From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Feng Zhengming's answer seemed to have completely ended the conversation.

Mr. Situ, who was sitting opposite him, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Mr. Situ's laughter immediately eased the awkward atmosphere of the reporters' interview with Feng Zhengming.

The reporter from the TV station looked at Mr. Situ and quickly greeted him.

"So it's Mr. Situ. It looks like you have a good relationship with Chef Feng? Did you know each other before?"

Mr. Situ did not hide anything, but directly explained the relationship between him and Feng Zhengming.

"I was also from Qilu before I went abroad. Chef Feng's grandfather was my childhood playmate, and he is also my god-grandson. This time I accepted the invitation to the National Cooking Skills Exchange Competition because I wanted to see how he performs."

The reporters were a little surprised to hear Mr. Situ say this.

No one expected that Feng Zhengming actually had such a relationship with Mr. Situ.

In this era, many people unconsciously look up to those who have overseas connections.

The reporters then seemed to have found a new approach to the issue.

A reporter from either a newspaper or magazine spoke first.

"Chef Feng, you have such a relationship with Mr. Situ. After you participate in the national competition this time, will you open a Chinese restaurant abroad in the future through Mr. Situ's relationship?"

As soon as this question came out, other reporters became very curious.

Everyone thought this was a very good question.

Judging from his performance in this national competition so far, the young chef Feng Zhengming has undoubtedly performed very well.

If he could eventually win a place in a national competition, or have one of his dishes win a gold medal.

Everyone felt that Feng Zhengming would really become famous in the country with this national competition.

After he became famous, coupled with his relationship with Mr. Situ.

With the support of Mr. Situ, we can open a more authentic Chinese restaurant abroad.

Many people think this is a great thing for spreading Chinese food culture.

So the reporters all stared at Feng Zhengming, obviously looking forward to his answer.

Feng Zhengming looked at Grandpa Situ.

The old man had a smile on his face, like a kind grandfather looking at his loving grandson.

It seems that no matter what decision Feng Zhengming makes, Grandpa will do his best to help him.

However, Feng Zhengming was silent for a while, then smiled and said, "I have no plans to open a Chinese restaurant abroad for the time being."

This made the reporter who was interviewing the reporter feel a little disappointed.

They still hoped to hear the news that Feng Zhengming was going abroad.

Getting such news is definitely big news for reporters.

The reporter from Shanghai TV asked, "Chef Feng, the banquet cooking exchange has ended. During this exchange, your Shandong cuisine banquet received extremely high praise.

So, in the next three days of individual competition, are you ready to win a gold medal dish in one fell swoop?"

Feng Zhengming did not answer directly, but asked back: "Excuse me, I went to bed after I finished cooking. I don't know what everyone thinks of our Shandong cuisine banquet?"

Mr. Situ, who was sitting opposite, laughed out loud when he heard this.

"Hahaha, you may have missed an interesting banquet appreciation process."

After hearing this, Feng Zhengming looked at Grandpa Situ with even more curiosity.

Then the latter gave a brief account of the matter.

When the banquets in various places are prepared and laid out, the first thing to do is to let the invited guests taste them.

At the same time, professional judges and gourmets also entered the scene to taste the food.

At the beginning, people were more interested in Cantonese cuisine, Hong Kong cuisine and Jiangsu cuisine.

The ingredients used by Yuecai and Gangcheng can be said to be the most expensive among chefs from all over the world.

As for Su cuisine, the Wensi tofu made by Huaiyang cuisine chef Zhang Quande attracted great attention at the event.

So everyone went to see the banquets of these three families first.

It has to be said that the banquets at both the Yue Cuisine and Gang Cheng restaurants were truly luxurious.

We have lobster, abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin and bird's nest.

And every dish is made very beautifully.

Although they are both Cantonese cuisine, there are many differences in the cooking methods between Guangdong Province and Hong Kong.

Originally, many people prefer Hong Kong.

However, the Cantonese chefs also demonstrated their superb skills.

Especially the dish of searching for a dragon in the snow, which really showed the exquisite craftsmanship of Cantonese chefs.

As for Jiangsu cuisine, the two most impressive dishes are Wensi tofu and squirrel mandarin fish made by Huaiyang cuisine chef Zhang Quande.

They are also two very representative dishes of Huaiyang cuisine.

