From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

At the selection scene, there were more than 1000 challenge chefs competing together.

So now that there are only forty or fifty people, it seems quite spacious.

When all the chefs were in place, the first thing everyone saw was a very familiar face standing next to their counter.

The people standing next to each chef's counter in the competition are examiners employed by the Labor Department to conduct professional skills tests for chefs.

Seeing this arrangement, the chefs participating in the selection competition were somewhat scared.

Feng Zhengming was relatively relaxed and was even laughing and joking with the examiner standing next to him.

"Are you planning to retest us? If we fail the test, are you going to take back our certificates?"

Feng Zhengming's joke amused the examiner standing next to him.

The examiner responded with a smile: "Chef Feng will know the reason in a moment."

Sure enough, the topic of the first game was announced soon on the spot.

"In the first round, the chefs are required to prepare four dishes: stir-fried crispy pork with oil, stir-fried crispy pork with soup, stir-fried pork belly with oil, and stir-fried pork kidney.

The requirements are that pig tripe must be cut into a standard basket-shaped pattern, chicken gizzards must be cut into a standard chrysanthemum-shaped pattern, squid must be cut into a standard roll-shaped pattern, fried pork loin must be cut into a standard bamboo-shaped pattern, and stir-fried pork loin must be cut into a standard wheat-ear-shaped pattern.

After hearing the topic of the first competition, all the chefs, including Feng Zhengming, were a little shocked.

The key to this question in the first game is the requirements at the end, which really is an on-the-spot test for Feng Zhengming and others.

Many laymen may not know what each type of flower knife looks like?

But if you are going to take a chef skills test, then any chef will be familiar with these.

It can be said that each type of flower knife technique is something that Feng Zhengming and his classmates will be tested on in previous exams.

It’s just that they had tested these things before, usually on the test paper, and they might appear as questions in the written test.

But this time it was different. The requirement had been given on site, which was that Feng Zhengming and others had to take the test on the spot.

Many people who came to watch the game on site were discussing the topic of the first game.

"Wow, that sounds amazing. It seems like the chefs need to start from the basics?"

"So many fancy cuts, I feel a little dizzy. It's really a relief that these chefs can remember them."

"I've been doing this for so many years, how could I not remember it?"

"Does this mean that the chefs will have to take the test again?"

Master Cui gave the answer on the spot.

"Yes, this is a test for the chefs. Normally, you are all master chefs and you basically have apprentices. These fancy cuts may be made by your apprentices for you.

But today, at this competition, you master chefs must do it yourself for everyone to see.

This is a test for you and also a preparation for you to enter the national competition.”

After Master Cui said this, no one at the scene dared to raise any objections.

The audience at the scene naturally felt it was very exciting as they could watch the master chefs making the carvings with their own eyes.

This is something you would never see in the kitchen even if you go to a big restaurant.

Now you can see forty or fifty famous Shandong cuisine chefs making the cuts on site.

Many viewers felt that it was worth coming to watch the game.

Feng Zhengming and the others understood why the chef examination examiners had to be present.

This means that the examiners will have to re-test Feng Zhengming and others on the spot.

The competition gave Feng Zhengming and others some time to prepare.

Then, when everyone is sure they are ready, the competition officially begins.

When Feng Zhengming first took out the pig's stomach, then peeled off the inner and outer layers of the pig's stomach, leaving the middle part and preparing to start cutting it.

The examiner standing next to his table suddenly asked, "Chef Feng, please wait a moment. Please answer first. You are going to make a flower-shaped cut on the pig's stomach. How deep should the cutter be cut into the raw material? What is the distance between the cutters?"

At the same time, other chefs faced similar problems.

Now Feng Zhengming suddenly understood why the tables for their competition were separated.

This is not only to test the practical skills of these chefs.

The on-site examiner must also conduct an oral examination on them.

Feng Zhengming answered the examiner seriously: "The pig's stomach should be cut with a flower pattern, with the two sides slightly slanted and straight. The cut should be two-thirds of the thickness of the raw material, and the distance between the cutters should be 2 to 4 mm."

After hearing this, the examiner nodded and said, "Chef Feng, you may begin."

Feng Zhengming did not start immediately, but stood there to relax, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

After he calmed down, Feng Zhengming began to make flower cuts.

