Daddy's Gourmet Shop

Chapter 647 - 631: The True Master Chef

When Huang Tao was plating the dish, Old Qian, who was assisting nearby, belatedly realized...His own boss’s method for making sweet and sour ribs, although slightly more complex than the usual home recipe...

However.

He used extremely simple ingredients.

From start to finish, there were no peppercorns, star anise, bay leaves, cinnamon, five-spice powder, or thirteen-spice mix, not even the most basic green onions, ginger, or garlic.

Speaking of which,

Can sweet and sour ribs made this way taste good?

Splat~

Old Qian, what are you thinking?

Have you ever seen the boss have a major cooking fail?

No, right?!

Besides, the boss can easily pull off a national banquet dish like "Water Boiled Cabbage," as well as various famous dishes from Zhejiang Cuisine. He can surely handle a common dish like sweet and sour ribs that all cuisines and restaurants know how to make, right?

So, you can doubt your own abilities, but you can’t doubt the boss’s cooking skills!

Thus...

This slightly skeptical thought, as soon as it emerged, was quickly squashed by Old Qin himself, never to rise again.

Huang Tao had no idea what Old Qian was thinking. Although he hadn’t tasted his own sweet and sour ribs yet, he felt that just by the looks, they seemed pretty good, and the aroma was quite enticing. He trusted his cooking skills and... his trusty system.

Initially, he wanted his precious daughter to taste it first, but to set up the store, he let Jiangling and Huang Yide take Qianqian and Xuanxuan to the nearby mall to play for a while and come back later.

So, he’ll have to wait for Xuanxuan to return to do the tasting.

He smiled and pushed another small plate of sweet and sour ribs in front of Old Qin, saying, "Old Qian, come, try my new dish first!"

"Sure thing!"

Old Qian nodded happily, willingly playing the role of the "guinea pig."

He hurriedly picked up the chopsticks, grabbed a piece of glistening red sweet and sour rib, and blew on it. The rich aroma, sweet with a hint of sour, wafted straight to his senses. Sniffing hard, he caught the aroma of the meat, almost making him "drool three thousand feet."

Carefully, he placed the piece of sweet and sour rib into his mouth, barely having time to bite!

A burst of sweet and sour aroma from the ribs immediately filled his mouth.

The flavor was intense.

Yet not overwhelming, rather quite pleasant.

Absolutely incredible!

The sticky, sweet glaze on the outside of the ribs had a dessert-like feel!

After savoring it, Old Qian instinctively bit into the meat on the ribs.

In an instant...

A rich sauce and meaty flavor exploded in his mouth.

No doubt.

It exploded.

This sauce flavor, paired with the meat aroma and the lingering sweet and sour taste in his mouth, was unbelievably delicious. So much so that Old Qian almost chewed the rib bones!

Plus, the meat on the ribs, having been fried, had a slightly chewy texture on the outside, but the inside was remarkably tender and juicy...

Wow~

A seemingly ordinary rib could provide two distinct textures.

What he found even more surprising was that amidst the complex flavors, he could still taste the subtle umami of the pork itself.

This was just too amazing!

Simply mind-blowing!

Prior to tasting, he doubted that the boss’s sweet and sour ribs would taste good, but after trying them, he realized the absurdity of his doubts. It was utterly ridiculous!

Luckily, he chose to trust his boss’s culinary skills in the end and didn’t express his doubts earlier, or he would have been in a very awkward position right now!

Huang Tao noticed that unusual expression on Old Qian’s face: shock with a hint of delight, delight with a hint of regret, regret mixed with some remorse, and remorse carrying many inexplicable emotions, which left a big question mark in Huang Tao’s mind.

What was going on?

Could it be that it wasn’t tasty?

That can’t be right...

His cooking skills have improved quite a bit now!

Besides, anything made by the trusty system should at least taste decent, even if not top-notch!

Just as he was about to fall into self-doubt, Old Qin’s excited shout came to his ear: "Hu, Meng Bo, Sun Liwei, Zifeng, come and try the boss’s sugar-braised ribs, the taste is absolutely top-notch!"

Upon hearing this, the assistants, who were already drooling, immediately swarmed in, eagerly grabbing chopsticks and quickly picking up a piece of sugar-braised rib.

