From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

The second dish competition is over, but the surprise that the second dish brought to the audience at the scene and the audience watching the live broadcast on TV is still lingering.

The judges had already left the venue and gathered in the conference room provided by the hotel to begin discussing the scores.

The judges, including Chef Hou of Jingcheng, one of the top ten chefs of the first session, all commented from a professional perspective.

Chef Hou first expressed his opinion: "I think that in terms of creativity, the second dish is definitely the best one, which is Feng Zhengming's dish that has the best of both worlds.

But in terms of the degree of perfection and surprise of the dishes, Hao Zongcheng's peony bird's nest, Jiang Chengzhe's lobster roll, and Zhang Quande's green fish flower are better. "

Chef Liu continued, "I agree with Chef Hou. The Peony Bird's Nest is indeed the most amazing dish of the whole show today."

It is obvious from Master Liu's statement that he prefers the peony bird's nest dish.

Then Master Lu said: "The Peony Bird's Nest is indeed amazing, but in terms of technique and craftsmanship, Feng Zhengming's is just as good."

Several other professional chefs also expressed their support for the dishes from a professional perspective.

Generally speaking, the professional judges supported the two dishes by Feng Zhengming and Hao Zongcheng.

This is because the two of them made good use of their cooking techniques.

The originally ordinary white radish is given a different taste.

From the perspective of chefs, Feng Zhengming and Hao Zongcheng are indeed very professional.

Most of the professional judges also support Feng Zhengming's dishes.

Or it is because Feng Zhengming makes better use of various traditional techniques.

The peony bird's nest is indeed stunning, and Hao Zongcheng has indeed put in a lot of effort to showcase the traditional techniques.

However, despite Hao Zongcheng's certain innovations, it is still a traditional classic dish.

Unlike Feng Zhengming’s dishes, which are more creative.

So from the professional judges' perspective, Feng Zhengming's final score was slightly higher.

Then there are non-professional invited gourmets and foreign chefs.

They don't take into account the creativity and technique of a dish.

Their ratings are based more on intuitive color, smell, taste and shape indicators.

Mr. Cai first said: "I think that Chef Feng's dish and Chef Hao's dish are equally good.

Both of them made ordinary white radish taste extraordinary.

Their dishes were all very well prepared in terms of color, aroma, taste, shape and texture.

So I would give them both the same score.”

After Mr. Cai finished speaking, the invited foreign chef expressed directly.

They would give a higher score to the peony bird's nest dish.

In the eyes of foreign chefs, the elegant and luxurious appearance of Peony Bird's Nest really amazes them, and foreign chefs feel that this is the impression of Chinese cuisine.

Apparently, Feng Zhengming had the best of both worlds, with the color scheme appearing too bland to foreign chefs.

Therefore, foreign chefs tend to prefer Peony Bird's Nest when giving scores.

There were also some invited celebrities who gave scores to all the chefs’ second dishes from a non-professional perspective and in a very subjective manner.

Coincidentally, in the end, Feng Zhengming and Hao Zongcheng tied in the score for the second dish.

Seeing such a score, the judges present couldn't help but laugh.

Mr. Cai said with a smile: "As expected, the result is like this. Although Chef Feng is not as good as Chef Hao in terms of presentation, I believe you can still taste that Chef Feng is slightly better in terms of taste."

The judges present all agreed with this statement.

In today’s second round of competition, there were indeed many dishes that amazed the judges.

But the dish that impressed the judges the most in terms of taste was definitely Feng Zhengming's.

Winter melon and white radish have a unique taste after cooking, and a unique flavor blended together.

It really is something that will make everyone feel delicious.

It doesn't have an overly stimulating taste, just a mild salty and slightly sweet taste.

But the taste is so delicious that you even want to eat it again after eating it.

So in the end, Feng Zhengming’s dish might not be the most eye-catching in terms of presentation, but in terms of creativity and taste, it is still on par with Hao Zongcheng’s Peony Bird’s Nest.

The judges have already determined the final score for the second dish.

The audience outside was still having a heated discussion.

Because today’s second dish, there are still too many dishes that left an impression on everyone.

Not only the dishes of Feng Zhengming, who has attracted much attention, but also the dishes of Hao Zongcheng, who has emerged as a rising star.

