The story begins in Food Wars, when Alice took him home.

"In that case, I'll develop the recipes, and you can refine them."

After thinking it over, Tadokoro Megumi agreed. Even if she didn't believe in herself, she believed in Bai Yuan and that he had the ability to turn the impossible into the possible.

Chapter 226 A dish that suits the current situation: Monkfish Tempura

"Based on the principle of making fish stew, fish and vegetables can complement each other very well. Perhaps I should start from this point."

In Zhuang Huiyuan's kitchen, Tadokoro Megumi, wearing an apron, looked at the various ingredients in front of her that represented everyone's good intentions, and felt inexplicably nervous.

Although it was Bai Yuan who made the move, he entrusted her with the important task of developing the cuisine.

If possible, since the ingredients were donated by everyone, she wanted to make a dish that carries everyone's memories and showcase everything!

“Monkfish is an essential ingredient. We need to save the live monkfish for the competition to ensure freshness. We'll use the ones we bought from the fish market for the experimental dish…”

Besides the fish stew, this place also has a famous dish that has been passed down from ancient times: monkfish hot pot, a specialty dish passed down from generation to generation by fishermen.

It's perfect for enjoying with the whole family around a warm stove on a cold winter's day; that harmonious family atmosphere is the essence of appreciating this dish.

The main ingredient that Megumi Tadokoro will be using this time.

It's an anglerfish.

"The most distinctive feature of monkfish soup is that the liver of the monkfish is slowly stir-fried in a pot until it melts, and then miso and sake are added as the soup base."

If you add the right spices, the flavor will penetrate even more deeply…

Instead of rushing to cook, I forced myself to calm down.

Carefully examining the numerous ingredients in front of her, she realized that not all of them were useful; she needed to select those that would be helpful to her and try cooking them.

Among them, anglerfish is a local specialty, famous for its delicious taste.

The stew made from monkfish offal is also known as the "Golden Pot," which shows how highly monkfish is regarded in the town.

This is why dissecting monkfish has been a highlight of Zhuang Huiyuan's business for so many years, attracting many people to come and try it. However, the business was significantly affected when the head chef became unable to continue.

Later, in order to perform the show again, she braved wind and rain to learn the technique from the uncle who was in the business of dissecting anglerfish.

It was precisely because of this culinary talent that Tadokoro Mieko ultimately decided to send Tadokoro Megumi to Totsuki Culinary Academy, and now everything has returned to square one.

"During this period of time, I have tried all kinds of dishes, among which tempura is the one I am most skilled at."

If these ingredients could be combined and blended, and then a sauce made with monkfish liver was used, perhaps the results would be quite different!

As her thoughts gradually became clearer, Tadokoro Megumi quickly began to try it out.

First, make a sauce from the purchased monkfish liver. Second, adjust the recipe and see which part of the monkfish is best suited for tempura.

At the kitchen doorway, Bai Yuan leaned against the door, arms crossed, watching the busy Tadokoro Megumi with a look of satisfaction in his eyes.

If she didn't even dare to try, then her culinary journey would end there. Fortunately, Tadokoro Megumi did not disappoint him.

"When you truly become a master chef, you'll find that being a master chef is just the beginning of your journey as a chef."

After taking a deep look at Tadokoro Megumi, who was busy in the kitchen, Shirabuchi turned around and went back to the living room, where Tadokoro Mieko was sitting, her eyes filled with unease.

"Don't worry, we have no chance of losing this game. Just be prepared to take over the Hundred Birds Gate on the other side and develop it into a branch of Zhuang Hui Garden."

Seeing that Tadokoro Mieko was a little nervous, Shirai smiled and patted her shoulder to ease her tension.

This was a match he couldn't possibly lose. His opponent just didn't understand his strength, otherwise they would be laughing all the way to the bank right now.

"How confident are you? I've already inquired; our opponent is a top-tier four-star chef. If things don't go well, we can avoid the fight. There's no shame in that."

