In the 1970s, it started with contracting out communal dining.

Another question Chenwei wanted to know was whether cooking a dozen or twenty dishes at the same time while practicing his skill level would affect the taste.

If a dish is not up to standard, will the system still award him proficiency?

His system is so stupid, it doesn't give any hints at all.

He arrived more than an hour early today just to try this.

After all, based on the previous rate of improvement in chopping skills, it would take ten dishes to gain one point of proficiency.

If he could only cook one dish at a time with 500 proficiency points, it would take him forever.

Morning light slanted in through the greasy, tall windows, casting patches of light on the concrete floor.

The fire in the coal stove was sealed off last night, and now only warm embers remain.

Chen Wei picked up the fire tongs and poked at the fire in the stove. He then added some flammable wood and two large shovels of coal. Before long, the heat returned, and flames rose up, making the connecting baffle on the other side hum.

Chen Wei casually put on his work clothes, took out half a basin of potatoes and six or seven carrots from the shelf next to him, and grabbed a handful of kelp strips from the cabinet and threw them into the large basin next to him to soak in water.

Although Jinshi is a coastal city, it does not produce kelp locally, so the food is usually dried kelp strips, which are definitely not as good as fresh kelp. Fortunately, Chenwei's hot and sour shredded vegetables are a hot dish, so it doesn't have too much of an impact.

After soaking the kelp strips in water beforehand, he began to calmly and carefully prepare the ingredients.

The process is the same: peel the potatoes and carrots one by one and wash them clean in water.

Then comes the familiar cutting and chopping process.

"Tap tap tap tap tap tap—"

Close your eyes and make the cut.

The sharp knife tip was only a millimeter away from Chen Wei's fingers, moving quickly across the cutting board, just touching his fingers. The potato under his hand quickly turned from a whole piece into large, translucent thin slices, and then, with the flick of the blade, smoothly turned into evenly sized potato shreds.

Soon a large bowl of potatoes was chopped, and Chen Wei soaked the potatoes in water.

To ensure a crisp and non-sticky texture after frying, the potatoes need to be washed to remove some of the starch. This is the secret to the success of this hot and sour shredded dish.

Carrots are a bit harder to cut, but that's no problem in Chen Wei's hands.

Chen Wei's hands were as steady as a machine on the cutting board, and the orange-red shreds fell onto the board like snowflakes, their thickness exactly the same as potato shreds.

Another bowl of shredded carrots. After slicing them, Chen Wei also soaked the shredded carrots in water.

The soaking time for carrots is just slightly shorter than that for shredded potatoes, and the difference between the two ingredients is just right in terms of the aged flavor.

Next, it's time to light the fire and take the pot out of the pot.

Chen Wei took a deep breath and placed his foot on the baffle of the control damper.

【Ding--】

Current stove temperature: 350℃

The moment Chen Wei's foot touched the damper, a semi-transparent panel popped into his mind.

The current stove temperature is clearly displayed above, and due to the control under Chenwei's feet, the number on the panel showing the stove temperature keeps jumping.

[380℃, 420℃, 500℃...]

"The temperature is still a bit low, let's wait a little longer."

Chen Wei muttered to himself.

The biggest drawback of this old-fashioned stove is that the heat rises slowly at the beginning. If the stove temperature is not high enough, the wok hei (wok aroma) will not be strong enough, and the stir-fried shredded sour and spicy ingredients will be soft, not crisp, and lack texture.

This is a major taboo in this dish.

Chen Wei waited patiently, and casually picked up the large double ear that was placed next to him and dusted it clean with a broom.

Fortunately, Chenwei had added wood beforehand, and the heat of the flames was rapidly rising. Before long, the temperature of the stove reached 700℃.

It was already a huge fire; this temperature was the limit for this kind of old-fashioned stove. Chen Wei didn't wait any longer and directly lifted the large double-eared pot in his hand and placed it on the stove pit.

The flames licked the bottom of the pot happily, and soon a sizzling sound was heard.

Then a transparent panel popped out from the large double ears, clearly displaying the heat value.

When it reaches 70%, apply lubricating oil!

A large ladle of vegetable oil quickly slid into the bottom of the pot, and wisps of smoke immediately rose from where the large handles touched the oil, indicating that the bottom of the pot was hot enough.

The vegetable oil bubbled happily at the bottom of the pot. When the oil reached about 70% of its maximum temperature, Chen Wei casually grabbed a handful of peppercorns and threw them down the side of the pot.

"Sizzle—"

The aroma of sesame seeds exploded instantly, and with a flick of his wrist, Chen Wei poured the pre-dried potato shreds into the pot.

The shredded potatoes need to be stir-fried for a while first, taking about ten seconds longer to cook than the shredded carrots.

After stir-frying for a few seconds, Chen Wei immediately poured the shredded carrots into the pan and stir-fried them together with the shredded potatoes.

The counter on the panel kept jumping with his movements. Chen Wei stared intently at the panel, slowly adjusting the firepower by stepping on the air vent.

Finally, after the kelp strips were added to the pot, the hot and sour sauce sizzled and poured over the vegetables along the side of the pot.

The aroma burst forth instantly.

"Flip the wok!"

"Flip the wok!"

"Again!"

The three-colored vegetable shreds drew perfect arcs in the air, coated evenly with sauce, each strand glistening with oil.

"Out of the pot!"

After tossing the wok three times, the first serving of hot and sour shredded vegetables was finally ready.

He ladled the dish out and set it aside. Chen Wei smelled the rich aroma and nodded.

"The quality is pretty good, but I don't know if it will still have the same effect after making more."

He casually placed the portion aside, quickly washed the wok, turned the heat back up, and once the oil was hot, added Sichuan peppercorns. Then, he picked up the five servings of shredded potatoes from the drain basket next to him and poured them into the wok with a "whoosh."

The previous one was made for comparison.

If he can still make a decent meal for five people this time, it will be much easier for him to improve his skill level in the future.

Before long, the five servings of hot and sour shredded vegetables were served in enamel basins.

Chen Wei picked up his chopsticks and tasted it; the flavor seemed to be no different from the previous sample.

He then made portions for ten and fifteen people, but the fifteen-person portion was a bit inconsistent. The bottom of the pot was slightly burnt, and the dish didn't look as good as the five-person portion.

"Looks like this dish can only be made in portions of ten!"

Chen Wei spent the whole morning trying and made more than fifty dishes before coming to this conclusion.

He threw the substandard food into the swill bucket—the factory's leftover food was all taken to the pigsty at the back to feed the pigs, so it couldn't be considered a waste.

Today was Chen Wei's first time cooking, and he didn't want a bad performance to affect the sales of his dishes.

The proficiency level on the system panel had only increased by two points, just as he had expected; only qualified dishes could increase proficiency.

"What's that smell? It smells so good!"

Just as Chen Wei sighed, a loud female voice suddenly came from the doorway.

Then a slightly plump middle-aged woman in her forties stood at the door of the kitchen. She was wearing a blue work jacket, and her hair was neatly pinned up at the back of her head, giving her a capable look.

"Xiao Chen? You're here chopping again so early this morning? You're such a hard worker! Xiao Chen, did you make something delicious? It smells so good!"

The woman casually tossed the two aluminum lunch boxes she was carrying onto the stove next to her, picked up a work uniform with practiced ease, and put it on. In the blink of an eye, she saw a large bowl of hot and sour shredded vegetables next to Chen Wei.

The fragrance comes from there!