Gourmet: Midnight Vending-Chapter 323 - 300: In This Moment, This Dish Has Become Art

Chapter 323: Chapter 300: In This Moment, This Dish Has Become Art

It’s a triple explosion of juice, each layer more unexpected than the last, making Hou Yao spin in circles on the spot, wanting to spit it out but unable to bear wasting it, yet it’s too hot to handle, leaving him with no choice but to keep inhaling like crazy!

Fang Zhizhong saw things differently.

He pointed speechlessly at Hou Yao, "Oh, Master Hou, you went on and on about being a master chef, things not sticking to the pan, I think you just wanted to jump ahead! Let me see what it’s all about."

Fang Zhizhong snatched the chopsticks from Hou Yao’s hand and popped a piece of tofu into his mouth.

Explosion! Explosion! Explosion!

Mu Xin watched the two spinning on the spot, "Come on, you two...how can eating tofu turn into a tap dance? Is it really that bizarre?"

He grabbed a piece of tofu and, half-doubtful, put it into his mouth.

And so.

Zhou Yu watched the three of them spinning in circles, inhaling sharply while stomping their feet, and was a bit dumbfounded. How could eating a dish turn into such a thing?

Isn’t it just that it’s burning hot? Can’t they just blow on it before eating?

Master Zhou took the chopsticks, picked up a piece of tofu, and cautiously blew on it before putting it in his mouth.

Hmm...

Upon tasting it, he could feel the soup’s authentic blend of sour, sweet, salty, and umami flavors. Moreover, the soup had a very distinct pork aroma.

From his experience, he immediately realized this effect came from cooking the tofu with the lid box overturned in the soup.

The broth was rich, Zhou Yu thought to himself, this Master Xiao Chen, despite his young age, actually has quite a refined skill. He realized he had underestimated his opponent.

At this moment, he recalled Master Chen saying he’d be fine with a salary of just fifteen-six thousand, and for the first time, Zhou Yu started to think: Is my twenty-eight thousand perhaps too much?

With these thoughts swirling in his mind, his mouth forgot about other things, and he bit down unconsciously.

Explosion! Explosion!

Zhou Yu suddenly covered his mouth as the scalding thick juice poured in through the gap between his teeth, accompanied by a meat aroma a hundred times richer than before, along with the freshness of the tofu!

It even contained the oil fragrance of seared tofu.

Various flavors mingled together, creating a complex aroma that made the taste buds vibrate.

The initial sour, sweet, salty, and savory taste was deceptive, setting a low psychological expectation for the taste buds, only for the juice to explode when bitten into, mixed with the tofu’s resilient exterior and tender interior, and the juicy, tender meat filling.

All of this created an overwhelming surprise after the initial simplicity.

It’s like meeting a girl in your youth; at the time, she seemed ordinary, but years later when reminiscing, you realize what you had missed.

This tofu was exactly that.

At the first bite, it seemed ordinary, only to realize after a few chews that all that was merely taste inexperience.

Thus.

Zhou Yu, too, was scalded and joined the spinning group.

Dunzi, fresh back from the construction site with a large bottle of iced tea in hand, asked, "What’s Boss Fang and the others doing, how come they’re all dancing for Boss Xiao Chen?"

The canteen’s head chef, seeing someone returning, quickly ran out to stop Dunzi, "Little Dun, you can’t go in right now; Boss Fang and several other bosses are interviewing."

"What’s going on?" Dunzi was first a little confused and then suddenly overjoyed, "Is Boss Xiao Chen coming to work at Wanglong Mountain?"

He shook his head doubtfully after saying it, not believing it himself.

What kind of price would it take to hire Boss Xiao Chen to cook, anyway!

But judging by the head chef’s serious tone, it didn’t sound like a joke. Dunzi unscrewed the bottle and gulped down the iced tea while it was still cold.

"Alright then, I’ll just roam around the site a bit more."

Chen Mo simply stood on the truck, quietly waiting for the four to finish spinning, "You guys eat slower, is it really that hot?"

"Yes!" all four said in unison.

Despite that, the urge to continue eating remained unstoppable. Hou Yao took back his chopsticks again, "It was too hot just now, I didn’t taste anything."

Fang Zhizhong snorted, "Master Hou, you’re quite the schemer now!"

Mu Xin, ignoring their battle, stated matter-of-factly, "Xiao Chen, hand me a pair of chopsticks."

Zhou Yu felt this tone wasn’t right, not like an interviewer talking to an interviewee, but somewhat akin to a father-in-law speaking to a son-in-law, with rightful authority peppered with a bit of courteousness.

But that wasn’t something he needed to ponder over; at this moment, Zhou Yu’s mind was pondering a single thing.

"What did I just eat, and why was it gone just when it tasted good?"

There was only the lingering taste in his mouth, a sensation hard to describe, seemingly no longer a genuine perception from the taste buds, but rather a rising emotion—a sense of loss. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Let me try again." Zhou Yu reached out, "Master Chen, would you please give me another pair of chopsticks?"

Chen Mo complied, as today’s main goal was to make Zhou Yu fully convinced; only when he was convinced could the salary appropriately be lowered.

Zhou Yu once again picked up a piece of tofu, without rushing to eat.

Instead, he began to observe carefully.

Just as Hou Yao mentioned, the sauce on the tofu’s surface was indeed thickened with great skill. The slightly reddish-brown sauce, once poured over the tofu’s surface, only flowed halfway down the tofu block before stopping, requiring not only a deep understanding of sauce consistency but also mastery of the sauce quantity to achieve.

And beneath the rich sauce, the tofu block appeared like a small, square, golden box, topped with a shrimp curving at just the right angle, resembling the golden handle of a box.

Zhou Yu took a deep breath.

Not discussing the flavor, just judging by the dish’s "shape," he genuinely felt inferior, unmatched by the young fellow before him.

Under the sauce’s cover, and perhaps also due to sunlight, the tofu’s surface gleamed with an amber luster, revealing the pinkish meat filling through the box’s lid crevices.

At this moment, this dish had become art.

Zhou Yu didn’t hurry to eat.

He leaned closer, able to easily discern the slightly faint tomato sauce aroma, a distinguishing feature of Huaiyang Cuisine; if it were Lu Cuisine, tomato sauce wouldn’t be present.

Sensing further, he could smell the savory aroma of fried tofu, mingled with the meaty scent of fat, intertwined with the ocean-freshness of shrimp.

"Masterful indeed..."

Zhou Yu’s face unconsciously broke into a slightly bitter smile, both for underestimating himself before, and for seeking work from afar only to encounter a Huaiyang Cuisine master with such remarkable skills.

Both in appearance and taste, this dish would definitely be top-ranked even in the Huaiyang region.

After observing for a moment, the tofu box’s temperature cooled down, and Zhou Yu took a bite.

His teeth first met the slightly crispy fried shell, akin to breaking through a crème brûlée crust, with a slight chew revealing the silky smooth tofu core, encapsulating tender meat juice, bouncing on the tongue along with meaty particles.

The crunchy water chestnut bits interspersed within seemed to play a trio of crisp and tender notes inside the mouth.

This bite of tofu slid down the throat, leaving a hint of sweetness lingering.

The other three were enjoying their meal, not savoring slowly like Zhou Yu, each taking one piece at a time, seemingly afraid others would eat more than themselves.

Silently, Zhou Yu took out his phone, turned back into the canteen, and found the person he was chatting with last night.

"Master, I’m afraid I can’t accomplish the mission of bringing Huaiyang Cuisine to the north."

"I’ve met a master!"