Thinking that Bai Yuan was unaware of the terror of his opponent, which was why he was putting on such a relaxed appearance, Tadokoro Mieko quickly reminded him. However, when she saw his determined expression, she felt inexplicably at ease.

It's a really strange feeling.

He was clearly just a young man in his early twenties, yet he gave her the feeling of a mature man.

"I know, he already said that when he came, but if it's only a top-tier four-star, then I can only say four words: nothing to worry about."

Seeing Tadokoro Mieko's performance, Bai Yuan understood what she was worried about. For ordinary people, a master chef is an insurmountable obstacle.

Even though he appeared incredibly confident, it was difficult to dispel Tadokoro Mieko's doubts. This is only natural and does not mean that she does not trust him.

Moreover, Zhuang Huiyuan's vast estate has become a stake on the gambling table and coveted by others because of a seemingly insignificant food battle.

If the other party trusts him unconditionally, Bai Yuan finds it strange and suspects there is some conspiracy involved.

"Keep it up. This is the dowry I've been saving for Xiaohui. Since she trusts you so much, it would be inappropriate for me to doubt her."

"Little Bai, give it your all, don't let her down!"

As she spoke, Mieko Tadokoro also turned her gaze to the kitchen, watching Megumi Tadokoro's back as she studied cooking, and said something quite earnestly.

"Don't worry, just trust me."

Bai Yuan pounded his chest with a thunderous sound to express his determination.

After that, the two chatted for a while, and to help Tadokoro Mieko ease her tension, Shiroyuki brewed a pot of tea and drank it.

The two were in the hotel lobby, where many other travelers were also present.

They were all quite surprised to see this, as many of them had personally witnessed Wang Zhi challenging Bai Yuan to a food battle.

Have you given up? Is that why you're wallowing in self-pity here?

But it didn't seem like it. The boy's face held a smile, showing no sign of dejection. If that were the case, he must not take his opponent seriously.

This news was leaked by someone, I don't know who.

The words finally reached Wang Zhi's ears, causing him to let out a cold laugh and say bluntly, "With such behavior, it's hard to imagine what kind of skilled chef the other party could be."

A truly skilled chef will give his all, even against the weakest opponent, instead of being indulgent and dismissive like Bai Yuan.

Instead of researching the recipes for the competition themselves, they handed them over to others, which is undoubtedly a major taboo in competitions.

After all, some dishes suit Tadokoro Megumi but not necessarily Hakubuchi; this is a difference in individuality caused by different upbringing.

I just hope they don't use that as an excuse when they lose in the end; that would be too embarrassing.

Wang Zhi shook his head, and his tense heart relaxed a lot.

He felt he had taken Bai Yuan too seriously. He felt he could win against such an opponent even if he had one hand to his head!

Zhuang Huiyuan.

After chatting with Mieko Tadokoro about funny things that happened when Megumi Tadokoro was a child, Shirabuchi glanced at the time on the wall and got up to go to the kitchen.

As soon as he stepped into the kitchen, a rich aroma of fried fish wafted into his nostrils. Looking down, he saw monkfish tempura that Tadokoro Megumi had placed on the stove.

Without much hesitation, I strode forward to the food stall, picked up some monkfish tempura, dipped it in sauce, and then closed my eyes to savor its flavor.

"Is it fish tail meat? Compared to other parts, fish tail meat has a firmer texture but lower fat content, resulting in a lighter taste."

Experiencing the wonderful texture of the fried monkfish tail tempura, Bai Yuan gave his evaluation.

"That's right. I also tried the fish back meat, fish cheek meat, and fish gill meat. These three have different textures and flavors. You can try them all on that plate over there."

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's voice, Tadokoro Megumi, who was focused on frying vegetable tempura, immediately turned around and pointed excitedly at the other parts.

She bought a lot of monkfish at the supermarket, all kinds of parts, but only a few parts tasted good when made into tempura.

Frying and stewing are completely different types of cooking.

Only by trying it yourself can you know the specific advantages and disadvantages and scores.

