The beginning is only when you become a chef

Chapter 114: A Light Feast of Fantasy Ingredients (Two Chapters in One)

“Black?”

"Boss Xia's dancing dough is black!"

The audience inside the Juxia Building reacted almost without delay, making an uproar that shocked the entire building.

The judges, including the camera and screen in the main live broadcast room, immediately cut to Kitchen No. 7 where Xia An was.

Thus, the shocking scene of the snake charmer dancing with the black snake in his hand was transmitted to the eyes of people in thousands of households through live broadcast.

"What's going on? Why is the dough black?"

"I suddenly remembered, it's squid ink. Boss Xia used squid ink instead of water to mix the dough!"

"Hiss, can we use cuttlefish ink to directly replace water? Then the problem is, the composition of cuttlefish ink is different from that of water. If we mix the dough and noodles in this way, the taste will be difficult to control, right?"

The Juxia Building was filled with all kinds of sounds.

Chi Xiaobai looked at the live broadcast of Kitchen No. 7 and said, "Guess, is this squid ink pure, or did Boss Xia add other ingredients to adjust the composition of the squid ink?"

Wei Xuelin: "It can't be pure squid ink. At least salt or eggs must be added."

Nakiri Managi suddenly said:
"In Italy, squid ink pasta is also called Nero pasta because of its black color."

"When Italian chefs make squid ink dough, they usually mix in various spices, such as basil leaves, to enrich the base flavor of the noodles."

Nakiri family residence.

Leonora smiled and said:
"There are two ways to make squid ink pasta. One is what Boss Xia is doing now, kneading the dough with squid ink."

"Another way is to boil a pot of squid ink and put the pulled noodles or machine-made noodles in it to stew."

Erina nodded: "With the first method, when kneading the dough, a lot of squid ink and umami are already mixed in. In fact, when preparing the soup base, with the umami of squid ink, it will not taste bad no matter how you cook it!"

At this time!

Old man Nakiri Senzaemon's eyes suddenly widened.

He was originally staring at the program screen.

Obviously, he saw something beyond common sense.

"The dough is shining—"

Senzaemon said in a deep voice.

? ?
Shiny?

Everyone in the room paused their discussion and focused on watching TV. As expected, as Xia An continued to perform his unique skill of [White Snake Chain], the black snake wrapped around the pastry stick became more and more agile, and suddenly, colorful fluorescent stars appeared on its black "snake body"!
"What's going on with this light?"

In Polar Star Dormitory, the friends led by "Medicine King" Soma Yukihira were also stunned.

Isshiki Hui took a breath and murmured:
"What kind of magic is this!"

"The pitch-black 'snake body' suddenly glowed, as if a layer of glossy effect was applied to the scales. It was even more realistic and shocking!"

Isn't it.

This layer of colorful light is the finishing touch.

The "black snake" is originally pitch black, extremely black, but its scales are shining, and it suddenly has a vivid and lifelike feeling.

The whole snake is coiled on the pastry stick, like a pair of intertwined divine snakes, exuding a magical and elegant mysterious temperament.

The crowd of spectators, including everyone in Polaris Dormitory, were gradually stunned and fell into the trap without realizing it.

Inside the Juxialou, hundreds of audience members stood up collectively.

I was stunned and speechless.

With enjoyment and shock, he watched the Black Snake's performance which was completely different from the first episode.

This is another side of pastry skills, another dark style!
"Boom——"

In front of the railing of the second-floor stand, Jing Nina smelled the fresh aroma rushing out of Kitchen No. 7, and her face suddenly became dazed.

Vaguely.

A dragon, covered in black and bathed in water, broke through the surface of the deep sea and soared straight up.

She shook her head.

Look carefully at the dough in Xia An's hands in the kitchen below, which is gradually turning darker.

His eyes were filled with solemnity.

"It has the flavor of an extreme pastry." Jing Nina murmured, "The ultimate black, irreplaceable, even in his interpretation of the pastry stick and his unique skills, he has gradually been endowed with a dark soul..."

Upon hearing this, Wu Zhu and Xiang Shilin looked at each other in shock.

"Extreme Pastry?"

"That's not right, sister. Boss Xia really doesn't have the ultimate skills."

Jing Nina snorted, her expression becoming more serious:
"But he can do the White Snake Chain!"

"You have to know that even people with extreme pastry skills probably can't learn and master this pastry skill!"

"What's more..."

She changed the subject.

"What more?!"

Wu Zhu and Xiang Shilin were on high alert and became anxious.

"Besides, do you think that the former pastry king Logan didn't have ultimate pastry making skills? And there's also that steel stick Jie Lu."

"In the ancient world of gourmet food, for those who stood at the pinnacle of a certain field, the ultimate skill was only a tiny part of their culinary skills."

Huh?
Wu Zhu and Xiang Shilin were silent for a moment, and then gradually understood the amount of information contained in Jing Nina's words.

Holding grass?

