Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

　A cold voice came from the direction of the seating area. Everyone turned their attention to it and saw that it was a little girl with blonde hair. They were immediately ready to make a sarcastic remark.

　Just then, someone noticed that a tall, burly man was sitting next to the blonde girl.

　The man noticed their situation, and with just one glance, the man who had been gossiping earlier felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, his face twitching slightly. In the end, he could only lower his head and whisper, "I'm sorry."

　Only after hearing his apology did Lia withdraw her gaze with satisfaction. Seeing that she had withdrawn her gaze, Bai Yuan also withdrew his gaze and focused his attention on the stage.

　At this moment, the man who had previously said that Wang Qing won because of the judges' favoritism was now panting heavily, his face still showing signs of shock.

　The feeling I just experienced was like being targeted by a lion or tiger in the wild.

　How could a man have such a dangerous look in his eyes?!

　Meanwhile, the competition has entered the stage of drawing themes.

　Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri stood facing each other, both appearing relaxed.

　After all, they know each other very well, and the two have sparred quite a bit on a regular basis. So far, Erina Nakiri has only won against Alice Nakiri three times, while Alice Nakiri has won against Erina Nakiri more than a hundred times, showing a clear difference in their strength.

　However, even knowing that her chances of winning were slim, Erina Nakiri was determined to give it a try. Her eyes burned with fierce fighting spirit as she saw just how far she could go.

　"The theme for this round is the random blind box challenge!"

　After the host finished speaking, the room fell into a brief silence.

　Although the audience was prepared, they still looked at each other with questions when they heard the theme. Some of them didn't know the true meaning of the theme.

　"Blind boxes? How come there are blind boxes in a cooking competition?"

　"So, are you suggesting we let the contestants draw a dish as a prize? Wouldn't that be redundant? After all, the theme of this competition is drawing a prize."

　"I don't understand, where are the judges? Judges, come out and explain!"

　The phrase "random blind box challenge," usually found in shopping mall advertisements, has now appeared in a cooking competition, immediately sparking heated discussions among the participants.

　Even Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri on the field looked completely bewildered.

　What exactly is this topic?!

Chapter 277 Theme: Random Blind Box Cuisine

　"Ahem, let this old man explain it to you."

　As the atmosphere grew increasingly heated, Zhang Zhong stood up from the judges' panel, and a drone hovered in front of him at just the right moment.

　The audience followed the sound with curious expressions.

　"In the semi-finals, the judges were changed again, but that old man has a high status in the Fujian Culinary Association. He was there from beginning to end."

　Looking at the constantly changing judges on the judging panel, and Zhang Zhong who remained unchanged, Bai Yuan couldn't help but complain.

　"Who are the other two? They look to be in their seventies or eighties. Can they still eat? Could they be hidden chefs from Fujian?"

　While Bai Yuan focused his attention on Zhang Zhong, Liya looked at the other two judges.

　Although they didn't speak, just sitting there, they exuded an indescribable aura, making people subconsciously feel that they were not simple.

　It's a strange feeling; even though there's no basis for it, I still have this thought.

　Only someone who has held a high position for a long time can possess such an aura and give off such a feeling; he is probably a true high-ranking member of the Fujian Kitchenware Association.

　"Don't worry about it too much. We'll introduce him when the competition starts. Let's hear Zhang Zhong's explanation of the theme first: Random Blind Box Challenge."

　Bai Yuan's gaze remained fixed on Zhang Zhong, waiting for him to explain the topic. Seeing that the atmosphere was just right, Zhang Zhong stopped keeping him in suspense and picked up the microphone to begin his explanation.

　"The so-called random blind box challenge is that both contestants draw a main ingredient from a blind box by opening it."

　After drawing the main ingredients, a second blind box is opened to reveal the preparation method, thus completing an original dish.

　After saying this, Zhang Zhong put down the microphone and waited quietly for the audience's reaction.

　"Simply put, it's about using blind boxes to draw ingredients, using that as a theme, and then restricting the production method using blind boxes, right?"

　"That's probably the case. It sounds quite interesting, and the requirement is for original dishes, which obviously requires the chef to have a deep understanding of the cuisine."

　"I'm really looking forward to it! Don't wait any longer, let the competition begin!"

　After receiving the explanation, the audience members chatted with their friends or strangers, and everyone's face was filled with joy and anticipation.

　Such a creative theme poses a huge challenge to both the chef's skills and thinking; it's a mystery who came up with it.

　"Now, please come up to the stage to draw the main ingredient."

　As they spoke, Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri exchanged a glance, strode towards the stage, and began to draw blind boxes containing the main ingredients.

　The so-called blind boxes were actually a bunch of boxes, which were carried onto the competition venue one by one by the staff for Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri to choose from.

　"this..."

　Looking at the dazzling array of boxes with different patterns in front of them, the two of them didn't know what to say for a moment and paced back and forth in front of the boxes.

　“I choose this.”

　Finally, Erina Nakiri stopped in front of the third box, recalling the way the staff had moved the box earlier.

　It can be confirmed that the first, fourth, and fifth boxes are relatively light, while the rest are relatively heavy.

　In terms of ingredients, if they are relatively light in weight, they are most likely vegetables, fruits, and grains.

　Conversely, meat, root vegetables, and some dairy products are also acceptable.

　Compared to the former, Erina Nakiri was more skilled at cooking the latter's ingredients, so she decisively chose the third box from the top.

　"Okay, please select the blind box with the cooking method."

　Seeing this, the staff nodded slightly, lifted the box that Erina Nakiri had chosen, and gently placed it on the table next to her.

　After doing all that, he led Erina Nakiri to another row of smaller blind boxes, which contained instructions on how to cook their dishes.

　"Let's go with the third one."

　As for cooking methods, Erina Nakiri had no more skills to distinguish them, and hesitation was of no use, so she decisively chose the matching blind box.

　Choose early and start early; only with enough time can you arrive at more answers.

　This is Erina Nakiri's understanding of the theme of this blind box.

　"Eel, stir-fried vegetables."

　After choosing the blind box, Erina Nakiri did not hesitate and opened it in front of everyone, with a drone in the sky capturing the scene.

　The large blind box contained a pot of fresh eel, also known as yellow eel. It is a type of eel with flesh rich in glutamic acid, similar to eel but with a richer flavor and a natural "wild" sweetness.

　Fresh eels have a milder fishy smell, but if they are not handled properly or are not fresh enough, the muddy smell will be more obvious, which requires a high level of skill from the chef.

　"Eel and stir-fried vegetables, a typical Chinese cooking method. Unfortunately, my understanding of Chinese cuisine is not thorough, but at least it was a relatively good start."

　Satisfied with her ingredients, Erina Nakiri turned her gaze to Alice not far away, who was still making her selections with an exceptionally serious expression.

　During this period she

　She even tried to reach out and tap the box to see what was inside, but was stopped by the staff member next to her.

　"The fourth one and the fifth one after that."

　"Keep picking and choosing will only waste time," Alice Nakiri said, straightening her back as the staff brought her the ingredients she had selected.

　The next moment, Alice Nakiri also opened the blind box in front of everyone, and an extremely thin and long object appeared in the sky.

　"What is this?"

　The audience members were filled with deep confusion as they looked at the contents of the blind boxes.

　Because the ingredients inside the blind boxes were completely unfamiliar to them; they looked somewhat like animal tails, but with distinct differences.

　Even Alice Nakiri herself was somewhat confused at this moment, shaking the ingredient in front of her from side to side, feeling that it looked like oxtail but the texture was not.

　"It's actually beef jerky! This really is a blind box; they even put ingredients like this inside."

　In the audience, Bai Yuan looked at the ingredients in Nakiri Alice's hands with a subtle expression.

　Not only would Alice Nakiri not recognize this thing, but probably only a few people at the scene would know it, and they're probably trying so hard not to laugh that they're internally injured, since very few people cook dishes using this part of the body.

　Anyone who can cook something delicious is at least a top-notch chef.

　"There is information about the ingredients next to it."

　The person speaking was a staff member. She was also curious about what the ingredients in front of her were, so she peeked at the description in the blind box and blushed with embarrassment, looking at Nakiri Alice with a sympathetic expression.

　"Bull's...rich in protein, collagen..."

　Following the staff's gaze, there was a piece of paper under the box, which contained a long introduction to the ingredient, beef offal. Upon seeing the first sentence, Alice Nakiri couldn't hold back her excitement.

　Why did Erina Nakiri get the eel, while she got the bull?

　"Wait, there's also the method."

　Suppressing the frustration rising in her heart, Alice Nakiri looked at the second blind box.

　She prayed inwardly that nothing went wrong and that a conventional cooking method would be fine, otherwise she really wouldn't know how to handle the beef tendon.

　"The cooking method is braising."

　Upon hearing her words, the staff member stepped forward to help her open the blind box, placed the slip of paper inside in front of her, and explained the limited recipe for the dish.

　Upon hearing the words "braised," Alice Nakiri felt much relieved; at least she could manage to make it.

　However, there is still one difficulty.

　That is the originality of the cuisine.

　For beef tripe, an ingredient very high in collagen, stewing, braising, and stir-frying are the most basic cooking methods. Creating something original in these dishes is no easy feat.

　However, since things have come to this, she can only take it one step at a time.

　Thinking of this, Alice Nakiri once again straightened her head and puffed out her chest.

　At the same time, she decided in her heart that after this competition, she would make this dish for Bai Yuan so that he could have some nourishment.

　Otherwise, spending every day among flowers will eventually ruin your health.

　"The ingredients and cooking methods for the competition have been determined. There is no limit to the funds available. Contestants are requested to purchase the necessary ingredients from the market and prepare their dishes."

　At the same time, the host's voice rang out, and her expression as she looked at the beef brisket at Alice Nakiri's cooking station was also quite subtle.

　It's hard to imagine that such ingredients would appear in a competition that would be broadcast live.

　The world is a huge makeshift operation.