty! Not only had the stacked pigskin aspic disappeared without a trace, but even the poured sauces were gone, as clean as if washed!

Tang Yiyi paused, setting aside all those troubling thoughts. She instinctively glanced at the kitchen door, discovering it still tightly locked, clearly unopened. This meant the thief couldn’t be Milk Tea and Sun Jian outside. She narrowed her eyes dangerously, suspiciously scanning the whole kitchen, spacious yet not cluttered, neatly arranged for a clear view. Even though the window was wide open, it had an invisible guardrail, making it impossible for something to slip in silently.

Therefore, ruling out all impossibilities, the only possible perpetrator was—

Just as Tang Yiyi was about to hold someone accountable, the system voice chimed in first: "Congratulations, host, for cooking the basic dish, Secret Pigskin Aspic, and earning 400 points." Although it was still a flat, emotionless mechanical voice, Tang Yiyi inexplicably heard a hint of flattery in it.