Zhang Quande did it in a very standard way.

However, in addition to these two dishes, Su cuisine also includes Zhencheng's crystal braised pork, Jinling's chicken porridge and roast duck, and Huaicheng's stir-fried soft pockets, which are also very classic dishes.

The ingredients may not be as luxurious as those in Cantonese and Hong Kong cuisine, but with their exquisite knife skills, the chefs from Jiangsu Province still make the dishes shine with a different kind of elegance.

After looking at Cantonese, Hong Kong and Jiangsu cuisines, everyone was soon attracted to Fujian and Sichuan cuisines.

Fujian cuisine is also based on seafood, and there are many very distinctive dishes.

There is a dish called Shark's Fin in a Pocket, which was once the award-winning dish in the first national competition.

It has also become a classic dish in Fujian cuisine.

Many people are amazed by the dishes prepared by Fujian chefs.

The various dishes on the Sichuan side also demonstrate the diversity of Sichuan cuisine.

In addition to various spicy dishes, there are also some non-spicy dishes such as boiled cabbage, chicken tofu, and official peacock.

The variety of flavors in Sichuan cuisine also surprised many people at the scene.

Although there were several wonderful banquets in the past.

But some banquets in other places still gave everyone big surprises.

The cuisines of the three northeastern provinces also have their own characteristics. It is not just Liao cuisine that allows people to taste another version of imitation bear paw.

The banquets in Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces also have their own characteristics and are full of wild beauty.

Especially some of the Heilongjiang Province's delicacies such as roasted venison, delicious soups, and big fish from the northern rivers all bring everyone a unique flavor experience.

There is also a banquet unique to Inner Mongolia that is made entirely of beef and mutton.

And the banquets with distinctly exotic flavors from the new province.

The banquets in Yunnan Province also have many wild delicacies, but their wild delicacies are mainly various fungi. It can be said that the banquets in various places really did not disappoint everyone.

Make every professional judge, gourmet and invited guest feel that the trip is worthwhile.

After introducing various places, Mr. Situ finally talked about Shandong cuisine.

"Your Shandong cuisine banquet is the one that has the most dishes in this banquet exchange."

The reporter nearby also echoed: "Yes, a whole table of 20 dishes. When we saw it, we were all stunned."

Another reporter followed suit and said: "I never thought you could cook 20 dishes. The key is that we can almost see each one, so we can roughly name them and have a certain impression of them."

Mr. Situ took over and said, "This is the characteristic of your Shandong cuisine. It seems that there are as many as 20 dishes, but everyone seems to have eaten each dish, or at least can name them.

But when you actually taste it, you’ll find that the taste is different from what you imagined.”

"Yes, that's right. I had the same feeling when I ate it. After eating it, I felt that the taste was different from what I had imagined."

"Yes, I ate the braised prawns, they were really delicious. It was the first time I ate prawns that were so delicious."

"Your braised prawns taste just as good as lobsters."

"There is also the Nine-Turn Large Intestine. It's my first time eating it and I didn't expect it to taste like that."

"The scallion-fried sea cucumber tastes great too. The sauce doesn't feel salty at all. It's a very mild, salty, fresh and slightly sweet sauce. It's really delicious when eaten with sea cucumbers, and it tastes even better when eaten with scallions."

"The sweet and sour carp is also delicious. It's not too sweet, nor too sour. The combination of sweet and sour tastes is really good."

"There is also the Confucius Mansion imitation bear paw, which tastes different from the Liao cuisine imitation bear paw, with two different tastes and textures."

At this moment, the reporters interviewing Feng Zhengming seemed to know everything about him.

It can be said that all the Shandong cuisine that impressed them was described again.

Really everyone can name a few dishes.

Some people even specifically mentioned Shili Ginkgo, saying that the dish was also quite delicious.

"It's the first time I know that Shili Ginkgo can be presented so beautifully. It's a simple dish, but it looks so beautiful after being presented."

Hearing everyone talk about their experiences made Feng Zhengming feel quite proud.

Just like what the reporters said, many of the dishes may have been heard of before.

But many times, I don’t know which dish is Shandong cuisine.

I just found out today that the dish is actually Shandong cuisine.

After tasting it on the spot, I found out that this is what it tastes like.

In particular, many people criticize Shandong cuisine for being heavy in oil and salt.

