Everyday Life Starting with Food Wars

As the staff opened the inner doors of the banquet hall, an atmosphere of luxury wafted out.

A huge crystal chandelier, various silver tableware on all the round tables in the hall, and even a small orchestra playing music in the center.

Although the students wanted to remain reserved, they couldn't help but swallow hard at the sight of the luxurious scene before them and began to look for places to sit.

Just as everyone in the Polaris Dormitory was immersed in joy, they followed the flow of people to find a place to sit, and finally chose a large round table against the wall.

Just as Chen Yuxing pulled out a chair to sit down, someone suddenly patted his shoulder.

"Chen Yuxing, come with me for a moment."

He turned around and saw that it was Dojima Gin standing behind him.

"What's wrong, is there something you need, Senior Dojima?" Chen Yuxing raised an eyebrow: "Hasn't the banquet already started? There can't be some separate assignment for me, can there?"

"Don't worry, it's not an assessment. Come out and talk." Dojima Gin tilted his head towards the outside of the hall, indicating that he wanted to speak privately.

The others in Polaris Dormitory also noticed the commotion.

With a fork dangling from his mouth, Yukihira Soma asked indistinctly, "Shin-chan, what does Dojima-senpai want with you?"

"I don't know either. You guys eat first, I'll go check on the situation." Chen Yuxing waved his hand.

Xiao Hui looked at him with some concern: "Ah Xing, are you really alright?"

"Don't worry, what could possibly happen? We've already passed the test." Chen Yuxing smiled, turned around, and followed Dojima Gin out of the hall.

The two walked through the corridor to a relatively quiet terrace outside the banquet hall.

Dojima Gin leaned against the railing, looking Chen Yuxing up and down.

"After these few days of intense training, and all those breakfasts this morning, you still have so much energy." Dojima Gin's tone was full of undisguised admiration. "I originally thought you would be as tired as those students, unable to even stand up. But it seems you still have plenty of energy."

"It's alright." Chen Yuxing leaned against the side. "Just say what you want to say. You didn't call me out just to praise me, did you?"

"Would you be interested in having a little competition with Shinomiya in the kitchen?" Dojima Gin stopped beating around the bush and asked directly.

"With Chef Shinomiya?" Chen Yuxing was taken aback for a moment, then rolled his eyes. "But shouldn't this be our students' break time? The assessment is over, why should I find something to do for myself?"

"It's not a food war, just a private little sparring match." Dojima Gin seemed to have anticipated his refusal and then offered his bargaining chip, "And the dishes you both make will be served at tonight's dinner for the students. Of course, you won't be working for free; regardless of the outcome, Totsuki Resort will pay you as a 'special guest chef.' And—"

Dojima Gin paused for a moment, then said, "If you win, in addition to the reward, you'll also receive a recipe that Shinomiya himself developed as a prize for the winner. How about that?"

Monetary reward and Shinomiya Kojiro's recipe?

Chen Yuxing stroked his chin. To be honest, the reward was quite tempting. He was indeed a bit short of money, and the idea of ​​getting a recipe from a chef who had won the Order of the Purouspool in Paris, France, sounded pretty good.

Just as Chen Yuxing was thinking, a "ding" sounded in his mind.

The long-dormant "Book of Cookery" was suddenly turned to pages.

[Side quest triggered: A sparring invitation from a graduate of Totsuki Academy.]

[Mission Objective: Defeat Shinomiya Kojiro in a private cooking competition.]

[Mission Reward: Unlock new recipe - Chou Farci (French-style Braised Cabbage Rolls)]

"French-style stewed cabbage rolls?" Chen Yuxing's mind immediately started working when he saw this. This was one of Shinomiya Kojiro's signature dishes, and if he could beat Shinomiya Kojiro, he could get another copy of the recipe from him. It was a win-win situation, and there was no penalty for losing.

“Okay.” Chen Yuxing straightened up, his previous listlessness vanished, and he became sharp. “Since Chief Dojima has invited me, as a junior, I can’t refuse.”

"Follow me." Dojima Gin patted his shoulder with satisfaction, then turned and led the way.

The two passed through several doors and arrived at a huge kitchen behind the banquet hall.

The kitchen was bustling with activity at that moment.

"Hurry up! Do I need to remind you about the heat of the sauce over there?!" Kakuzaki Taki directed several Totsuki employees.

"Oh my, this piece of meat is fried so beautifully." Hinako Inui hummed a song as she flipped the meat in the pan.

The other graduates were also busy at their respective cooking stations.

When they saw Chen Yuxing follow Dojima Gin in, everyone in the kitchen paused and looked over in surprise.

