Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 211 - 210: Preparing for the Banquet

Chapter 211: Chapter 210: Preparing for the Banquet

The next day.

The kitchen classroom for the third day’s challenge.

"...I heard last night someone saw President Dojima, Senior Shigong, and Instructor Xia Yu coming out of the annex basement one after another!"

"Could the rumors about the Shokugeki be true?"

"Who knows what’s true or false? If Senior Shigong and Instructor Xia Yu really did have a Shokugeki, I think Senior Shigong would achieve a crushing victory!"

"Instructor Xia isn’t some pushover, okay?!"

Below the stage, a group of students whispered among themselves.

Xia Yu, who was resting with his eyes closed, did not reprimand the students, and a slight smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

There were undoubtedly more supporters for Shigong than him, but alas, he was the ultimate winner. Xia Yu could already imagine: would Shigong become angry out of shame upon hearing similar discussions in class?

Most likely. That guy’s awkward personality wasn’t something that could easily change.

However, these matters were none of his business. Besides the rewards from the Shokugeki task, Xia Yu also received several system reward notifications the night before.

The subsequent rewards all came from a task that had been pending for a long time,

[Initial Use of Fantasy Ingredients]!

The new recipe created, "Shuangjiang Magical Mapo Tofu," undoubtedly made perfect use of the fantasy ingredient ’Shuangjiang Tofu,’ but unfortunately, the system was too stingy and didn’t give out extra rewards. Such a perfect application that even Special Grade Chefs might not achieve!

Moreover, ’Shuangjiang Tofu’ was still a new ingredient, having been promoted for just a month. Many Special Grade Chefs, Lin Chefs, or even higher-level Dragon Chefs in the culinary world might have just noticed this ingredient, yet he had already created a Special Grade Recipe using it!

The task rewards included a Purple Recipe "Great Magic Panda Tofu." It was called a groundbreaking tofu dish recipe.

He sorted the recipe information in his mind.

"The required ingredients are tofu, brown sugar, black beans, bamboo leaves, pork... and so on, along with a set of special tofu molds. I have to make this myself!" Xia Yu said in frustration.

According to the story of Chinese Cuisine Master, the mold was undoubtedly the core secret of "Great Magic Panda Tofu."

This tofu dish didn’t require additional cooking; when the tofu solidified, cooking and heating also occurred within the mold. When the chef removed the mold, the cut black and white tofu would lay out on the plate.

So, never underestimate this mold; it determined the success or failure of the tofu dish.

The system recipe also included a blueprint for crafting the mold. It was essentially a wooden frame thing that Xia Yu planned to study carefully upon returning to Tokyo.

The urgent task was to first investigate another Purple Recipe, "Ascending Dragon Dumplings."

In two days, it would be the fifth day of the internship. That night, the guest lecturers for the graduates would host a banquet for the hundreds of students who passed the hellish training. Xia Yu, of course, was the head chef for the feast.

So, he decided not to fuss over the recipe. He would use "Ascending Dragon Dumplings."

Making dumplings in batches was quite convenient, especially since this recipe was the one created by Little Head Chef during the dumpling competition; it served countless spectators and won a unanimous victory over the Dumpling Brothers, helping Yangquan Restaurant to achieve an outstanding victory.

The dumplings in the multi-layered steamer would be enough to entertain a table of students. Moreover, "Ascending Dragon Dumplings" wasn’t an ordinary recipe: with a playful smile on his lips, Xia Yu could already envision the shocked spectacles when students eagerly opened the steamer at the banquet, seeing the scene that defied common sense and sent chills down their spines.

He thought, so he did.

He had already gone through the "Ascending Dragon Dumplings" recipe the night before, and now clear and systematic cooking steps appeared in Xia Yu’s mind.

He communicated with the Chef God Space to have the system deploy the necessary ingredients.

Unlike the "Great Magic Panda Tofu," the core secret of "Ascending Dragon Dumplings" lay in the dumplings themselves.

The dough!

