Courtyard House: Become Stronger Through Blind Dates

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone in the hall sprang into action, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

He Yuzhu didn't rush to start, but first quickly glanced at the ingredients prepared on the worktable.

"Use chicken as the main ingredient..." He Yuzhu's brain was working at lightning speed.

There are so many common chicken dishes: Kung Pao Chicken, Spicy Chicken, Boiled Chicken, Braised Chicken Pieces, Chicken Stew with Mushrooms...

But this is a competition after all, and if you want to stand out, you need to think carefully.

His gaze fell on a small basket of fresh winter bamboo shoots and a few soaked shiitake mushrooms next to him, and an idea struck him.

Got it!

He Yuzhu immediately got to work, first breaking down the whole chicken, deboning the chicken breast and thigh meat, and putting the chicken carcass and scraps into a small pot, adding scallions, ginger and water to start making a simple broth.

Next, he sliced ​​the chicken breast into very thin slices, gently pounded it with the back of a knife, added salt, pepper, cooking wine, a little egg white, and starch, mixed it well to coat the chicken, and set it aside to marinate.

Then, he began to prepare the bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms, and also chopped some red pepper slices, scallion segments, ginger slices, and garlic slices as side ingredients.

His movements were fluid, precise, and without the slightest hesitation.

After the broth boils, reduce the heat to low and simmer. He Yuzhu then prepares the sauce: salt, sugar, pepper, cooking wine, a little soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar, then add an appropriate amount of water and cornstarch and mix well.

This is a common seasoning method used in Northern-style stir-fried dishes, emphasizing a salty, savory, and slightly sour flavor with a bright, glossy sauce.

Twenty minutes have passed...

Once the chicken slices were almost marinated and the broth had developed its flavor, he strained it out and set it aside.

Bring water to a boil in a pot, then reduce the heat to low. Gently add the marinated chicken slices one by one into the pot, separating them with chopsticks.

Once the chicken slices change color and set, immediately remove them and soak them in the prepared warm broth to keep them tender and allow them to absorb some of the umami flavor.

This step, called "nurturing," is key to making the chicken slices taste better.

In a separate wok, heat a small amount of mixed oil. When the oil is about 50% hot, add ginger and garlic slices and sauté until fragrant. Then add bamboo shoot slices, shiitake mushroom slices, and red bell pepper slices and stir-fry quickly.

After frying until fragrant, pour the chicken slices "nourished" in the soup along with a little broth into the pot, and quickly stir-fry evenly.

Next, pour the prepared cornstarch slurry along the edge of the wok, stir-fry quickly over high heat until the sauce thickens and coats all the ingredients evenly, making them glossy and firm. Finally, sprinkle in the chopped scallions, stir-fry a couple more times, and then plate it!

A dish of stir-fried chicken slices with winter bamboo shoots and shiitake mushrooms is now complete.

He Yuzhu glanced at the clock on the wall; it had taken thirty-eight minutes.

He breathed a sigh of relief, placed the dishes in the designated spot on the worktable, and waited for the staff to collect them for the judges to taste.

He finished his task, while many chefs were still busy wrapping up.

He Yuzhu glanced at Sun Decai, who was not far from him, and saw that he was making "Stir-fried Chicken with Soy Sauce", a classic dish in Shandong cuisine.

Sun Decai's forehead was covered in sweat as he barely managed to finish within the allotted time.

He paid a considerable price to get this spot.

Fortunately, he had learned his family's traditional Shandong cuisine before becoming Master Wu's apprentice, and after years of honing his skills, he can now be considered quite competent.

Soon, the staff began collecting the dishes from each preparation station in turn, numbering them, and sending them to the judges' table.

The judges then began to taste and score the food in turn.

He Yuzhu noticed that when Master Wang tasted his "Stir-fried Chicken Slices with Bamboo Shoots and Mushrooms", his eyes lit up, and after tasting it carefully, he actually frowned.

The other judges, however, all showed expressions of appreciation while tasting it.

After tasting the food, the judges exchanged a few words in hushed tones.

About fifteen minutes later, the leader in the Zhongshan suit went on stage again, holding a list and announcing the list of those who advanced in the first round.

"Based on the judges' overall scores, the following twenty contestants advance to the next round of the first round." The leader began reading out the contestants' numbers and the organizations they represented: "Number 3, Hongbinlou… Number 7, Quanjude… Number 15, Tongheju… Number 25, He Yuzhu, Dongfang Hotel…"

Upon hearing his number and name, He Yuzhu felt certain that he had advanced!

"Number 36, Sun Decai from Fengzeyuan..."

Sun Decai also advanced, but he didn't look too good.

Because he was the last one, he almost got eliminated.

Some contestants breathed a sigh of relief when their names were called, while others beamed with joy.

Those who weren't called on looked disappointed and began silently packing up their knives.

Around He Yuzhu, several veteran trainees who had been eliminated were looking at him with complicated expressions.

The fact that a young man had advanced to the next level left these veteran workers, who had spent half their lives in the profession, feeling quite uneasy.

Sun Decai had hoped to see He Yuzhu make a fool of himself, but not only did He Yuzhu not make a fool of himself, he also ranked quite high. It was Sun Decai who almost got eliminated.

He simply couldn't swallow this insult.

The leader announced: The advancing contestants will have half an hour to rest and prepare before the second round of the competition.

He Yuzhu walked to the rest area, poured himself a glass of water and drank it slowly, already thinking about what the second round of questions might be.

Just then, a voice rang out beside him: "Master He, that stir-fried chicken slices you just made were a really clever idea!"

He Yuzhu turned his head and saw a middle-aged chef who had been sitting at the counter diagonally opposite him. The chef had the words "Cuihualou" embroidered on his chest and had a kind face.

"You flatter me. I was lucky, very lucky," He Yuzhu said politely.

"My name is Cui Jianguo, from Cuihualou Restaurant," the middle-aged chef said with a smile. "Your knife skills aren't something you can learn by chance; you're a formidable young man!"

As the two were talking, Sun Decai walked over with a gloomy face and deliberately raised his voice to Cui Jianguo, saying, "Master Cui, don't be fooled by certain people."

"Hmph, who knows if he knew the questions beforehand? I do know that one of the judges is acquainted with his mentor, Chen Baoguo."

Cui Jianguo frowned but didn't reply.

He Yuzhu laughed and looked at Sun Decai slowly, saying, "Senior Brother Sun, what you're saying... I remember that among Master Wu's best Sichuan dishes, there isn't this Shandong dish?"

"You've only been there a few days, and your Shandong cuisine has already reached a level where you can compete? You have such great talent, does Chef Wu know?"

"You!" Sun Decai was hit where it hurt again, especially when he saw Cui Jianguo and several other chefs who were resting looking over, he was even more embarrassed.

He Yuzhu ignored him and turned to chat with Master Cui.

Seeing that the two completely ignored him, Sun Decai got angry and stormed off.

He secretly vowed that he would get his revenge in the second round and teach this arrogant brat a lesson.

The break time passed quickly, and the chief judge announced the questions for the second round of the competition.

"The challenge for the second round is: using the mysterious ingredient that the staff will soon distribute to you, you have fifty minutes to prepare a dish that highlights the flavor of that ingredient."

"Now, distribute the ingredients!"

Staff members pushed carts, delivering trays covered with white cloths to each contestant's worktable in turn.