From selling box lunches to becoming a famous Chinese chef

Feng Zhengming's dish can really be said to be four dishes in total.

The first dish is a very traditional classic Shandong dish, braised sea cucumber with scallions.

The rich aroma of onions, mixed with the aroma of the onion sauce, permeated almost every sea cucumber, and filled almost the entire banquet hall with the onion fragrance.

The aroma from the other chefs' cooking was almost drowned out by the onion fragrance coming from Feng Zhengming's side.

The second dish is scallops with lotus leaves, which is also a traditional classic Shandong dish.

It’s just that Feng Zhengming made some changes in his approach.

He chopped scallops and shrimps into fillings and rolled them into meatballs, and added lobster brains as the filling.

Then, the outside is rolled in scallop shreds and colorful vegetable shreds are added on the outer layer.

Make the hydrangea colorful, just like the colorful hydrangea during the dragon and lion dances.

The third dish is a classic Cantonese dish, baked lobster balls in golden soup.

This is a dish that Feng Zhengming learned to cook after asking Jiang Chengzhe for advice.

The cooking methods are in full compliance with the most traditional Hong Kong practices.

As for the fourth course?

That is Feng Zhengming's very good combination of three dishes.

After being arranged on the plate, the three dishes are instantly blended into one by steaming and pouring sauce on them, showing a very unique flavor.

Among the judges on site, Mr. Cai from Hong Kong couldn't help but stand up and look at Feng Zhengming's dish.

"That's great. I didn't expect Chef Feng to actually make it."

This time when he came to the national competition, Mr. Cai quickly noticed Feng Zhengming.

Because he is different from most chefs in the mainland.

Most mainland chefs still stick to traditional techniques.

Or it should be said that they focus more on deepening traditional techniques and developing various classic dishes.

Only Feng Zhengming, at the national competition, was like a dry sponge, constantly absorbing the techniques and experiences of chefs from different regions and with different skills.

If we were to ask each other which chef learned the most seriously during the exchanges at this national cooking competition?

Then I'm afraid it can only be Feng Zhengming.

Starting from his second dish, almost every dish of his was prepared after consulting different chefs on site and incorporating the ideas into the dishes he made.

Therefore, in every dish made by Feng Zhengming, one can see standard Shandong cuisine techniques.

You can see the shadow of very traditional Shandong cuisine.

You can also see different techniques from different places.

As well as the shadows of some classic dishes from around the world.

This kind of learning ability, as well as this kind of bold innovation ability to apply what you have learned.

Mr. Cai was really surprised.

A truly top chef must have his own style.

But at the same time, a top chef must be able to accept different regions, different cultural backgrounds, and different eating habits, and bring different changes to the dishes.

This is just like the old masters in the past, they never boasted about how great they were.

Most of the time they will maintain an apprentice-like heart.

They will pass on what they have accumulated over the years to everyone who is willing to learn.

I will also humbly accept some new concepts and ideas.

Therefore, the master chefs are always so calm when cooking, as if they can do everything with ease.

Feng Zhengming also has this temperament.

He always has a learning attitude and asks different chefs for advice, learns something from them, and then applies what he has learned to his dishes.

Whenever Mr. Cai communicates with many old masters, he always mentions innovation.

The general attitude of the old masters is that innovation should be achieved on the basis of doing a good job in tradition.

What the old masters often mention is always "maintaining the integrity and making innovations".

When Mr. Cai saw Feng Zhengming's dish, he had a very deep understanding of the word.

This dish of Feng Zhengming is a good interpretation of the four words "upholding the truth and making innovations".

Able to use the most traditional techniques quite skillfully.

Through one's own creativity, more novel dishes are created based on traditional techniques.

This aspect is a display of Feng Zhengming's personal ability.

On the other hand, one cannot help but marvel at his personal creativity.

Seeing Mr. Cai stand up excitedly, the other judges were also a little surprised.

Following Mr. Cai's gaze, many judges also caught him staring at Feng Zhengming's dish.

The judges could understand.

Especially the professional judges, they are also aware of the powerful technical support behind Feng Zhengming's creativity of combining three classic dishes into one dish.

Judging from the technical level of this dish alone, Feng Zhengming is indeed good enough to become the top scorer of this session.

Plus the creativity of this dish is outstanding.

The judges in the professional group really couldn't find any fault with it.

