Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 201 Waste Utilization: The Whole Scene Starts to "Explode" (3K Second Update)
Tan Zhifeng: 9 points

Grant: 7 points

[Tommey: 7 points]

[Yamamoto Kaiji: 7 points]

[Mina: 9 points]

Valencia: 8 points

Compared to the locals' generosity, the judges from various countries were not as aggressive in their scoring.

Grant felt that Xia Ming's plating and seasoning still needed improvement.

“The dosage of ‘Kava Kava’ can be increased.”

Yamamoto Keiji, however, believed that the preparation of eels had not yet reached a very high level.

Tommy originally gave it an 8, but later changed it to a 7 for some unknown reason, without revealing the specific reason.

Therefore, after all the judges scored the scores, Xia Ming's total score reached 92 points, a solid top-tier achievement.

After confirming the score, Xia Ming nodded and went back to the stove to start cleaning.

For him, 92 points or 99 points make no difference.

Because he knew that no matter how the other contestants' "Hum" tasted, with their knife skills and proportions, they could never recreate the texture of "Kun Kun Pig".

As for choosing other types of cuisine, it is also very difficult.

"You should know that my yellow sauce is 'pepper sauce,' and the orange-red sauce is 'shrimp brain sauce.'"

"Compared to the taste of salt, the sauce has a much more complex flavor profile."

"When paired with regular wild boar meat, you might not be able to taste much difference, but mine has a texture that is closer to that of domestic pork."

When preparing crayfish according to local traditions, the issue of preserving the "original flavor" will inevitably arise.

Xia Ming was well aware that the locals didn't really like shrimp brain sauce, largely because it would taste fishy if not made properly.

Wild boar and freshwater eel already have a fishy smell, so pairing them with shrimp brain sauce would be unbearable.

But Xia Ming is different; he can completely remove the bloody smell of wild boar meat, as well as the earthy smell.

The local specialty "Hum Yi" (a pit-roasting technique), combined with "pepper leaves" and "Kava Kava," can completely remove the earthy taste when the heat is precise enough.

You should know that the locals know how to make firewood, but Xia Ming doesn't.

Putting aside the issue of firewood, the biggest problem with wild boar meat prepared by the Maoli people themselves is the bleeding process.

So, following this custom, Xia Ming optimized the recipes for the Chestnut People after obtaining the corresponding ingredients, so that they would suit their usual tastes.

Therefore, when the contestants who later made "Hengyi" faced Xia Ming's wild boar meat, they were naturally at a disadvantage.

Xia Ming didn't even need to think about it to know how the locals would feel if they went back to eat wild boar meat after eating pork that had almost no fishy smell.

Xia Ming quickly cleared the table and took his extra portion of wild boar meat to a nearby resting corner.

Seeing him approach, a hint of resentment flashed in Maka's eyes.

She didn't understand what Xia Ming had done inside.

Xia Ming ignored her and, as they approached the rest stop, suddenly changed direction and entered the small wooden cabin next to it.

Looking at Xia Ming's retreating figure, Maka swallowed the question she was about to ask, gritted her teeth, and then continued to look at the other contestants.

As soon as Xia Ming entered the cabin, he saw Qiao Ruoning sitting to the side.

This cabin was used by the production team for the agents to stay temporarily. Besides Qiao Ruoning, there were about ten other agents inside at the moment.

Together they witnessed Xia Ming's cooking receiving a score of 92.

At this moment, it was quite obvious that several agents were approaching to chat.

Xia Ming walked straight to Qiao Ruoning's side and handed her the bag made of "Pukka leaves".

"At the current pace of the match, it will probably be a while longer. Let's eat something first."

Seeing Xia Ming's actions, Qiao Ruoning's eyes first flashed with a hint of emotion, then with a hint of doubt.

Although his actions seemed heartwarming to outsiders, after more than a month of getting to know him, Qiao Ruoning now clearly understands that this behavior is not quite in line with his personal habits.

"Given Xia Ming's personality, if he really was just bringing me food, he should have called me to the door."

It's important to know that although the contestants didn't have lunch, their managers still received meals.

Of course, it's also possible that Xia Ming was afraid of wasting it, so he took it separately.

A thought flashed through Qiao Ruoning's mind. No matter the reason, the best thing for her to do now was to accept it directly.

"Okay, I'm actually hungry!"

Qiao Ruoning and Xia Ming looked at each other as they took the leaf package, and their eyes met for a moment.

Xia Ming then turned and left the room.

After Xia Ming left, an agent sitting next to Qiao Ruoning glanced curiously at the leaf-shaped bag in her hand, his tone tinged with envy.

"Your partner is so kind to you; he even saved some food for you while he was eating."

Upon hearing this, a flash of surprise crossed Qiao Ruoning's eyes, and then she looked up at the others present.

At least six or seven agents were observed, their eyes revealing curiosity or anticipation.

Seeing this, Qiao Ruoning smiled as well.

