Honestly speaking, Yuan Zhou was a little worried about Head Chef Yang's physical strength.
For this banquet, 27 dishes were prepared. There were quite a number of main dishes, such as Mandarin Fish with Millet, Jade Skirt Edge, Fragrant Red Plum, and so on. Many of them were imperial cuisines. Yuan Zhou had a taste of imperial cuisine.
Although there were a lot of dishes, Head Chef Yang controlled the amount very well. Considering that all the chefs present were old chefs, each dish could only be eaten in two to three mouthfuls. Twenty-seven was just right.
Very soon, the dishes were served slowly like flowing water. Occasionally, Mr. Ma would also talk to Yuan Zhou about the unique cooking method used by Head Chef Yang in cooking a certain dish.
Of course, he mostly talked about Beijing Cuisine. After all, Mr. Ma knew that Yuan Zhou's Cantonese Cuisine had already reached the peak.
Of course, it was also because Mr. Ma hadn't eaten the Cantonese Cuisine cooked by Yuan Zhou for a long time. Otherwise, he would find that the peak could actually be reached by one or two steps. And that was exactly what Yuan Zhou was heading towards.
If there was a good beginning, there must be a perfect ending. Just like writing an essay, one always paid attention to having a tiger's head, a leopard's tail, and a pig's belly. The ending must be beautiful and powerful.
Then, as the penultimate dish of the banquet, it was the finale dish, Treading on Green Sand Boat, the specialty dish of Head Chef Yang.
"Is it time for Old Yang's specialty dish?" Geezer Ge had been thinking about it.
"Treading on Green Sand Boat needs time. Didn't we see the old goat being stewed just now?" Imperial Chef Mo said.
"I'm looking forward to it," Mr. Ma also said. Apparently, he also had high expectations for this dish.
As a highly knowledgeable chef, Yuan Zhou naturally reacted instantly. Treading on Green Sand Boat was a famous dish listed in the Manchu-Han Imperial Banquet. He wanted to see the live version.
The camel's paw he saw just now wasn't big. It weighed about 1.5 kg even with the skin and hair included. Besides, he knew the basic cooking method of Treading on Green Sand Boat. Besides, it needed to be boneless, which made it even lighter.
While Yuan Zhou was deep in thought, Head Chef Yang came in with a big plate. He smiled and said, "Sha Zhou Ta Cui is here. Enjoy your meal." He put down the plate and went to finish the last dish.
A large snow-white plate was surrounded by a circle of dark green broccoli. It looked as if it was raw, and only the slightly darker stalks could tell that it was cooked. Thick oil and red sauce were drizzled inside, and occasionally, snow-white flakes could be seen.
"Let's eat." After saying that, Mr. Ma picked up a piece.
The other head chefs naturally did not stand on ceremony and picked up their chopsticks. Yuan Zhou also followed closely behind.
With Yuan Zhou's eyesight, he was naturally able to tell the difference between the Magnolia Slices and the Camel Palm Slices. After all, their shapes were not the same, even though Head Chef Yang had tried his best to make them look similar.
Of course, there weren't many people with good eyesight. At the table, there were only Mister Ma, Imperial Chef Ge, Imperial Chef Mo, and Yuan Zhou.
As soon as the Camel Palm Slices entered his mouth, Yuan Zhou felt the chewiness. Although it was just a thin piece, it was very chewy and could even make crunching sounds when chewing.
The Camel Palm Slices were rich in protein. Apart from the chewiness at the beginning, it tasted glutinous and fragrant with a little sweetness. The texture was very unique.
"Hiss. Did Old Yang make some changes and make it a little different?" Imperial Chef Ge was the first to speak while frowning.
"The Camel Palm Slices are glutinous and chewy, but it's indeed a little different …" Imperial Chef Mo was also tasting it.
Imperial Chef Ge said again, "He must have put in a lot of effort, yet he still can't tell."
You taste it.
Taste it carefully.
Even Imperial Chef Ge and Imperial Chef Mo couldn't tell, let alone the others. Therefore, they all shook their heads.
