Who gave this heretical practitioner permission to cook?

Chapter 41 Three Delicacies Fish Balls, the final chapter of the team competition, those chefs who fell into hell.
"Inside the competition venue"

Shao Denong from Shuai Xiaojian's team was carefully removing some obvious fish bones, while Lin Chao was preparing the necessary ingredients for different fish balls according to the recipe given by Shuai Xiaojian.

As for Wang Qingrui, Shuai Xiaojian asked him to cook a pot of the ultimate seafood soup to go with the fish balls.

"It must have a very prominent seafood flavor and a rich broth, but don't simmer it until it's thick and creamy. A white color is best, but a pale yellow color is also acceptable."

Shuai Xiaojian didn't specify what kind of fish he needed, nor did he specify any seasonings. He fully trusted his teammates, so he only made the requests and didn't care about the process.

As it turns out, this allocation method is reasonable.

Without any restrictions, Wang Qingrui unusually used yellow catfish, pork bones, and free-range chicken to make a base for "yellow catfish soup".

Then, it was combined with Japanese seafood miso, and finally, through the egg white adsorption method, a pot of light yellow fish soup was obtained.

During such a tense time of competition, the soup he made looked as clear as spring water, but after drinking it, one would find that it had a rich seafood flavor, and even Shuai Xiaojian couldn't help but praise it.

"Old Wang, you're amazing! I used to think your sliced ​​beef and tripe was the best, but now I think this soup is also a masterpiece."

Wang Qingrui waved his hand with a smile. He knew that Shuai Xiaojian was mostly joking. Although the fish soup was indeed good, it was several levels below his husband's beef and tripe soup.
With the help of this fish soup, Shuai Xiaojian is even more confident in making these three-delicacy fish balls.

His concept of "three delicacies" actually refers to three different types of fish balls with different textures.

First is grass carp. As a freshwater fish, it is the raw material for fish balls in Jingchu, north of the lake.

In Hubei, fish balls and fish cakes have long been famous as local delicacies. The key to Hubei fish balls is that they have a loose texture and a smooth taste.

It has almost no chewiness when you bite into it, and its texture is extremely similar to tofu, making it the perfect ingredient for the "soft" texture in the Three Delicacies Fish Balls.

Next up is the white-skinned Spanish mackerel, a type of sea fish that people in the Guangzhou-Shenzhen area often use to make Spanish mackerel fish balls.

Anyone who has eaten at Chaoshan cuisine restaurants in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou knows that their beef balls are known for their chewy texture, and the same goes for their mackerel fish balls.

Its texture is extremely bouncy and springy, with a noticeable rebound when you bite into it. Shuai Xiaojian used it to create the "bouncy" texture in the Three Delicacies Fish Balls.

Finally, there's the mud carp, a famous intangible cultural heritage food and the raw material for wrinkled fish tofu.

Wrinkled fish tofu is made by deep-frying fish paste in cold oil after mixing with other ingredients. The outer skin of the fish tofu is a beautiful golden yellow, similar to the common "tofu puffs", but brighter.

Because it expands during frying and then quickly shrivels up after being taken out of the oil, it is called "wrinkled yarn".

Because it has been deep-fried, its texture is completely different from the two mentioned above. It is all about being crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with a chewy texture, which is the source of the "crispy" texture in the Three Delicacies Fish Balls.

Although all three types of fish balls are troublesome to prepare, their large size makes them irresistible.

Although processing the fish is a bit complicated in the early stages, the quantity is actually very small.

A few fish and three pots are enough to satisfy the requirements of a hundred judges, and even more.

This is extremely time-friendly, allowing Shuai Xiaojian to focus more on blending flavors.

On the other hand, the Little Flower Team was incredibly busy.

The fish they use is sea bass, which comes in both freshwater and saltwater varieties. Freshwater sea bass are mostly domestic varieties introduced and improved in China, while sea bass mostly refers to Japanese sea bass.

Under normal circumstances, because live sea bass are not easy to survive after being caught, they are mostly sold in China as chilled or frozen.

But this time, the Sea Cabinet unexpectedly contained a tank full of live sea bass. Seeing this, Xiaohua didn't hesitate and directly chose it as the main ingredient.

Freshwater bass has a tender and soft texture that melts in your mouth, making it suitable for steaming, stewing in soup, and pan-frying.
Sea bass has a chewy texture, and after marinating, it will have a unique aroma when braised or grilled.
This time, Xiaohua chose Huoliao.

After being specially soaked to remove most of the parasites, the marinated fish is then steamed briefly to maintain its semi-raw texture, and then processed on one side with a blowtorch.

This method ensures the fish has a perfectly balanced texture, with a crispy top layer, tender middle layer, and chewy bottom layer.

Paired with a slightly sour sauce made from tropical fruits and sea salt, it perfectly brings out the flavor of the sea.

A dark horse then suggested adding a slice of lemon underneath for embellishment, which would not only enhance the aesthetics but also differentiate the citric acid from the fruit acid.

Even Xia Ming, who was on the advancement platform, nodded in approval at this move.

"Simple, efficient, and precise, it adds layers of flavor while also taking time into consideration. This dark horse looks quite promising!"

The dishes on both sides were completely different in taste and design, making it impossible for Xia Ming to determine which one had the advantage for the time being.

However, if it were up to him to choose, he would probably choose the three-delicacy fish balls if they all tasted good.

After all, it's not a difficult skill to process a fish into three layers of texture, but to make the three fish paste dishes from different parts of China taste harmonious and reflect the theme requires a lot of effort.

Xia Ming clearly noticed that Shuai Xiaojian had deliberately adjusted the recipes for the three types of fish balls to achieve this balance.

"It's a truly evenly matched dish. The same theme, yet it leads to completely different tastes. This world's exploration of ingredients is far more advanced than that of the Kyushu Continent."

Xia Ming rubbed his nose with the back of his finger, secretly noting down Shuai Xiaojian's fish paste recipe, thinking he might be able to use it later. Finally, as the countdown ended, both teams brought their food to the preparation table right on time.

After the judges tasted and scored the food, a dramatic scene unfolded in the arena.

The score of the match between Team Sea is 50:50.

In other words, the two teams tied!

The viewers in the live stream were stunned by what they saw.

[What?! A tie? The chef couldn't win with this dish. Is the production team manipulating things?!]

I feel the contestants' side was clearly more creative. The chef's dish was simply three meatballs stewed in a bowl of soup—nothing new!

Now I know why the show had 100 people; they were waiting for this moment, weren't they!

The chef's dish looks simple, but it's actually quite complex. The greatest truths are the simplest, you know? The contestant's dish is all about fancy presentation, but the fish is undercooked inside, which definitely affects the taste.

Just when all the contestants, including Xia Ming, thought it was going to be a rematch, the production team unexpectedly provided a supplementary rule.

When teams are tied on the score, the scores from the three judges will be the final criterion!

Of the three judges, Nicholas Tse and Zheng Yongqi voted for "Seafood Fish Balls," while Zhang Yong voted for "Sea Breeze Native Sour Sea Bass."

[According to the rules, Chef DaShuai XiaoJian's team is the ultimate winner!]

Looking at the results displayed on the big screen, Xiaohua's entire team looked ashen-faced. They never expected that their final match would end in this way.

Xiao Hua clenched her fist.

"I'm not reconciled! I'm not reconciled! I was so close!"

The black horse behind them also frowned.

"If I had known, I wouldn't have hidden it back then."

But no matter how unwilling they were, as the losing team, they still had to accept the fate of being eliminated as a whole.

After a day of competition, 10 contestants successfully advanced to the next round. They are:
[Chefs: Zeng Huaijun, Dong Jiaqi, Li Zhian, Shuai Xiaojian, Shao Denong, Wang Qingrui, Lin Chao.]

[Contestant: A Sichuan-Chongqing master chef specializing in ice and fire cuisine, a graduate student in banquet preparation, and a bald cook.]

Many viewers still found it hard to accept the result. In their minds, the bald cook and the Sichuan-Chongqing Ice and Fire Chef were just slackers, so it was really illogical that they could advance.

Of course, Xia Ming didn't bother with it. The graduate student from the banquet had just said that he had already booked a restaurant and would drive there as soon as the program finished filming.

Just as Xia Ming was wondering what kind of dishes he would be able to eat today, the production team suddenly notified "all the members who advanced" to stay for dinner.

“Our program’s food director, Chef Tan Zhifeng, will be bringing you tonight’s dishes.”

The contestants' eyes lit up when they heard that the "Hua Level 7" chef had volunteered to cook.

Even a chef and professional food critic like Shuai Xiaojian rarely gets to eat food made by a chef of this caliber on a regular basis.

The graduate student even proactively rescheduled the banquet for tomorrow.
And so, the 10 contestants who advanced to the next round arrived at a spacious and bright room under the guidance of the production team, waiting for Tan Zhifeng's cooking.

In the corners they can't see
Hell's Kitchen

Inside the large, terrifyingly red room, all the team members who failed to advance from the competition changed into black clothes and stood in front of a huge iron cabinet.

The host's voice was no longer gentle and calm, but sharp and frightening.

"As players who lost the team competition, you must be feeling resentful!"

"After you go down there, do you ever think that your teammates dragged you down, or that you were just unlucky?"

"It's alright. Coming to Hell's Kitchen means you still have a chance to be resurrected. Of course, there aren't many spots available. Right now, everyone standing next to you is your opponent!"

As for the judges of this competition...

As the host finished speaking, a strange laugh came from somewhere in the room. Immediately afterwards, the large screen behind them suddenly lit up. Everyone subconsciously turned around and stared wide-eyed at the scene inside.

"That's right, your judges for this round are the 10 contestants who have already advanced!"

"I forgot to mention, they are about to be treated to a meal by Chef Tan Zhifeng, a 'First-Class Special Chef (Level 7 in Chinese Chefs),' which could have been your opportunity."

"Haha, chefs who've returned from hell, try to please them!"

"Use your cuisine to appease your former rivals, so that you may return from hell once more!"

(End of this chapter)