“Yes, Xia Ming has always been a ‘very good’ and ‘very gentle’ person.” After saying that, she opened the leaf package, and the wild boar meat inside was made in a different style than the one used in the competition.

Compared to flowers, this looks more like wild boar meat wrapped in eel oil and mushrooms, making pork rolls.

After seeing the remaining amount inside, Qiao Ruoning seemed to understand Xia Ming's meaning.

Immediately, she held the leaf bag and smiled at her agent beside her.

"This portion is too much, I can't eat it all. Would you like some?"

Hearing her words, a hint of longing flashed in the eyes of the agent standing beside her, and then he slowly nodded.

"Okay, thank you. By the way, my name is Eleanor, and Maddie is my husband and partner. What's your name?"

Hearing Eleanor's words, Qiao Ruoning smiled slightly.

"My name is Qiao Ruoning, and I am Xia Ming's agent."

After leaving the cabin, Xia Ming felt that Qiao Ruoning would definitely be able to handle things well.

"Anyway, it's all about making use of waste. Whether it's making these agents misjudge me because of the taste of the food, or deepening Qiao Ruoning's hidden network of connections, it's a sure thing for me."

Since he was already full, throwing away the wild boar meat would be a waste, so he might as well put it to good use.

Seeing Xia Ming come out again, Maka wanted to say something to him, but before she could speak, she smelled a particularly strong stench.

Maka covered her nose in an instant and then turned to look back at the arena.

She discovered that the scent came from a mixed-race female contestant of Chinese descent named "Yamaguchi Tsai," who was currently cutting up a "Humie" in her hand.

"Why does it smell so strong? It shouldn't be like this!"

When Maca processed the wild boar meat herself, she used honey. Although her method wasn't perfect, it was definitely not as sleazy as this contestant's.

Her nose isn't bad either; to be precise, among those who hunt in the wilderness, there aren't many with particularly bad noses.

Smelling the "humming" of "Yamaguchi Sai," she felt as if she were surrounded by ten wild boars, all of them simultaneously hissing.
It was obvious from the furrowed brows of "Yamaguchi Sai" that she knew there was something wrong with the dish she was making.

But "Hum" was made in one batch, and she had neither extra ingredients nor the possibility of burying it back.

Therefore, the only option was to use lemon flavoring later to mask the smudges and then forcefully serve the dish.

It was obvious that the judges had become much more sensitive to the smell of pork after eating Xia Ming's dish.

Even Warren could clearly sense the dish's failure just by smell, let alone the local judges.

The chief showed a hint of displeasure, and Sama only ate a little bit politely.

After finishing the meal, Sama's face scrunched up in a grimace.

"It tastes awful, awful! It's even worse than what we had at the dinner party last night."

That's right, in Sama's eyes now, only Xia Ming's "Heng Yi" deserves to be called gourmet food.

Even the food the tribe made was only enough to fill their stomachs.

The kind made by Yamaguchi Sai is so bad it makes you want to vomit.
Given the judges' performance, her score naturally couldn't be very high. Ultimately, after a round of tastings, Yamaguchi Sai, a Level 5 chef, only received 41 points.

She scored two points lower than Maca, who recklessly made barbecue earlier.

Upon seeing this result, Yamaguchi Sai's face turned very ugly. She felt that there should be no problem with her method of preparation, but for some reason, the difficulty of this wild boar meat exceeded her previous expectations.

"Could it be that I dug the pit incorrectly, or that I extinguished the fire too early?"

Just as she was reflecting on the game, many other contestants began to take their "Hum" out of the pit.

But when they opened the meat rolls, the vast majority of them had a strong fishy and gamey smell.

The smell was so strong that it even started to affect the sense of smell of the other competitors.

"Who did this? So slutty!"

"Did someone forget to add pepper leaves when preparing wild boar meat? I almost thought I'd walked into the bathroom!"

"This smell is too strong. I need a gust of wind, otherwise I can't smell my eel anymore."

Among the contestants, Seizo Koyama's expression was particularly serious.

He didn't go to Xia Ming to exchange for wild boar meat; instead, he prepared a local crayfish dish, and his specially made temporary soy sauce was almost ready.

But now there's a problem. He can only taste the flavor of the soy sauce, but he can't smell the aroma of it at all.

He was helpless because it wasn't caused by one person, but by the fact that many people present had problems with their "humming".

"Damn it, don't these guys have any concept of meat handling in their own country?"

"Now the whole place smells terrible, how are the other people supposed to cope?!"

Even more painful than Koyama Seizo was Astor.

He now felt as if he had wandered into a swamp filled with rotting animal carcasses, and the smell was absolutely awful.

"How is this possible? How could so many people make mistakes?"

Astor looked around and found that everyone looked puzzled.

"That's impossible. One or two would be fine, but this whole group has exploded? Could it be..."

Frowning, Aster's mind flashed with Xia Ming's face, and a possibility suddenly occurred to him.

"I hope there's nothing wrong with the wild boar meat this guy gave us!"

"Otherwise, why would so many contestants' dishes be considered terrible?"

(End of this chapter)