Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

As the host specially selected by Food Wars for today, he has extremely strong hosting skills and is also a second-class chef.

Faced with Jancis's actions, he skillfully analyzed his thoughts and acted as an interpreter.

"Fish burgers? That's a niche type. The texture of the burger patty can determine the success or failure of a burger. Using halibut to make burgers results in a fresher taste compared to meat burgers. The key is to perfectly showcase the flavor of the ingredients."

Chihiro Natsume lowered her crossed legs, switched to the other leg, and watched Jesse bring various ingredients back to the kitchen counter, offering her comments.

As expected of a master chef, the side ingredients he selected were all fresh vegetables, which means that this burger is meant to express the feeling brought by natural scenery!

"It looks pretty good, but unlike Chef Jancis's work which is easy to understand, that little girl seems a bit clueless about what she's doing."

Chihiro Orie nodded in agreement, then turned her gaze to Nakiri Alice, who had been adjusting the machine since earlier, with only a bag of high-gluten flour on the counter.

Are you planning to use this bag of high-gluten flour to make hamburgers? What about the other ingredients...?

"Hum hum"

Humming a lighthearted tune, and looking at the fully tuned machine, Alice Nakiri walked to the counter.

All the onlookers saw her pour out most of the high-gluten flour, add salt and sugar and stir well. She then made a small well in the middle, poured in yeast powder dissolved in warm water, emulsifier and enzyme preparation, and then added a whole egg and butter.

Next comes the power of rotation!

Although Alice Nakiri did not learn the White Serpent Chain Spinning Technique.

However, after so much training, she still knows how to use the power of rotation, and has even mastered a slightly weaker level of technique.

Rotating and kneading techniques!

"Hey!"

With a soft shout, Alice Nakiri tossed the well-mixed dough into the air and used the strength of her wrists and arms to quickly spin it.

The dough didn't touch the palms; it kept spinning on the wrists and arms, sometimes turning into a ball, sometimes flattening.

With continuous rotation, the various ingredients inside blended perfectly together and were kneaded into a smooth dough in no time.

Although the final effect is not as good as the White Snake Chain Spin, it is still a very high-level technique. In Japan, it would be hailed as the "Dough Master" by netizens.

This trick makes the dough fluffy and soft, so it won't soften or collapse even after two or three days.

"It's started! Such skillful technique! The dough is so obedient in her hands, like a doll. Could it be that her specialty is pasta dishes?"

Alice Nakiri's extremely skillful movements caught the attention of Orie Chihaya. Watching her superb performance, her mouth involuntarily opened slightly, clearly surprised.

"it is good!"

"That's amazing! This skill is definitely top-notch! I've never seen a first-class chef so skilled at kneading dough!"

"To be able to keep the dough spinning around your wrist and arm without it falling is an amazing skill!"

Someone exclaimed in praise, and the audience instantly erupted in a flurry of chatter.

There's no other reason than that her technique was simply too ingenious. The dough was actually jumping around on her wrist. Everyone thought it would definitely fall, but from beginning to end, the dough remained firmly in Alice Nakiri's hand.

After kneading the dough, Alice Nakiri did not rush to process the ingredients, but instead took the dough to the molecular gastronomy machine.

After operating the machine for a while, a drawer-like space popped out, and she put the dough in her hand inside.

"Is this... a way to speed up fermentation?"

Watching her actions, Chihiro Natsume pinched her chin and pondered. Controlling the temperature was indeed a good way to get the dough to rise to the right state.

"I see. It seems the purpose of this machine is to refine and systematize cooking. As long as every detail of the dish is perfected, the taste will never be bad!"

Beside her, Chihiro Orie heard her older sister Chihiro Natsume's words and a look of sudden realization appeared on her face. So that's what the machine was for!

"This is a low-temperature fermentation technology. By controlling the fermentation temperature and time, the dough ferments slowly at a lower temperature, resulting in a more complex aroma and a more delicate texture."

This method helps reduce the yeasty taste in bread and makes it softer. What an ingenious chef! No wonder he's his apprentice!

Just as the two were discussing, Lancy Jon, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, looking at Alice Nakiri with admiration in his eyes.

As he spoke, he looked up at Bai Yuan, who was standing with his arms crossed. This guy was truly unfathomable! Even his disciple was of such a high level.

"Apprentice? Is that little girl someone's apprentice? Judging from your tone, could she be some highly skilled, top-tier chef?"

Lancy Jon's words instantly ignited Chihiro Natsume's gossip-loving heart. In front of the old man, she dared not put on airs as the Curry Queen, and asked in a gentle and delicate tone like a little girl.

"Hahaha! He probably doesn't want to reveal his name, so please allow me to keep you in suspense for now. You'll find out in the future."

Lancy Jon shook his head. In his opinion, Bai Yuan's refusal to accept his offer proved that he was indifferent to fame and fortune.

Therefore, he will not easily disclose his personal information without his permission.

"Hmm, you're even playing mysterious, you've piqued everyone's curiosity. Just tell us already."

Chihiro Orie also chimed in, showing no restraint in acting cute when facing a man old enough to be their grandfather.

“Please spare me, otherwise he might blame me next time we meet. Once I get his permission, I will introduce you to him.”

Lancy Jon shook his head with a smile, speaking with great integrity.

Seeing that they couldn't get any information out of her, Chihiro Natsume and Chihiro Orie could only purse their lips and continue to look at the competition venue.

Chapter 55 A Feast of Umami

"Jesse has begun."

With the flour on the work surface, add the yeast water and eggs, and Jancis begins to knead the dough.

