Chapter 125

Chapter 125: Buddha Jumps Over the Wall with Soup Thick Enough to Stick to the Lips...

Jin Xiu Shan He, also known as Four Rivers Guard One Mountain, although originally created by Chef Chen, has not been seen in the culinary world for quite a while.

This recipe, in the system's rating, is a 3S-level recipe.

According to Chen Ran's past communication with the system, a recipe of this level requires at least a 2S skill level across all abilities to begin practicing, and even then, the success rate would be very low.

Not even Bai Jing, the host, had heard of this dish, nor had Wang Zhaoshan, sitting in the audience.

In this competition, Chen Yuncong played dirty, and Wu Chaomei had kicked all the fans out, fearing they would disturb Chen Ran’s preparations. Therefore, the fan group only learned the name of the dish Chen Ran was preparing to challenge with at this moment.

"What use do you have? How come you don't know anything!"

Wang Zhaoshan, red-faced and about to save his reputation, suddenly saw an elderly person in the back row unable to hold back tears.

Chen Tingwei noticed someone was looking at him and smiled awkwardly: "It's been a long time since I've heard of this dish, I’m a bit nostalgic."

"You know it? What exactly is this Jin Xiu Shan He dish?"

"This Jin Xiu Shan He," Chen Tingwei paused, but didn’t continue his description, "is a dish most suitable for countering Buddha Jumps Over the Wall."

This answer was very clever, but it left Wang Zhaoshan even more confused.

As a food critic, Wang Zhaoshan could say that he had eaten Buddha Jumps Over the Wall many times. From the low-end versions sold at roadside shops to the ones prepared by famous chefs costing thousands, Wang Zhaoshan had tasted all kinds of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and had quite a bit of expertise in it.

This dish’s taste could only be described as rich.

The most standard way of preparing the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall dish involves eighteen rare ingredients. The name "Fú shòu quán" (福寿全) sounds like "Buddha Jumps Over the Wall" in Minnan dialect, and the eighteen ingredients correspond to the eighteen arhats, hence the name.

These eighteen ingredients are first used to prepare a soup base with eight ingredients, extracting the essence and flavor, and then only fish sauce and dark soy sauce are used for seasoning. The soup is thickened until it’s almost like a gelatin, and then the remaining ten precious ingredients are braised in it.

The soup that Chen Yuncong presented today was such a thick soup.

At this moment, he had begun the final step of braising Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, and its rich, unparalleled flavor began to fill the entire competition area.

Wang Zhaoshan could hardly imagine what kind of recipe would be most suitable to counter such a lavishly made Buddha Jumps Over the Wall?

From his current perspective, Chen Yuncong's Buddha Jumps Over the Wall was definitely on par with the best version he had ever eaten.

Although everyone admired Chen Ran's culinary skills, how could one surpass such a dish made from an accumulation of precious ingredients?

All eyes in the room were on Chen Ran, who had already started her preparations.

The suspense of this entire competition seemed to rest on her, but looking at her, she appeared to be the most detached person from it all.

With one swift chop, the fish head was cleanly severed!

Bai Jing, who was about to introduce the dish, was startled. He carefully interviewed Chen Ran: "Is this Jin Xiu Shan He made with these ingredients?"

Chen Ran nodded.

This Jin Xiu Shan He dish used five types of fish in total.

The Yangtze giant salamander and the Yellow River carp were well-known and prized.

The Pearl River sesame swordfish was so delicious that it was eaten to the point of becoming a protected species, and only in recent years had successful breeding programs started to bring it back to the market.

The famous fish from Heilongjiang, known as the "Three Flowers and Five Varieties" of Heilongjiang, includes the Ao Hua, which is the most delicate and flavorful of the three flowers.There is also the rarer and harder-to-find Taishan red-scaled fish, which grows in high mountain streams. The ones used in cooking today are farmed varieties.

Five fish, all served on one plate—no matter how heavy the dish may seem, I can still break it apart with a single move!

The camera has been closely following Chen Ran’s actions. After all, Chen Yuncong has barely done anything, and in comparison, Chen Ran’s smooth and graceful process of deconstructing the fish looks far more pleasant to watch.

Several judges couldn’t help but start praising.

"Beautiful! Chef Chen Ran's knife skills are a pleasure to watch."

"Yes, especially now, this move is like a butcher’s skill at cutting beef... The way she disassembled the carp head earlier was impressive, but it was more cautious. Now, with this move, it's so effortless and smooth, it’s just pleasant to watch!"

"I really want to see Chef Chen Ran do three sets of duck dishes..."

The voices from the audience were not small, and the camera was still recording, but this didn’t affect Chen Ran’s movements at all.

This Jin Xiu Shan He, though it sounds grand and magnificent, is actually a dish requiring delicate craftsmanship.

After deconstructing the five types of fish, she used a method similar to making chicken porridge, placing the fish meat on pig skin and finely chopping it into fish paste.

Bai Jing, standing off to the side, was stunned! The camera zoomed in, and the scene was immediately shown on the large screen in the studio.

"The pig skin didn’t break!"

"My goodness, what kind of knife skills are these?"

The key is to chop each piece carefully, producing air during the process so that the fish paste becomes more elastic.