Wu Zhu said in disbelief:

"The ultimate skills of ancient chefs are naturally acquired when one practices some profound skill to a high level? Activated?"

Xiang Shilin was shocked:
"It's most likely like this. I was wondering, there were so many heroes in ancient times, how did they achieve their ultimate skills?"

Then, they both looked at Xia An in Kitchen No. 7, who had stopped performing the White Snake Chain Transformation.

Thoughts of both horror and envy emerged in my mind.

Now, Boss Xia has seemingly mastered the ultimate pastry-making skills in this shop?

So what level of attainment has he reached in this unique skill?
boom!
Putting down the stick, Xia An pressed the dark dough into a block and covered it with a wet cloth to let it rest.

Even with the wet cloth covering it, the dough's colorful fluorescence still showed through.

Seeing this, Xia An said silently in his heart:

"The light of this 'sago pearl' is really strong."

In fact, the colorful and shining fluorescence in the dough when the black snake was dancing just now was created by the powder of "sago pearls".

There is no doubt that as a fantasy ingredient, the fluorescence of the powder made from "sago pearls" is purely the glow of the ingredient itself, rather than any visual deception caused by the refraction of light.

As for why the "black snake dough" is forced to have the greasy, wet and shiny effect like the big sister during the dough mixing and kneading process.

This requires a detailed discussion of Xia An’s research experience over the past few days.

He found out.

This light is crucial to giving the "Black Snake" a dark soul that serves as a finishing touch?

But the real core principle lies in the characteristics of "sago pearls"!
Its delicious taste, combined with cuttlefish ink, was subtly forced into the spiral circle of the unique skill White Snake Chain, forming an outrageous delicious formula that even Xia An was amazed at.

In a word!

Without going into the complicated details, let’s just talk about the “black noodles” that Xia An is going to make later.

It is already an extremely superior fantasy-level food!
Of course, Xia An’s recipe is derived from “Great Galaxy Noodles”, and “black noodles” are only one part of it.

And next...

Xia An turned around to look at the deep pot of broth that had been boiling.

I saw the steam already rising to the top of the pot lid.

He stepped forward and lifted the lid.

The delicious taste comes like a tsunami.

Xia An smiled.

“The soup made from the sago scallop meat is so delicious.”

Immediately, Xia An did not hesitate at all.

Pour the remaining half of the squid ink into the soup pot.

Stir a few times with a long spoon.

then.

The pot of soup shown on the camera screen was instantly rendered as dark as ink.

"Black noodles, with black soup..."

In the kitchen next door, Liu Shimeng was in a daze, with an outrageous idea lingering in her mind.

Ah this.

Boss Xia...

Could it be that ancient dish?
No, it’s a future-themed fantasy dish that’s been improved based on that ancient dish!
Think about this.

Liu Shimeng felt the blood in her small body burning and boiling. "I'm so excited." Liu Shimeng murmured, clenching her fists.

Her agent held his forehead with a speechless expression:? ?
"Xiao Shimeng, can you please stop being such a crazy fan?"

"Although the entire internet knows that you are a die-hard fan of Boss Xia, this is a show, a cooking competition, you should not admit defeat..."

Liu Shimeng laughed:
"Who said I was going to give up?"

"Boss Xia is my eternal idol and the God in my heart."

"That's why facing him head-on in a cooking duel is my romantic and dream situation!"

Hearing this, her agent looked at the camera in the kitchen, spread his hands and complained:

"Did you hear that?"

"Xiao Shimeng said that she wanted to beat her idol in a cooking duel. He will always be her idol in her heart."

???

Liu Shimeng was stunned: "I, I didn't say anything like beating!"

"But the momentum you just displayed clearly showed that you wanted to beat up the idol in a duel and fulfill your romantic wish."

"Forget it." Liu Shimeng glanced at the barrage of comments that had exploded on the wall-mounted screen at the chef's counter, unable to complain about her agent's ruthless pace.

But then again, since it’s a cooking duel, we have to decide who’s better.

Liu Shimeng felt that she could lose.

But at least it was a way of losing with all one's might, and the loss was not ugly.

boom!
Boom!

The steam is rising above the lid.

Liu Shimeng glanced at the time. Only an hour had passed since the show started. The last part of her "dish" was cooked and could be taken out of the pot and put into the food box.

"Each judge will have a small bowl of this porridge."

The hot porridge was served in tableware, and soon the three-layer food box for five people was filled.

The cameraman noticed Liu Shimeng's behavior.

The main perspective has been cut over.

The audience exclaimed in surprise when they saw Liu Shimeng moving exquisite Chinese-style food boxes onto the silver dining cart.

Even the scene was filled with whispers.

"Is Xiao Shimeng finished already?"

“It only took a little over an hour!”

"Looking at the time it takes, the recipe won't be complicated, but these three-layer food boxes give people the feeling of combining multiple dishes and blooming in profusion?"