Then, they all focused their attention on Mr. Ma. If the Yang Family was the head of the four Imperial Chef Families, then Mr. Ma was the successor. His culinary skills were the best in this generation. Therefore, he should be able to tell.
"I also like this dish very much. It doesn't lose its standard." Mr. Ma praised. Then, he said confidently, "As for Old Yang's thoughts … I don't know either."
His loud gasp almost made everyone choke to death. Don't know? Don't know? Why did he look so confident?
Mr. Ma said, "Although I don't know, Yuan definitely has his own thoughts."
Imperial Chef Mo, Imperial Chef Ge, and the others frowned. This Mr. Ma was really making things difficult for them. Head Chef Yang had said that it was his first time meeting Yuan Zhou. In other words, Yuan Zhou had never eaten Head Chef Yang's signature dish before.
If he hadn't eaten it before, how would he be able to tell the difference when eating it?
This was no longer a problem of culinary skills. Could it be that Yuan Zhou knew how to calculate with his fingers?
Of course, Imperial Chef Ge and Imperial Chef Mo didn't say anything. After all, Yuan Zhou was brought here by Mr. Ma. It wasn't good for them to say anything.
Treading on a Sand Boat sounded very high-end, but in fact, it was quite high-end to cook. First of all, the ingredients were the Camel Palm. One had to admit that the Camel Palm was much harder to cook than the Camel Palm.
First, it had to be boiled. Then, it had to be mixed with the Magnolia Slices and stir-fried. Finally, it had to be stir-fried. Finally, it had to be poured with the chicken gravy. The process was still so complicated.
Yuan Zhou ate it twice, one with the Camel Palm and the other with the Magnolia Slices.
"I think the Magnolia Slices can be made with the Winter Bamboo Shoots," said Yuan Zhou.
The Magnolia Slices were, in fact, dried bamboo shoots. Depending on the region, it could be made with both Spring and Winter bamboo shoots. However, the Treading on a Sand Boat was made with Spring bamboo shoots. Spring bamboo shoots were suitable for stewing soup. Almost all imperial cuisines used spring bamboo shoots as they were one of the eight treasures of the mountain.
Therefore, when Yuan Zhou said that, Imperial Chef Ge and Imperial Chef Mo smiled appreciatively.
"The Magnolia Slices made from Spring bamboo shoots and Winter bamboo shoots are almost indistinguishable. Head Chef Yuan, you are truly capable to be able to tell that," said Imperial Chef Ge. "That's right. Replacing Spring bamboo shoots with Winter bamboo shoots is Old Goat's improvement. Winter bamboo shoots are easier to store and the Magnolia Slices made from Winter bamboo shoots will be more tenacious after being stir-fried."
Being able to tell Head Chef Yang's improvement the first time he tasted the dish, Imperial Chef Ge felt that this young famous chef in front of him was truly not simple.
"Just now, you said the first. Is there a second?" Imperial Chef Mo noticed that.
"Every effort of a chef will be seen by others." Yuan Zhou said, "I don't know if the second point is the same as what Mr. Ma, Old Ge, and Old Mo mentioned. But Head Chef Yang's other effort lies in the chicken broth."
"Chicken broth?"
All the chefs present were famous chefs. Therefore, they instantly realized something when they heard that.
"Camel's paw was cooked with chicken broth at the beginning. But this time, Head Chef Yang added pigeon." Yuan Zhou said confidently, "Pigeon, chicken, and camel's paw, these three meats have reached an astonishing level of harmony. I can imagine that Head Chef Yang spent a lot of time experimenting with this dish."
"Yes, pigeon."
"Using pigeon and chicken to cook broth at the same time? What kind of method is this? Imperial Chef Yang is really bold. "
"Unexpectedly, Old Goat's signature dish can still be improved. It hasn't stopped at all."
Amidst the heated discussion, Head Chef Wang of Zhejiang Cuisine said something that hit the nail on the head, "Head Chef Yang is indeed ingenious. But Head Chef Yuan, do you know a lot about the Manchu-Han Imperial Feast?"
That's right. Under the circumstance that he had never tasted Head Chef Yang's cooking before, he was still able to instantly taste the first and second improvements. That was way too exaggerated!
…
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