Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 167: Magnificent and Splendid

Chapter 167: Chapter 167: Magnificent and Splendid

An hour later.

Xia Yu and Lancelot simultaneously removed the shark fins from the boiling pot.

Xia Yu used a colander, while Lancelot used a support tool, gently placing a whole rack of fins into another pot filled with scallions, ginger, wine, and water for a second steaming!

The cooking steps of the two were clearly distinct at this point!

Lancelot went to wash and chop mushrooms while Xia Yu stuffed the shark fin fibers filling the colander and spoon into a pool of cold water with floating ice cubes. Sizzling, the steam instantly enveloped half of his body.

"What is he doing?"

Many cast curious glances toward Xia Yu’s cooking station.

Chiyoda Aichi approached, avoiding disturbing Xia Yu, and gestured to the camera to give a close-up of the cooking station.

It could be seen that he took out the shark fin fibers from the ice water. At this moment, the fibers were very soft, translucent, and their surface, being wet, appeared slick.

One by one, Xia Yu, without even blinking, transferred them into another clear glass vessel.

Xia Yu plunged both hands into it, his fingers fluttering, his expression serious, allowing the shark fin fibers to fully mix with the spices.

The spices, inherently colorful, combined with oils and other seasonings, made the originally pristine white shark fin fibers appear as if they were smeared with mud, giving a rather poor visual impression.

"This treatment..." Chiyoda Aichi frowned, as the audience watching through the broadcast screen, and even judges like Xijian Run and Shinohara Shigetaro, simultaneously displayed expressions of astonishment.

Reiko Lina returned to her seat and remained silent.

Seeing her composed demeanor, Aoki Motota quietly asked, "Reiko, do you know what that guy is planning to cook?"

"You’ll find out soon," Reiko Lina replied mildly.

Compared to the sensational Food War at Far Moon from a week ago, this Friday evening’s Food War seemed rather quiet.

Lancelot, unlike Si Yingshi, didn’t wield a large hammer to smash beef; from steaming the shark fins to chopping mushrooms, his methods seemed quite akin to preparing a homely meal.

And Xia Yu, his cooking station was even quieter, taking out the ham fibers, bamboo shoot fibers, and shark fin fibers from the glass vessel, spreading them out on the cooking station and then, he started "weaving."

Yes, "weaving," a scene that, witnessed by Chiyoda Aichi and the audience, was baffling.

Quietly, weaving the three kinds of fibrous ingredients into tight ropes.

This process lasted about 30 minutes.

On the other side, Lancelot was steaming the "Land Shark Back Fin" for the third time. After placing the fin in the pot, he went to chop other ingredients, using ingredients such as chicken and ham, and added them all into an electronic pot, setting it for an hour of simmering.

Lancelot’s dish was already taking shape.

"A clear broth with shark fin?" murmured Chef Shen He, "This might be the best way to handle the Land Shark Back Fin, stewing the shark fin in a high broth, with shark fin mushrooms for flavor enhancement!"

"It’s all about the high broth and the shark fin mushrooms!" asserted Aoki Motota from the judges’ seats, watching Lancelot intently.

"No superfluous ingredients!"

Professor Far Moon Miyazaki Takuo couldn’t help but admire Lancelot’s handling of the premium ingredient, similar to the characteristics of "White-haired Cinderella Beef;" the shark fin mushrooms, Land Shark Fin, are highly sensitive to the arbitrary addition of supplementary ingredients that may overshadow their premium quality.

In fact, until reaching a premium standard, handling premium ingredients should pursue "simplicity."

Only at the corresponding premium level does one qualify to discuss combinations and pairings.

Both Lancelot and Si Yingshi were intelligent, obviously not their first encounter with premium ingredients, in contrast to Xia Yu’s "modest" approach with ingredients.

Could ordinary ingredients truly defeat a high-quality cuisine infused with premium ingredient flavors?

This was not only a question among the audience but also am...

Unless he could present, on the Far Moon Food War Stage, a dish so astonishing, it would turn decay into magic!

The following scene caused many to be bewildered.

"Chef Xia Yu, what are you doing?"

Chiyoda Aichi was also confused by Xia Yu, suddenly stuttering.

Xia Yu took a small stool and sat down, and in front of him was a small oven already set up with burning charcoal, where strands made of ham, bamboo shoots, and fin resembling "hemp rope," were placed on a wire mesh above the oven using chopsticks.

"Barbecue."

In response to the question, Xia Yu casually answered and turned around to switch on an electronic blower, the sound of the wind rushing into the oven’s air inlet at the bottom, igniting the already glowing charcoal into flames.

"It’s burning—it’s going to char!" Chiyoda Aichi urgently warned.

Xia Yu ignored the female host clamoring beside him, slightly raised an eyebrow, "The fire is not enough yet!"

He turned his head to adjust the wind speed of the blower, and instantly, a noise like a hairdryer surged through the nearby camera equipment, transmitting via wireless signals to TVs all over Tokyo.

"Is Instructor Xia making barbecue cuisine?" A group of people at Polar Star Dormitory looked at each other in confusion.

"Isn’t it shark fin sausage? But shark fin sausage is clearly supposed to be ’steamed’!"

"No, no!" Ichise Hui propped his chin, "Take another look!"

The scene was equally chaotic.

Nobody expected Xia Yu’s cooking to be so down-to-earth, setting up an oven on the Food Battle Stage and sitting on a stool, looking just like a street food vendor grilling skewers.

And compared to Lancelot’s unhurried and elegant performance, it was a completely different style.

"The flames in the stove look a bit strange!"

In the judges’ seat, Aoki Motota stared intently at the oven in front of Xia Yu.

As the blower operated, bunches of flames seemed to rise wildly, engulfing the iron-wire mesh cuisine, yet observing closely, one could see the flames followed a pattern, as if a pair of hands were manipulating the elements!

Xia Yu occasionally flipped the three-strand "hemp ropes," ensuring even cooking on both sides.

However, his grilling did not continue endlessly; each three-strand "hemp rope" was only briefly toasted to infuse the previously marinated spices, then set aside to cool.

After a while, the plate beside him was piled with dozens of "hemp ropes."

Next, these "hemp ropes" were stuffed into similarly marinated casings, and after about ten minutes, Xia Yu dusted off his hands, neatly arranged the half-cooked shark fin sausages in a steamer, sealed the lid, and stepped back.

He glanced back at the timer.

Thirty minutes left, the heat was sufficient!

Suddenly, the crowd gasped.

Xia Yu threw a glance toward Lancelot, then paused.

Lancelot took a huge white porcelain plate, carefully plated the thrice-steamed ’Land Shark Fin,’ arranged neatly.

With composed movements, he picked up perfectly cut pieces of shark fin mushrooms, embedding them around and in between the plate in three neat circles.

Finally, he opened an electronic pot and carefully poured the seasoned broth into the plate.

As the broth gradually submerged the shark fin and mushrooms, a brilliantly majestic golden color emerged within the plate!

It was the broth that turned the translucent shark fins into a golden hue as well!

Magnificently lavish!