Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 224 Chefs Association Contribution Rules: Is this a cosplay of an urban version of "Beichen Tianlang Blade"? (First Update)
【Through Silk Cutting】

The core characteristic of the "ultimate" level of knife skills lost in the Manchu Han Imperial Feast is that it creates a three-dimensional, mesh-like structure in the food through fine, interwoven knife marks.

"Unlike traditional fishing net knives, the 'silk cutter' demands a higher level of control over 'cutting' and 'connecting'."

"By the way, Xia Ming, do you know about the 'Myriad Threads Web'?"

Looking at Sui Wubai in front of him, Xia Ming nodded.

The "Myriad Threads of a Net" technique was in the information Qiao Ruoning provided; it was a skill passed down from his cheapskate father.

This technique can cut ingredients into thousands of threads while keeping them intact, producing ingredients that resemble a "deadly net" used for fishing.

Therefore, it is called "a net of myriad threads".

This skill first appeared when Xia Yitian took the Level 7 exam. He used this skill to create a dish that amazed the entire culinary world that year.

【Hundred Crafts Fishing Boats】

Upon hearing that Xia Ming knew about "The Net of Ten Thousand Threads," Sui Wubai nodded in agreement.

"Knowing this makes things easier. The 'Myriad Threads Net' is essentially a technique improved from the 'Silk-Penetrating Cutting'."

"However, it has limitations. Xia Yitian himself said that the 'Myriad Threads Net' could only handle fruits and some meats. Later, some people learned and initially mastered this technique, and found that it was indeed as he said."

Hearing this, Xia Ming raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Wait, Master Sui, you just said that other people have mastered this technique?"

Sui Wubai nodded slowly.

"yes."

"So, it was Xia Yitian who taught him?"

No, that's how it is.

Sui Wubai smiled and picked up several well-printed booklets from the side.

"This is a copy of 'New Huaiyang Cuisine Recipes,' this is a copy of 'Beginner Chef's Guide to Ultimate Knife Skills,' and this is a copy of 'Eighteen Arts of Beijing.'"

"You can think of these things as secret manuals from martial arts sects, or 'unique skills' mastered by chefs from different generations and collected by the Culinary Association."

"When I was older, being a chef was a somewhat narrow profession."

"Masters pass on their skills to apprentices, and apprentices become masters themselves before passing on their skills to apprentices."

"As the stories are passed down, many things are lost to history."

At this point, Sui Wubai opened the "New Huaiyang Cuisine Recipe" in his hand.

"Just like this book, why is it called 'new'? Because many of the old techniques were only known by name when they were passed down."

"The descendants of a school can only rely on some other written records or memories to reconstruct the techniques."

"While I admit that due to changing times, many skills are no longer suitable for the present day,"

"But just like paper umbrellas, now that everyone has better options, the meaning of paper umbrellas is no longer just a simple tool for keeping out the rain."

"It also represents the cultural heritage left behind by the era we once lived through."

At this point, Sui Wubai smiled and looked at Xia Ming.

"In the new era, especially with the development of the Internet, knowledge sharing has become the mainstream."

"Some recipes and techniques that used to require apprenticeship, study, and years of hard work to acquire can now be taught by many people simply by opening a video platform."

"This is a change of the times and also the beginning of people breaking down some knowledge barriers."

"The Chefs Association was among the first to adapt to this change. They took the lead in bringing together many masters to study ancient books, write recipes, and preserve their skills."

"This method of exchanging goods and services was certainly met with resistance from many people at the beginning."

"They felt that if their school of thought spread, their own school might gradually disappear in the long course of history."

"But actually, I think they're overthinking it. Extinction is a historical phenomenon. When something has reached the point of extinction, I think it means that it has been abandoned by history."

"In this case, preserving it in a book is another way to preserve the school of thought."

Perhaps realizing he had talked too much, Sui Wubai quickly steered the conversation back on track.

"Let's leave aside the cultural aspects and just talk about the Chefs Association itself."

"They actively collect the 'innovative' and 'restored' techniques of contemporary chefs; they don't just collect them for free."

"If a chef's skills are included, it not only represents the Chefs Association's recognition of the chef's skills, but also allows the chef to receive a lot of contribution points based on the type of skills evaluated."

"These points can be used to redeem other items. Similarly, you can also earn points by submitting rare ingredients or kitchen utensils."

"But unlike those, the submission of ingredients and kitchen utensils is a one-time event, while the benefits of 'art' are long-lasting."

As he spoke, Sui Wubai closed "New Huaiyang Recipes" and picked up "Culinary Association Beginner - Complete Guide to Ultimate Knife Skills".

He randomly flipped to a page, pointed to a line of text, and continued his story.

"Take this 'Live Phoenix Tongue' for example. This is a 'high-level' knife skill. Back then, to make the famous dish 'Stir-fried Phoenix Tongue,' you had to master this technique." "It sounds a bit cruel, but this skill requires using a special tool to remove the tongue from the beak of a live ricebird."

"Then, after a 3-second knife-cutting process, it's immediately stir-fried."

"Of course, we have long prohibited the live tongue extraction of the ricebird. The dish that follows uses pigeon tongues."

