After the waiter served the appetizers and left, He Dazhuang said with a smile:
"The plating is quite skillful, but the taste is something we won’t know until we try it.
Let’s not critique the cold dishes; everyone can eat a little to fill up, so others don’t say we’re stingy and nitpicking even with small dishes!"
As he spoke, he picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a piece of beef, and put it in his mouth to chew slowly.
Spicy Pepper Beef, its main ingredients are beef tripe and beef throat.
The preparation of this cold dish is also simple. First, slice the tripe and shape the throat using a cross-hatched cut, then blanch in boiling water until cooked. Cool it down with cold water, slice some cucumber to line the bottom, then place the beef throat and tripe on top of the cucumber slices.
Afterwards, mix chopped green and red chili peppers, minced garlic, soy sauce, Sichuan pepper oil, and fragrant vinegar together, and pour it over the beef throat and tripe, then sprinkle some green onions on top.
He Dazhuang took another bite of the beef throat tripe, chewing it only for a moment before his facial expression changed.
The taste... it actually seems quite delicious?
The tripe and throat are crisp and refreshing, the blanching time was controlled perfectly, neither overcooked nor undercooked. The texture is crisp and refreshing mixed with the spicy and sour marinade, making it irresistibly tasty.
He Dazhuang could taste the exquisite flavor of the Spicy Pepper Beef, and naturally the others could also taste the deliciousness of the other cold dishes in the room.
They weren’t like Director Liu’s group in the opposite "Winter" room, who began competing for food after tasting it. Instead, they took a few bites, their expressions first shocked, then gradually becoming unnatural.
"Hiss! The Diving Rabbit is quite flavorful, the meat tender and smooth, delicious and seasoned, spicy and flavorful, it actually seems quite nice!"
"This Hand-torn Chicken seems rather decent too, the chicken is neither tough nor dry, but rather tender and fragrant, also spicy and tasty—hmm, I can’t quite taste the others, hehe, let me try another piece!"
"Also, this Crystal Jelly is pretty good, just looking at it is crystal-clear and appetizing. A bite is chewy and smooth, melting instantly in your mouth, without any fishy taste. Dipped in the sauce, it is refreshing and flavorful; quite good, quite good!"
"..."
"Ahem, I’ve said it before, let’s not critique the cold dishes."
Seeing that everyone in the room seemed to have forgotten their purpose upon tasting the dishes, and couldn’t help but commend them, He Dazhuang frowned and said solemnly,
"These cold dishes are not complicated at all; whether it’s Hand-torn Chicken, Spicy Pepper Beef, Crystal Jelly, or Diving Rabbit, they’re all just cooked main ingredients with sauce poured on top.
The key to cold dishes is not in the handling of ingredients, but in the preparation of the sauce!
This doesn’t necessarily reflect the chef’s skill; who knows where the sauce recipe originated?"
Not to mention elsewhere, but purely on the Internet, you can find many sauce recipes for cold dishes, some so tasty they can make anything delicious. This can’t truly reflect a chef’s culinary skill.
The true test of a chef’s ability lies in hot dishes!
This isn’t just seasoning; it requires a chef’s knife skills, cooking skills, and ability to control heat, among other capabilities.
After a moment, He Dazhuang continued, "We can use these cold dishes to fill up, but let’s not take the taste seriously. Wait until the hot dishes arrive—then we’ll see the real artistry!"
This time, the others didn’t echo him as before; instead, they exchanged glances without saying anything.
Nobody was foolish; though cold dish-making is straightforward, it still reflects a chef’s culinary skill.
Otherwise, why do major restaurants and hotels still have dedicated cold dish chefs?
If these cold dishes were made by Jiang Yu, then his culinary skills wouldn’t be lacking, and his hot dishes might not be as terrible as previously suggested.
If now, amidst extreme criticisms, he turns out perfect hot dishes, wouldn’t that lead to embarrassment?
For a moment, the room sank into an eerie silence, and the atmosphere became tense.
Seeing this, He Dazhuang couldn’t help but frown and felt a vague sense of foreboding:
It seems today’s matter is a bit problematic.
Just as he was about to say something to provoke the chefs, the waiter from before appeared again.
She carefully placed a large porcelain plate filled with food in the center of the table, breathed a sigh of relief, and said with a bright smile:
"Dear guests, this is the Chopped Pepper Fish Head, please enjoy!"
After saying this, she turned the serving cart around and left the room, closing the door behind her.
With the door closed, He Dazhuang instructed the man with the crew-cut, "Xiaosun, prepare the phone camera, keep it steady and don’t shake!"
"Alright, got it!"
Xiaosun nodded, immediately took out his phone, turned on the camera, and focused on the Chopped Pepper Fish Head, ready to start filming.
After instructing Xiaosun, He Dazhuang then turned to the short and stout chef Qian Yunfan, and said solemnly: