Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

Not only their team, but other teams in the lounge were also struggling to decide what to cook.

Since everyone who has come here to participate in the competition is a gifted individual from their own school, no one will think they are inferior to others before the official competition begins and they lose, so their fighting spirit is very high.

"Time is up."

Watching the clock tick away slowly, an hour and a half passed in the blink of an eye, and Alice Nakiri's voice rang out in the room.

"lets go!"

Bai Yuan nodded slightly, got up and opened the door. Then he stood at the front of the group and led the girls toward the arena in the center of the tower.

"I'm a little nervous..."

"Don't be nervous, just perform normally later."

"I wonder who the judges are this year? In previous years, the judges were at least three-star chefs, so they shouldn't be too bad this time either..."

"This time I have to showcase my cooking in front of a master chef, and I hope I won't be criticized."

Teams emerged from different directions of the tower and eventually gathered in the central competition area, where there were over a hundred cooking stations—the third competition zone for them to compete.

"This is it. This tower has eight floors, with the first floor being the largest and the eighth floor being the smallest. Floors one through seven are divided into competition areas to facilitate simultaneous cooking competitions."

Seeing the boys and girls taking over the cooking station one after another, their faces filled with arrogance, Hisako Shinoto gave a brief introduction to the situation, and then followed the group to the center.

"Let's do it right here, in the center of the venue, where we can showcase our culinary skills in front of the audience and judges."

Because we arrived early, there weren't many people around at the moment.

As if by unspoken agreement, the teams chose the empty spots first, no one wanted to squeeze in with others, that feeling was too awkward.

However, those who arrived later did not receive this preferential treatment. Seeing the spots scattered and fragmented, they had no choice but to disperse.

Fortunately, the location doesn't affect the cooking; at most, the absence of familiar faces might make them a little nervous while preparing the food.

However, for a strong person, this kind of tension is nothing.

If this tension really affects the taste of the dish, it's better to go home as soon as possible and snuggle into your mother's arms.

"Cough cough."

As each cooking station was occupied, people waited for the competition to begin.

A cough suddenly came from a high platform not far away, followed by countless spotlights falling on the person who had just arrived—a face they recognized very well.

The rules that were just shown on TV were read by him.

"It's great to see you all again. I'm sure many of you have met me before."

As I just mentioned, this year's competition rules are similar to previous years. Using high-end ingredients will result in a lower score. Apart from that, the only difference is the taste of the dish.

According to the competition rules, we have assigned each of you a errand runner.

You can write down the ingredients you need on a slip of paper and have a delivery person bring them over. Don't worry about their stamina or eyesight; the ingredients in the competition area are all the best available in the market, and their staff have undergone special physical training.

As the thin male judge finished speaking, Alice Nakiri noticed a woman walking towards them from a distance.

"Please feel free to give me your orders."

The other person came up to her and bowed respectfully. After she finished speaking, he stood aside and waited for instructions.

"Black tiger prawns, white wine, ice..."

As she spoke, Alice Nakiri wrote down what she needed on a piece of paper, then handed the list to the woman in front of her and said, "Then I'll leave it to you."

"Leave it to me with confidence. We are the most professional when it comes to selecting ingredients."

Hearing Alice's praise, the woman smiled and then jogged towards the food preparation room.

Of course, some believed in the servants assigned to them by the competition, while others did not. They all went to the food room themselves. Having someone else do it for them was just an option; it was nothing compared to the satisfaction of picking it out themselves!

Among them, Megumi Tadokoro, Yuuki Yoshino, and Ryoko Sakaki decided to go with their attendants.

The three followed the servants and soon arrived at the area where the ingredients were placed. They were then dazzled by the dazzling array of food before them.

This place is like a global food museum!

The cold, misty refrigerated area contrasts sharply with the dry, warm desiccated area, where hundreds of kinds of ingredients are already ready to be stored in the intelligent warehousing system!

Various kinds of fresh shrimp are spread out on crushed ice, reflecting a gradient of light pink to deep red.

The plump tiger prawns curled up like armored warriors, while the glistening sweet prawns shone with an agate-like luster. Occasionally, a few lively blue swamp prawns splashed water in the holding tank, attracting a lot of attention.

Around the shrimp section, various ingredients stood ready like a fully equipped army of flavors.

Bundles of scallions and cilantro exuded a fresh and sharp aroma, while tender yellow ginger chunks and purple-skinned garlic cloves were piled up like small mountains in bamboo baskets.

Jars of fermented bean paste, fish sauce, and satay sauce glistened under the light, while freshly ground black and white pepper, cumin, and Sichuan peppercorns emitted a fragrant aroma.

Several baskets of lemons and tangerines were scattered like gems, with bunches of fresh lemongrass, basil and mint placed beside them, their emerald green leaves still glistening with dewdrops.

"What a spectacle!"

Yoshino Yuuki sighed from the bottom of her heart.

She had only ever seen such a scene in her dreams. Stepping into the room was like stumbling into an ocean of ingredients, making her want to swim in it and never leave.

