From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Standing in the elevator, no one said anything at first.

After a moment of silence, Feng Zhengming heard the chefs from Hong Kong communicating in Cantonese.

He could probably still understand some of the information in their conversation.

From the conversations among the chefs in Hong Kong, one can clearly hear their disdain for chefs from other places.

I even laugh at the food from other places, saying it remains the same after so many years.

When Feng Zhengming heard this, he couldn't help but speak.

He also said in Cantonese: "Ladies and gentlemen, whether it is frying, deep-frying, stir-frying, braising, stewing or steaming, these techniques in Chinese cooking have been passed down and accumulated by generations of chefs.

The chefs from your Hong Kong city always look down on chefs from other places.

So I would like to ask, when you cook, can you not use the techniques we have passed down?"

When the Hong Kong chefs heard Feng Zhengming's words, they were first surprised that he could speak Cantonese.

After hearing what he said, the chef in Gangcheng was a little speechless.

Perhaps they are indeed famous chefs in Hong Kong, and even in Asia.

But what Feng Zhengming said is not wrong. Even if he is a famous chef, can his cooking be separated from the traditional techniques of "frying, deep-frying, cooking, stir-frying, stewing, boiling, steaming, braising and stewing"?

Obviously no chef dares to say that he can cook without using these techniques.

Where do these techniques come from?

It can't just appear out of thin air, right?

After all, these techniques were also summarized and passed on by chefs from other places, spreading across the country and even to Hong Kong.

In fact, many of the old masters in Gangcheng originally moved south from many cities in the north.

So it seems that from this perspective, the chefs in Hong Kong City are really not qualified to laugh at chefs from other places.

Seeing that the other party remained silent, Feng Zhengming continued, "Whether you are the chefs in Hong Kong or the chefs in other places, we are all part of Chinese cuisine.

At national competitions, the competition is never the first priority, but it allows chefs from all over the world to communicate with each other.”

It can be said that Feng Zhengming's words left several chefs in Gangcheng speechless.

There was another silence, and one of the older chefs who looked like the leader asked, "Young man, where are you from?"

Feng Zhengming replied calmly: "I am from Quancheng and I am a Shandong cuisine chef."

When the chefs in Hong Kong heard that Feng Zhengming was from Quancheng and was a Shandong cuisine chef, they no longer dared to look down on him.

Perhaps in today's context of rapid economic development, many diners will choose Cantonese cuisine, which looks more high-end, or Sichuan cuisine, which has a spicier flavor.

But in the culinary industry, chefs from all over the country dare not put on airs in front of Shandong cuisine chefs.

Because the origins of too many Chinese cooking techniques are almost all derived from Shandong cuisine.

Different places will make some improvements based on different customs, habits and different ingredients.

On the whole, the roots of the techniques still point to Shandong cuisine.

Among the chefs in Hong Kong, a middle-aged chef suddenly said, "Oh, I know. You are the youngest Shandong cuisine chef, the champion of Shandong cuisine young chefs, and the chef who designed the Oolong Xizhu."

After hearing this, all the other Hong Kong chefs in the elevator looked at Feng Zhengming differently.

Even the youngest chef from Gangcheng looked at Feng Zhengming very seriously.

The chef from Gangcheng recognized Feng Zhengming and introduced himself in not very standard Mandarin.

"Hello, Chef Feng. My name is Dai Long."

While introducing, Dai Long took the initiative to extend his hand to Feng Zhengming with a very kind smile on his face.

Feng Zhengming also extended his hand and shook hands with the other party: "Hello, Chef Dai."

Dai Long said with a smile: "Chef Feng, you don't have to be so polite. I watched the video of you cooking on TV. Your cooking skills are really great, especially the Oolong Playing with Pearls. The design is really great."

Arriving at the hotel where the competition was held, Feng Zhengming could clearly feel that chefs from all over the country attached great importance to his performance.

A big part of the reason why everyone was so polite to him was because of that dish.

Feng Zhengming responded seriously: "Thank you, Chef Dai. Wulong Xizhu is just a dish I created based on the techniques passed down by my predecessors. I still have to thank my predecessors for their pioneering techniques."

Everyone in the elevator could hear this response. Feng Zhengming was still referring to the ridicule that the chefs from Hong Kong had just directed at chefs from other places.

The oldest chef in the elevator smiled and said, "First of all, I want to apologize to Chef Feng. What we said just now was indeed inappropriate.

