Chapter 33  : Pot of Chicken Soup

Xu Le took out the three egg whites that he had separated earlier and took out an egg-beater to beat them.

He chose to beat the eggs manually rather than using an electric egg-beater.

Only by beating the eggs by hand could he feel the subtle changes in the egg white and make the final product taste even more smooth.

After the egg whites were beaten into a foam, Xu Le added one-third of white sugar and one-third of starch.

He continued to beat the egg.

Xu Le held the egg beater in his small hands and continuously stirred it clockwise without stopping.

This was a torturous and exhausting process. However, Xu Le knew that for the sake of making tasty food, he would have to undergo some this tough process.

A few minutes later, all the large bubbles in the egg white had disappeared and was replaced by a layer of small bubbles.

Xu Le added another one-third of white sugar and one-third of starch into it and continued beating!

After a few more minutes, the egg white formed a smooth surface, looking like cream.

Xu Le immediately added the remaining white sugar and starch.

This time, he beat the egg whites into a dry and bubbling state. This was the state he needed.

He gently picked up the egg beater and could see that the egg white was stuck to the beater and did not fall off.

…

At this moment.

All the judges could already tell that Xu Le was making a cake.

And from the ingredients used by Xu Le, it could be seen that he was making a chiffon cake with the flavor of “Osmanthus Sweet Wine”?

“Can wine be mixed with cake?”

Lin Shuwei lowered his voice and asked Tanimura Koji.

“I have never tried that.” Tanimura Koji shook his head.

As a pastry chef who had once worked at a Michelin three-star restaurant in France, even to him, Xu Le’s approach was already in his blind spot.

Sweet wine… osmanthus… cake…

Could these three unrelated things really be merged together?

Before Xu Le succeeded, even Tanimura Koji did not dare to jump to conclusions.

“But the topic we came up with is osmanthus sweet wine! Xu Le, isn’t making a cake a little… against the rules?” a judge asked.

Lin Shuwei shook his head and said, “The materials that we have prepared for the contestants are simply insufficient to make a real sweet osmanthus wine. The time limit also does not allow for that. The contestants must find similar substitutes.”

“As long as the taste is in line with the topic, I feel that Xu Le’s approach of making a ‘Osmanthus Sweet Wine’ flavored cake matches the rules perfectly.”

After a round of whispers, the judges finally reached a consensus.

However, the amount of points Xu Le would get… would depend on the taste of the cake.

…

The well-beaten egg white and the prepared egg yolk mix were mixed together.

Xu Le carefully mixed them evenly and combined them into a large bowl to form a paste that emitted the fragrance of alcohol.

“And the finishing touch.”

Xu Le scooped out a small amount of viscous osmanthus candy from a small box beside him and added it to the paste.

Immediately, the fragrance of osmanthus wafted over.

The rich fragrance seemed to permeate every molecule of the air. It was so intoxicating.

The fragrance of osmanthus flowers was very unique. It was light yet rich.

The two fragrance should have conflicted with one another. However, they had perfectly fused into the osmanthus fragrance.

Anyone standing nearby could smell the fresh and elegant osmanthus fragrance.

And standing far away, the osmanthus fragrance could also drift over, and it was still rich, bringing one’s thoughts into the beauty of the world.

There was a hint of sweetness in the fragrance. It was perfect for making desserts.

After adding the osmanthus candy, he mixed the paste evenly and slowly poured it into the eight-inch cake mold.

Xu Le heated up the oven on the side and placed the paste inside to be baked at 150 °C for 40 minutes.

Xu Le’s face was filled with anticipation.

Cooking was like an art.

What he had put in was only a basin of paste, but 40 minutes later, as if there was some magic, a delicious cake would be taken out from the oven.

That was the happiest moment when Xu Le was cooking.

It was less than an hour before the pork belly was done being frozen.

Xu Le was completely free during this one hour.

Whether it was the [Pagoda Meat], [Boiled Cabbage], or [Osmanthus Sweet Wine Chiffon Cake], he did not need to do anything.

The main dish required for this competition was another Egg Fried Rice dish. Xu Le decided to cook it right before the time was up.

“How about… making another soup?”

If it was a complete meal, there were already a meat, vegetable, main dish, and desserts. The only thing missing would be a soup dish.

This made Xu Le very uncomfortable. Hence, he planned to use his free time to make another soup so that the entire meal would be more complete.

Xu Le immediately exchanged for the recipe [Pot of Chicken Soup] from the System Shop.

He did not need to practice much on this dish.

That was because the recipe for the [Pot of Chicken Soup] was not difficult. The only requirement was that the ingredients had to be fresh.

A soup could bring out the original taste of the ingredients to the greatest extent.

Only high-quality ingredients and sufficient cooking time could produce a soup with a rich taste.

“Succeed at one go,” Xu Le thought to himself.

The ingredients provided by the organizers for this competition were all of very high quality.

Xu Le chose to use another hen to make the stew. This was a black chicken that had been raised for 180 days. The meat was firm and the fats were rich. It was the best choice for stewing soup.

[Pot of Chicken Soup] was a famous dish from Hubei. It was rich in fragrance and fresh in taste. It was also rich in nutrition and had the effect of expelling cold and nourishing the body.

Xu Le skillfully cleaned up the hen and removed all its internal organs. Then, he used a kitchen knife to chop it into cubes that were 4cm wide and 5cm long. However, he left the drumstick and chicken wings intact.

He started a wok of boiling oil and turned the fire to maximum heat.

Xu Le placed a piece of cooked lard into the pot and stir-fried the chicken, scallion, and ginger together. When the fragrance wafted from the wok, he added some salt.

Then, Xu Le took out 12 small earthen jars and added 500 grams of mineral water into each earthen jar. He also distributed the chicken meat into these 12 earthen jars and cooked them on a small fire.

The chicken soup was boiled for three and a half hours from that time until the end of the competition.

It was enough to let the rich flavor of the chicken completely enter the chicken soup.

From beginning to end, he only added some salt and white pepper powder. There was no other seasoning required.

In the end, the chicken soup was completely filled with the original flavor of the chicken, and it was extremely delicious.

It was hard to imagine for a person who had never tasted it before.

After all 12 pots were placed over the fire, Xu Le looked at the time and estimated that the piece of pork belly was almost frozen.

He went to the freezer and took out the large piece of cold pork belly, placing it on the chopping board.

Next up… was the time to test his cutting skills!