New Ingredients

"……Tofu?"

Luo Qinzhu's eyes widened.

The main ingredient that Nanxu had chosen was a square piece of white tofu!

This tofu was prepared by the Food and Drug Administration and is of excellent quality, but no matter what, it is just an ordinary piece of tofu.

Compared to Jiang Chengjin's glossy young chicken and various other precious mountain delicacies, these are not even in the same league.

Of course, ingredients don't determine everything. But Nanxu's overall strength is already at a disadvantage, and if they also suffer from a disadvantage in terms of ingredients, their chances of winning will be even slimmer.

Seeing this, Wang Yi didn't hold back in mocking him:

"Hmph...choosing tofu as the main ingredient? I don't think he even cares about winning!"

"Could it be that he got scared after going on stage and deliberately chose such low-grade ingredients to make excuses for his failure?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Qinzhu instinctively frowned, and said with a hint of displeasure, "I believe Nan Xu wouldn't do such a thing. Uncle Wang, don't make malicious assumptions about others!"

"The competition results aren't even out yet, and you're already saying things like this? Isn't that disheartening?"

"That makes sense... Old Wang, you should say less." Master Li said, his face pale.

Wang Yi hesitated for a moment, then said, "I...I just don't understand what he's trying to do...What kind of good dish can you make from a piece of tofu?"

Luo Qinzhu shook her head: "Tofu can be used to make many delicious dishes... and he must have had his own ideas for doing this."

Just then, Nanxu on the stage had brought all the ingredients to the stove: besides tofu, there were winter bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms, lean meat, ham, and small river shrimp...

"This ingredient... could it be Zhonghe Tang?" Luo Qinzhu, who was well-versed in Anhui cuisine, immediately thought of a possibility.

Zhonghe Soup is a traditional Anhui dish, also known as "Qimen Zhonghe Soup", created by a poet from Qimen.

Originally named "Zhonghe Soup" because it was made with small shrimp and tofu, a local specialty of Zhonghe, it was later changed to "Zhonghe Soup" (meaning "harmony soup"), which means to harmonize various delicious flavors and also carries the connotations of "peace and prosperity" and "reunion and harmony".

If we're talking about relevance, then it is indeed relevant. However, this dish makes it difficult to showcase the advantages of Anhui cuisine's use of mountain delicacies.

Wang Yi looked disdainful and muttered under his breath, "Zhonghe Soup? You think you can defeat the Jiang family's seventh-rank chef with just a mere Zhonghe Soup? What a pipe dream..."

At this moment, on the arena.

After selecting the ingredients, Jiang Chengjin immediately began processing the live chicken.

He lightly pressed down with his left hand, while his right hand gently pinched the hilt of the knife with three fingers. The next moment, his wrist moved.

"Whoosh—"

In that instant, the onlookers only saw a flash of white light, so fast that they could hardly catch its trajectory.

Immediately afterwards, a very thin silver light flashed across the chicken's body.

Then, Jiang Chengjin slapped the chicken's head with the back of his knife, and all the dense, fine feathers on the chicken's body fell off from the roots and flew into the air!

Under Jiang Chengjin's skillful control, not a single feather fell to the ground; instead, they all landed in the bamboo basket beside the stove!

"What a sharp knife!"

On the judges' platform, Manager Huang exclaimed in surprise.

However, the well-informed Prefect Zhao shook his head and said solemnly:

"It's not so much about speed, but rather... the ability to maintain precision at that speed, ensuring that each strike severs the feather root precisely without damaging the flesh in the slightest, is what's truly remarkable."

"There's no mistake, this is the Jiang family's seventh-grade culinary technique, the Six Harmonies Knife Technique!"

A gasp came from the audience, and Jiang Chengjin couldn't help but smile slightly upon hearing it.

With a flick of his wrist, the kitchen knife spun around and pointed at the chicken's belly.

With a light swipe of the blade, a flash of silver light appeared, and a thin slit about an inch long appeared on the chicken's belly.