Each cut is very standard, reaching two-thirds of the thin pig stomach head, and the distance between the cuts is about 3 mm.

After beating one side, you need to turn the pig's stomach over and beat the other side as well.

After making cuts on both sides, when you lift it up, it feels as if the whole piece of pig stomach has been cut through by the knife, but it is not broken and is still connected.

Then Feng Zhengming took the chicken gizzard and first cleaned the fascia on the surface of the gizzard.

What Feng Zhengming didn't expect was that after he removed the fascia, the examiner still wanted to check the removed fascia.

Obviously you can't remove too much of the chicken gizzard meat, the requirement is only a thin layer of fascia.

After the examiner finished his check, Feng Zhengming, with his experience, did not immediately start preparing for the flower knife, but took the initiative to answer the examiner.

“To make chicken gizzards into a chrysanthemum-shaped cut, cut diagonally from one end of the gizzard to a depth of about three-quarters of the thickness of the gizzard.”

The examiner smiled with satisfaction and nodded: "Chef Feng, you may begin."

Feng Zhengming naturally continued to cut the chicken gizzards.

Fortunately, the fried double crispy dishes and the fried double crispy dishes in soup are basically the same in terms of cutting patterns, so there is no need to cut them again.

Feng Zhengming's side was going relatively smoothly, but some of the chefs on the scene were not so successful.

For example, Liu Dewei is a very old-school chef. He did not learn cooking systematically in a vocational school, but basically learned from a master in the kitchen.

So when asked about the flower knife question, Liu Dewei was obviously having trouble answering.

Of course, he is not the only one who has this problem. Several master chefs in Quancheng also face the same problem.

Even some of the chefs who were watching the competition below and did not participate in this selection actually felt a little embarrassed by some of the examiners' questions.

Yang Bin said directly: "This question is really difficult. Fortunately, I did not sign up for the competition."

Li Huidong smiled and said, "You are just lazy. When you were taking the exam, I saw that you memorized everything very well."

Yang Bin said: "How can it be the same? Isn't it for verification?"

Second Senior Brother Chen Zezhi said: "This is actually an exam. They are going to participate in the national competition. At that time, they will represent Shandong cuisine. If they can't even figure out these basic things on the spot, how can they represent Shandong cuisine?"

Fifth Senior Brother Cao Zhiguo echoed, "That's true. In the national competition, the questions might be even more pointed than this."

Senior Brother Zhang Minghai had never seen a national competition, so he was a little curious. "Will the national competition be more difficult than this?"

Senior Brother Li Huidong went to participate twice with the Master.

So he has more say.

"Yes, the requirements for the national competition are actually more stringent. Especially in the national competition, there will be a competition of individual all-round skills, which is a competition of these basic skills. When I went to the second session with my master, I really saw what a master is."

After hearing what Li Huidong said, his fellow disciples were all worried about Feng Zhengming.

Soon, the chefs participating in the competition could no longer withstand the pressure.

After all, there are professional examiners watching you, and you not only need to pass the practical test, but also need to know everything in theory, which is indeed a very stressful thing.

So some chefs began to voluntarily apply to withdraw from the competition.

This also disappointed some of the veteran masters on the scene.

In the eyes of the old chefs, no matter whether or not the dishes can pass the competition, at least they should complete it.

However, when I saw the chef walking down from the counter, his face was full of disappointment.

Especially seeing that the back of his chef's uniform was almost soaked with sweat.

Everyone can also feel the pressure faced by chefs.

So no one could blame him for giving up voluntarily.

Perhaps these chefs are usually able to handle things on their own in the kitchen and make today's four dishes perfectly.

But now we are facing an examination that is like a grade test, which not only tests practical skills but also theoretical knowledge. The key is that it takes place on site with many people watching.

It is really stressful, especially when you answer incorrectly.

The chefs themselves know that if they can't get through this hurdle, they will only be a drag in the national competition.

So these chefs took the initiative to choose to give up the competition.

One after another, chefs voluntarily gave up.

In the end, there were 39 chefs left to continue the competition.

These chefs have obviously stronger psychological endurance.

Although some of them had made mistakes or did not answer the examiner's questions.

But they still want to finish their game.

Feng Zhengming was already cutting the squid.