"The industrial process for pigeons is much more precise than that for yellow-breasted buntings. To get pigeon tongues, you often only need a stable supplier."

"Times have changed. Back then, once the tongues of the yellow-breasted bunting were removed, it became scrap. Now, pigeons are a treasure trove!"

"Because the ingredients have changed, the cooking process has also changed, so the 'live tongue phoenix' technique is no longer effective."

"Nowadays, there are very few chefs who still possess the skill of 'live tongue phoenix' (a type of spicy broth), and even some veteran chefs don't know it themselves, let alone pass it down."

"However, because its inheritor left a file with the Culinary Association, and left videos of him personally performing the cooking, as well as information such as the specific dimensions of the tools, etc."

"So, if you want to learn, you can go there, enter the code at the back of this book, and you can check how much contribution is required."

"Once you make the corresponding contribution, you can learn it. As for whether you teach your apprentices after you've learned it, the culinary association doesn't care."

Xia Ming raised an eyebrow upon hearing the word "regardless".

"What if a genius came along who could replicate all the chefs' skills and then teach them at a fixed price? Wouldn't that cause a lot of trouble?"

Sui Wubai gave a simple, honest smile.

"Something's wrong? What kind of trouble?"

"If someone were to truly possess the skills passed down for thousands of years, the Culinary Association would be overjoyed."

"Because this means that China has produced a culinary master that is rare to see in a thousand years, which also means that many schools of cooking may have the possibility of being revived."

"By then, this genius will basically not need to do anything else. He can simply mentor apprentices and test their skills and the shop, and he will be able to make a huge contribution to China."

Upon hearing this, Xia Ming looked at Sui Wubai with curiosity.

The last description is exactly what Sui Wubai is doing.

Sui Wubai blinked, understanding Xia Ming's meaning.

"No, mine is different. I took over my master's job. He has been carrying on the tradition for his whole life, and it can't be broken in my hands."

“Logically speaking, I’ll only be 50 next year, which is the age for me to strive and work hard. I shouldn’t be learning to retire.”

"But if I don't go to see them, my fellow students all have their own development paths. So I can only go out and wander around while improving myself."

"Speaking of which, you know my apprentice, Chef Wang."

Xia Ming's mind flashed through the memes netizens had photoshopped of him, and he nodded.

"He's actually quite talented, though of course he can't compare to you. I'll introduce you to him next time."

As he spoke, Sui Wubai smiled and put away "The Complete Guide to Culinary Arts for Beginners - Ultimate Knife Skills", then picked up another "torn page".

"Going back to the previous topic, if you want to learn 'Living Tongue Phoenix,' and after making the corresponding contributions, the master who provides this 'skill' will receive a share."

"Generally it's 5%, but some special cases can be even higher."

"This share can only go to the chef himself, not to his faction or apprentices. Just think of it as a retirement insurance policy."

"Didn't we say earlier that someone learned Xia Yitian's 'Myriad Threads Web'? Unfortunately, the person who basically mastered it is me."

At this point, Sui Wubai chuckled and rubbed his hands together.

"When I first learned 'The Myriad Threads of a Web,' I was actually trying to deduce 'Silk-Penetrating Cutting' from this technique. But after learning it, I realized that Xia Yitian used his own understanding to ultimately cut out 'The Myriad Threads of a Web.'"

"Although this technique originated from 'silk cutting,' there are many differences in the details."

"Originally, I thought this fragment of the scroll would be lost forever, but during the competition, when I saw you cut out the 'Crystal Chrysanthemum Cup,' I suddenly felt that this technique might still be possible to revive."

"I heard that there was a slight hiccup with your variety show, so I took some time to talk to the Chefs Association about it."

"Take a look first; the description is actually quite rough."

Seeing the tattered recipe book handed to him by Sui Wubai, Xia Ming took it and began to read it.

The above describes a lost dish from the "Manchu Han Imperial Feast" called "Wu Chan Tou Si Ji".

The method involves taking five ingredients—deer tendon, camel hump, winter bamboo shoots, radish, and beef—and processing them with a knife technique called "penetrating the silk," then wrapping them into a five-layer roll.

Then, paired with a secret-recipe broth, it's finished.
It sounds simple, but it's actually not simple at all.
First, ingredients such as "deer tendons," "camel humps," and "beef" must be kept fresh, and records describe the process as "three times in and three times out."

It's very similar to Xia Ming's technique for cutting the "Crystal Cup of Glazed Glass" back then, but it's even more difficult.

Even more difficult than this requirement is vegetarian dishes.
The bamboo shoots were blanched, which was fine, but the radish was served raw.
Saying it's raw isn't entirely accurate. To be precise, radishes need to be heated on the outside and cooled on the inside, but this dish shouldn't be cooked over a stove or frozen, as that would affect the radish's texture.

Therefore, according to the records left from that time, the radish in this dish "Wu Chan Tou Si Ji" was made using an ice knife.
Looking at the description of the radish on the tattered page, "A thousand threads lock in the frost-white, and the cold air gently unfolds the delicate snow," Xia Ming raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Ice Blade Radish Extreme Silk Screen?"

"What? Are you trying to cosplay an urban version of 'Beichen Tianlang Blade'?"

(End of this chapter)