Once all the fish was finely chopped, it was then mixed in a specific ratio and gently stirred into the freshly made mushroom chicken broth. Finally, it was steamed to perfection.

The five types of fish meat were delicate and milky white, blending into the pre-cooked chicken broth, which had taken on a light yellowish color due to the mushrooms. The fish paste, chopped with superb knife skills, was smooth and delicate, with no coarseness, and looked almost like a bowl of steamed egg custard.

— Yes, this seemingly grand and majestic Jin Xiu Shan He dish is, in fact, made with five famous types of fish and crafted with exceptional skill to create a bowl of egg custard!

Chen Tingwei, seated in the audience, couldn't help but recall how food critics had commented on this "egg custard."

"It can lift the spirits of the disheartened, calm the anxious, and soothe the sorrowful..."

At first glance, anyone would assume that this would be a dish like Buddha Jumps Over the Wall or Three Sets of Duck—one that is clearly a complex and labor-intensive dish.

But after thinking about it, this "egg custard" really does have such an effect.

Across the vast land of China, whether in the Southwest or the Northeast, whether it’s called "steamed egg" or "egg custard," who hasn’t had a bowl of it?

Maybe it’s when you’re starving in the morning, rubbing your eyes, sitting at the dining table, and that first spoonful of warmth touches your tongue.

Maybe it’s when your stomach is uneasy, or you have no appetite, and you long for something hot and comforting—then that warm spoonful hits the spot.

Or maybe it’s when you’ve finally left home, thinking of the taste of home late at night, but the fridge only holds a few eggs...

There was once a hot debate on what truly represents Chinese cuisine. Northerners said dumplings, southerners said tangyuan, people from Central China thought it should be noodles, and those who loved stir-frying said scrambled eggs with tomatoes.

But to Chen Ran, perhaps the egg custard should also be considered as a representative dish.

At least, when these "steamed egg" bowls were brought out, and the white mist spread, even she couldn’t help but feel a slight comfort in her heart.

Next, she began to delicately carve flowers on each bowl of "steamed egg," drizzling a little soy sauce, and carefully surrounding the flower shape with shredded water spinach.

The camera almost constantly filmed Chen Ran’s hands, until, in this small bowl, she skillfully carved out a landscape painting, and suddenly, the audience erupted in applause.“Damn, the Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains painting!”

“The green mountains... the egg custard carved into it, with soy sauce drizzled on top, really looks like a tiny temple inside a snail shell.”

“This is the first time I've seen Chef Chen make such an intricate carved dish. I thought she didn't do these kinds of refined dishes.”

“Who said she doesn’t make refined dishes? Three Sets of Duck doesn’t count as a refined dish?”

“This dish... can the average audience eat it?”

Unfortunately, they can’t.

At this moment, not only has Chen Ran’s Jin Xiu Shan He been completed, but Chen Yuncong’s Fu Shou Quan has also been taken off the fire.

The moment the lid is lifted, a strong aroma immediately sweeps across the entire studio!

After all, this is the world’s top “hard dish,” a dish made from countless precious ingredients stacked together. The scent almost triggers everyone’s appetite.

That’s the human instinctive craving for fat and calories.

Fish lips, sashimi, money abalone, pig’s trotters, pig’s stomach, duck gizzards, ham tendon meat, dried scallops... Each of these ingredients could even be a main dish on its own, but in this Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, they all play supporting roles.

After taking a bite of the exquisite ingredients and broth, one would even need to wipe their mouth clean, or else their lips would get stuck together from the broth.

“Perfect. No wonder it’s from Master Chen. The skill behind this Buddha Jumps Over the Wall is perfect.”

“Indeed, it’s delicious. It harmonizes well, and the flavors blend perfectly.”

“Although the dish is named Fu Shou Quan, the nickname Buddha Jumps Over the Wall... is really fitting. Even the Buddha would probably jump over the wall when smelling this fragrance. Otherwise, he might break his vow.”

In the finals, which almost turned into Chen Ran's fan club, Zheng Xu also felt a bit regretful.

When Chen Yuncong decided to play dirty and use a heavy dish like Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, the possibility of Chen Ran winning became almost negligible.

When he saw Chen Ran cooking with five types of precious fish earlier, he had also thought that these five fishes from four rivers guarding one mountain might, to some extent, be a threat to Buddha Jumps Over the Wall.

But he never expected that the final dish that came out would be something like this “egg custard.”

A few judges exchanged glances and signaled the staff to bring Chen Ran’s dish.

When the steaming bowl was uncovered, a delicate fragrance slowly spread. But it couldn’t even compare to the empty bowl that had previously held Buddha Jumps Over the Wall. This fragrance was so fragile that one had to pay close attention to even notice it.

Zheng Xu sighed, rinsed his mouth with water provided by the production team, and took a few extra sips, but he still felt the lingering aftertaste of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall in his mouth.

Yes, this was another part of Chen Yuncong’s plan!

The defending champion can serve their dish first, and no matter what dish Chen Ran makes, in the face of the overwhelming flavor of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, it would seem so weak...

No matter how sharp the judges' palates are, human power is sometimes limited!

With such a heavy flavor, even the broth that could glue one’s lips together, no matter what dish the judges taste second, all their attention would be stolen by this overpowering flavor!

He would definitely win the “Food is Heaven” plaque! And that unused spatula must stay with the Chen family!