As Chef Feng just said, Chinese cooking techniques are the result of inheritance, improvement and transmission by generations of chefs.

Although some developments in Hong Kong may be better now, we are also more in line with international standards in terms of catering and have achieved some achievements internationally.

But we should never forget that our cooking techniques have their roots in other parts of the country.”

After saying this, the other party also introduced himself: "I am Li Guansheng, on behalf of the chefs of Gangcheng, thank you Chef Feng for your guidance."

Feng Zhengming was a little surprised when he heard the other party's name.

Feng Zhengming had heard of this name from his master and several old masters.

In terms of seniority, the other party is of the same generation as Master Feng Zhengming and his men.

The other party also has a nickname in Hong Kong City: "Abalone King".

He is a master chef who is very good at cooking abalone.

Even the old man Feng Zhengming had met in Quancheng before participating in the competition had praised the abalone made by the other party.

Feng Zhengming said respectfully, "I really didn't expect to meet you here. I was a little too aggressive just now. I hope Master Li can forgive me."

Li Guansheng smiled and said, "Hahaha, it's okay, what you said just now was very good."

Then Li Guansheng called the youngest chef among the chefs in Gangcheng to come forward.

"Azhe, you and Chef Feng are of the same age. You young people should communicate more."

It was only at this point that Feng Zhengming came face to face with this young talented chef from Hong Kong.

The two people reached out to each other almost at the same time.

"Feng Zhengming."

"Jiang Chengzhe."

The moment the two sides shook hands, they exerted force on each other's hands almost at the same time.

Veins bulged faintly on the two men's sturdy arms.

At this moment, the two young men were evenly matched.

All the chefs in the elevator looked at the two people.

One could probably sense the atmosphere of secret competition between the two.

Ding.

Just at this moment, the elevator arrived at the floor where Feng Zhengming was.

The elevator door opened, and Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "I'm here. I'm glad to meet you all. I hope we can all have a great time in the upcoming exchanges and competitions."

At this moment, the chefs in Gangcheng all politely escorted Feng Zhengming down the elevator.

Finally, Jiang Chengzhe said, "Chef Feng, I hope to see your excellent cooking skills in the exchange competition." Feng Zhengming naturally agreed with a smile: "Okay, I will definitely let everyone see it."

After getting off the elevator, Feng Zhengming politely waved goodbye to all the chefs in Gangcheng.

He walked out of the elevator without waiting for the door to close.

After the elevator door closed, the Hong Kong chefs continued chatting.

"I didn't expect to meet a mainland chef in the elevator."

"This Feng Zhengming is quite interesting. He can actually speak Cantonese."

"Some of his methods of cooking the Oolong Xizhu are clearly inspired by Cantonese cuisine."

Hearing this, Jiang Chengzhe said: "No, his dish of Oolong Xizhu is a very standard Shandong cuisine, and the techniques used are also very traditional Shandong cuisine techniques."

This statement prompted other Hong Kong chefs to express different opinions.

"But on TV, the soup he used to cook sea cucumbers was very similar to abalone sauce, wasn't it?"

Li Guansheng waved his hand and said, "That's not abalone sauce. That's a very standard Shandong dish, sea cucumber sauce for scallion-fried sea cucumber."

After hearing what Li Guansheng said, all the other chefs in Hong Kong naturally fell silent.

Dai Long said with a smile: "I finally met a young chef with real skills. It seems that Azhe has a rival this time."

Everyone looked at Jiang Chengzhe.

Li Guansheng asked: "Does Azhe have confidence?"

Jiang Chengzhe was very confident: "I should be able to compete with him."

Then the chefs in Hong Kong City resumed their previous lively conversation and laughter.

And their conversation was still full of disdain for chefs from other places.

In particular, chefs in Hong Kong talked about how some top hotels in Beijing and Shanghai have been continuously sending invitations to many chefs in Hong Kong during this period.

Some people even tried to poach Li Guansheng and Jiang Chengzhe with high salaries to work as head chefs in their big hotels.

There was a hint of arrogance in his words.

It is also because of this that they tend to look down on chefs from other regions’ cuisines in their conversations.

Of course, they still maintain respect for Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming returned to the room.

Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng were both a little surprised to see him come back.

"Why did you come back so late?"

"Junior Brother Feng, you didn't go out to play by yourself? Were you dazzled by the prosperity of the big city?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and replied, "No, I chatted with the chefs from Shanghai in the restaurant, and then when I took the elevator upstairs, I ran into the chefs from Hong Kong and chatted with them for a while."

