Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

"Read more books related to cooking? Oh, I see, I understand now."

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Huang Mei revealed a thoughtful expression.

However, the leader truly lives up to his title. Even with such talent, he continues to study diligently without any relaxation, striving to become stronger in his own way.

"Try this Boletus luridus, it tastes amazing! These are all miracles of nature!"

As they spoke, Bai Yuan picked up a piece of green tea and handed it to Huang Mei, his voice filled with admiration.

"The texture is quite unique, somewhat like tender beef, but more like the firm texture of chicken gizzard. You can clearly feel the elasticity of the mushroom meat when you chew it!"

Seeing the Bodhi seed placed in the bowl, Huang Mei's eyes lit up after taking just one small bite.

"This is a delicacy that people in Yunnan would rather be poisoned than not try. Its taste is unique, and it is richer in guanylic acid and glutamic acid than other mushrooms!"

Furthermore, because it is rich in natural oils, it releases a nutty aroma similar to almonds and pine nuts after stewing. Especially when cooked with lard and Jinhua ham as the soup base, the mushrooms absorb the oil and become even more succulent and tender.

Of course, the broth made with free-range chicken, old duck, and ham can achieve the same effect.

The mushrooms made this soup, and the soup, in turn, made the mushrooms. Their synergy is key to a dish reaching its highest quality.

Bai Yuan was also eating, his voice tinged with emotion.

The richness of the broth and the umami of the mushrooms are inseparable.

"That makes sense! Not just Boletus luridus, but also Termitomyces albuminosus and morels are all so delicious! I feel like I can't stop eating them!"

Huang Mei puffed out her cheeks and mumbled indistinctly, her eyes filled with longing for the mushrooms.

"Add some shrimp paste, high-calcium mutton, and a broth infused with the umami flavor of mushrooms to make the ingredients even more delicious."

As Bai Yuan spoke, he added ingredients, and soon the pot was overflowing. His eyes were completely fixed on the food, not on Huang Mei.

"The tripe is cooked seven or eight times, and when paired with an oil dipping sauce or sesame sauce, the taste is absolutely amazing!"

As Bai Yuan explained the procedure, the beef tripe was put into the pot seven times, rising and falling continuously. After being taken out, it was placed in a bowl of sesame paste, stirred evenly, and then put into the mouth. The taste was simply too satisfying!

"Indeed, tripe with sesame sauce is the best!"

Huang Mei excitedly agreed, and the dishes on the table quickly disappeared with their combined efforts.

The meal officially ended only when Bai Yuan placed the last piece of mutton into his bowl.

"I'm so full!"

After a hearty meal and plenty of water, Huang Mei touched her noticeably larger belly and showed a satisfied expression. Anyone who didn't know her would think she was two months pregnant.

"Let's rest for a while before going back."

Looking at the girl's appearance, and thinking that it wouldn't be good to exercise right after a meal, he sat in his original spot, intending to rest for half an hour before going back.

"Chief, do you know any methods to quickly increase strength?"

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Huang Mei suddenly looked at him and asked this question.

"A quick way to improve your strength?"

If it were someone else, I would advise them to solidify their foundation, but if it were you, I suggest you participate in more competitions and improve through matches.

That's right, the ways in which geniuses and ordinary people improve are different.

If ordinary people don't lay a solid foundation and instead aim too high all day, they'll never have the chance to become a master chef.

However, for geniuses, wasting a lot of time on basics is undoubtedly a waste of life.

They can master the basics in real combat, which is several times more effective than training in private.

"Should I participate in more competitions? I've had similar thoughts, but there are so few competitions in Japan that I don't have any way to participate."

Huang Mei pursed her lips slightly. She had thought about what Bai Yuan said, but there were really very few competitions in Japan.

At least not this year.

"Field training is also a kind of competition, and those who lose the competition will be expelled from school."

You've probably noticed it lately, right? Under pressure, your control over cooking has improved to a whole new level.

Bai Yuan's voice was calm, which was one of the reasons he stayed in Totsuki. Its extensive teaching activities allowed students to quickly become stronger.

In addition, abundant social resources are something that the dark cuisine industry currently lacks.

“You’re right. I remember when I first came to the shop, I took every wagashi (Japanese sweets) very seriously, striving to make each one the best it could be.”

Later, as the number of customers increased and the demand grew, I was forced to speed up, developing a kind of intuitive reflexes.

Thinking about her experiences over this period, Huang Mei's voice was filled with emotion.

The increase in speed did not lead to a decrease in quality; on the contrary, when she started to focus on speed, the previously stable quality began to rise.

It's very puzzling.

Why is something meticulously crafted still inferior to something hastily made?

"It's a bit like painting. When you get too fixated on a detail, even if you do that detail perfectly, it can't be called a qualified painting."

