Culinary God in Wilderness

Chapter 222: Chapter 173: Difficult Fire-Starting, Coconut-Flavored Crab Roe Sauce

"Damn, is it really that good?"

"It’s just crab-flavored. Is it worth cursing over? Maybe he just thinks it’s extra delicious because he’s starving?"

"I don’t think so. Lin made a lot of great food last season, but there were almost no dishes that made him curse. Maybe one or two, I think."

"Yeah, that’s right. Just watching is making me hungry. Max, can our restaurant serve this dish?"

Almost simultaneously, over a dozen pairs of eager eyes turned in unison toward Max, who was leaning against the bar and watching from a distance.

"?"

The corner of Max’s mouth twitched, and he scratched his head awkwardly.

"Well, I think that would be difficult. Lin mentioned yesterday that coconut crabs were overfished last century to the point of near-extinction. Their numbers have only started to recover after being listed as a protected species by most countries."

"I don’t know about other places, but you definitely can’t just go and catch them in America. If we ordered them from a tropical island nation and had them shipped over, setting aside the issue of whether they’d even survive, the shipping costs alone would be an astronomical figure."

After his explanation, the diners seemed to understand what was at stake. They shook their heads and sighed in disappointment, turning their gazes back to the screen on the wall.

Seizing the opportunity, Max quickly slipped into the back kitchen.

"Coconut crab?"

Gray immediately waved his hands in dismissal. "No way, no way. Absolutely not."

"Of course I know it’s impossible. What I mean is, could we use something like king crab or snow crab, collect their roe and tomalley, and stew it with coconut water and coconut milk to make a sauce that simulates the flavor of coconut crab tomalley?"

"Hmm?"

Gray gave him a surprised look, then frowned in thought for a moment before nodding. "Hey, not a bad idea, old friend. A young mind really does work fast. Why didn’t I think of doing it that way?"

"But we’d have to test it first to see if it’s any good. After all, I’ve never eaten coconut crab myself, so without a reference point, I wouldn’t know what flavor I’m supposed to be simulating."

"How about this: I’ll write it down in my notebook, and we’ll talk about it when I have time. As long as what we make is delicious, who cares if it’s an exact match?"

...

As Lin Chen reveled in the supreme deliciousness of the coconut crab, he was completely unaware that someone had silently appeared not far behind him.

Andre was soaked to the bone, clutching a small bundle of thin branches and staring intently at the coconut crab in front of him.

Seeing him eat with such gusto, cursing as he went, Andre’s throat bobbed, and before he knew it, he had moved right behind Lin Chen.

GULP.

The sudden sound of someone swallowing right by his ear made Lin Chen freeze on the spot. A piece of crab leg meat, coated in tomalley, was still dangling from his mouth as he mechanically turned his head.

He let out a heavy sigh of relief only when he saw Andre’s familiar face.

He slurped the rest of the crab meat into his mouth and mumbled as he chewed.

"Are you a ghost? You don’t make a sound when you walk. What if you’d given me a heart attack?"

"I stepped on leaves and branches several times. Weren’t you just so engrossed in your food that you completely blocked out all other sounds?"

Lin Chen’s lip twitched. For a moment, he couldn’t deny it.

A wary look appeared on his face, and he gripped the remaining half of the coconut crab tightly in his hand.

"What are you doing here?"

"Isn’t it obvious? I’m gathering firewood."

Andre swallowed again. "How about this? I’ll give you these branches, and you let me warm myself by the fire for half an hour."

Although the downpour had soaked everything, it had also broken many fragile, thin branches from the trees, which then fell naturally to the ground.

These branches were thin enough that they would be mostly dry after being left in a well-ventilated spot for the better part of a day.

While they couldn’t be used to start a fire, they could serve as fuel to be added to an existing one, using the fire’s heat to force out the excess moisture from within.

This would not only control the fire’s burn rate but also extend its duration.

"You’re a top contender. Coming to me to borrow a fire... that doesn’t look too good, does it?"

It wasn’t that Lin Chen didn’t want to agree. The main issue was that if they formed this kind of partnership, Andre would automatically seem inferior to him in the eyes of the audience.

The two of them had entered this competition as equal rivals. To show weakness after only three or four days—what kind of message would that send?

The downpour was sudden, yes, but overcoming such a hardship and rising again would actually endear him more to the audience and increase their confidence in him as a contestant.

"You’re right."

Lin Chen’s words were a wake-up call. Andre instantly sobered up, realizing the multiple hidden meanings behind this small act.

He cast one last, reluctant glance at the half-coconut crab clutched in Lin Chen’s hand, then silently started walking. He passed by the campfire and quickly disappeared into the nearby woods.

His condition was actually still stable. He had mainly come to scout out Lin Chen’s situation. But when he discovered the kid had not only started a campfire but was also cooking a meal, he was naturally reminded of their time together in Alaska.

He truly missed Lin’s cooking, which is why he couldn’t help but approach.

This trip wasn’t a total bust, though. After seeing Lin use a coconut shell to boil seaweed soup, he felt he could replicate it and immediately decided to go back and give it a try.

Of course, the precondition was that he had to get a fire started first.

That was most likely impossible today. The earliest would be tomorrow morning.

’That’s strange. He doesn’t seem like the type to show weakness so quickly. This time, he’s here carrying the hopes of his wife and kids. The power of family is supposed to be like a stimulant for a man.’

’Wait a minute, that guy... could he have come to steal my techniques?’

Remembering the two weeks that guy had spent pestering him every day to learn his craft, Lin Chen’s expression changed, and he shot his head down.

’The seaweed soup. Right, it must be that.’

’Boiling water in a coconut shell should be common sense for him, but foreigners don’t eat seaweed. After seeing me cook this stuff, he’ll definitely try to copy me.’

’Seaweed is nutritious, the soup it makes is delicious, and it’s easy to get. Damn it, why didn’t I think of that? Looks like I’ll have to watch out for spies when I cook from now on.’