After eating the meal today, many people discovered that most of the dishes at the banquet were not greasy at all, and the saltiness was not strong at all.

Although in terms of taste, Shandong cuisine is definitely not as outstanding as Sichuan cuisine.

It is not like Cantonese cuisine or Fujian cuisine which focus more on the original flavor of the ingredients.

However, the mild taste of Shandong cuisine made it easier for many people at the scene to accept.

The Hong Kong reporter who came to interview Feng Zhengming said at this time: "Mr. Cai at the scene said that the reason why we tasted Shandong cuisine today is different from our impression is because the Shandong cuisine chefs who came to participate in the competition are very good.

Chef Feng, you have used your exquisite cooking skills to change the negative impression that people once had of Shandong cuisine."

Other reporters also nodded, agreeing with Mr. Cai’s words relayed by the Hong Kong City reporter.

Mr. Situ smiled and asked Feng Zhengming: "How was it? Do you regret going to bed and missing the food tasting session?"

Feng Zhengming smiled and nodded: "It's a pity that I didn't get to see everyone's surprised expressions after they ate the Shandong cuisine we cooked and their stereotypes were overturned."

"Hahaha, you naughty boy." Mr. Situ laughed happily.

The reporters present at the interview also laughed.

Then, the reporter interviewed Feng Zhengming on some other aspects.

I learned that Feng Zhengming was interested and wanted to open a restaurant in Shanghai later.

This has made the reporters in Shanghai very much looking forward to it.

"Chef Feng, if you come to Shanghai to open a restaurant, will you stick to making classic Shandong cuisine?"

Feng Zhengming nodded: "I will definitely make classic Shandong cuisine, but I will also add some dishes from other regions. When the time comes, I will probably invite some people to open a restaurant with me."

“Invite some people to open a restaurant with you?”

The reporters were all a little curious about this.

I really want to know who Feng Zhengming is going to invite to open a restaurant with him?

Feng Zhengming smiled and said, "This is kept secret for now. It depends on whether I can hire those excellent chefs. If I can, I will definitely open a top-notch restaurant in Shanghai that serves different cuisines from all over the country."

This again surprised the reporters.

Everyone used to think that Feng Zhengming was an excellent young chef.

I think he may get a good ranking in the competition and will return to Quancheng. Perhaps, like the chefs of the previous two sessions, he will gradually withdraw from the front line of the kitchen and be responsible for teaching and assessing other chefs.

But judging from the intention expressed by Feng Zhengming, he does not seem to intend to gradually withdraw from the kitchen after participating in the national competition.

He never even thought about becoming a teacher or a judge for other chefs.

He wanted to come to Shanghai and open a restaurant that could serve the best cuisine from all over the country.

This is an ambition like no other.

When Mr. Situ heard what Feng Zhengming said, he immediately remembered what his younger brother Feng had told him when they were in Quancheng.

At that time, Grandpa Feng's evaluation of Feng Zhengming was: He was a somewhat stubborn idiot who was devoted to cooking. No matter what kind of honor he received, he would probably not leave the stove.

Looking back now, Mr. Situ feels that Feng Zonghu's evaluation of his grandson was very accurate.

Obviously, no matter what kind of honor it is, it is just a title to Feng Zhengming.

He probably never thought of using his honor to leave the kitchen.

He just wants to stay in the kitchen and use his passion to cook better dishes.

Mr. Situ said, "If you want to open a restaurant in Shanghai, you can inform Grandpa Situ at that time. I will definitely come back to support you."

Feng Zhengming smiled and thanked him: "Thank you, Grandpa Situ, I will definitely let you know."

Wait until the reporters here have basically finished their interviews.

Feng Zhengming and Mr. Situ left the restaurant together.

Mr. Situ smiled and asked, "Zhengming, do you want to come to my room and sit down? You can call your grandfather and the others from my room."

Feng Zhengming did not hesitate: "Okay, it's more convenient to go to Grandpa Situ to make a call."

The grandfather and grandson took the elevator together and came to Mr. Situ's room.

The room where Mr. Situ lives is on a higher floor, and it is a separate suite, which is really spacious.

After Feng Zhengming entered the house, he did not bother to be polite with Mr. Situ, and directly dialed the phone number of his grandfather's house. (End of this chapter)