The second dishes of some other chefs were also very impressive.

So the audience at the scene had a heated discussion and even started arguing.

Everyone has a favorite dish in their heart.

Everyone was unable to convince each other.

Especially if both people think that their favorite dish should get the highest award, a heated argument is bound to break out between them.

The hotel's banquet hall was really unique, as if a large-scale debate was taking place there.

However, the participating chefs did not participate in these discussions on site.

The chefs spent an entire afternoon cooking, and each of them completed their own dish independently. It was really hard work.

In particular, many of the dishes had actually been prepared just two days in advance.

Even after two days of preparation, it still took a lot of time and effort to make it today.

Therefore, cooking is often a task that tests the chef's physical strength.

The chefs left the banquet hall where the competition was held, and some returned to their rooms to rest.

There are also some options to sit in the hotel restaurant and bar.

Of course, there are also some chefs who will communicate with other chefs.

For example, Jiang Chengzhe still found Feng Zhengming for some communication.

Jiang Chengzhe also wanted Feng Zhengming to accompany him to find Hao Zongcheng, who made the peony bird's nest.

Feng Zhengming heard Jiang Chengzhe asking him to go with him to find Hao Zongcheng.

He couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "I'm not familiar with him either. We didn't have any intersection before."

Jiang Chengzhe said: "It doesn't matter. Once we get there, we can get to know each other after a few exchanges."

When Feng Zhengming heard Jiang Chengzhe say this, he told his family and went to find Hao Zongcheng with Jiang Chengzhe.

When we found Hao Zongcheng, he was with other Henan cuisine chefs. Several other Henan cuisine chefs also praised Hao Zongcheng's performance today.

Henan cuisine chefs all feel that Hao Zongcheng’s Peony Bird’s Nest dish today really helped Henan cuisine regain face.

"We have been suppressed by chefs from other places for a few days. Today we can finally hold our heads high."

"Yes, Master Hao, your peony bird's nest is really great."

"I saw the looks on the judges and the audience today. Brother Hao's peony bird's nest really opened their eyes."

"Our previous banquets were too conservative. We should have made more exquisite dishes."

"We are indeed too conservative in our water banquets. We should have more dishes with different shapes, and not just focus on recreating classic dishes as much as possible."

Hao Zongcheng is a middle-aged man with an honest face.

When he heard what the other Henan cuisine chefs said, he just smiled in a very honest way.

He seemed to be indifferent to the world, which was a little different from the peony bird's nest he made.

After listening to the other Henan cuisine chefs, Hao Zongcheng smiled and said, "I just thought that I should be able to make peony bird's nest in that way to let everyone see the exquisiteness of our Henan cuisine. I didn't expect the effect to be so good."

A Henan cuisine chef immediately said: "Brother Hao, you are too modest. Your cooking skills are definitely not inferior to those of other chefs."

Another person echoed, "Yes, before, it was Feng Zhengming and those Hong Kong chefs who were in the limelight. Brother Hao, you are definitely not worse than them."

Speaking of Feng Zhengming, Hao Zongcheng actually recognized him very much.

"Chef Feng's cooking skills are really amazing. I didn't expect that he is so young but has such solid basic skills. The key is that he is really good at cooking creativity."

Hao Zongcheng's words left the other Henan cuisine chefs speechless.

When it comes to Feng Zhengming's basic skills or his creativity in cooking, the chefs really have to be convinced.

Even the old chefs from all over the country, including chefs Li Guansheng, Dai Long and Long Kunbao from Hong Kong, are impressed by Feng Zhengming's basic skills and creativity.

A Henan cuisine chef said: "Chef Feng seems to have mastered those cooking techniques very well. When he made the imitation bear paw today, he was very skilled and bold, flipping the spoon on the spot."

Hao Zongcheng nodded: "He is really a man of great skill and courage."

The Henan cuisine chefs were chatting when Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe came over together.

I had just approached and hadn't spoken yet when I heard them discussing Feng Zhengming.

Jiang Chengzhe whispered to Feng Zhengming: "Look, everyone is talking about you."

Feng Zhengming was a little embarrassed: "I'm not that good. I still have a lot to learn from you."