"Then there's the sauce, which is quite innovative. Does it combine monkfish liver with spices?"

Monkfish liver is rich in oil, and if not prepared properly, the sauce may be too greasy.

That makes sense, but you shouldn't add no oil at all, or only a very small amount of oil.

It takes time for the fat to render out of the liver. If no extra oil is added before that, it's like dry-frying the liver directly on a hot plate. This direct contact between the liver and the hot plate will severely affect its flavor.

The correct way is to add a suitable amount of oil to the pan, stir-fry the monkfish liver until melted, then pour out the excess oil. Next, add mirin, sake, and spices for seasoning. This will result in a richer, less greasy flavor.

Megumi Tadokoro's method likely involves using a very thin layer of oil to render the fat from the monkfish liver, then slowly frying it until it's broken up, before adding mirin, sake, and spices.

This method is fine for making soup base because the oil doesn't have a significant impact on the soup. The stir-fried monkfish liver is only used as the base of the soup, and the focus is still on the deliciousness of the fish meat.

It can be used as a sauce, or as a sauce to accompany tempura.

The importance of monkfish becomes apparent here; if it is not fried directly without adding enough oil, it will affect the balance of the sauce.

In addition, too many spices will mask the freshness of the fish liver, while too few will fail to enhance the overall flavor profile, which is a challenge.

"You didn't do this part well. The tempura was alright, and the combination of the two is considered delicious even in first-class cuisine, but it's far inferior to premium cuisine."

Bai Yuan gave an extremely fair assessment: the dish was only mediocre; the idea was good, but there were significant problems with its preparation.

However, considering that this was Tadokoro Megumi's first time making tempura sauce, these mistakes are understandable and forgivable.

These mistakes could be corrected after numerous attempts, but the opponent clearly didn't give them that much time.

"It's getting late. The competition starts in two hours. Leave the rest to me. I'll show you what the final product of this dish will look like."

Because his opponent was a top-tier four-star chef, Bai Yuan did not underestimate his opponent.

Although he was allowed to study the cooking techniques and refine them, refinement takes time, and a hasty approach could only produce dishes that were at best luminous.

To transition from luminous to flowing light, meticulous attention to detail is required; the slightest mistake will render the entire process impossible.

Therefore, Bai Yuan definitely needs to polish this monkfish tempura before the competition. If he only makes a glowing dish during the competition and becomes just like Wang Zhi, then how can he be shameless?

Bai Yuan mentally complained, but his hands didn't stop moving. He quickly took Tadokoro Megumi's place and started busying himself in the kitchen.

Even though her spot was taken, Tadokoro Megumi didn't sit idle. She actively assisted from the side while observing Shiro's movements and secretly memorizing them.

Both were trying it for the first time, but Bai Yuan's cooking experience was clearly far superior to hers. Even though he only knew the principle, he could make glowing dishes as soon as he got started.

In just over ten minutes, Bai Yuan was simultaneously frying monkfish tempura and preparing a sauce with monkfish liver, focusing on a two-pronged approach.

He knew his time was limited and wanted to try as many dishes as possible and control the details during this time, so he needed to go all out!

As for why he didn't use the Silver Chopsticks Ten-Pot Return technique, one reason is that this technique can only cook in a general way, and another reason is that he needs to improve the precision of cooking.

He prepared the first dish according to Tadokoro Megumi's research, without making any major changes, only adjusting some details.

"It's done, try it."

As he spoke, Bai Yuan placed the freshly made monkfish tempura in front of Tadokoro Megumi. The golden and crispy outer layer shimmered enticingly under the light, glowing with a faint, flowing light.

Megumi Tadokoro carefully picked up a piece, dipped it in a sauce made with monkfish liver and spices, and put it in her mouth.

Instantly, her taste buds were enveloped by a rich, savory aroma. The tempura's outer layer was perfectly crispy, making a slight "crunch" sound when bitten into, as if it exploded in her mouth.