I've been possessed by a culinary genius, and I've turned Shaxian snacks into a rip-off!

"Pfft!"

"World-class Shaxian Chicken? What is this?! That's a really arrogant name."

"Shaxian... I remember his profile said he ran a Shaxian snack shop, right?"

"Really? The owner of Shaxian Snacks made it to the finals? Doesn't that mean all the chefs in Jiangcheng are just idiots?"

"You know what, this guy might be playing dumb to fool everyone."

"..."

With the host's command, the second stage, the "blind selection," officially began.

Thirty minutes later, the three chefs simultaneously began cooking with the five ingredients they had drawn.

Fang Guoping's idea was already very clear: he wanted to make a dish called "Lotus Root Lion's Head," which involved mincing pork belly and lotus root together, kneading them into large meatballs, coating them with a thin layer of flour batter, deep-frying them until the skin was golden brown and crispy, and finally drizzling them with a spicy sauce made from dried chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns.

Zhou Yun, on the other hand, chose to take an unconventional approach.

He had no intention of using cod as a regular main dish. Instead, he finely chopped the cod meat into a paste, mixed it with corn kernels and chopped onions, and finally used lemon juice to remove the fishy smell and season it. He then rolled the mixture into fish balls and boiled them in a pot.

What he wanted to make was a dish of "Lemon Fish Balls in Clear Broth," which fully highlighted the original flavor of the ingredients, and was garnished with two slices of tomato, following a minimalist and refreshing approach.

As for Li Zhibai's actions...

To be honest, most people didn't understand it.

After cleaning the Sanhuang chicken, Li Zhibai chopped off its head and tail with a single stroke and threw them into the nearby trash can. Then he chopped the whole chicken into evenly sized pieces, boiled a pot of water, and poured the chicken pieces in to blanch them.

This step is fine.

But his next move was a bit puzzling.

Li Zhibai then took another pot, without adding a drop of oil, and poured the drained chicken pieces directly into the scorching hot iron pot, then stir-fried them over high heat.

With a sizzle!

The chicken skin shrinks rapidly under high temperature, forcing out the fat, and the surface of the chicken pieces gradually turns an enticing golden color.

"Dry-fried? What does he want to make? Dry-fried chicken nuggets?"

Next, Li Zhibai picked up the Coke can, pulled the tab, and poured the can into the pot.

Sizzle!

As soon as the cola touched the scalding hot bottom of the pot, a large number of brown bubbles instantly appeared.

"Holy crap! They're really just pouring Coke in! Are they making Coke chicken nuggets?"

"Cola chicken nuggets with white radish, is this even edible?"

"Look, look, he put radishes in!"

Li Zhibai picked up the white radish, neither peeled nor sliced ​​it, just rinsed it with water, then cut off the ends with one stroke, and then with another, split the entire radish in half.

He just threw the half radish into the pot.

The entire audience: "..."

The three judges: "..."

"What kind of operation is this? Putting a whole radish in to stew, how is that supposed to absorb the flavor?"

"To be honest, I didn't understand this step either."

Many viewers were completely bewildered.

The chefs who were eliminated nodded thoughtfully after seeing this.

Li Zhibai's seemingly haphazard actions were actually full of hidden strategies.

The carbonation and sugar in cola are key to tenderizing and coloring the meat, but the downside is that it can easily become too sweet and cloying. However, with radish, things are different. Radish can remove some of the excess oil from the chicken and the sweetness of the cola.

Furthermore, the biggest advantage of stewing radish roots is that the inner core retains its sweet and crisp texture, making it a great accompaniment to other dishes.

This young man is definitely talented.

Then Li Zhibai picked up the dried shiitake mushrooms that he hadn't used before, soaked them in warm water, broke them into small pieces, and threw them into the pot that was still bubbling. Finally, he covered the pot again and reduced the sauce over high heat.

After a few minutes, turn off the heat and remove the pot from the pan.

He used chopsticks to pick out pieces of chicken one by one and arrange them on a plate. Then he scooped out the shiitake mushroom petals and garnished them on the chicken. Finally, he poured the remaining thick sauce from the pot evenly over the chicken and the shredded radish cores.

"Contestant number 33, done!"

Li Zhibai brought his dish, which he named "World-Class Shaxian Chicken," to the judges' table.

The three judges began to carefully examine the dish, and its appearance alone exceeded all their expectations.

Then the three of them started eating with their chopsticks.

The chicken was stewed until extremely tender, almost melting in your mouth. The sweetness of the cola didn't overpower the flavor; instead, it subtly enhanced the chicken's natural umami. The dry-fried chicken skin had a slightly charred aroma, which blended perfectly with the sweet and salty sauce, creating a rich and layered flavor.

Especially the radish cores that have absorbed some of the broth have a slightly sweet and crisp texture when you bite into them, which is quite nice.

"Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!"

"The sweetness of cola, the freshness of radish, the umami of shiitake mushrooms, and the aroma of chicken—these four flavors don't clash at all; instead, they create a wonderful balance. It's very well done!"

"It's truly remarkable to achieve this level of quality with limited ingredients."

Finally, it was Teacher Cao's turn to give his feedback. After eating a piece of chicken and a small piece of radish, he didn't immediately offer his comments. Instead, he asked, "Is there anything else you'd like to add to this dish?"

Li Zhibai didn't understand what he meant. After thinking for a moment, he said seriously, "Teacher Cao, I swear on my culinary integrity that I really threw away the chicken's butt, and the piece of meat you ate was really from the chicken leg."

Teacher Cao: "..."

The password? I just wanted you to explain the inspiration behind this dish, why are you bringing this up with me!

In the end, he didn't offer any further comments and chose to give a score directly.

Zhou Yun: 8.2 points.

Fang Guoping: 8.2 points.

Li Zhibai: 8.3 points.

The second round score was lower mainly because there were many restrictions and no other embellishments.

After two rounds, Li Zhibai maintained his lead, while Chef Fang and Zhou Yun's scores were not far apart. Theoretically, if they can score high enough in the last round, they still have a chance to surpass Li Zhibai.

After the third round began, just as the audience was guessing what dishes they would cook, a scene that shocked everyone happened.

When the three contestants walked to the ingredient area, they all coincidentally chose the same main ingredient—winter melon.