The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 420 The Taste of Dragon Meat?
Upon hearing Cui Zi's words, Qin Lang smiled but remained silent.

His gaze remained fixed on the white-haired old man on the judging panel.

After the food presentation segment ended, the judges began to sample the two dishes.

Apart from the white-haired old man, all four other judges chose to taste Cui Zi's oolong meatballs first.

After all, this dish looks very strong in flavor, while Qin Lang's boiled cabbage looks very light and is more suitable to be tasted later.

After swallowing a meatball, the four judges all let out a low gasp and couldn't help but whisper among themselves, discussing something.

After a prolonged discussion without reaching a conclusion, one of the judges couldn't help but look at Cui Zi and ask, "Can you tell us what kind of meat this is?"

Upon hearing this, murmurs immediately arose in the audience.

What's going on? The judges can't even tell the type of meat?

Immediately, all eyes fell on Cui Zi.

Cui Zi smiled slightly, "This is made by taking specific parts of eighteen kinds of meat, including beef, mutton, pork, chicken, duck, snake, fish, and squid, and blending them in a specific ratio."

"Legend has it that there is a creature called a dragon. True dragons are never seen in the world, so I used this method to try to simulate the taste of dragon meat."

"It combines the unique characteristics of many meats, so it's natural that the judges couldn't distinguish it."

Upon hearing this, the judges all looked enlightened.

Even Qin Lang couldn't help but glance at it.

Mixing eighteen kinds of meat together and making the flavors harmonious without conflicting is not easy, especially since Cui Zi only has half an hour.

It seems this culinary competition has really attracted quite a few experts.

"Please give me a serving of these Oolong meatballs later," Qin Lang said in a low voice. "I'd like to try them too."

“No problem.” Cui Zi raised her eyebrows, feeling that Qin Lang’s words meant he had already admitted defeat, and she became even more smug.

The four judges quickly finished tasting the oolong meatballs, and then almost simultaneously scooped up a spoonful of boiled cabbage soup and put it in their mouths.

The next instant, all four judges froze on the spot, their pupils dilating in shock.

This...this soup...

One of the judges even suddenly bent down to examine the soup on the plate closely, hoping to glean some clues from it.

But no matter how you look at it, the broth is as clear as water, the only difference being that it has a slightly pale yellow tint, like the water used to boil cabbage.

How can you taste the same flavor as before in this soup?
Could it be that the oolong meatballs were so delicious that my tongue hasn't recovered yet?
Thinking of this, the judge couldn't help but pick up the special mouthwash, rinse away all the remaining taste in his mouth, and then scoop up a spoonful.

After taking the second spoonful, the judge gasped.

"This isn't right, this isn't right!"

"This soup...this taste..."

He suddenly turned to look at the other three and found that their expressions of surprise were exactly the same as his own.

The only one whose expression remained unchanged was the white-haired old man.

The white-haired old man who had tasted the boiled cabbage first was now tasting the oolong meatballs. He remained expressionless, as if no delicacy in the world could move him.

But his slightly trembling hands betrayed his inner turmoil.

"boom--"

The white-haired old man slammed his hand on the table.

"This is utter chaos!"

"Is this how you cook?"

"You're going to get scolded." Cui Zi cast a sympathetic glance at Qin Lang.

In her view, Qin Lang's serving of a dish of cabbage soup had clearly offended this judge, who was extremely demanding when it came to food. "Why are you looking at Qin Lang? I'm talking about you!"

A lower, more furious shout made Cui Zi's expression freeze instantly. She pointed at herself in disbelief, "Me?"

"It's you!" the white-haired old man snorted. "Eighteen kinds of meat are mixed together, and although the taste is complex and diverse, each has its own main flavor."

"Is cooking about having as many ingredients as possible?"

"Trying to run before you can walk!"

"What you're doing is a blasphemy against cooking!"

“You…” Cui Zi’s face turned pale.

She never expected that the white-haired old man would scold her, and scold her so harshly that her eyes almost instantly turned red.

To make this dish, she tried adjusting the proportions of eighteen kinds of meat thousands of times, and the final product was highly praised by many people.

What right does she have to say that about her?!
"Are you trying to say that Qin Lang's cabbage soup is more delicious than mine?" Cui Zi couldn't help but retort.

Unexpectedly, upon hearing his own angry words, the white-haired old man nodded.

"Qin Lang's boiled cabbage in clear broth," the white-haired old man glanced at Qin Lang, "is better than eighteen kinds of meat in one bowl."

“However…” the white-haired old man paused, “this cabbage is not worthy of this soup; the problem lies in the choice of ingredients.”

"You need to figure out the main ingredient in this dish."

"No matter how good the soup is, in my opinion, the main ingredient is still cabbage!"

"Failing to distinguish between primary and secondary issues is also a major problem!"

Upon hearing this, Qin Lang's face immediately showed a look of surprise.

Is the main ingredient in boiled cabbage soup the incredibly delicious broth made by simmering various ingredients for a long time, or the cabbage itself?

Almost everyone, after learning about the incredibly complex cooking method of this dish, would subconsciously assume it is the former, but that is not the case.

In his past life, he had consulted a senior chef who was a master of state banquets, and the chef had said something similar to what the white-haired old man in front of him had said.

Boiled cabbage in clear broth extracts the essence of the ingredients into the broth, and then the essence of the broth is further infused into the cabbage through high-temperature steaming. This, combined with the natural sweetness of the cabbage, creates its final flavor.

The selection of that cabbage is not limited to just any cabbage; only the heart of the highest quality yellow-stemmed cabbage can be chosen.

In the world of Food Spirits, no two cabbages are exactly alike, but Qin Lang still needs to pay attention to the compatibility of ingredients when selecting them.

In other words, if you use premium chicken to make soup, you also need premium cabbage to achieve the best results!
“You’re right, senior.” He bowed slightly to the white-haired old man sincerely. “It was my oversight.”

The white-haired old man nodded slightly, "I choose Qin Lang."

After saying that, he slowly leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest.

"What about the other four judges?" Cui Zi wiped away her tears and couldn't help but ask, "Do you also think I'm not as good as Qin Lang?"

Upon hearing this, the remaining four judges exchanged glances, sighed slightly after a moment, and then spoke one after another.

Their choice, like the white-haired old man's, was Qin Lang.

“It’s definitely not as good, and don’t be so unconvinced.” Du Ziyan couldn’t help but speak up, “You’ll understand once you’ve tasted this soup yourself.”

As he spoke, he gave Qin Lang a thumbs-up.

Just as he expected, this dish contained a lot of surprises.

“You…” Cui Zi gritted her teeth and looked at Qin Lang, “Please give me a bowl of boiled cabbage!”

She wanted to see why she had lost so badly!

(End of this chapter)