"Oh my? Isn't this Chen Yuxing? What are you doing in the kitchen?" Inui Hinako approached with a smile: "Could it be that you couldn't wait and wanted to eat right away in the kitchen?"

"Hinako, stop fooling around." Mizuhara Fuyumi pulled Hinako back without expression.

"Dojima-senpai, why did you bring this brat in?" Kakuzaki Taki frowned.

“Someone specifically requested him to come.” Dojima Gin smiled and then pointed to the figure standing at the innermost cooking station.

Following Dojima Gin's finger, everyone looked over and saw Shinomiya Kojiro with his back to them, intently processing the ingredients on the counter with a knife.

Hearing the noise behind him, Shinomiya Kojiro stopped what he was doing and turned around.

"It seems you've accepted my challenge." Shinomiya Kojiro pushed up his glasses and looked at Chen Yuxing.

"Sinomiya-senpai's invitation is so kind, and there's even an appearance fee and your recipe to take. How could I possibly refuse?" Chen Yuxing walked to the kitchen counter opposite Sinomiya, skillfully washed his hands at the sink, and then picked up a clean white apron and tied it around his waist.

The moment Chen Yuxing put on his apron, his lazy demeanor vanished, replaced by that of a serious chef.

"This kid's eyes... they've really become quite serious." Donato stopped what he was doing and came closer with interest.

"So Shinomiya called Dojima-senpai out to have a private match with this first-year student?" Mizuhara Fuyumi also put down what she was doing, a hint of surprise on her usually expressionless face. "Shinomiya, have you fallen so low that you need to find validation from your junior?"

"Shut up, Mizuhara." Shinomiya glared at her irritably, then looked at Chen Yuxing. "Alright, time is limited. Those kids outside are waiting to eat. The rules of the competition are simple: make a dish that satisfies everyone present. Whoever's dish can win over more people wins."

“No problem.” Chen Yuxing walked to the kitchen counter and glanced at the various ingredients on it.

Shinomiya picked up a washed carrot and tossed it in his hand: "Let me see just how good this student, on whom Mr. Dojima and the headmaster of the academy have placed such high hopes, really is."

Chen Yuxing didn't answer, but instead took a small jar out of his pocket.

The moment the jar was opened, a very strong fermented smell wafted out.

"What's that smell? It's so strong." Guan Shouping's squinting eyes snapped open. "This is... old dough?"

It was the Shu Han Old Noodles that Chen Yuxing had obtained before. He had only briefly tested it at the Polar Star Lodge before putting it away and hadn't used it since except for feeding it regularly. It was just the right time to take it out and actually use it for this competition.

The dish he planned to make was the Soul-Suppressing Noodles he had obtained before. He wanted to try and see if he could recreate the legendary noodle dish from "Cooking Master Boy".

The most distinctive feature of this noodle dish, invented by the noodle king Logan, is that the entire bowl of noodles is made up of a single noodle!

Moreover, eating this noodle dish has a wonderful effect of calming the mind and soothing agitated emotions.

Chen Yuxing pinched off a small piece of Shu Han old dough, put it in a basin, and poured in high-gluten flour and an appropriate amount of warm water.

He dipped his hands into the basin and began to thoroughly mix the old dough and the new flour.

Chen Yuxing took a deep breath and put his hands into the basin.

While waiting for the dough to begin to take shape, Chen Yuxing grabbed the dough, which weighed about five or six pounds, with both hands and pulled it out of the basin!

"brush--!"

He flung the huge lump of dough into the air in one go.

The dough was stretched in mid-air, and Chen Yuxing's right arm muscles tensed instantly. Then, he began to violently spin the dough in his hand in mid-air at an incredible frequency and angle!

The dough stretched and tugged in the air as Chen Yuxing increased his speed, even producing a whooshing sound.

Under the influence of centrifugal force, the dough, like a living white python, twisted, coiled, stretched, and folded wildly in Chen Yuxing's hands!

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

Chen Yuxing channeled all his strength through his upper and lower arms, finally channeling it to his fingertips. With each rotation, he used the powerful centrifugal force to forcefully stretch the gluten inside the dough to its smoothest state.

"What kind of technique is this?!" Guan Shouping stared at the dough in disbelief.

“Incredible…” Dojima Gin also became serious. “He didn’t use a cutting board. He was using the resistance of the air and the centrifugal force of rotation to reshape the gluten structure. The old dough is extremely active. If you use conventional kneading, it would be difficult to distribute the yeast inside evenly in a short time.”

Chen Yuxing remained expressionless, but sweat was already beading on his forehead. After shaking the dough for about five minutes, he stopped and slammed it heavily onto the work surface with a "smack".

