[Genshin Impact]: I can become stronger by cooking.

[Bonus chapter added to improve the rating from 8.2 to 8.3]

Chao Ke took an empty bowl, filled it with water, and placed it beside him.

Afterwards, apply water to the blade to make it smoother when using a slanted knife.

This little trick was taught to Chao Ke by Master Mao.

This is a summary of generations of culinary experience; in practical terms, it can be summed up in two words: "Effective!"

First, use a slanted knife to slice the fish meat down to the skin. To maintain the texture and appearance, the distance between each slice should be about 2-2.3 centimeters.

Next, change direction and make another cut with a straight knife. Again, make sure each cut is deep enough to reach the fish skin, but without cutting through it.

Chao Ke held his breath and focused intently on the tip of the knife.

You have to cut the fish meat to a certain depth without breaking the skin.

This step highlights the advantages of using chilled fish. If you use a live fish with bones for this step, the skin will easily tear, the flesh will crack, and the fish bones will break.

Even with exceptional knife skills and techniques, using live fish to complete this step, the final appearance cannot compare to that of chilled fish.

After finishing all the carving, Chao Ke finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"We've finally gotten this step done."

The remaining steps are relatively simple compared to using a flower cutting knife.

Take out a bowl of scallion and ginger water with salt added, and put the fish meat with the slits into it.

This step not only gives the fish a base flavor, but also increases its firmness. (The principle is that proteins become more elastic when they come into contact with water.)

While the fish was marinating, Chao Ke began preparing a basin of starch water for later use.

According to the system's recipe requirements, the starch water should be thicker than rice water.

After preparing the starch water, Chao Ke waited a while to allow the fish to marinate fully in the scallion, ginger, and salt water.

After some time, Chao Ke took out the fish meat and squeezed out some of the water attached to its surface with a little force.

Then dip it into the freshly prepared starch water and let it swirl around a few times.

This process allows the starch to form a certain thickness on the surface of the fish, making it crispier when fried later.

After dipping the fish in the starch water a few times, remove the fish and place it directly on the dry starch.

This is the final step before frying the fish.

Make sure each piece of fish that has been scored is coated with enough starch to prevent them from sticking together during frying. Otherwise, they will not only fail to create the squirrel fur effect, but also greatly affect the appearance.

After coating, gently shake the fish a few times to remove any starch that is not adhered to it.

After that, the fish can be arranged in a decorative way and waited to be deep-fried.

The same applies to fish heads; they also need to be processed in this way and coated with a layer of starch.

Place the prepared fish head and fish meat within reach. Heat oil in a pan and sauté minced scallions, ginger, and garlic until fragrant.

Take a jar of additive-free premium tomato sauce from the trolley and scoop a large spoonful into the pan.

Judging from its bright red color and rich tomato aroma, Chao Ke could tell that the quality of the tomato sauce ingredients was probably exceptionally high.

After sautéing the tomato sauce until fragrant, add white vinegar, water, sugar, and a pinch of salt.

The tomato sauce used to drizzle the Squirrel Fish is a perfect balance of sweet and sour. Even if the tomatoes produced by the system are of the highest quality, they still need some other seasonings to enhance the flavor.

After boiling the tomato juice to the right consistency, Chao Ke strained it to remove the tomato particles, leaving behind a beautiful, residue-free tomato juice.

Out of curiosity, the cook, Chao Ke, secretly ate a bite of the tomato sauce provided by the system.

In an instant, Chao Ke was captivated by its rich, full-bodied, and sweet tomato flavor.

Chao Ke had never tasted tomatoes of this quality in his previous life. If he really had to rank them, perhaps only the Provence tomatoes with strawberry cores could barely catch up with them.

Unable to resist, I stole a few more bites of tomato sauce from the cook.

After sneaking a bite, Chao Ke cleaned the pot.

After drying off the remaining moisture over high heat, Chao Ke added plenty of oil to the pot.

Once the oil temperature is suitable, control the heat to medium.

Chao Ke first picked up the fish meat and put it into the oil to fry.

Next, the fish head was also fried in the oil by Chao Ke to set its shape.

When the fish meat and fish head were almost cooked, Chao Ke used a slotted spoon to scoop them out of the oil.

Then heat another pot, add a little oil, and then put all the previously prepared tomato juice into it.

Chao Ke used a large wok to stir the mixture while adding cornstarch slurry to thicken it.

As cornstarch is added, the tomato juice gradually turns bright red, and its thickness also increases.

Deep-fry the fish meat and fish head again, then remove and plate them.

Pour a spoonful of hot oil over the tomato juice to invigorate it, then quickly pour it over the already plated fish and fish head.

"Squeak! Squeak! Squeak!"

Hot tomato sauce was poured over the fish, making a sizzling sound that was incredibly tempting.

Then, add some garnishing ingredients, and the dish is ready.

The system then provided a score.

Delicious squirrel fish

[Rating: 87 points]

【introduce:...】

[Review: Above average, but still has several shortcomings. First, a few hairs fell out of the "squirrel" shape during frying. Second, the texture isn't perfect; the final shape isn't perfectly regular. Third, the tomato sauce could be improved; the sweet and sour ratio isn't quite right...]

[Tip: A good squirrel fish dish should have the following characteristics:]

[Head tilted back, tail held high], [squeaks as milk is poured], [looks like a squirrel], [tastes sweet like nectar].

Chao Ke's lips twitched. Coincidentally, this feature of the system required him to actually know its origin.

This is what Chef Wang Lan, one of the four famous chefs at the Kyoto Hotel, required of her apprentices.

Good grief, Brother Tong, you're really training me to be your personal chef...

However, Chao Ke did not back down; on the contrary, this extremely challenging situation aroused his fighting spirit.

Finally, after countless repetitions and improvements, Chao Ke achieved his goal and completed an ultimate cooking of the "Squirrel Fish" dish.

The Ultimate Squirrel Fish

[Rating: 93 points]

[Description: A fish dish with an extremely complex preparation process. The marbling is as neat as squirrel fur, the shape as elegant as autumn willow leaves, and the perfectly balanced sweet and sour flavor is the finishing touch. It reflects an astonishing level of artistry in many ways.]

[Review: Absolutely perfect.]

I tasted a few bites of the most perfect squirrel fish I'd ever made.

Chao Ke brought up the system interface.

[The host has been detected to have completed the ultimate cooking method for the squirrel fish]

[Should you choose to leave the Culinary Prodigy Training Ground?]

【whether】

"Yes!"

----------------

As time passed, when he opened his eyes again, Chao Ke had already returned to the dining room of the Bufati Mansion.

Chao Ke approached Mr. Torre, the canteen manager, and asked him to clear out a space for himself in the kitchen.

Now that he had learned how to cook "Squirrel Fish", Chao Ke rolled up his sleeves and began preparing the dish using the ingredients already available in the kitchen of the Bufati Mansion.

Once the adventurers bring over the various kinds of bass, we should make some "Squirrel Fish" for the children to try, and let them vote on which type of fish makes the best "Squirrel Fish".

Chapter 132 That touch of red, it's so delicious!

In the afternoon.

Several experienced adventurers completed the task issued by Chao Ke.

After submitting the catch to the Adventurers' Guild, Miss Catherine arranged for someone to deliver it to the Bufati Mansion.

Chao Ke roughly inspected the catch of fish at the entrance of the mansion.

After confirming that they were all the types he needed and that there were no unusual devices attached, Chao Ke took them back to the mansion's kitchen.

After cleaning and scaling the fish, removing the bones and keeping the meat, Chao Ke used the power of the ice element to freeze them slightly in batches.

Given Chao Ke's current level of mastery over elemental forces, he is not worried about freezing them too much.

Meanwhile, the canteen manager, Torre, was also busy. Under Chao Ke's direction, he was making tomato sauce with local tomatoes from Fontainebleau so that Chao Ke could prepare the tomato sauce to drizzle over the fish later.

After frying several sea bass, Chao Ke took the tomato sauce that Tore had prepared and began to mix the tomato juice.

Chao Ke first scooped up a spoonful of tomato sauce and put it in his mouth to taste its tomato flavor and sweet and sour taste.

After taking a spoonful, Chao Ke frowned slightly.

This quality is far inferior to what the system provides.

It seems we'll have to work on the seasoning later to make up for the differences between the raw materials.

.......

dusk.

Linnie and Linette walked home, looking somewhat tired.

Today, the two did not perform in public, but were invited to a luncheon organized by a wealthy Fontainebleau businessman to present a wonderful magic show to the guests.

Of course, this is only their stated mission.

Behind the scenes, the brother and sister also carry the mansion's mission: Linnie will create a five-minute disappearance window for Linette during magic shows.