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

After stirring it slightly, Xu Le turned the fire to medium heat and added a second spoonful of the starch.

Using a spoon, he gently stirred the tofu in the pot.

One must not use too much force here. Once too much force was used on the soft and smooth tofu, it would very likely shatter.

After the simmering, Xu Le added the sauce for the third time before the gravy was ready.

The pot of Mapo Tofu had also reached its thickest state.

Now was the perfect time to serve the food. Xu Le knew that he could not delay any further. He immediately sprinkled some green onions on the pot and poured them onto the plate!

Then, he sprinkled the garlic sprouts onto the plate, turning them into a green decoration on the glossy dish.

But even now, this dish was still not complete.

The gravy already had a strong taste of pepper, but the surface of the tofu still lacked some color.

Xu Le scattered the pepper granules that had yet to be ground evenly on the plate.

A plate of spicy and fragrant [Mapo Tofu] was done!

With huge anticipation, Xu Le scooped up a spoonful of white tofu.

The tofu seemed to be empty and there was no resistance at all.

There was a thick sauce on the tofu.

The two seemed to be stuck together and could not be separated at all. This was the embodiment of cooking till the stage of integration.

The white and tender tofu, the deep red chilli, the dark brown pepper powder, and the sticky gravy were all combined together and swallowed in one big mouthful!

This experience could only be described with one word—

Awesome!

“If only I had a bowl of white rice.”

Xu Le could already imagine a plate of Mapo Tofu and a bowl of fragrant white rice.

One mouthful of tofu and one mouthful of rice.

After one was 80% full, they could add another half a bowl of rice.

Even though he had already finished eating the tofu, he could scoop out the gravy from the Mapo Tofu and pour it over the half bowl of rice. After mixing it with the tofu, it was even more fragrant than eating meat. This time, he ate until he was full and until both his body and mind were satisfied.

He ate until his mouth was full of red oil and it was so spicy that he had no choice but to drink water. Then, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

This was a day that only gods could enjoy.

However, Xu Le knew that his Mapo Tofu still had many flaws.

The eight details of Mapo Tofu: numbness, spiciness, hotness, fragrance, crispyness, tenderness, freshness, and liveliness.

Although he had accomplished them, he did not do it to perfection.

For example, the numbing taste and spiciness were not enough. This was because Xu Le was not thorough enough when he chopped the bean paste.

The meat filling wasn’t crispy enough either. Since he had replaced the pork with beef, there should be some slight adjustments to the cooking method.

Xu Le believed that the final product would be better if it was fried for another 20 seconds or so.

There were also many small problems, including the fact that the tofu was not smooth enough and the taste was not fresh enough…

However, given that this was his first time making Mapo Tofu, Xu Le felt that it was quite good overall.

Then, Xu Le started to try over and over again.

This was the greatest advantage of the system space.

What was the best way to improve his culinary skills?

The answer was simple, and that was to keep practicing.

He had to pay more attention to the details of each attempt and improve on his flaws.

Every time, he improved a little.

What about after a thousand times?

What about after ten thousand times?

With this thought in mind, Xu Le practiced in the system space for a month..