Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 37 Guidance Bureau, the tiresome blockade—it turns out you saw everything from the very beginning.
[League of Legends? 91 to 9? ???]

[Is this Sichuan-Chongqing Ice and Fire Chef the same as that singer next door? The eldest prince, right? Why are they promoting him so much?]

I can understand that. I've been starving all morning, why would I eat raw marinated food?!

[But this score is outrageous! Are the judges really professional? Could the production team be manipulating things behind the scenes?]

Although I don't like the Sichuan-Chongqing "Ice and Fire Chef" show, judging from the live stream, Chef Chen's group definitely had a lot more food left over.

[You idiot, that's not how you make raw marinated food!]

[The reactions of so many people in the live stream didn't seem fake. I've suddenly become curious about the taste of this soup. Do you have any recommendations for restaurants?]

No, this should be an original creation by Ice and Fire Chef. As for the restaurant, I heard it's closed down, so you can't eat there anymore!

The live stream was abuzz with discussion about raw marinated food, leaving the contestants somewhat puzzled.

Logically speaking, even if the food is completely unpalatable, the 100 judges come from all over the country. It's understandable that people in the East Third District don't like to eat raw food due to their living environment.

You said that people from Sichuan and Chongqing like strong flavors, and that raw marinated food is very subjective, which I can understand.

But if you say that people in the Yunzhinan District, Guangzhou-Shenzhen District, Hubei District, and Shanghai District don't eat raw or marinated food at all, that would be a bit absurd.

Putting aside everything else, Yunnan's raw pork (red raw, i.e., pork sashimi) is famous throughout the country, so why is it that when it comes to "Tartar beef", it's a completely different story?
While the contestants were puzzled, the chefs noticed something amiss.

Li Zhian moved a chair to the railing, poured himself a drink, and asked the handsome Xiao Jian next to him.

"Old man, did you think that soup was oily?"

Shuai Xiaojian frowned, then took a breath.

"Offal soup, under normal circumstances, is divided into 'white broth offal soup' and 'clear broth offal soup,' as well as 'meat offal soup.'"

"The oil in the white soup offal soup is emulsified, so the richness outweighs the offal's organ meat taste. Judging from the process and the color of the soup, the Sichuan-Chongqing Ice and Fire Chef definitely didn't make white soup offal soup, because white soup offal soup requires stir-frying, while he just put it directly into the pot."

“In the Guangzhou-Shenzhen area, there is a clear broth beef offal dish, which is made by blanching the offal three times before cooking without stir-frying. Most of the offal uses beef bone broth as its base, emphasizing a clear broth with a rich flavor. This broth is not greasy and has less oil, but the taste is not bland.”

"Meat offal soup belongs to the 'street food' category, characterized by its bold and unrestrained style. The broth is dark and contains many impurities, but its aroma is the strongest among the three."

At this point, Shuai Xiaojian frowned.

"I now suspect that the five types of offal soup from the Sichuan-Chongqing Ice and Fire Chef restaurant are prepared in different ways, but most likely the beef offal is made with clear broth, the pork offal is made with meat, and the other three types are not obvious."

"Just looking at the offal soup, this soup is definitely very oily. Even if it contains clear broth, it's still very oily, not to mention that this guy added lard!"

Li Zhian nodded. He shared the same thought as Shuai Xiaojian, but judging from the expressions of the judges below, the soup was definitely not oily, at least when it entered their mouths.

"It's very oily, but not greasy when you eat it, which means that the soup is kept at the best temperature when you put it in your mouth. The aroma covers the oil layer and the greasiness in the soup is evenly distributed when you drink it."

Speaking of greasiness, Lai Chi-on suddenly looked at the handsome Xiao Jian beside him.

"Old man, do you remember how that bald cook on your team lost the 1v1 match?"

Shuai Xiaojian looked at the judges' panel with a serious expression, and after a long while, he suddenly laughed.

