Chapter 23 - Testing a New Dish! (1/2)

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Bang!

A sound came from the stove, and a ball of azure flames was released.

After the pot heated up slightly, Xu Le added some vegetable oil into it.

The reason why he chose the vegetable seed oil was because it was thicker and could cling on the tofu better. Upon eating the dish, the oil fragrance would then overflow.

After the vegetable seed oil was heated, he added the beef fillings for stir-frying.

As Xu Le used the spatula to quickly flip the beef, the rich aroma of beef fat immediately wafted out and filled the entire system space.

He added all the soybean paste that he had minced earlier and stir-fried it again!

This process required thorough stir-frying.

Stir-fry!

Until it’s fragrant!

He added some scallions and ginger into the pot and stir-fried it evenly.

By adding these small ingredients earlier, not only could it reduce the oil temperature in the pot, it could also help to improve the flavor.

He sprinkled the chilli powder into the pot using the familiar proportion.

With a ratio of seven to three, the cone pepper and tabasco pepper were added into the wok and stir-fried evenly, releasing their fragrance.

Cone pepper was mainly used to enhance the fragrance while the tabasco pepper was used to increase the spiciness of the entire dish.

He added yellow wine, soy sauce, vinegar, and water.

After adding half a contained of water, he added some sugar and immediately the scent of freshness and spicyness was emitted.

Perhaps many people would think that adding sugar to spicy dishes was a very contradictory action.

However, in reality, a small spoonful of sugar would not add much sweetness to the entire dish. Instead, it would make the entire spicy dish even more delicious and increase the depth of flavors.

Now, it was finally the turn of the protagonist of this dish.

Xu Le placed the tofu that had been boiled by the side into the pot, soaking it in the bright red sauce.

In order to make the taste of the entire dish more harmonious, Xu Le added half of the shredded pepper into the pot.

The remaining half had to be added when it was ready to be served.

“Numbness” and “spicyness” were the two main flavors of this dish, and both had to be highlighted.

Gulp, gulp, gulp…

Bubbles formed in the pot and white smoke was coming out.

Xu Le, who was standing in front of the pot, could clearly smell the spicy aroma wafting toward him, causing him to salivate.

The next step was to thicken the gravy.

But Xu Le was still standing in front of the pot, motionless.

He seemed to be waiting for something.

Many people could not produce any taste in their cooking because they were too anxious to start thickening the gravy once the liquid started boiling.

The cooking time was too short and the taste of the food had yet to blend in.

After thickening the gravy, it was as if the ingredients were wrapped in a thick layer of cloth. Of course, the taste would be less able to enter the food.

Hence, Xu Le had to wait for the perfect opportunity.

He focused his attention on the pot.

A moment later, Xu Le scooped up some tofu with the spoon and realized that the rich sauce had adhered to it and was slowly sliding down.

“Now.”

This meant that the tofu had been simmered to the point where it was ready. Even before the gravy was thickened, the sauce was already thick enough to hang on the wall.

“Let’s begin.”

Xu Le had already mixed the starch and added a spoonful into the pot.

It would take three attempts to reach perfection.