Jiang Chengzhe couldn't help but say, "Can you please stop being so modest? Tell me about your basic skills. Who among us can be better than you? You dared to make a big upset on the field today. How can you let us compete with you?"

This made Feng Zhengming a little embarrassed: "Don't you know how to flip the spoon?"

Jiang Chengzhe said: "Yes, I will, but I definitely won't dare to do a random flip on the field."

The two people's voices became louder and louder, which soon attracted the attention of the Henan cuisine chefs.

Then several Henan cuisine chefs took the initiative to greet Feng Zhengming and his team.

Hao Zongcheng even took the initiative to greet Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe.

"Hello, you two, your performance today is really great."

Feng Zhengming quickly said, "No, no, the most amazing dish today is definitely Chef Hao's Peony Bird's Nest. It really opened our eyes."

Jiang Chengzhe agreed, "Yes, yes, Chef Hao, your peony bird's nest is amazing."

Hao Zongcheng smiled and said, "My dish is a traditional classic dish. It can't compare with the creativity of your dish."

Feng Zhengming immediately said: "Creativity is only one aspect. There are many cases where you have good ideas but the dishes you make are not as good as the classics. I still admire you very much."

Upon hearing this, several other Henan cuisine chefs could not help but say that Feng Zhengming and Hao Zongcheng did not need to be so polite.

"Hahaha, you two don't need to compliment each other on your performance today, right?"

"That's right, the dishes you two prepared today really opened our eyes, so stop being so modest with each other."

"Speaking of which, your dishes today are of the same type, both using white radish."

"It's true. And they make the white radish taste like something other than white radish."

Jiang Chengzhe couldn't help but interrupt: "I'm really curious, how do you make the white radish taste like that?"

Feng Zhengming and Hao Zongcheng looked at each other, and both of them briefly explained what they had done.

Compared with Feng Zhengming's approach, Hao Zongcheng's is naturally more complicated.

The white radish shreds in the peony bird's nest should first be cut into even thin strips, and then the radish odor needs to be removed by soaking.

After draining the water, mix it with flour and steam it in a steamer. After it comes out, spread it in ice water.

Then take it out, season it with salt, and put it back into the steamer to steam.

The whole process can be said to be quite complicated, and in the end it can produce a taste similar to that of bird's nest.

After Feng Zhengming carved it, he first blanched the white radish, then stuffed it with fillings, and then put it into abalone sauce to simmer it.

Hao Zongcheng, Jiang Chengzhe and other chefs were more curious about how Feng Zhengming removed the taste of white radish?

Hao Zongcheng said: "The smell of white radish is really hard to get rid of. After I cut it into thin strips, I need to soak it to get rid of the smell as much as possible."

Jiang Chengzhe then asked, "Chef Feng, how did you remove it?"

Feng Zhengming did not hide it and answered with a smile: "When I was blanching the radish, I put some rock sugar in the water and boiled it with the rock sugar to remove the smell."

"Is it that simple?" The chefs present were all surprised.

Feng Zhengming nodded: "It's that simple, everyone can try it yourself."

It has to be said that the chefs were a little surprised when Feng Zhengming put the solution forward so directly.

Because if rock sugar works, this can definitely be considered a secret recipe.

But Feng Zhengming said it in front of the chefs.

Basically, I am publishing this little secret recipe to everyone.

Hao Zongcheng couldn't help but sigh: "Chef Feng is so young but has such a vision. He is willing to share his little secret recipe with everyone. We are really convinced."

Feng Zhengming smiled and responded: "Master Hao, don't say that. The national competition is for us to communicate with each other. Didn't you just point out some of the key points of Peony Bird's Nest?

Now is not the past. In the past, master chefs would keep their unique skills to themselves for fear that if they taught their skills to their apprentices, they would starve to death.

Now I feel that many things can be promoted to more people, so that more chefs can understand and master the skills, and improve everyone's level, so that we can better promote our Chinese cuisine together."

These words were also recognized by the chefs present, and everyone expressed their willingness to contribute to the development of Chinese cuisine.

In fact, the reason why this national cooking competition is broadcast live is to let more people know about Chinese cuisine.

Now, under the leadership of Feng Zhengming, more and more chefs are willing to communicate openly with each other. (End of this chapter)