Culinary God in Wilderness

Chapter 220: Chapter 173: A Difficult Fire, Coconut-Scented Crab Roe Sauce

He retrieved the leftover firewood from yesterday’s fire from inside the cave. First, he laid a layer of banana leaves on the ground to block the moisture, then stacked the wood in a log-cabin-style fire lay with a bundle of tinder in the center.

After half an hour of trying to start a fire with a hand drill, and after three failed attempts, he finally succeeded on the fourth try.

"The air is so humid after the rain. It’s even this hard to start a fire with dry wood."

He shook out his numb, aching wrist and forearm, then ducked back into the cave to put away his fire-starting tools before bringing out all the seafood and coconuts.

While the fire slowly grew, he first opened two coconuts and downed them in one go, then took the four empty shells to a small, nearby stream.

When he returned, the coconut shells were filled with clear stream water.

He lined them up in a row next to the fire, then tossed two starfish into the embers to roast.

To his surprise, the coconut crab was still alive, continuously blowing bubbles.

He had no intention of untying it. He just grabbed the bark rope, hauled it out onto the banana leaves, and pinned its powerful front claws with his left hand. With his right hand, he grabbed one of the two Heart-Protecting Mirrors on its chest and pried it open with force.

SNAP.

SNAP.

Following the two sharp sounds, two streams of black liquid flowed out from the crab’s body.

"I’ve never eaten a coconut crab before, but I was curious, so I did my research. A lot of people mention that coconut crabs have a strong gasoline taste that’s disgusting to eat."

"If you taste gasoline, it means it wasn’t prepared correctly, or the chef didn’t know what they were doing. As long as you do it like I am—drain these two streams of black liquid—it won’t have that gasoline taste."

After removing the gills from both sides, the coconut crab was more or less dead. He untied the rope and placed it in the empty space in the center of the log-cabin fire lay.

This spot received even heat from all four sides, acting as a natural oven. The intense flames would cook it in the shortest amount of time without letting too much moisture escape.

He used his tactical knife to slice the kelp he had gathered into thin strips, stuffed them into the coconut shells to stew, and broke off two plantains to roast alongside the starfish.

"See this? This is the benefit of stockpiling. You can eat your fill without even leaving the shelter, and it’s a nutritious, well-rounded meal to boot~"

He crouched by the fire, his eyes glued to the slowly reddening coconut crab, and couldn’t help but lick his lower lip.

A crab this big probably weighed a good eight or nine pounds, but after removing the shell, there would be two or three pounds of meat at most.

One meal now and another tomorrow morning, and it would basically be gone.

He still had one coconut left, which he’d save for the morning to go with the crab. Then he’d have to go foraging again.

Also, gathering firewood was another issue.

He looked up at the sun peeking half its face out from behind the clouds.

’Hope it doesn’t rain again tonight. Wood that’s air-dried for a night is barely usable. Another downpour and things will get really tough.’

Even though there was plenty of food nearby, it was all for nothing if he couldn’t start a fire. The only things he could eat raw were coconuts, mangoes, and those few small plantains that had turned even more yellow.

As he sorted out his next steps, the two starfish were just about cooked, their surfaces roasted to a distinct, charred black.

He used a stick to pull them out to cool, then poked at the plantains in the fire to ensure they cooked evenly.

Small bubbles slowly began to rise in the coconut shells. The once-clear water slowly turned a pale green after the kelp was added.

Famished, he couldn’t wait any longer. He tentatively pinched one of the starfish’s hard arms and, finding it wasn’t as hot as he’d imagined, cupped the whole thing in his palm.

The originally orange-yellow starfish was now coated in a layer of charred black from the embers. It looked unappealing, but that didn’t affect its taste. In fact, being so close to the coals would impart a distinct smoky fragrance.

"Have any of you eaten starfish? To be honest, not many people eat this in Great Xia. It only started appearing on barbecue stalls in recent years."

"But starfish has to be very fresh. If it’s not, it’ll taste bitter. A fresh, live starfish, when cooked, tastes a lot like caviar. Some say it’s more like crab roe. Let’s see what this one tastes like."

With that, he flipped the starfish over.

The bottom of the starfish was shaped differently from the top. Each arm was folded over on itself, with a groove running down the middle.

By simply grabbing both sides and prying them apart, the groove would split open, revealing the dark-brown roe inside.

The edible part of a starfish, like that of crabs and sea urchins, is its reproductive gland.

He used his tactical knife to cut away the hard outer shell, scraped out the granular roe inside, and tipped it directly into his mouth.

This wasn’t his first time eating starfish. He had already tried it during the few days he spent in Panama before all this, and it was indeed tastier than he’d expected.

This one, in particular, having been caught less than a day ago, was as fresh as it gets.

The texture of the starfish roe was somewhere between crab roe and caviar, like tiny, dense granules. Once cooked, the mouthfeel was rich and lingering, with a distinct crab-roe flavor.

After finishing both starfish, he felt as if he hadn’t eaten at all. Instead of feeling even a little full, he felt even hungrier.

By the time he had also devoured the two small plantains, the kelp soup in the coconut shells had been boiling for about ten minutes.

He moved them a bit farther from the fire to keep them warm. He wasn’t planning on drinking them just yet—besides being scalding hot, the main reason was that the main event was waiting for him.

The thoroughly cooked coconut crab had lost its menacing appearance. It was now a uniform orange-red, emitting an alluring, fresh aroma.

He had just reached out to touch it when a searing, electric heat shot through his hand, making him snatch it back.