And it required two completely different doughs, one was the regular dumpling skin made with ordinary flour, laid at the bottom, and the other was the crystal dumpling skin made with ’starch,’ commonly used for rice rolls and shrimp dumplings.

After steaming, the expansion of the regular dough and crystal dough differed. The regular dough at the bottom swelled larger, causing the dumplings to "stand" upright, complemented by a "dragon head" sculpted from shrimp heads, truly resembling a Divine Dragon riding clouds and mist.

Thus, the name "Ascending Dragon Dumplings."

Speaking of which, although it was Xia Yu’s first encounter with pastries, he wasn’t unfamiliar with the field of pastries, thanks to his years of listening and observing closely under his master’s guidance.

With such confidence, Xia Yu began practicing.

The first step was, of course, practice making the dough, the most fundamental requirement.

Making the dough didn’t stump him: kneading, proofing, and then rolling dough pieces into dough skins with a rolling pin.

Then came the ’dumpling filling.’

The filling for "Ascending Dragon Dumplings" mainly consisted of fresh prawn meat. Take large prawns, cut off the shrimp head intact, scoop out the shrimp brains, and mix chopped shrimp meat and shrimp brains with salt, sugar, cooking wine, ginger powder, and sesame oil. Marinate for about 15 minutes.

Place the prepared dumplings in a steamer and steam for 10 minutes!

"Done!"

Xia Yu calculated the timing and lifted the lid!

"...Whoosh...whoosh...whoosh..."

First, there was the sound of steam bursting forth, indeed reminiscent of a dragon’s breath, and the hazy smoke on the surface of the steamer gave a fantastical feel, but the scene Xia Yu anticipated didn’t appear. Even after the smoke cleared, the dumplings in the steamer did not stand upright.

Failed!

Astonished, he gazed at the dragon-shaped dumplings lying in the steamer.

The steamed shrimp heads and tails turned an orange-red hue, looking quite beautiful.

Simultaneously, the "dragon body," at first glance, appeared crystal clear. Because the stuffing contained shrimp brains, the dumplings themselves were tinged with a red color.

"It broke!" Xia Yu was stunned.

The dough had broken.

The regular dough at the bottom might have overexpanded, and the shrimp had already leaked out a bit.

"Did I make a mistake with the dough?" Xia Yu immediately pondered the possible errors without rushing to a second attempt.

"The taste is quite okay, though..."

Then, taking one of the broken dumplings, he bit down on half of the "dragon body" and chewed it in his mouth; Xia Yu’s eyes slightly brightened.

"But a Purple Recipe should never taste just like this."

Xia Yu shook his head.

This was merely a student’s level of cooking, with a quality of three or four stars, far from reaching the near-Special Grade quality, let alone the potential for a Special Grade Cuisine on a Purple Recipe’s upper limit!

Time passed unconsciously in the course of practice.

Not long after, he was awakened by the first student to present a class assignment, and Xia Yu opened his eyes.

A girl with short purple hair stood charmingly in front of the lectern, it was Niho Fuyuka.

Xia Yu then looked at the dish already placed on the table, sniffed the fragrant aroma, and smiled: "Herbal Chicken Soup?"

"Codonopsis, angelica, goji berries."

"Anything else?"

The chicken soup was a milky white color. Today’s challenge location was in the annex of a hotel at the foot of a mountain forest, not at Lake Ashi as on the first day, but the content was similar. The students had to use forest ingredients to present a dish embodying ’intention.’

Scooping a spoonful of chicken soup and sipping while hot, Xia Yu couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up, "The taste is very authentic!"

More than authentic.

Even he, a master chef in Chinese cuisine, might not present a herbal dish with such authentic flavor.

No wonder she was from the traditional Chinese medicine family, the Niho family, and known as the ’Herbal Cuisine Expert’ beauty in Far Moon School.

More importantly, Xia Yu understood from the combination of herbs the intention Niho Fuyuka imbued in the dish, a ’Food Doctor’ intention to help the taster in body regulation and health.

However, this intention alone wasn’t enough to leave a personal imprint.