He kneaded the dough to the optimal stage for fermentation. Although he didn't display any special skills like Alice Nakiri, his foundation was very solid.

Kneading dough again and again was a testament to his hard work during his youth. Although he is arrogant now, Jesse was a very honest guy when he was young.

Meticulous in his actions and diligent in his work, he was almost a carbon copy of Toth. At the time, he was also named one of the top ten outstanding young chefs in Britain. Because his childhood sweetheart loved to eat fish, he devoted himself to studying fish dishes, and before he knew it, he had become a master chef.

As for when he started looking like this, Jancis couldn't remember. Perhaps it was on the day his childhood sweetheart and best friend got married, or perhaps it was during the monotonous days and nights of his life.

He may have already died.

What lives on in the world now is merely his physical body.

After kneading the dough until it was basically shaped, Jesse slammed his fist into it, making it more elastic and resilient, as if venting the anger rising from the depths of his heart.

For some reason, under the spotlight, he suddenly recalled this painful memory; ten years had passed since that day...

"Ahhhh!"

Jesse's voice suddenly grew louder, and his fists rained down on the dough, constantly squeezing and deforming it before returning it to its original state.

"Jersey is using the power of his fists to pound the dough! This makes the dough more elastic and improves the texture of the bread. It's a great kneading technique."

Having already witnessed Alice Nakiri's incredible dough-kneading skills, the host seemed uninterested in introducing Jessie's impressive techniques, even though they were quite impressive in general.

Compared to Alice, this dough-kneading technique is far inferior in terms of both performance and practicality!

Soon, the dough became pliable and elastic under Jesse's constant pounding, and then it was covered with a large bowl, allowing it to slowly expand in the darkness.

After the dough is ready, all that's left is to cook the hamburger patties.

As another signature dish of the [Nuoyu] restaurant, this dish is naturally of the highest quality, mainly using halibut, shrimp, and squid.

The halibut meat is precisely cut off and then marinated with salt for a base flavor.

Remove the shrimp veins and mince the shrimp into shrimp paste. Add diced squid to enhance the texture. Season simply and freeze to set and lock in the moisture.

Place the marinated halibut meat on a cutting board, then pipe the frozen shrimp paste and squid cubes onto it using a piping bag, folding it in half to form a wrapped shape.

And so, a hamburger patty with a hidden surprise is complete.

Wrap the hamburger patty in plastic wrap to set its shape. If it's made like the restaurant's signature dish, you must keep it in the refrigerator until it's completely set. Then cut it into small pieces, place them on a plate filled with sauce, and garnish with smoked eel eel sauce to give it a final layer of flavor.

But now, looking at the halibut meat cake wrapped in a plastic bag, Jesses simply placed it in a cool place and then began to prepare the outer coating. Usually, breadcrumbs are used, but he wanted to do something different today!

Watching Alice Nakiri humming and slurping, her face relaxed as she simmered the broth and prepared the sea bass, Jesse's lips curled into a smile.

This little girl thinks she can beat him?

impossible! Absolutely impossible!

He'd stake his reputation as a top-tier chef on winning this competition. He wanted to show his senior brother that he, Jesse, wasn't a waste! He was a genius!

"Both sides use fish? That's a bit surprising, but if they're both fish burgers, the contrast is even more obvious."

Chihiro Natsume touched the corner of her mouth with her finger and watched Nakiri Alice leisurely cooking. Her expression was somewhat disappointed. She had thought that this girl would give her a surprise after she had performed so well.

While the fish burger was decent, it ultimately fell short, not breaking out of the realm of conventional cuisine, and the taste was probably similar to the others.

"Even though they're both fish burgers, a burger made with precise proportions is definitely better than one made based on a chef's experience. This large, high-precision machine isn't just for show; perhaps the essence of molecular gastronomy is refined scientific cooking!"

Chihiro Orie said this, clearly indicating that she favored Nakiri Alice more than the other. There was no other reason; she just had a strange feeling that Alice would win.

She has always trusted her intuition.

"Keep watching, this competition is much more interesting than you think! Molecular gastronomy is also more interesting than I expected."

Watching the two contestants cook and listening to the two sisters' discussion beside her, Lancy Jon's eyes occasionally flashed with a sharp light. She was sure she had made the right choice by coming to this competition.

Everything related to that guy is complicated!

With such a brilliant chef, how could his apprentices possibly be mediocre?

Lancy Jon thought to himself, then looked at the preparation area, where Bai Yuan had been standing there since the beginning, like a wooden or stone sculpture.

Such perseverance...

Time ticked by, and the audience watched Jancis intently as his hamburger-making process came to an end.

The hamburger buns were already emitting a rich aroma from the oven, and he was currently frying fish fillets.

"It smells so good, um...could it be..."

The rich fragrance in the air made Chihiro Natsume raise an eyebrow in surprise, her cheeks flushing slightly. This scent...

"That's right, it's persimmon seeds. He was busy with this in the wok just now, and then he used a rolling pin to crush them into small pieces and wrap them around the fried fish fillets."

At this moment, Lancy Jon spoke up, taking over what Chihiro Natsume was about to say.

I have to say, Jancis has a lot of ideas. Using persimmon seeds as a coating for fried fish fillets must have a unique texture and flavor.

I'm really looking forward to the taste of this burger!

On the other side, at Jancis's cooking station.

Quickly place the stuffed fish fillets, coated with small pieces of persimmon seeds, into the boiling oil. After they have set slightly, remove them, let them cool, and then deep-fry them a second time.

This ensures the crispiness of the fish fillet, reduces its oil content, and enhances its color and aroma.