According to the requirements, the squid must be cut into "rolling flower cuts".

Feng Zhengming now basically takes the initiative to answer questions from the examiner before taking the test.

"Follow the direction of the muscle fibers of the raw material, cut straight and cross-shaped with a knife, the depth of which is three-quarters of the thickness of the raw material, and the distance between the knives is about 2 mm. Cut along the direction of the muscle fibers into rectangular pieces about 5 cm long and 3 cm wide."

This time Feng Zhengming answered in more detail, and after the examiner confirmed, he was allowed to begin.

He still cut the cuts on the squid exactly as he had said.

And finally cut it into rectangular pieces.

The next step is to cut the pork kidneys into pieces, and the on-site requirement is that the pork kidneys should be cut into bamboo-section pieces.

In fact, when making the dish of stir-fried double flowers, many times the cutting methods of the two ingredients may be the same.

However, during the live competition, there was an obvious intentional requirement that everyone had to cut the two ingredients into different shapes.

This is also a test for every participating chef.

Let’s see how different ingredients in a dish need to be cut in different ways. Can the chefs adapt?
Feng Zhengming still seriously explained his uncle to the examiner.

"First, make parallel cuts along the length of the material with a depth of about four-fifths of the material. Then, make two parallel cuts about 1 cm from both ends of the material with a depth of about two-thirds of the material thickness and a distance of 2 mm. Finally, cut the material into rectangular blocks of 4 cm long and 2.5 cm wide."

The examiner has discovered that Feng Zhengming's answers are always quite accurate.

It was almost exactly the same as the exam lesson plan they had.

The key point is that not only can Feng Zhengming answer exactly the same, but when he performs the flower knife, he can also do it almost exactly according to the regulations.

In fact, many times when the chef is cooking in the kitchen, he may not be able to cook to the standard every time in order to save time.

Just like in today's competition, some other chefs will be very careful to make the cuts according to the requirements in order to meet the standards.

Feng Zhengming is completely different. He can complete the task according to the standard without slowing down.

After answering the question, he can finish the flower knife very quickly.

In the blink of an eye, Feng Zhengming had finished the three dishes in his hands, leaving only the last dish of stir-fried pork kidney.

The requirement for stir-fried kidney is that the kidneys must be cut into wheat ear-shaped pieces.

In fact, in some restaurants and hotels, when making fried double-flowered fish, they often cut them into wheat ear-shaped cuts.

On the one hand, making the same pattern cuts at one time makes it easier for the chef to make the pattern cuts.

On the other hand, the wheat ear flower knife is actually a relatively basic flower knife.

Feng Zhengming looked at the examiner and said with a smile on his face: "To cut the pork loin into wheat-ear pattern, first make parallel cuts on the pork loin with a depth of about three-quarters and a distance of about 2 mm, and then make parallel cuts vertically with the same depth of three-quarters and a distance of 2 mm."

After listening to Feng Zhengming's narration, the examiner also took the initiative to applaud him.

"Chef Feng, you are really amazing. You can start now."

Then, Feng Zhengming cut the kidney in half and cut off the waist with one cut.

Despite having already prepared three dishes at a high intensity, Feng Zhengming's hands were still very steady.

This cut only sliced ​​off a thin layer of kidney meat, almost no kidney meat was cut off, and there was no need for a second cut.

Then Feng Zhengming gave a very standard live performance.

He cut very quickly, completing the horizontal cut in almost the blink of an eye, and then completing the vertical cut very quickly.

After making the cuts, Feng Zhengming divides the whole piece of kidney into long strips about 2.5 cm wide.

In this way, the kidneys, like ears of wheat, are beautifully placed on the chopping board.

Feng Zhengming marinated and starched the kidney in a standard way, and then completed the stir-fried kidney dish very neatly.

When the last dish was finished, Feng Zhengming placed it on a plate next to the other three finished dishes.

His first game was all done.

Everyone at the scene witnessed that Feng Zhengming was the first to finish.

Moreover, the masters, judges and examiners were all very clear that Feng Zhengming was not only the first to finish, he also completed it exactly as required, with almost no deviation.

Each of his dishes is textbook-level.

At the same time, his answers to the examiner were also very standard in theory. (End of this chapter)