"Interesting. You mean this guy not only had a head-to-head match with Chen Xiaodong and his team, but also gave the bald cook a 'guidance' while he was at it?"

On the other side, the bald cook, who had already climbed up to the second-floor advancement platform, looked down at Chen Xiaodong's group, who were unwilling but could only leave dejectedly, and his mouth was almost stretched to his nose in a grin.

"You're really something, Chef! 91 to 9. If I were Chen Xiaodong, I'd definitely have nightmares tonight!"

Unlike the excited bald cook, the graduate student at the banquet frowned.

"Master Chef, why did we get 91 votes? Even if there are ordinary people among the judges, the result is too consistent. What else did you do?" Xia Ming smiled slightly when he heard the graduate student's words.

"Want to know? Hmm, okay, I was only planning to tell the cook, but since you're so curious, come and listen in too!"

Seeing Xia Ming's casual expression, the graduate student at the banquet was taken aback, then raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, but I won't listen to you for nothing. I'll treat you to dinner after the match tonight!"

"No problem~"

As he spoke, Xia Ming opened the plastic bag he had just taken from the competition venue downstairs.

"Cook, do you remember how you lost that 1v1 match?"

The bald cook's expression froze.

"Of course I remember, I will never make the mistake of mixing hot and cold temperatures again!"

Xia Ming nodded.

"Hmm, is the mixed soup good? Is it oily?"

"It tastes good, not oily, and I didn't feel anything when I drank it."

"Oh, okay, here's a bottle of water for you to rinse your mouth, and this is the sauce you made yourself, try it."

Upon hearing Xia Ming's words, the bald cook rinsed his mouth with water, then found a corner to spit it out. He then dipped his chopsticks in some cold sauce and put it in his mouth. Just as he lightly rubbed it between his tongue, his eyes suddenly widened.

"No, this isn't the sauce I made!"

"No, this is the sauce you made!"

Upon hearing Xia Ming's words, a hint of doubt flashed in the bald cook's eyes. He then pondered silently for a while before suddenly speaking.

"I get it now! I finally understand why you made me finish mixing the sauce before drinking it!"

"The Five-Ingredient Soup looks clear, but it's actually very oily. When it's at the right temperature, the taste of 'soup,' 'hot,' and 'pepper' briefly numbs your tongue, along with the three different sauces, each with its own distinct flavor."

"Even if someone feels a little greasy, they will only think that it is the taste of fried pork cutlet itself, but the oil will still remain in their mouth."

"Simply rinsing your mouth with water won't remove the oil; it will be carried into the next dish. Chen Xiaodong happened to be making slightly chilled raw beef. Even with potato wedges, they would have been cold by now, since most judges chose to eat the fried pork cutlet first!"

Thinking of this, his eyes widened, and goosebumps rose slightly on his arms.

"The moment the beef enters your mouth, the oil layer remaining in your mouth is ignited, and the greasiness overwhelms the taste of the meat itself. Even the most discerning judges cannot accept a dish that becomes greasy as soon as it enters their mouths."

"As for the other nine people, either they are raw food enthusiasts who started with beef, or they are professional and restrained and did not eat too much fried pork cutlet and mixed soup, so they were not greatly affected."

"This is exactly the same as my last match, except I made a mistake last time, but this time, with your move, Chen Xiaodong and his team are the ones who will suffer!"

Hearing the bald cook's words, Xia Ming smiled, neither shaking his head nor nodding.

However, the graduate student at the banquet, through the bald cook's deductions, completely filled in the gaps in the deductions for the entire team cooking competition.

"It's much more than that. The aroma wasn't just meant to block Yang Yanbin's nose, and the three sauces weren't entirely to cater to the judges' tastes."

“I’ve figured it all out. As you said, you’ll definitely win this game.”

"The moment Chen Xiaodong chose to make 'Beef Tartare,' you had already thought of all the countermeasures. In the end, all we did was help you spread the net and wait for him to foolishly walk right into it."

(End of this chapter)