Chapter 556: Chapter 549: Truly Remarkable
Fu Yu took out all the preserved vegetables.
Bring the remaining broth to a boil over low heat and thicken it a bit, but not too much.
Place an appropriate amount of preserved vegetables in the gaps at the bottom of the rolled meat.
Fu Yu understood the process and knew how to stuff it.
But... how much to stuff, how large an area to spread, the ideal thickness of the preserved vegetables inside the meat roll...
Fu Yu had no idea about any of these.
Both Liu Yunong and traditional recipes merely mentioned adding an appropriate amount.
In culinary terms, "appropriate amount" is subject to personal judgment.
Fu Yu took a deep breath, picked up the preserved vegetables, and stuffed them into the gap at the meat roll’s bottom.
"Poof!"
A faint sound.
The few people watching Fu Yu’s process were instantly bewildered.
Liu Zhangpeng was stunned, internally ranting: Damn! Was that on purpose?
Using such a low-level mistake to subtly hint to everyone that it’s really your first time making this dish?
This is way too fake!
Meanwhile, both Liu Yunong and Wang Yulong remained silent.
This must have been an accident!
After all, this mistake was too amateurish!
Fu Yu just stuffed a bit of preserved vegetables and ended up bursting the entire meat roll!
The toothpick slipped, and the meat roll fell apart into a heap.
Thinking about Fu Yu’s stuffing method earlier, the two exchanged a silent glance.
Fu Yu must have been too tired and had his hand shaking, right?
Yeah!
It must be that.
After all, all the critical cooking steps were completed perfectly, but he messed it up at the very end!
This is too hard to accept!
Clearly, it must have been a physical issue that led to such a low-level mistake!
Fu Yu’s face turned a bit red!
This is so damn embarrassing!
Really ashamed!
Just because of stuffing preserved vegetables, the meat roll got burst apart.
So frustrating!
Fu Yu cleared his throat to cover up, awkwardly turning to the people around him.
Seeing everyone’s gaze, Fu Yu awkwardly explained, "First time, no experience... Hehe!"
Hehe?
Liu Zhangpeng internally ranted, feeling mocked, but he put on a very understanding expression and said, "Hmm, it’s already quite good."
Fu Yu pulled himself together, first checking the burst end of the pagoda meat. Thankfully, it was just because he overstuffed it with preserved vegetables, causing the toothpick to slip, and it didn’t damage the meat slices.
He quickly placed the meat slices back into the mold and rolled them up again, securing them with a toothpick.
This time, Fu Yu focused intently and carefully stuffed in the preserved vegetables.
The entire process was as slow and awkward as a turtle crawling on sand.
The three people watching were utterly bewildered.
How to describe this?
If Fu Yu had been as clumsy as now from the start, it’d be understandable.
After all, when people are trying something for the first time, anything can happen, and they can be forgiven and understood.
But to start off like a master, perfectly executing the most difficult steps, then suddenly turning into a novice at the end, the gap is just too big!
The meat roll is slippery and thick, relying solely on a toothpick to stay fixed.
When stuffing preserved vegetables, to have enough, you need to control the pressure well.
This... is really challenging!
Seeing the three bystanders with nothing to say, yet clearly observing with interest, especially Liu Yunong with an obviously amused look, Fu Yu felt his ears burning.
Liu Zhangpeng cleared his throat, his expression visibly relaxing.
That’s what I thought!
If anyone could do everything perfectly, there would be no need for a master; just go home and self-study with a cookbook!
Fu Yu carefully started stuffing the preserved vegetables again, his technique slow but steady.
The earlier failure left him a bit embarrassed but didn’t bother him much.
After all... starting is always the hardest part.
Once he finishes cooking this pagoda meat, he’ll become much more skilled at it in the future.
Especially when stuffing something into a fixed meat roll, even while maintaining the original shape; it’s extraordinarily difficult.
He knew how to do it; it’s simple, just bountifully fill the gaps in the meat roll with preserved vegetables, then spread it out to ensure a smooth surface.
While this cooking step seems simple, it’s truly challenging for Fu Yu.
The first time, he stuffed too much, and the meat roll formed a large bulge—failed!
The second time, he stuffed too little, and a thin gap appeared—it looked ugly!
The third time, he almost busted the toothpick...
Fu Yu’s hands were slightly sweaty.
He felt his ears burning.
This embarrassing sensation, he hadn’t experienced it in a long time.
System, help me!
Put me in the practical lesson!
I want to learn!
I want to improve!
I want to get better!
The three observers beside him were dumbfounded... their expressions varied!
Liu Zhangpeng was bewildered too.
Could it be... Fu Yu truly wasn’t pretending?
Was it really his first time cooking pagoda meat?
Given his clumsy cooking technique, it was almost certain.
After all... this awkwardness couldn’t be faked.
Liu Zhangpeng paused slightly, sincerely feeling he might have wrongly accused the young man.
The guy truly was cooking this dish for the first time, having probably never even heard of it before.
And Liu Yunong finally grasped Fu Yu’s intention.
It seemed he indeed hadn’t been exposed to this type of culinary dish before.
Fu Yu had great knife skills, especially his wielding technique was impressive, and although young, his ability was already quite high.
Really remarkable!
But... looking at his stuffing technique, um... it seemed a bit clumsy; it appears he didn’t have many opportunities to practice this kind of operation.
How long has he been stuffing already?
Not even done with a single meat roll.
Is this too low-level?
Thinking of this, Liu Yunong sighed inwardly.
It seemed Fu Yu reached his current level mainly through hard work despite having some talent.
Maybe I’ve overestimated him?
And although Wang Yulong was feeling intense secondhand embarrassment, as he recalled Fu Yu’s cooking attempts while following him, his eyelids twitched slightly.
He suddenly realized that although Fu Yu’s late-stage cooking operations were cringe-worthy, the entire dish’s process was correctly executed.
From start to finish, without much guidance from Liu Yunong.
He merely listened to a simple explanation from Liu Yunong and could replicate it himself, showing that Fu Yu had excellent comprehension and practical skills!
For cooking, the most crucial skill is knife work.
And Fu Yu’s knife skills were exceptional.
Reflecting on all of Fu Yu’s cooking operation details.
It was clear that apart from the stuffing part, all his other skills were quite competent.
How did he develop this?
Could this be innate talent?!