If we must find fault, we can only say that Feng Zhengming's dish still has no blank space and no carved decorations.

But when faced with a dish like this, who can demand that there must be blank space and carved decorations?

Not long after Feng Zhengming finished his dish, Jiang Chengzhe's dish was also completed.

When he opened the lid of the steaming container, many people at the scene seemed to see a beam of golden light.

Then there is the rich aroma wafting up.

Although this fragrance did not completely cover up the onion fragrance from Feng Zhengming's side, it was also very overbearing.

Everyone couldn't help but look at Jiang Chengzhe's dishes curiously.

The camera also showed the picture of Jiang Chengzhe's dish.

Then everyone realized that the faint golden light was indeed coming from the pot.

The golden soup made by Jiang Chengzhe is paired with very high-quality ingredients.

The whole dish really looks a bit golden.

Especially under the lighting on the scene, it gives people the feeling that the dish is made from a pot of gold.

Mr. Cai naturally also saw Jiang Chengzhe's dish.

He smiled helplessly: "Golden soup abalone, fish maw, chicken and shark's fin, it's really too luxurious."

The judges at the scene were all looking at each other, and the smiles on their faces were somewhat complicated.

No one can say that there is anything wrong with the dish Jiang Chengzhe cooked?
Except the cost is really too high.

When Li Guansheng saw his apprentice making such a dish, a helpless smile appeared on his face.

Jiang Chengzhe did use a lot of techniques to make this dish.

From a technical perspective, whether it is the processing of chicken, abalone, peppercorns, or shark fins, it all tests the chef's skills.

There is also the golden soup that blends the whole dish together, which is also a test of a chef’s basic skills.

Because the key to this soup is that it has to be a clear broth before the pumpkin puree is added to turn it into a golden soup.

It must be clear soup.

The soup must be clear in color, without any color or impurities, not even a drop of oil. But such a clear soup must also be delicious enough.

To put it simply, the soup should contain various fresh ingredients including the old chicken, but it should also be as clear as water.

This is not the effect of sweeping the soup, but the effect of slowly stewing it over low heat.

The fire should not be too high, and it should be cooked long enough to allow the flavors of the ingredients to penetrate into the soup.

And if you want the soup to be delicious enough, you can't use an old chicken to stew it.

You must use an old chicken to stew the food to bring out the flavor. After filtering the soup, add the same ingredients again and stew it again with a new old chicken.

This process of stewing three to four times is required to make the soup delicious enough.

Therefore, if you want to make this dish well, it is not as simple as just piling up high-quality ingredients on the surface.

But professional chefs will understand these things.

Ordinary diners would definitely not be aware of this.

For many ordinary diners, there is only one word to describe such a dish: expensive.

Li Guansheng was still a little dissatisfied with the dish Jiang Chengzhe made during the competition.

There are obviously more fancy dishes to be prepared, but they insist on using the most expensive method.

But looking at Feng Zhengming's dish again, Li Guansheng changed his mind and felt that Jiang Chengzhe's approach was reasonable.

Feng Zhengming's dish, which included sea cucumber, lobster, fresh scallops, dried scallops, and large prawns cooked in shrimp paste, seemed to be not much less expensive than Jiang Chengzhe's.

The chefs have also completed the third dish competition one after another.

Next, the judges began to evaluate the dishes one by one.

In the third course, in addition to the two dishes by Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe, some other chefs also made some very exquisite dishes.

For example, one of the chefs from Shanghai who participated in the competition prepared a classic local dish, shrimp and black sea cucumber, for the third dish.

The color and presentation of the dish really reflects the rich, oily and sauce-filled characteristics of Shanghai cuisine.

There was also a Fujian cuisine chef who made an equally classic Fujian dish, pork belly with rong tang (Meat-filled pork belly with rong tang).

The beautiful, rich and fragrant golden soup is in no way inferior to Jiang Chengzhe's dish.

Huaiyang cuisine chef Zhang Quande made a very classic Red Mansion dish, rouge goose breast.

It also has a very stunning visual effect.

As the judges tasted the dishes along the way, they really felt that the chefs had put a lot of effort into the third dish.

Each chef's dish reflects the beauty of food in terms of color, aroma, taste, shape and utensils.

There are also many local characteristics from various places, which are also reflected in the dishes.