The next moment, the blade plunged in. The blade moved along the junction of the internal organs and the torso within the abdominal cavity, precisely bypassing all the organs, cutting, picking, slicing, and cleaving—all in one fluid motion!

His movements became even more dazzling, yet his speed did not decrease in the slightest.

A moment later, Jiang Chengjin gently flicked his blade, and a complete set of internal organs was removed from the abdominal cavity and placed on a porcelain plate beside him.

"Bravo!" Cheers erupted from the audience below the stage.

Jiang Chengjin wiped the blood off the kitchen knife, revealing a confident smile.

Upon seeing this, the atmosphere at Baiweilou Restaurant immediately became somber.

An eighth-rank chef sighed helplessly, "The Jiang family... truly has a deep-rooted foundation."

Luo Qinzhu unconsciously clenched her fists. Even Master Li might not be able to defeat such an opponent.

It seems that Nan Xu is truly in grave danger this time.

Thinking this, everyone at Baiweilou turned their gazes to the other end of the arena—

On the other side, Nan Xu did not rush to process the ingredients. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the ground, closed his eyes, and seemed to be thinking about something.

This dramatic scene almost made everyone's jaws drop.

The audience was also discussing it extensively:

"What on earth is that kid doing? Just spacing out on the ring?"

"Doesn't he know that time is precious in cooking competitions? If he hasn't made the dish he wants by the time it's over, he'll be eliminated!"

"Yes, and being served last is often a disadvantage. If the strong flavors of the dishes have already left their mark on your mouth, it's practically the same as losing out."

Even Prefect Zhao, who was sitting upright on the judging panel, frowned when he saw this scene.

Is this kid... coming up with a recipe? Trying to win with his creativity?

However, a chef's inspiration can almost only be built up through daily accumulation. Without sufficient knowledge as a foundation, simply daydreaming like this is nothing but a waste of time.

What culinary skills could such a young boy possibly have accumulated? He probably hasn't even tasted many different flavors...

Nan Xu was naturally unaware of what these onlookers were thinking. Even if he did know, he wouldn't care.

At this moment, he was indeed thinking. He wanted to rely on his culinary experience accumulated in his previous life to create a dish that could overcome the odds and turn the tide of battle.

Moreover, this dish must be one that he can make with the existing conditions.

This would be difficult for an ordinary person. But he not only possesses memories of his past life, but also has the additional advantages of "creative thinking" and "taste deduction," so he can do it.

In fact, he had already grasped the inspiration, otherwise he wouldn't have chosen the ingredients right away.

However, this inspiration is missing a piece of the puzzle, and he is now searching for that piece.

Half an hour later, Nan Xu suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp glint in them.

"If we had that... no problem!"

He suddenly stood up and walked towards the judges' panel.

The ingredient he needed wasn't available in the arena. So, he could only...

"Your Excellency, I request that you add more ingredients!" Nan Xu announced loudly.

"New ingredients?" Prefect Zhao raised an eyebrow.

Nan Xu nodded: "Yes. As far as I know, this doesn't violate the rules of the cooking competition, right?"

"Yes, you're right..." Prefect Zhao nodded. "As long as the new ingredients are approved and their grade does not exceed the seventh rank, there will be no problem."

"However, you, Baiweilou, will need to prepare the new ingredients yourselves; the Food Review Bureau will not provide any other ingredients for you."

After receiving approval, Nan Xu looked at Luo Qinzhu and said earnestly:

"Chef Luo, could you please buy me one ingredient? Thank you."

Luo Qinzhu was taken aback: "This... is possible, but... is there enough time?"

"No problem, just deliver it a quarter of an hour before it ends." Nan Xu smiled and handed Luo Qinzhu a slip of paper. "I've written down the ingredients you need on this slip of paper."

Luo Qinzhu opened the note and glanced at it, then showed a surprised expression.

"This is……"

She didn't say anything more, just nodded: "Okay, leave it to me!"

Although she didn't understand why Nan Xu had specified these ingredients, she believed that Nan Xu would not make her do anything meaningless.