Hearing Huang Mei's sentiments, Bai Yuan thought for a moment and then explained.

"Wouldn't it be better to polish every detail to the same degree?"

"The problem is, it's impossible."

Looking at Huang Mei's innocent expression, Bai Yuan patted her head, paused, and then said, "You need to know that a person's energy is limited."

If you focus solely on one aspect from the beginning, even if you have the ability to draw other areas to the same level, the excessive complexity will cause you to lose patience as you progress, leading you to settle for less.

For a professional chef, perfecting a detail is not difficult.

But to polish every detail to perfection requires a great deal of patience and ten or even a hundred times more time.

That's too long for a dish.

"This situation can indeed occur."

As the evening breeze blew into the shop, Huang Mei got up and sat down next to Bai Yuan, her expression unusually serious.

"Furthermore, there is coordination. If you do one part very well, but other parts are not quite right, or even not up to standard."

This situation is commonly referred to as "gilding the lily," which, as you can imagine, isn't a compliment.

As he spoke, Bai Yuan looked at Huang Mei.

"What you say makes sense, but what does that have to do with making food of higher quality by speeding up the cooking process...?"

Upon hearing Bai Yuan's words, Huang Mei fell into thought and only looked up after a long while.

She realized that their conversation had gone a bit off track.

To be honest, she still doesn't understand.

"When demand is high, you don't have time to consider the details. So the cooking is done in a holistic way, and the flavors are more harmonious."

Do you know the Venus de Milo?

Seeing that Huang Mei still didn't quite understand, Bai Yuan suddenly thought of an excellent example.

"I've heard of it. It seems to be a very famous sculpture, but I don't know the specifics of what it depicts."

Before becoming a member of the dark cuisine world, Huang Mei was a fishmonger. Her family was poor, and she even dropped out of school before completing nine years of compulsory education to help support her family.

Bai Yuan didn't expect her to have heard it before, so he continued.

"The Venus de Milo is a famous ancient Greek marble statue and one of the most prized possessions of the Louvre Museum in France. It depicts Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, while the Roman goddess Venus corresponds to her."

But this seemingly perfect woman has a broken arm. Do you know why?

Bai Yuan deliberately kept Huang Mei in suspense to pique her interest.

"I don't know, maybe it was cut because it wasn't done well?"

Faced with Bai Yuan's question, Huang Mei was puzzled. Then, recalling what he had just said, she hesitated and began to guess.

"On the contrary, it was cut because it was done too well!"

Bai Yuan's voice suddenly rang out, revealing the truth about the Venus de Milo with the missing arms.

"Why should a well-carved piece be cut down?"

Huang Mei tilted her head, expressing her confusion.

Isn't good production an advantage? If it is an advantage, why destroy it?

"The story begins with the sculptor telling the story of how, after the statue was completed, it was customary to exhibit it outside the museum so that people would know about it and that it would be sold at a good price if it gained public recognition."

The sculptor did the same, but during the parade, he noticed that the residents' attention was focused on the statue's arms.

When asked why, they discovered that he had sculpted the hands so well that the public had overlooked the statue itself. The sculptor, seeing that his Venus, painstakingly sculpted over months, was inferior to the arms he had created in just a few days, angrily picked up an axe and chopped them off.

Later, people discovered that the Venus de Milo with her arms cut off was incredibly beautiful, even surpassing many statues with intact arms, and thus she was once again elevated to the status of a goddess...

Bai Yuan briefly introduced the story of the Venus de Milo, although it was just an unofficial history without any historical basis, it was just right to use it to advise Huang Mei.

Regardless of whether the story is true or not, as long as it works and is easy to use, that's all that matters.

"So, it can't be too bad, and it can't be perfect in only one aspect either. Only when all aspects are perfect can a top-grade dish be made?"

After listening to Bai Yuan's story, Huang Mei seemed to have a sudden realization and came to a conclusion.

"That's right. That's why you sped up the process and improved the quality of your cooking later on."

When you don't have as much time to pay attention to details, the dish becomes more cohesive than usual, and the flavors naturally become more harmonious.

"You've already gained a lot from this field training program; you've learned just that."

Because she is a self-taught cook, Huang Mei has always been meticulous about the details when it comes to cooking.

Her talent is truly astonishing; even when she focuses on the details, she can still maintain a high level of skill in cooking.

This is why she still hasn't realized that what she did was wrong.

Now, because the number of guests is gradually increasing.

She no longer had time to obsess over details like before, and began to focus on the overall composition of the dish. The results of doing so made her realize how wrong she had been before!

Chapter 314 Chinatown, Mito Ikumi in Trouble

"I see."

After listening to Bai Yuan's extremely detailed analysis, and considering her progress over this period, Huang Mei suddenly realized, as if she had had an epiphany, that this was the real reason for her progress.