The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 549 A Familiar Scene

"Are you sure it's a dish made with watermelon, and not a dessert?"

Qin Lang confirmed this with a somewhat strange expression.

“That’s right!” The young man had a smug smile on his face. “It’s made from watermelon, a savory dish!”

After saying that, he put his hands on his hips and asked, "How was that?"

"If you can't do it, then just reject me!"

For ordinary people, being able to stump a chef participating in a food festival is already an achievement worth showing off to friends and family.

"Just a moment, it will be ready soon."

After saying that, Qin Lang turned around and walked back to the table.

"…Eh?"

The young man, who was waiting to be rejected, was stunned for a moment.

Do you agree?
Can watermelon really be made into a savory dish?
He couldn't help but look at the paper in his hand. The person who distributed it claimed that the questions on it could stump any chef!

On the other side, Qin Lang, who had returned to his desk, couldn't help but show a thoughtful expression.

Watermelon, a fruit with extremely high water content, is usually eaten directly or juiced. Watermelon juice can also be used to make some desserts.

However, using watermelon in cooking is very limited.

Of course, it's not that there aren't any.

In my previous life, there was a special sauce called watermelon sauce in Henan province, which was used to eat with noodles or unleavened flatbread, and the taste was excellent.

However, that's a flavor that has been refined over time, and even spicy cooking and quick combinations cannot replicate it on the spot.

Therefore, Qin Lang had to think of another way.

He picked out a melon from the food storage that made a very crisp sound when tapped, cut it in half, scooped out the very center piece, and casually put it into his mouth.

Mmm~ So sweet!

"Gulu!"

"Chapter!"

The two children, who were waiting for Qin Lang to start cooking, couldn't sit still when they saw him eating right away, and they came over to try some too.

"Eat, eat."

Qin Lang casually scooped out some watermelon flesh and stuffed it into the mouths of the two food spirits.

"Hey!" A young man who witnessed this scene from a distance couldn't help but speak up, "You've eaten all the sweet talk, are you going to leave me with the skin?"

I've heard that some chefs steal food, but you're being way too blatant!
This was being cooked in public, and you just ate it like that?

He had thought his accusations would shame Qin Lang, but to his surprise, Qin Lang laughed instead.

"Yes, it's all about eating the skin."

youth:"?"

Without much explanation, Qin Lang quickly scooped out half of the melon flesh with a spoon. After scooping it out, the inside of the half melon was just white, with no trace of red.

Then, Qin Lang quickly cut the melon open with a knife, removing the dark green outer skin with black stripes by slicing the flesh, leaving only the white part, which he then cut into two-millimeter strips.

Pour the watermelon rind into a bowl, add a little salt and mix well so that each strip of rind is coated with salt. After marinating for a few minutes, rinse and soak with clean water, then squeeze out the water and set aside.

In a seasoning bowl, combine soy sauce, aged vinegar, and sesame oil. Mix well, then add minced garlic. Pour the mixture over the shredded watermelon and mix thoroughly.

Then add onions, cilantro, and chili peppers to the shredded watermelon and stir-fry quickly.

Cold watermelon rind salad, done!

He placed the watermelon rind in a bowl and put it in front of the young man, gesturing for him to enjoy. "This is cold watermelon rind salad, please enjoy."

"No..." The young man stared in disbelief at the watermelon rind in front of him, then at the two little ones enjoying the watermelon flesh that Qin Lang had scooped out. "You really intend to give me the rind?!"

"Your request is to use watermelon in your cooking," Qin Lang smiled slightly. "Watermelon rind is, of course, part of the watermelon."

"But can you eat the watermelon rind?" the young man couldn't help but ask.

In all his life, when has he ever eaten a watermelon rind?

He would throw away any watermelon flesh, even the part closest to the rind, that wasn't very sweet, after eating the watermelon rind.

"Not only can it be, but it's also refreshing and delicious." Qin Lang pushed the cold watermelon rind salad towards the young man. "Try it."

"Perhaps you will open the door to a new world."

The young man picked up his chopsticks with some skepticism, took a bite, and put it in his mouth.

Then, his eyes widened involuntarily.

The white part of the watermelon rind has a relatively loose structure. During Qin Lang's pickling, washing, and squeezing process, it becomes like a sponge that has already been squeezed dry.

The added sauce was completely absorbed as the mixture was stirred, making it extremely flavorful.

The sour, spicy, and umami flavors from soy sauce, vinegar, and other seasonings burst forth the moment they enter the mouth, followed by the gradual emergence of the watermelon rind's own flavor as you chew.

It was a faint, refreshing scent, typical of watermelon.

When eating melon normally, the sweet flesh almost completely masks its unique fragrance, but when eaten with a salty flavor, it becomes incredibly pronounced.

It has a tangy and spicy flavor that whets the appetite, and a refreshing and clean taste.

This cold watermelon rind salad, which Qin Lang prepared in just a few minutes, tasted far beyond the young man's expectations.

"Boom."

After a soft sound, a glass of red watermelon juice appeared in front of the young man.

"Freshly squeezed, without a drop of water added, pure natural watermelon juice." Qin Lang smiled. "It's a complimentary dish with the meal."

Yes, eating watermelon rind and then drinking watermelon juice makes perfect sense.

The young man took a deep breath, drank the watermelon juice in one gulp, and then gave Qin Lang a thumbs up, "I didn't expect that this wouldn't stump you."

After saying that, he picked up the remaining cold watermelon rind salad and walked towards the other diners not far away.

While waiting in line, he noticed the private interactions of other diners. Now that he had his own dishes, he naturally wanted to try sharing and tasting them with others.

Ignoring the young man's movements, Qin Lang immediately went on to serve the next customer, and the busy cooking process continued.

One…two…three…

As Qin Lang's various requests from diners were fulfilled, he also took the opportunity to review the recipes he had mastered. Some of the less common dishes that he hadn't made in a long time were unearthed and reproduced in this world.

"We'll have one more person to go to reach twenty."

After seeing off another customer, Qin Lang glanced at the cooking records beside him.

The record shows the number of diners he has met. The one he just saw off was the nineteenth. If one more comes, he will be able to gather twenty diners.

According to the rules of the food marathon, if you can fulfill the requests of 20 diners in a single day during the event without failing to fulfill any requests, you will receive a "rejection card".

This was an opportunity to refuse a customer's unreasonable demands, even if it didn't count towards the number of refusals. The contest between Qin Lang and his two companions was about who could refuse fewer customers.

This is where items like "rejection cards" become very important.

Thinking of this, Qin Lang looked at the diner who followed him up.

"What would you like to order?"

"Let me take a look first," the diner said casually, then pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolded it.

Looking at the dense text on it, Qin Lang's expression immediately became quite interesting.

Why does this scene seem so familiar?
(End of this chapter)