These words surprised both Li Zhifeng and Lin Bosheng.

"You met the chef group from Hong Kong City?"

"How many people are here? Is the so-called genius chef among them?"

Feng Zhengming nodded and continued to answer: "There are seven or eight of them, and the genius chef is indeed there. His name is Jiang Chengzhe."

Then Feng Zhengming talked about some other Hong Kong chefs in the elevator.

Lin Bosheng was a little surprised when he heard this: "I didn't expect that even Li Guansheng would come. This is incredible."

Li Zhifeng thought for a moment and said, "It seems that Hong Kong City also attaches great importance to this national competition."

Lin Bosheng then asked: "What did you talk about with them?"

Feng Zhengming did not say that they looked down on other cuisines.

But it still expresses a similar meaning.

"They were a bit arrogant. We didn't talk much about cooking. We just got to know each other and exchanged pleasantries."

Lin Bosheng said helplessly: "He is indeed entitled to be arrogant. You should know that nowadays famous chefs in Hong Kong, whether in Shanghai or Beijing, are quite popular."

Li Zhifeng still reminded Lin Bosheng: "Don't destroy your own ambition and boost the prestige of others."

Lin Bosheng said: "It's really not a deliberate attempt to destroy my own ambition. This is the choice made by many diners nowadays."

It seems that Lin Bosheng is still somewhat lacking in ambition.

Feng Zhengming said: "We are all chefs, and we all rely on our skills. Before the competition, no one can say who is better than who. We still have to show our true cooking skills."

"Yes, yes, we still have to compete in cooking skills to know." Li Zhifeng agreed with Feng Zhengming.

Feng Zhengming went on to say: "Maybe they are a little ahead in creativity, but in the end, don't the cooking techniques come from our Shandong cuisine? They can never be separated from our techniques."

Li Zhifeng nodded his head and said, "That's right. Shandong cuisine is famous for its techniques. Dishes from other places will contain some Shandong cuisine techniques, even if they have been improved by them."

Feng Zhengming continued seriously: "So we should stick to our techniques and pass on our techniques well."

After hearing what Feng Zhengming said, Lin Bosheng's fighting spirit was rekindled.

"Zhengming, you are right. We should stick to the characteristics of Shandong cuisine and pass on the techniques.

This conversation made both Lin Bosheng and Li Zhifeng feel that there was a comparison.

Even the chefs in Hong Kong are very creative.

However, Shandong cuisine has its roots in techniques, and it only needs to borrow a little more from other cuisines to come up with more varieties.

Therefore, Lin Bosheng was determined at this moment that he must make good use of various techniques in this competition.

This actually means the same thing as what Lin Bosheng said before: "Competition is about showing off your skills."

At this point, Lin Bosheng suddenly asked, "Zhengming, do they know about your trick of playing with a pearl?"

Feng Zhengming nodded: "I know, let's discuss it."

This made Lin Bosheng feel uncomfortable: "Why is everyone talking about your Oolong Playing with Pearls? We all made Oolong dishes, but no one mentioned my Oolong Dengyun."

This made Li Zhifeng feel a little embarrassed to say anything.
Feng Zhengming was more straightforward: "Maybe everyone thinks that Oolong Dengyun is more about the presentation than the dish itself, while my Oolong Xizhu is more suitable for restaurants and hotels."

Li Zhifeng couldn't help laughing after being exposed so bluntly by Feng Zhengming.

Lin Bosheng thought about it and sighed helplessly: "It seems that Master is right. It is not enough to just show off skills. We must consider the taste of a dish."

Then Lin Bosheng said seriously, "I will definitely make Wulong Dengyun again in this competition. I want everyone to know that my dish is not only good-looking."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhifeng looked at Feng Zhengming and then at Lin Bosheng.

He vaguely felt that Lin Bosheng also regarded Feng Zhengming as an opponent.

But after thinking about it, Li Zhifeng didn't think there was anything wrong with it.

After all, it is a national competition, and every chef definitely wants to show himself better.

So let alone the same Shandong cuisine chef, even if they learn from the same master, there will definitely be no mercy in the competition between them in the national competition.

Li Zhifeng thought about it and felt that this was a good thing.

He was looking forward to seeing Feng Zhengming and Lin Bosheng achieve good results in the national competition. (End of this chapter)