Chef Hua-Chapter 669: Episode 354: Uphill and Down Sea_2

Perhaps because of the solemn look on her face, the other people in the kitchen did not dare to speak. After waiting patiently for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Wang Zhanrui finally jumped in, frowning as he said, "Don’t just stand there daydreaming; time waits for no one. We have two dishes to prepare—are you at all prepared?"

Hua Xiaomai looked up at him, smiled bitterly, and shook her head, "One flies through the forest, the other swims in the water, it’s really..."

How should one put it? There were many ingredients in the world that did not complement each other, but with some thought, a way to make them coexist peacefully could always be found. The only exception was these two ingredients before her, which truly left her at a loss for ideas for the moment.

Ordinary fish maw was already known for its extremely fresh and distinguished taste, and the yellow lip jelly before them exuded an even richer umami flavor—it was mouthwatering even without cooking, drawing one in closer with its fragrance that penetrated the heart and spleen.

The flying dragon was, in fact, a hazel grouse from the forests of the northeast, also a very delicious item. The difference was that its freshness carried a wild mountain flavor, making it seem more domineering.

Both ingredients had strong flavors, and if hastily cooked together, they would inevitably vie for dominance. In the end, they would both end up damaged, to no one’s benefit.

Meng Yuhuai knew she was troubled, so he did not bother her with platitudes like "Don’t worry, take your time to figure it out," instead, he silently walked aside and took a seat in a chair.

Meanwhile, Wang Zhanrui pondered aloud, "I also think this dish is quite tricky. Following the ’Colorful Phoenix Swallowing Swallow’ method, if we stuff the yellow lip jelly into the belly of the flying dragon, would that work?"

Then, without waiting for Hua Xiaomai to answer, he shook his head vigorously to dismiss his own suggestion, "No, no, that’s not right; the flavors will get mixed up and become a mess; but no matter what, we must start by soaking the yellow lip jelly, or we won’t be able to proceed with anything else."

Hua Xiaomai had already carefully considered this and looked up to smile at him, then turned her gaze to Qing You.

"Hurry and go, tell the managers over there that I need two portions of extremely fine river sand. If they’ve brought out the yellow lip jelly, they must have prepared that too—I need it immediately."

Qing You agreed and took off running, sprinting all the way there, and before long, he indeed returned, holding two bags of fine river sand, sweating profusely from his rush.

"Yun’er, heat up the pot and pour the river sand in to fry it," Hua Xiaomai commanded and then continued, "If I’m not mistaken, Elder Xue asked us to prepare two dishes in order to disrupt our rhythm and make us more flustered. Let’s not worry about that for now; let’s focus all our efforts on perfecting this top-priority dish first."

The fire under the stove was strong, and in no time, the iron pot began to roar with heat. As the river sand poured in, it crackled almost immediately, with occasional fine grains popping out, creating small holes upon landing on the clothing. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"Everyone step back."

Without the inclination to say much, Hua Xiaomai spoke succinctly, instructing everyone to move back, and she didn’t hesitate to stir the river sand, estimating its heat to be sufficient and evenly distributed. She then took the five pieces of yellow lip jelly, readying to pour them into the pot.

Wang Zhanrui had been clinging to a sliver of hope, but upon witnessing this scene, he couldn’t help but cry out in alarm, "You... you’re using the Sand Explosion Method?"

"That’s right."

Hua Xiaomai didn’t look back, answering quietly in affirmation.

The so-called Sand Explosion involved constantly stirring the ingredients in hot fine sand for half an hour, causing the dried goods to swiftly puff up. They would then be soaked in cold water for the duration it takes to burn half a stick of incense, after which they could be immediately used for cooking.

The Fish Maw fried by the Sand Explosion Method didn’t have the mushy and sticky texture of the water-soaked variety; instead, it had an added resilience. Upon first taste, one might find it somewhat reminiscent of pigskin, with a slightly tough outer layer and a hollow inside, creating a very unique texture.

Time was not on their side, yet this was a viable emergency method, albeit demanding an extremely precise control of heat. If the river sand got too hot, the Fish Maw would become too tough to bite into; but if the heat was insufficient, it would fail to achieve the "explosion" effect, and a slight difference in temperature could turn a dish miles away from "delicious."

Zhanrui subconsciously wanted to speak out to stop them, yet he couldn’t think of a better method. His mouth opened, but no words came out.

Hua Xiaomai paid him no attention and instead instructed Zhou Yunyun, "Clean those two flying dragons thoroughly, and slice their meat into small strips; Chef Wang, hurry up and brew some tea to soak the flying dragon meat to remove the fishy smell."

After a moment’s thought, she added, "Use green tea."

...

The two rare ingredients truly were extraordinary. Soon, a rich aroma enveloped the banks of Huayin Pond, wafted from each cooking stand overhead, and made a beeline for Chixing Pavilion, prompting all five judges to instinctively take a deep sniff.

"Wow, that smells amazing..."

The elder Xue took a deep breath, chuckled, and turned to the other four, "Just the scent is irresistible, yet we can’t taste it. This is truly torturous. Who knows when those six restaurants will bring out their dishes?"

They all nodded in empathetic agreement and simultaneously gazed into the center of the field.

As noon approached, the dishes from all six restaurants were delivered one after the other.

Wenmei Pavilion was the first to arrive, with Han Fengzhi’s Biyue Pavilion following closely behind. Little by little, the crowd in Chixing Pavilion grew.

All but Daoxiang Garden had finished their preparations.

Old man Xue had everyone stay inside the pavilion, then ordered someone to cover the dishes with copper lids to prevent the aroma and heat from escaping.

"What’s with the fuss?"

The rest, growing impatient, couldn’t help but complain, "Isn’t she deliberately waiting until the end to make us welcome her? Women are such a hassle, always so roundabout and exasperating!"

"If you have to complain about her, why drag me into it?" Song Jingxi covered her mouth with a giggle, half-serious and half-joking.

"That’s not what I meant..." The person hastily waved his hands, "I was just..."

Before he could finish, a commotion was heard.

"Daoxiang Garden’s people have arrived!"(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to cast your vote or monthly ticket at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)