The commotion caused Xia An to look up.

Liu Shimeng happened to come out of her open kitchen pushing a food cart and waved to Xia An:

"Boss Xia, I'll present the dishes first!"

So, under the spotlight, Liu Shimeng went straight to the main studio.

Then she handed food boxes to each judge.

There was total silence inside the Juxia Building.

The audience at the scene were staring at the broadcast screen with wide eyes, wanting to see Liu Shimeng's dishes more clearly.

The five judges, at the same time, opened the lids of the food boxes.

I saw the first layer of the food box.

It's just a small bowl of salad.

The fruit and vegetable looks like half a banana and half a cucumber. It is cut in a peculiar "蓑衣" way, and is cut into slices, but the whole is stuck together.

The outer layer of the straw raincoat is wrapped with a wide layer of bacon slices.

The whole dish uses very simple ingredients, just some vinegar, chopped red pepper, and light soy sauce.

"Calm salad?"

The judges were all stunned.

Liu Shimeng introduced confidently with a smile:
"Don't underestimate this appetizer, please try it first."

Upon hearing this, much to the audience's surprise, Nakiri Managi was the first to pick up her chopsticks.

She obviously judged something from the smell of the food. She squinted her eyes slightly and picked up the whole "cow cloak cucumber" with the "bacon slice" wrapped tightly around it.

"Click" move your mouth.

Makes a crisp biting sound.

Took a big bite.

While chewing, the cucumber-like taste and sweetness are mixed with the soft, tender and salty fragrance of the "bacon slices".

If the “蓑衣瓜” was just crispy, it would be fine.

Even the "bacon slices" on the outside are full of vegetable flavor.

"It has the solid meaty texture of beef, but also the sweet and refreshing taste of vegetables?"

Nakiri Managi was still chewing when she made a vague judgment:

"This is a fantasy ingredient, "bacon leaves"!"

Chi Xiaobai couldn't stop eating and finished the small bowl of food in just a few bites:
"Not only the 'bacon leaves', the 'cucumbers' inside are actually the bronze-level fantasy ingredient 'banana cucumbers'!"

Wei Xuelin blushed:
“This dish has an incredible amount of flavor.”

When Liu Shimeng heard this, there was only a hint of joy on his face. He bowed slightly and said:

"Judges, please open the second layer of the food box—"

The judges, who had finished the first layer of this fantasy ingredient appetizer, all had appetite in their eyes.

His appetite was aroused, and this time he seemed much more anxious to uncover the second layer.

Ok?
The second layer contained two small bowls of stir-fried vegetables.

"This bowl is spicy and shredded chicken."

Liu Shimeng took the initiative to lead the camera to introduce her own dishes.

"The other bowl is black pepper beef and mushroom."

See this.

The beautiful host couldn't help it.

"Chef Liu, it seems your dishes are combination dishes?"

Liu Shimeng nodded, with a confident smile on her lips:
"Yes, it's a combo dish, a light meal with a rich variety of dishes!"

"Eh, light meal?" the beautiful host was surprised.

Liu Shimeng: "To be precise, it's Chinese light food."

Chi Xiaobai became interested and asked:
"Why did you think of using "Chinese light food" to solve the problem of the future?"

Liu Shimeng replied with a smile: "It's very simple, being healthy, losing weight, and exercising, isn't that the current lifestyle trend?

But when it comes to light meals, many people seem to think of Western-style salads.

As we all know, as long as it is low in sugar, oil and salt, it can be considered a light meal.

I make Chinese light meals to save the "Chinese stomach" of people who are exercising and losing weight, and to tell the general public that light meals can be both beautiful and delicious.

While reducing calories, we can also satisfy everyone’s expectations for nutrition and taste buds! ”

Light meal.

future.

Countless viewers pondered these two words.

It is undeniable that although "light meals" are imported products and foreign concepts, they have gradually become popular and recognized by young people, and businesses have discovered business opportunities.

That will be a specific lifestyle in the future, and it may even develop into a long-lasting cuisine.

"But Xiao Shimeng, your salad appetizer, the banana, cucumber and bacon leaves, didn't you use vinegar and soy sauce? Does this fit the concept of light meals?"

I don’t know which audience member on the second-floor stands above my head was questioning loudly.

Liu Shimeng frowned slightly and answered slowly:
“There’s a vinaigrette with zero sugar and zero fat.”

"Besides, who says light meals can't have all kinds of seasonings? Even salad dressings have zero calories and zero sugar!"

“In short, Chinese stir-fry can also be very light!”

The judges did not ask any more questions. They all lowered their heads to taste the two bowls of side dishes on the second layer of the food box.

soon.

The judges finished their meal with relish, their appetites greatly satisfied, and continued to comment excitedly:

"This is a light feast of fantasy ingredients!"

"The spices used in this spicy chicken..."

“The mushroom flavor in the black pepper beef and mushroom is so unique, I can’t get enough!”

(End of this chapter)