After the evaluation, the judges were all impressed.

“The chefs really put in a lot of effort.”

“Yes, every chef really puts a lot of effort into cooking.”

“There are a lot of really great ideas.”

“This is what our Chinese cuisine should be like.”

“We want a hundred flowers to bloom and all of them to perform well.”

National cooking competition, the third dish of the individual competition is completed.

After waiting for the judges to taste the dishes, the chefs placed their dishes on the display table and then left the stage one after another.

The third dish really took everyone a lot of thought and thought, and all the chefs can be said to have worked very hard.

However, outside the banquet hall, the chefs will still get together to discuss and exchange ideas.

Feng Zhengming and Jiang Chengzhe are also attracting a lot of attention.

Many chefs will take the initiative to greet the two of them.

On the one hand, everyone was convinced by the strength they demonstrated in the competition.

On the other hand, the two are the youngest in this competition. Many older chefs would feel that their presence is the hope for the future development of Chinese cuisine.

"Chef Feng is really amazing. I saw your trick once before on a competition broadcast on your local TV station. I didn't expect you to improve on it this time. It's really amazing."

"The key is that your upgrade really improves the value of the dish, but it does not destroy the integrity of the dish. This is very rare."

"Chef Feng didn't expect that you, at such a young age, could make the scallion sauce so well. That is the key to your Shandong cuisine scallion-fried sea cucumber."

"Yes, that's right. The scallion sauce is really the most classic part of scallion-fried sea cucumber."

Faced with the recognition of Shandong cuisine's scallion-braised sea cucumber by chefs from other places.

Feng Zhengming smiled and said: "As a Shandong cuisine chef, if I can't even cook scallion-fried sea cucumber, then I have no right to come to the national competition."

This statement was also recognized by other chefs.

In particular, other Shandong cuisine chefs also said that scallion-fried sea cucumber is indeed a dish that Shandong cuisine chefs must know.

However, although they are all stir-fried sea cucumbers with scallions, there are still some differences among different chefs.

Moreover, the scallion sauce used by different chefs in different restaurants and hotels may be different.

This aspect is the chefs’ own secret and will not be disclosed easily.

In response to the praise, Feng Zhengming quickly expressed his gratitude to the other chefs.

And during the conversation, he was able to clearly point out the dishes made by each chef.

This naturally made other chefs have a very good impression of him.

You know, even the judges may not be able to remember clearly the dishes corresponding to each chef.

Besides, Feng Zhengming is not a judge. He communicates with other chefs on the dishes when everyone puts the dishes on the display table.

Just through such a brief exchange, Feng Zhengming was able to remember the dishes cooked by each chef.

Naturally, many chefs are convinced by him.

Feng Zhengming orders each chef’s dishes and also humbly asks the chefs for advice.

Ask about their dishes and some of the details in cooking.

Because they have a good impression of Feng Zhengming, the chefs would also mention some small details about cooking when communicating with each other.

If someone was paying attention to Feng Zhengming nearby, they might not be able to help but sigh.

He really takes every opportunity to learn from other chefs.

Of course, when asked by other chefs about the cooking details of his dishes, Feng Zhengming would also tell them openly.

It can be said that for Feng Zhengming's third dish, Oolong Xizhu, except for not telling the specific recipe of the scallion sauce, he almost told all the other key points of cooking without reservation.

Such a communication process will be a great boost for every chef.

Perhaps for the time being, other chefs cannot learn and apply what they have learned like Feng Zhengming.

But through the current communication, every chef will definitely conduct further research after returning.

The experience of this national cooking competition will definitely influence many chefs in the future.

Jiang Chengzhe also specifically found Feng Zhengming.

"How is it? Is my dish of abalone, fish maw, chicken and shark's fin in golden soup today just as good as your dish of Oolong Xizhu? Do you want to give me a review of that dish?"

Feng Zhengming looked at Jiang Chengzhe who was very excited. He smiled and gave an answer: "In one word, expensive."

Jiang Chengzhe was stunned by these words.

After being stunned for a moment, Jiang Chengzhe immediately said, "Hey, hey, hey, your Wulong Xizhu is obviously not cheaper than mine."

Feng Zhengming laughed after hearing this: "Yes, the dishes we cook are too expensive. We need to make some adjustments in the future so that ordinary people can afford them." (End of this chapter)