The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 423 The Result of the Arena Battle!

"This...this Ruyi..."

During the tasting, one of the judges exclaimed in surprise, staring in awe at the incredibly lustrous dish that resembled a jade ruyi.

"What ingredients were used to cook this?"

"Why do I find it so delicious, yet I don't know why it's so delicious, as if I can't find the source of it at all?"

“I feel the same way!” another judge chimed in. “It’s not like the deliciousness of meat, nor the deliciousness of vegetables or delicacies. It seems to contain all the delicious flavors, yet it’s nothing at all.”

"This Dinghu vegetarian dish is absolutely amazing!" The third judge slammed his hand on the table, his eyes slightly red. On his table were plates that were even cleaner than his face.

"I have never tasted such vegetarian food in my entire life!"

"Excellent! This vegetarian dish is simply the pinnacle of vegetarian cuisine." The fourth judge nodded and nodded repeatedly, looking completely captivated.

Seeing the judges' enraptured expressions, countless audience members exchanged bewildered glances.

They were eager to know just how delicious the two dishes were, and which one was superior.

"Snap!" The white-haired old man slammed down his chopsticks.

"Nineteen kinds!" The white-haired old man stared intently at Qin Lang. "You used a full nineteen kinds of vegetarian ingredients as the main ingredients in this dish!"

"Yes." Qin Lang nodded.

After losing to Qin Lang, he refused to leave the venue, which startled Cui Zi, who was watching from the stands.

She thought of the time when the old man with white hair criticized her oolong meatballs, which she made with eighteen kinds of meat, as worthless.

Now, Qin Lang is using one more ingredient than him!
This time, Qin Lang is definitely going to get scolded!

Just as this thought crossed my mind, a loud shout rang out.

"Well done!"

Cui Zi: "?"

She looked up blankly at the white-haired old man on the judging panel, her lips trembled, and then she burst into tears.

Why!

She was severely criticized for using eighteen kinds of meat, but the old man actually praised Qin Lang for "using nineteen kinds of vegetables well."
Is there any heavenly principle? !

"What a wonderful vegetarian dish from Dinghu! It uses vegetarian ingredients to mimic the flavors of meat." The white-haired old man's eyes gleamed. "To blend the aromas of countless vegetarian dishes and create such a realistic meaty flavor is truly remarkable."

"what?!"

Upon hearing the white-haired old man's words, the other four judges were simultaneously stunned.

"He didn't put any meat in it?" one of the judges couldn't help but exclaim.

Immediately afterwards, all the judges and the audience looked at Qin Lang.

They all wanted to know if what the white-haired old man said was true.

"Yes." Qin Lang nodded with a faint smile. "This vegetarian dish from Dinghu Lake contains no meat at all during the entire cooking process."

Hearing this, everyone was in an uproar, and even Du Ziyan was stunned for a moment.

Because at that moment, he was also holding a plate of Dinghu vegetarian food, and he had already eaten more than half of it.

"As for this Ruyi..." The white-haired old man changed the subject, causing Du Ziyan's expression to quickly turn serious.

"The broth, made by simmering various meat and vegetable ingredients with fish maw, is concentrated and has a white, jade-like texture. It melts in your mouth, and the umami flavor is like a bomb, instantly filling your mouth with flavor."

"The idea is good." The white-haired old man changed the subject, "but the choice of fish maw needs to be careful. The fish maw you chose is made from premium fish, and it's from sea fish."

"Although the ingredients are of good quality, the seafood flavor of the fish affects the taste of the whole dish, making it lose the 'harmony' flavor."

"It still needs further refinement."

"Impressive." Du Ziyan's expression became even more serious. "Senior is indeed very capable, to be able to taste so much."

"As for the ingredients, I really can't do anything about it." Du Ziyan shook his head in frustration. "Only the finest ingredients are worthy of the soup I make."

“But when it comes to premium-grade fish, I only have sea bass.” Upon hearing this, Qin Lang couldn’t help but glance at Du Ziyan.

Why don't we give him a whole rare fish and let him try it?
Yes, we can discuss it with Du Ziyan after the arena battle.

"It seems I've lost again this time." Before the other judges could speak, Du Ziyan shook his head slightly.

"Qin Lang's vegetarian dish from Dinghu not only tastes like meat, but even its texture is like meat."

"I couldn't even taste that it was vegan."

"This is enough to show that I still need more experience."

At this point, Du Ziyan grinned at Qin Lang, "The title of champion is yours now, let's fight again next time!"

After saying that, he left without waiting for the host to announce the results.

"This..." The host froze on the spot, and after a moment looked at the judges' panel with pleading eyes.

One of the judges sighed, "Since Du Ziyan has voluntarily conceded defeat, there is no longer any need for us to make a judgment."

"However, I personally think Qin Lang is better."

"+1."

"+2."

"+3."

The other three judges nodded repeatedly.

With that, the final result of the free arena was settled.

"In that case, let's give a warm round of applause to Chef Qin Lang for winning the free arena in this culinary competition!"

The host announced the final result in a loud voice.

Amidst thunderous applause and fluttering ribbons from the audience, the host handed Qin Lang the champion's trophy, which had been prepared beforehand.

"Qin Lang, please keep this safe."

"Thank you." Qin Lang carefully accepted it.

Although it was just an event trophy and didn't have much honor, it was still a treasure for Qin Lang.

With the awards ceremony concluded, the culinary competition also came to an end.

However, Qin Lang did not immediately step off the stage to join Cao Dongdong and the others in the audience who were waving excitedly at him.

He glanced at the five judges who were about to leave the judging panel, then darted forward and darted in front of the white-haired old man.

"Senior," Qin Lang said with a serious expression, "I am truly grateful for your guidance today."

“I will carefully improve upon every issue you have raised.”

"So, could you tell me where you live? I hope to improve the dishes you reviewed today and have you taste them again."

Good teachers are hard to come by. In his previous life, when he was learning to cook, Qin Lang would never hesitate to ask for advice from culinary masters, and would even pester them relentlessly in the hope of learning something.

Over the years, he has remained consistent on this point.

"Old man, I'm known for my sharp tongue, and I've scolded you quite a bit today. Are you truly grateful?" The white-haired old man glanced at Qin Lang and spoke calmly.

“Of course.” Qin Lang nodded emphatically. “Although your suggestions were very straightforward, every point you made was spot on.”

"I sincerely hope that you can taste my improved dishes."

"In that case," the white-haired old man paused for a moment, then took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to Qin Lang.

"Come find me here once you've made the improvements."

Qin Lang took the business card. The address was on the back, while the front was plain white with three large characters written in a bold and sharp font.

"Song Lichuan".

(End of this chapter)