Yuan Zhou had heard of Tan Mingxin's name before. As the successor of Tan Family Cuisine in this generation, the old man's reputation was not worse than Zhou Shijie's. Besides, they were not in the same generation. It was only after Tan Mingxin's rise that Zhou Shijie made a name for himself in the culinary circle.
The old man was more than 70 years old this year. Compared to Fang Yiming, Elder Fang was a little younger, but the two belonged to the same generation. In the final analysis, Elder Fang learned cooking later than Tan Mingxin. Unlike Tan Mingxin, Elder Fang had been in the kitchen since he was a child.
They became famous at about the same time, but because Elder Fang was really talented, he surpassed others and became the number one chef in the country, while Tan Mingxin was slightly inferior.
The reputation of Tan Family Cuisine was also passed down from his ancestors. In addition, his craftsmanship was really good, so the old man's reputation was also very widespread.
"Hello, Head Chef Tan. It's a pleasure to meet you." Yuan Zhou greeted him politely.
"Hahaha. As long as you don't mind me bothering you," Tan Mingxin said happily.
The old man was now more than 70 years old, but he didn't leave everything behind and go out to play like Elder Fang. Instead, he continued to shine in the Beijing Cuisine Association.
Beijing Cuisine was a cuisine of the capital, but many of them were cuisines that combined the famous dishes of various local cuisines into one. The situation was very complicated. Without a person of virtue and prestige, it was basically impossible to keep it under control.
The name of the old man was very useful. It was full of dignity. Besides, Tan Mingxin was a person with a strong sense of responsibility. As long as his physical condition allowed, he would almost always be stationed in the Beijing Cuisine Association. His degree of professionalism was no less than that of Zhou Shijie.
"No. Head Chef Tan, please come in."
Yuan Zhou made a gesture of invitation and invited Tan Mingxin and his assistant, Xiao He, into the restaurant. Then, he directly brought them to the backyard.
Even though it was still morning, the heavy spring rain last night made the weather fade away from the heavy winter weather. Instead, it was full of vitality of spring. In the cracks of the bluestone road, a few inconspicuous grass began to grow vigorously while bathing in the spring rain and spring breeze.
They unfolded their tiny leaves and stuck their heads out, planning to experience all types of baptisms in the world. They were unyielding and wanted to express their desire to pursue sunlight.
It had rained last night, but the sun had already peeked out in the morning, so the wet table and stone benches were already dry, and there was still a bit of clarity after being washed.
After placing a thin cushion on the cool stone bench, Yuan Zhou invited Old Master Tan Mingxin to sit down. This was prepared by Yin Ya. Many chefs who came to communicate with Yuan Zhou were not young. The stone bench was cool in summer, but in other seasons, it was not very friendly to the elderly.
After officially moving into The Kitchen God, because of the attentive mistress, many small things started to change, and this was just one of them.
"I came here to ask Head Chef Yuan about Beijing Cuisine. I didn't expect that Head Chef Yuan has already put it on the menu. What an honor!"
"There's one more thing, but I'm not sure if I should tell you."
Once they sat down, Tan Mingxin spoke first. He first explained the reason for his visit, which was out of courtesy. Then, he raised the question. After all, this was a very important matter, a question that had been lingering in his mind for a long time.
Previously, while waiting outside, Tan Mingxin had received a call from his old friend, Qiu Minglu, who also asked the same question. It was also this call that prompted him to change his original idea of discussing about Beijing Cuisine with Yuan Zhou. Instead, he decided to put this question on the table first.
"Head Chef Tan, please go ahead," said Yuan Zhou.
He had originally thought that Old Master Tan was here to ask about Beijing Cuisine. After all, it was the only one that hadn't been put on the menu yet, so it was normal for everyone to be concerned about it. But now that he had a question, he had to answer it.
"It's like this. Head Chef Yuan has always been racking his brains for the development of Huaxia cuisine. Even old guys like us are ashamed of our inferiority. Especially since every cuisine accepts registered disciples, he has really made outstanding contributions to the development of Huaxia cuisine. Now, many chefs who have been apprenticed to Head Chef Yuan before can take on a leading role."
When he reached the end of his sentence, Old Master Tan's face turned red. It was probably because he found it hard to speak the words out loud. However, he licked his lips and continued speaking.
"It's all because of us old guys. We didn't manage to cultivate enough successors for our culinary world. Today, I'm here to ask for your opinion, Head Chef Yuan. Can some of your registered disciples continue to accept disciples and pass down the culinary skills of their respective cuisines? Of course, I'm just asking. I have no intention of forcing Head Chef Yuan to agree to my request," said Yuan Zhou.
After all, a person's energy was limited. Although the older generation of chefs truly admired and respected Yuan Zhou and naturally hoped that he could teach more disciples, they couldn't just let one person oppress them. Therefore, they came up with this idea. They wanted to see if those registered disciples could continue to be apprentices with potential.
Passing on the torch, they hoped that in the future, there would be more talents in China's culinary world. They also hoped that the culinary world would become better and better. But this couldn't hide their intention to take advantage of Yuan Zhou.
As a senior of the culinary world, they had a lot of experience. To be honest, it was embarrassing to say that. However, Yuan Zhou was indeed the world's best chef. Just his skills alone could be seen from the simple soy milk caramel rings. He was definitely the best in the world.
"As for the matter of accepting disciples, the disciples can do whatever they want. But Head Chef Tan, I can talk to them about this. But they can only accept disciples after they have completed their apprenticeship," Yuan Zhou said after thinking for a while.
For his disciples, be they direct disciples or registered disciples, Yuan Zhou had always respected their own wishes. But he couldn't break the rules. They could only think about other things after they had completed their apprenticeship. Otherwise, it wouldn't be good if they got distracted.
"Of course we have to respect their wishes. Thank you very much for your generosity, Head Chef Yuan."
Tan Mingxin's eyes were filled with emotion. Yuan Zhou had agreed to accept disciples because he didn't want to keep his knowledge to himself. He had the intention to pass on the culinary skills to others. He couldn't help but sigh at Yuan Zhou's generosity and courage. Many people couldn't be as selfless and open-minded as Yuan Zhou.
"It's fine. It's just a small matter. As long as my disciples don't have any objections, I won't have any objections either."
Yuan Zhou truly didn't think it was a big deal. He wasn't afraid that someone would surpass him because he would continue to improve. As long as he could cook, he wouldn't stop.
"There's one more thing. I wonder if Head Chef Yuan has heard of Qiu Minglu's name?" Tan Mingxin asked.
"You mean Head Chef Qiu who is proficient in eight ethnic cuisines and is known as the all-rounder?" Yuan Zhou had heard of such a person.
"That's right. It's him. He's on his way to Chengdu. When he found out I was here, he wanted to ask me if you have time in the afternoon. He wants to pay you a visit and talk about the ethnic cuisines."
It was unknown whether it was intentional or not, but Tan Mingxin had been addressing Yuan Zhou respectfully since the beginning. It was not only because he admired Yuan Zhou's personality, but also because he respected Yuan Zhou's craftsmanship. It had nothing to do with age.
"It's about the matter of accepting disciples from the ethnic cuisines, right? I already have a plan. I've invited Chairman Zhou and several other masters of the ethnic cuisines to discuss it in the afternoon. But I haven't been able to contact Head Chef Qiu. What a coincidence. We can go together," Yuan Zhou said.
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