At this moment, the dough is as smooth as a piece of mutton fat jade, exuding a rich aroma of wheat mixed with fermented sourdough.

It lay there quietly, yet it seemed to be alive, still rising and falling slightly.

Chen Yuxing took a damp cloth and covered the dough with it, letting it rise briefly.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Shinomiya Kojiro also began to make his move.

"Chinese-style pastries?"

Shinomiya turned around and took out butter, cream, eggs, a piece of bacon, and spinach.

He planned to make a very classic French dish – a French custard pie.

This dish looks simple, but to make it perfect requires very high levels of basic skills.

Shinomiya worked quickly. He first cut the butter into small pieces and mixed it with the flour. His fingers rubbed the flour and butter together, and soon the flour turned into coarse cornmeal.

"As expected of Shinomiya-senpai." Hinako watched Shinomiya's movements. "The sand-rubbing technique requires a high degree of control over speed and temperature."

Roll out the pie crust and place it in the mold, then start making the filling.

Shinomiya first diced the bacon and sautéed it in a pan to render out the excess oil, then added blanched spinach pieces.

Whisk the egg yolks, cream, and nutmeg together until smooth.

He poured the mixed egg and milk mixture into the pie crust, which was covered with bacon and spinach, and put it in the oven.

On the other side, Chen Yuxing's dough had also fully risen.

Chapter 38 Results

Chen Yuxing uncovered the damp cloth, revealing that the new dough had expanded considerably after the addition of Shu Han old dough.

He picked up the dough, then took a sharp knife from the counter.

Holding the dough in his left hand, he began to rotate it, while in his right hand, he took a knife and began to cut along the edge of the dough at a very fast speed.

The blade kept slicing across the dough, making a "swish swish swish" sound.

A noodle of uniform thickness slid down the blade into the pot of boiling water.

Chen Yuxing's wrist kept rotating, and the knife never left the dough.

The noodles seemed endless, continuously falling into the pot.

"What is he doing? Is he cutting noodles?" Kakuzaki Taki frowned as he watched Chen Yuxing's movements and asked, "But why hasn't this noodle broken yet?"

“One…” Guan Shouping’s eyes widened, and he said in shock, “He’s planning to fill the whole bowl with just one noodle!”

Everyone looked at Chen Yuxing with some surprise.

Fill an entire bowl with just one noodle? How is that even possible!

If there is even the slightest tremor in the wrist during the cutting process, or if the gluten is even slightly less elastic, the noodles will break immediately.

But Chen Yuxing succeeded, using Shu Han old dough to increase the dough's extensibility, and the unique rotating kneading technique of Bai Luo She Zhuan Lian.

The noodle tumbled and rolled in the boiling water, but showed no sign of breaking.

Chen Yuxing stopped using the knife, picked up a long chopstick, and scooped the noodles out of the pot, placing them into a blue-and-white porcelain bowl that had been prepared nearby.

One noodle is enough to fill a whole large bowl.

He then poured a spoonful of the prepared broth over the noodles and sprinkled a little chopped green onion as a final garnish.

Just as the broth completely submerged the noodles, something unexpected happened.

"Om-"

The noodles, which had been lying quietly in the bowl, suddenly burst into a faint, soft golden light the moment they were completely covered by the soup.

Although the golden light only lasted for a brief moment before quickly dissipating, everyone present could see it clearly.

"It's...it's glowing?!" Hinako Inui rubbed her eyes, her face full of disbelief. "Hey, you guys saw it too, right?! That bowl of noodles is glowing!"

“I…I saw it too…” Kikuchi Yoko raised her hand, her voice trembling.

"What the hell? How could there be food that glows in this world? This is completely against science!" Kakuzaki Taki also looked like he'd seen a ghost.

“Incredible…” Dojima Gin stared intently at the bowl of noodles, his hands clenched tightly on the table. “When all the indicators of a dish reach a near-perfect balance, is it some kind of optical refraction produced by the energy inside the food under high temperature? No… it’s more like a kind of ‘life force’ that the chef gives to his dish…”

Chen Yuxing, standing in front of the kitchen counter, frowned slightly as he looked at the bowl of noodles.

"Is it still a little lacking..."

He sighed inwardly.

Others may not know, but he knows very well that the reason he was able to make this bowl of glowing soul-soothing noodles is entirely due to the "Shu Han Old Noodles". Without this special ingredient, the noodles would not have glowed at all, and if it weren't for the "Shu Han Old Noodles", the noodles would have broken long ago.

Moreover, his use of the White Snake Transformation Technique was not up to par, and there were also errors in the gluten, which were only made up for by the activity of the old dough.