Chef Hua
Chapter 357 - 202

Chapter 357: 202

The ingredients on the table were neatly arranged, each kind in order. A squid, after a quick dip in boiling water, curled into a cluster the size of half a palm, its pattern bulging out, each cut uniform and meticulous; the renowned shredded cucumber, at first glance, seemed to have been cut into thin slices, but they were still connected by a bit of the skin. With a gentle pull using both hands, they unfolded into a long strip, each slice evenly thick. Rolled up on a plate and drizzled with some sauce, it made a pleasingly crisp-looking dish.

It was only then that the audience dared to utter exclamations of amazement, though the words themselves were indistinct, likely just meaningless expressions of wonder.

Han Fengzhi was aware that he had gotten the upper hand in this first round, a hint of smugness on his face. He cast a fleeting glance at Hua Xiaomai’s cutting board, and the corners of his lips that were about to curl up fell back down.

Perhaps because his movements were too flashy, which required extra effort, there were some fine details that Han Fengzhi failed to attend to when cutting vegetables. The unusable parts were roughly glanced at before being chopped and discarded, with waste piling up into a small mountain beside his cutting board.

On Hua Xiaomai’s side, however, there was much less waste, just a small clump.

Whenever one cooks, there’s always some degree of waste involved. Inedible parts must be ruthlessly cut away and thrown out, but at the same time, being a good chef means making the most out of ingredients. The most pragmatic reason is that restaurant owners who are too wasteful will earn less money.

So what if he’s fast?

"Boss lady, does this mean you two are tied?" someone from the crowd of onlookers shouted.

"It seems... like that Mr. Han is a bit faster." Others expressed their uncertainty, tentatively probing.

Hua Xiaomai glanced over at Han Fengzhi and had a hunch, then, sizing up his face, she could guess what he was thinking. She didn’t address the crowd’s questions, but instead brushed them aside with a smile, "Next up, we should compare control of the heat, right? How does Boss Han plan to cook?"

Han Fengzhi took a deep breath and made a ’wait a moment’ gesture before personally moving a crate down from a handcart. He took out two dried fish tied with straw rope and two pork trotters and shook them in that direction.

When Hua Xiaomai caught sight of what was in his hands, she couldn’t help but laugh and shook her head repeatedly while pointing at him, "You are quite cunning! Not to mention in Fuzhe County, even in the whole of Tong’an Prefecture, which is nowhere near the sea, that monkfish you’re holding is something that people don’t usually have access to. How did you come up with the idea to challenge me with this dish?"

"Heh..." Han Fengzhi also laughed, lifting the dried fish a bit higher, "Although you say that, miss, you recognized at a glance what dish I’m going to challenge you with, which means I haven’t stumped you. So why complain? We’re far from the sea here, but it’s not a bad idea to cook this dish well and share it for everyone to taste something new."

"That’s quite troublesome..." Hua Xiaomai muttered under her breath before turning and calling out to Zhou Yunyun, "Go, bring some firewood!"

Zhou Yunyun responded and darted off towards the backyard. She ran back and forth numerous times, and before long, she really did manage to bring out several piles of firewood that seemed slightly different from each other.

Actually, when it comes to "heat control," it can be considered Hua Xiaomai’s weak point.

In the past, when learning to cook, she used gas and could control the heat with a knob, but after coming to Fire Knife Village, every household burned firewood, and when setting up a stall outside, she had to use charcoal. For her, who was new to all this, it was entirely baffling. Compared to Han Fengzhi, who had been accustomed to cooking with firewood since childhood, she was naturally at a disadvantage.

However, she might count herself fortunate that she was a person who was willing to put in thought and effort into her culinary skills and was unwilling to admit defeat. Over the year, she had put in a lot of effort to thoroughly research the characteristics of various types of firewood. Now, the fire she built was much better than that of the locals Chun Xi and La Mei.

"You... prepared so many different kinds of firewood?" Han Fengzhi was somewhat surprised. "Do you also go to such lengths for the dishes at your restaurant on regular days?"

"If that were the case, I wouldn’t earn a penny; it’s too laborious," Hua Xiaomai spread her hands, "But what can I do, this is to deal with you, isn’t it? This time we’re not competing for speed. Let’s just focus on our skills and get to work."

As she spoke, she started the fire and heated the pan, took one of the monkfish to clean it slightly, and placed it in the pan.

This dish, known as "Braised Monkfish with Pork Trotter," didn’t require particularly expensive ingredients, but to make it authentically required considerable attention to heat control.

The monkfish needed to be roasted to fragrance over medium heat, for which oak firewood was most suitable; pork trotters had to be fried until fragrant in oil infused with ginger slices, requiring a hot flame, with pine firewood being the best choice. After processing both ingredients, the monkfish had to be deboned and its meat separated, and along with the pork trotters, placed together in an earthen jug to be slowly braised over a gentle fire, at which point, rice and wheat stalks would come into play.

It was a time-consuming and labor-intensive dish, which Hua Xiaomai made with meticulous care. Meanwhile, Han Fengzhi seemed somewhat distracted, keeping busy with his hands while occasionally glancing over at Hua Xiaomai, his frown deepening until it formed a tight knot, and his actions slowed down.

After roughly an hour and a half, a rich aroma spread stealthily throughout the hall, prompting the spectators to breathe more deeply, as if trying to draw more of that thick scent into their noses to fully appreciate it.

Unaware of whatever was going on with Han Fengzhi, Hua Xiaomai took the earthen jug off the fire, allowing the dish to stew inside for a while longer before finally lifting the lid, immediately releasing an aggressive fragrance towards the crowd.

Ke Zhenwu watched intently without moving an inch for more than an hour; he now let out a long breath, turned to Meng Yuhuai, and said, "Your wife..." He didn’t complete his sentence but nodded emphatically with a solemn expression.

Han Fengzhi also finished preparing his dish. Hua Xiaomai glanced at it and felt even more confident. She smiled and said, "This dish took quite a while; let’s continue, shall we? How should we compete in seasoning? Should we each make a sweet and sour sauce, ginger sauce, fragrant sesame sauce, or..."

"... There’s no need." Han Fengzhi’s face was grim as he let out a long breath as if he had made an important decision. "We... don’t need to continue this duel."(To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket and monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)