"The secret of making the soup is in the sand pot?"
Alice and Eriina were skeptical that such a piece of kitchenware alone could perfectly handle the challenging flavor of 'Garlic Chicken.'
Tiqie Zongwei answered affirmatively.
He lifted the lid, and since Xia Yu had good cooking habits, the used kitchenware was promptly cleaned, leaving the sand pot spotless with no food residue or chicken soup grease inside.
After a close look, Alice and Eriina, being professional chefs, keenly focused on the pot's rim where small air vents were symmetrically placed on the east and west sides.
Tiqie Zongwei slowly said, "I think the steam permeates through these two holes, collecting drop by drop inside the pot, eventually forming a pot of rich chicken soup!"
Tiqie Xianzuowen then solemnly revealed the mystery of this step.
Thus, everyone simultaneously turned their eyes toward Xia Yu.
"Cough, and thanks should also go to the General for providing the sand pot, which is not easy to find in Neon. I think it's only in your private little kitchen that it could be found."
Buttering up the General first never hurt.
And indeed, thanks also to the kitchen at the Tiqie Mansion, Xia Yu had been very observant of the settings and kitchen utensils while previously studying the kitchen environment—
Many details indicated that the kitchen was frequently used, and that user was none other than the highest-status occupant of the mansion, Tiqie Xianzuowen.
If one were to elaborate on the thought processes Xia Yu underwent while conceiving the recipe and his surprise at discovering the sand pot steam technique, it would be no problem to write an essay about it.
"Oh, so the pot belongs to grandfather!" said Alice, with others also coming to a realization.
"That's what I thought," Tiqie Zongwei slapped his forehead, recalling clearly that when the maids brought up Xia Yu's personal belongings, there wasn't any pot among them.
Seeing this, a smile flickered in Xianzuowen's eyes as he said, "Because I occasionally use this pot too, and the correct way to make chicken broth for 'Demon King's Ramen' is indeed the steam pot chicken method!"
"Instructor, you are truly amazing!" Alice squeezed forward, her eyes sparkling and absolutely idolizing the instructor, "You've just touched upon grandfather's recipe and you've already unlocked the most correct door! Such discerning insight!"
Eriina arched her eyebrows fiercely.
Xia Yu's thoughts drifted away to a little over a year ago.
Under the night sky was a little shop.
After dealing with the ingredients needed for the evening, his back and waist aching, a middle school boy walked from the courtyard back to the storefront, just as the old chef was moving a pot of stewed chicken.
The old man's voice seemed to echo in his mind:
"Steam pot chicken, a famed dish from Yun Dian, mainly uses chicken and is primarily cooked by steaming..."
"The method isn't that difficult either. As long as you have a specialized pot, you just put chicken pieces along with ginger, salt, scallions, and other ingredients inside, cover it, and—it's important to note—the gaps around the pot should be plugged with a cloth to prevent steam from escaping, because otherwise, it might take all night and still not produce a pot of soup..."
The middle-school boy, only concerned with drinking the chicken soup and eating the chicken, was completely in awe of the old chef's culinary skills back then.
"System: Mission 'Demon King's Ramen' completed."
"Please check for your reward items!"
The system voice pulled Xia Yu's thoughts back to present reality.
He finished his portion of ramen.
Around four o'clock in the morning, the late-night gathering finally adjourned.
"Instructor, I'm heading back to my room!"
Alice waved goodbye, her vibrant demeanor showing no signs of sleepiness.
Eriina was much the same.
However, Leonora, the housewife, promptly stopped the two girls and whispered something to them; both girls nodded in agreement and left with her.
"Ha ha, Instructor Xia, you've worked up a sweat, it certainly won't be comfortable going back to your room !"
Tiqie Zongwei, lacking the sternness he displayed in front of cameras or in professional research journals, warmly came over to greet Xia Yu.
Xia Yu followed Tiqie Zongwei to the luxurious bathhouse in the back garden of the mansion.
The bathhouse was designed like a hot spring park, with artificial mountains and lush trees. Xia Yu, with only a white towel wrapped around his waist, entered the water, soaking in the warm pool and comfortably leaned against the edge for a little rest.
Two more people joined the pool, it was Tiqie Zongwei and his son, Tiqie Xianzuowen.
"Instructor Xia..." Tiqie Zongwei approached, the water making a splashing sound, "honestly, how did you confirm that the 'steaming' technique for the steam-pot chicken, and why were you convinced that steaming it this way would properly deal with the stubborn flavor of 'garlic chicken'?"
"The recipe told me, which also equates to the General telling me," Xia Yu opened his eyes.
"There is no such detailed explanation in the recipe!"
Tiqie Zongwei challenged.
"After all, I've tried learning this recipe myself! Don't try to deceive me!"
Xia Yu didn't answer but turned his head toward the shore following the noise. An elderly man with his robust body fully exposed, removed his towel, and his eyebrows peculiarly furrowed, tentatively asked:
"Is this a collaborative recipe?"
The old man then stepped into the pool, settling next to Xia Yu, and slowly closed his eyes, saying, "Trust your own feelings!"
Xia Yu's lips twitched; there was just no way to deal with the Far Moon Commander, who loved playing the fool.
His own grandfather definitely participated in creating the recipe!
Soaking in the bath, his mind became tranquil, Xia Yu revisited the golden ramen recipe he had mastered just two hours earlier, but the more he pondered the words, the more he felt a faint mist that couldn't be dispersed before his eyes.
It seemed, were the recipe notes merely recording a draft of the "Demon King's Ramen"?
Was there a further refined or advanced version?
Early in the morning, when most diners on the commercial street were preparing to open for breakfast, there were rustling sounds at Xia's Restaurant.
"Uh, is it double-locked?"
Unable to open the door with his key, Xia Yu helplessly chose to go around to the back door.
Zhu Qing's phone was off. Directly knocking on the door loudly would likely wake quite a few people, and might even make the news. Xia Yu, conscious of his status as a celebrity chef, and considering last night's grand opening of Zhonghua Building was still a hot topic, he wanted to keep as low a profile as possible.
He climbed over the back wall.
The moment he landed, a little creature jumped into his arms.
Xia Yu then carried the cat straight into the house.
In front of the kitchen water tank, Hua Mao sat on the nearby stove, eyes wide with pretty amber irises, curiously watching the young man reaching for the "Jade Dragon Pot."
Along with the stone, he accidentally got his sleeve wet, the dampness spreading.
Not minding the wetness, Xia Yu pulled up his inventory.
"System, use the item!" he inhaled sharply, his eyes locking on a recently acquired golden item—[Purification Stone].
"Confirmation required to use on 'Jade Dragon Pot', detecting that this kitchenware is above golden quality, can increase purification progress by 33.3%, proceed with usage?"
Instantly, the cat's tail stood on end, its amber pupils stimulated by the verdigris metal glow, narrowing to mere slits.
The light vanished in a flash.
It was only then that Xia Yu, in the blink of an eye, suddenly realized that the wet, verdigris copper pot in his hand had immediately lost a third of its rust coating!
At least one side of the pot seemed to have returned to its freshly cast condition, smooth, radiating a mysterious sheen.
"Just two more[Purification Stones], and this pot can be used normally!"
Thinking of the Qilin Gate, already within reach, ready to be pushed open, Xia Yu couldn't help but get excited.
Back to the Great China Cuisine World!