"But with so many ingredients, how are we going to find the ones we need..."

In contrast to Yoshino Yuuki's joy, Sakaki Ryoko was inwardly complaining.

The variety of ingredients in front of you is indeed abundant, but finding what you need among so many ingredients is just too difficult!

No wonder the organizers provided them with a waiter; they were worried they wouldn't be able to find the ingredients they needed. How thoughtful of them!

"I need garlic, glass noodles, and butter, and oh yes, shrimp... and don't forget the fruit wine!"

Thinking of this, Ryoko Sakaki turned her gaze to the servant who had been silent and asked her to fetch the ingredients for them.

The selection competition mainly tests the chef's basic skills. There is no need to make overly complicated dishes, as overly complicated dishes are more likely to result in mistakes.

Of course, as Bai Yuan's disciple, simply following the rules to make basic dishes would not be in line with her status and abilities.

So she used garlic vermicelli shrimp as a base to prepare a special dish that suited her own style.

"We're about to get busy."

Looking at the figures moving around her, Tadokoro Megumi thought to herself.

"Isn't this kind of thing quite interesting?"

Yoshino Yuuki stretched lazily, taking the extra ingredients she had requested from the organizers from the servant's hands. The plump Gaoyou salted duck eggs filled her with increasing anticipation for the competition.

the other side.

Because Alice Nakiri didn't need many ingredients, the servant returned in less than ten minutes and placed all the ingredients she needed on the cooking table.

Good quality, well done.

"I put the ice in a temperature-controlled chamber so that it wouldn't melt easily during the competition."

As she spoke, the woman shook the box in her hand. Because the other party had treated her well, she did her best in some details.

"I understand now. With these ingredients and ice, I have everything I need."

After quickly going through the ingredients on the counter, Alice Nakiri had a faint smile on her face, then sat down in a chair and closed her eyes to rest.

Another ten minutes passed.

Most people had already returned from the food area, and the competition was about to start.

"This assessment will last for one hour. Please be aware of the time."

You can still submit your dish after the time limit, but points will be deducted from your score. The longer you exceed the time limit, the more points will be deducted, until your score reaches zero.

The host's voice rang out again, introducing the rules to everyone.

Unlike previous rules where exceeding the time limit resulted in an immediate loss, this is a qualifying round, so even if the time limit is exceeded, there is still a chance to earn points.

The score for finishing late is lower than that for those who finish on time, but it's still a good deal compared to getting no points at all.

"here we go."

Someone said something, and suddenly a countdown appeared on the large screen in the sky, with the minutes and seconds jumping to 59:59.

At that moment, Alice Nakiri also sprang into action. She glanced at the time, and with a swift motion, she peeled the live black tiger prawns in the basin, turning them into shrimp meat.

Slice the prepared shrimp in half lengthwise, then use skillful knife work to remove the outer skin, giving it a translucent, jade-like appearance.

This requires extremely delicate knife skills; otherwise, if you cut too many, there won't be much edible part of the shrimp left, which would be a huge waste for a dish.

Put salt and baking soda in a bowl and add a little water to dissolve them.

Adding dissolved salt and baking soda to the prepared shrimp will enhance the texture of the shrimp.

However, it doesn't end there. The chef needs to keep kneading and rubbing it until the surface becomes sticky. Then, it can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated.

After finishing this task, Alice Nakiri returned to the stove and started boiling water.

"This pot of water is used to both boil and soak the shrimp, so controlling the flavor is crucial and requires extra attention."

Those were the words Bai Yuan said to her when he taught her this dish.

I quickly chopped some scallions and ginger and threw them in, then simmered them over low heat to bring out their flavor.

"not enough..."

Add salt, sugar, and white wine to the pot. Alice Nakiri takes a small sip with a spoon, and then Bai Yuan's words come to mind: "If you want the shrimp to taste eight-tenths of its flavor, the soup must taste ten-tenths. This is because the flavor decreases as you cook, and the cooked dish will taste much lighter than the soup."

"Four and a half spoonfuls of salt, half a spoonful of salt, and a small amount of white wine to enhance the flavor. The white wine should have a light and refreshing taste, but not an overpowering alcoholic aroma."

After processing the ingredients, Alice Nakiri's mind was once again filled with the teachings of Hakugen.

She is in very good condition right now.

It was as if Bai Yuan himself had descended upon her; every movement she made was skillful, without the slightest pause, and every action was like a work of art.

"What excellent technique."

Alice Nakiri's incredibly fluid movements attracted a lot of attention.

And because the ingredients laid out in front of her were so simple, it was hard to tell what she was going to cook.

"No, that won't do. Everything we're doing now is Bai Yuan's stuff, nothing of it is mine. To be innovative, we have to incorporate my elements."

Just when Alice Nakiri felt she was in the right state and was feeling quite spirited.

She suddenly saw the direction where Bai Yuan was in the teachers' quarters. Although his expression was very calm, it inexplicably made her feel uneasy.