The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 554 Tasting Again

Upon tasting the fish soup made by Dai Lan, a slightly sour and spicy flavor instantly emerges, intertwined with the umami of the fish soup itself, making one feel refreshed.

After taking a sip of fish soup, Qin Lang felt warm all over, as if the coldness around him had been dispelled by some powerful force.

The spiciness was mainly from ginger and white pepper. Although Qin Lang used them in the same way when cooking, Dai Lan used significantly more.

As for the sour smell, it gave Qin Lang a sense of déjà vu.

He quickly realized the source of this sense of familiarity.

The tea-scented squid that Dai Lan made before also had the same sour taste!

"Is it sour tea?"

“Yes.” Dylan nodded slightly. “That female customer’s mother is just an ordinary person, and perhaps she doesn’t know much about how to remove fishy smells.”

"But she will definitely find a way to make her fish soup even more delicious."

"And sour tea can mask the fishy smell in fish soup."

"So I think, maybe that's how the mother made the fish soup."

"A fish soup with a sour and spicy flavor? That's a bit unexpected." Du Ziyan slowly put down the soup bowl in his hand, with a hint of admiration on his face. "Under the cover of the sour and spicy flavor, the fishy smell is indeed hard to detect."

"Although this method will sacrifice some of the freshness, the overall flavor is more complex, and it tastes..." Du Ziyan smacked his lips, "...seems pretty good?"

“I like this flavor even more,” Zhao Qian couldn’t help but say.

She also tried three different fish soups.

Compared to Qin Lang and the other two, her tastes were more like those of an average person, so after trying it, she was more interested in the hot and sour fish soup made by Dai Lan.

Upon hearing this, Qin Lang stroked his chin and fell into deep thought.

Could it really be as Dai Lan analyzed, that the female diner's mother prepared the dish in this spicy and sour way?
"Let's try again."
-
"Big brother, I want a spicy ice cream."

A little girl with a ponytail, no more than twelve years old, told Qin Lang her request with a smile.

"Okay." Qin Lang nodded and turned to get to work.

Soak Sichuan peppercorns in hot milk at around 65 degrees Celsius to allow the amides in the peppercorns to quickly dissolve into the milk. These substances are the source of the numbing and spicy sensation in Sichuan peppercorns. After soaking for a while, cool the hot milk.

Next, following the method for making milk ice cream, the hot milk infused with green Sichuan peppercorns was made into ice cream, and finally, a few green Sichuan peppercorns were sprinkled on top.

A creamy, numbing-spicy Sichuan peppercorn ice cream is ready.

This was the signature product of a chain brand that sold grilled fish in his previous life. Qin Lang happened to know how to make it. After finishing, he handed it to the little girl. Watching the little girl slurping and stuffing it into her mouth with a small spoon, he smiled knowingly.

Glancing at the reception record out of the corner of his eye, Qin Lang saw that the number of diners served had jumped from "19" to "20," and he successfully received his first "rejection card" of the day.

His face held a hint of anticipation, as if he were waiting for something.

"Hello, may I ask...?"

A familiar female voice appeared, and Qin Lang suddenly stood up straight.

"You came!"

The curly-haired female diner who had met yesterday was taken aback by Qin Lang's enthusiasm and couldn't help but take a step back, "Yes...yes."

Actually, she didn't want to come.

Qin Lang's intentions were good, but after tasting the crucian carp and tofu soup yesterday, the female diner thought that even such a skilled chef could not replicate the taste of her mother's cooking. She became increasingly saddened and cried for a long time after returning home.

She was a little scared; Qin Lang would probably bring out the same tofu and fish soup again today.

Although Qin Lang was a good cook and the tofu and fish soup was delicious, a tofu and fish soup that didn't taste like the one she remembered would only make her feel worse.

But today, she just happened to be passing by, and inexplicably, she came back and stood before the chef from yesterday once more. Perhaps, deep down, she still held onto a sliver of hope—even just once—to taste the flavor she remembered.

"I'm sorry I made a dish that didn't meet your requirements yesterday." Qin Lang apologized sincerely again, and then said, "I've improved the dish today, and I hope you can give me another chance. Perhaps this time, I can succeed."

“…Okay.” The female diner took a deep breath and nodded emphatically.

Qin Lang said no more, took out three Dongran fish and three portions of local tofu, and began to cook.

Ok?
The female diner's eyes lit up when she saw the fish Qin Lang had taken out this time.

Although she rarely went into the kitchen, she vaguely remembered that her mother did use this kind of fish when making fish soup.

Could it really be possible this time?
Suddenly, hope welled up in her heart.

Unaware of the change in the female diner's expression behind him, Qin Lang's expression turned serious as he looked at the three fish on the table.

Last night, after discussing with Du Ziyan and Dai Lan, no one could determine which method of making fish soup would meet the requirements. In the end, Qin Lang decided to use a simpler method.

That means cooking three kinds of fish soup at the same time to see if one of them is suitable.

Of course, the fish soup he was making now was not the same as the three fish soups that the three of them had initially tried making.

Instead, it was the final version that the three of them obtained after a night of research and optimization.

To speed things up, Qin Lang even used spicy cooking methods.

Soon, three servings of fish soup were freshly made.

"this…"

The female diner looked on in astonishment as she looked at the three bowls of fish soup in front of her.

“That’s right.” Qin Lang smiled. “My two friends and I prepared three different methods to see which one is closer to your mother’s method.”

"Thank you and your friends," the female diner said softly.

She could sense that Qin Lang truly cared about her needs.

With her gaze falling on the three fish soups, the female diner only glanced at the fish soup prepared by Du Ziyan before turning her attention to the other two fish soups.

There was no way around it; the slightly viscous soup was completely different from the fish soup she remembered.

Seeing this, Qin Lang roughly understood what was going on.

Now we'll see which approach is more appropriate, my own or Dylan's.

Under his tense gaze, the female diner first picked up the fish soup prepared by Dylan and took a small sip.

Her eyes suddenly lit up, but then dimmed again.

"This is somewhat similar, but it's still not right."

"The fish soup my mother makes is not spicy."

Not spicy?
So, does that mean the sourness is fine?
Qin Lang's eyes suddenly lit up.

Because in his improvements last night, he also added sour tea to his recipe, but he didn't add spiciness like Dylan did!
"Please try this one."

He pointed to his own portion, his tone full of anticipation.

"Okay." The female diner nodded, picked up the fish soup, and took a small sip.

Then, she froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.

(End of this chapter)