The thick sauce was as fine as silk, giving people an urge to devour the whole plate.

Take a bite.

Sweet and sour was well-balanced, sweet but not greasy, absolutely refreshing.

"!!!"

"Whoa, these sugar-braised ribs are insanely delicious!"

"The ribs absorbed the sauce evenly, bursting with juice in the mouth, crispy on the outside and tender inside, it would be the perfect match with some white rice!"

"This is definitely the best sugar-braised ribs I’ve ever eaten, nothing compares! Boss, how do you manage it? How is everything you cook so delicious!"

Praises filled the back kitchen for a moment.

"Boss Huang, did you make these sugar-braised ribs?"

Unnoticed, Old Qin appeared in the kitchen, his eyes full of surprise and delight, staring at the small plate of sugar-braised ribs like a hunter eyeing his prey.

Even though Old Qian hadn’t tasted it yet, just by looking at the glossy color of the ribs and the aroma wafting through the air, he knew the taste of these sugar-braised ribs wouldn’t be wrong.

Absolutely delicious!

Having been a five-star head chef for half his life and cooking for a lifetime, he still had this ability.

Upon hearing, Huang Tao picked up a pair of chopsticks and handed them over with a smile: "Elder Qin, please try the taste?"

"Alright, then I won’t be polite, I’ll try it."

Old Qian put away the folding fan, directly took the chopsticks, picked up a piece of sugar-braised rib, and put it in his mouth.

Chewing slowly, savoring carefully.

The more he savored, the more wrinkles on his old face blossomed into a bigger smile,

"The taste... is truly beyond words..."

Old Qin looked intoxicated, unable to resist a compliment: "Boss Huang, even if I made this sugar-braised rib, the taste wouldn’t match yours... even if Old Wei made it, it would be about the same, really, Boss Huang your skills are truly beyond compare, whatever you cook, it’s all so delicious!"

"Elder Qin, you’re flattering me."

Huang Tao smiled slightly and nodded gently to Old Qin, understanding well that Old Qin was being modest. He continued: "However, Elder Qin you’re being modest too, though you’ve been around for a while, you’re definitely still in your prime! If you were really to make this sugar-braised rib, it would undoubtedly be top-notch, after all, you have decades of experience and exceptional culinary skills, it’s surely a piece of cake for you, whereas I’m still relatively inexperienced and came to culinary arts late..."

"Boss Huang, look at you, I’m not being modest, it’s you who’s being humble."

Always proud, Old Qin would only willingly admit "I’m not as good as you" in front of Huang Tao. After swallowing a piece of sugar-braised rib, he instinctively asked: "Boss Huang, did you not put any spices in these sugar-braised ribs?"

It must be said, Old Qin’s palate was indeed impressive!

Even without watching the entire cooking process, he could taste what ingredients Huang Tao used.

"As expected of Elder Qin, you tasted it all."

Huang Tao smiled and nodded: "Indeed, no spices were used in making these sugar-braised ribs."

"Hmm, not bad, the delicious sugar-braised ribs indeed don’t need any spices."

Old Qin looked at Huang Tao with admiration.

But once he started talking, he couldn’t stop.

He even started sharing his cooking learning process with Huang Tao.

At the start of learning culinary arts, it was all about how to add spices and the ratio between them, how to use various spices to enhance the aroma of the ingredients.

Ordinary apprentices were at this level.

When one had learned enough cooking skills, they could create new flavors using some spices based on their understanding of cooking.

Of course.

They could also experiment and come up with some unique spices.

Reaching this level, one could become a true chief chef.

Also known as the backbone in culinary circles.

But if one wanted to continue progressing, they had to ponder more on how to reduce reliance on spices while ensuring the ingredients could still maintain the best taste.

Ultimately, one had to completely abandon the use of any spices and integrate various cooking techniques to ensure the ingredients are at their best without any spices.

Achieving this step...

Is to become a true master chef.

This is not just the growth process of a chef but also a process of returning to the essence of cooking.

Old Qin gently shook his folding fan, looking appreciative, said: "And Boss Huang, you already have the potential of a master chef! I hope you can go further on this path."

This evaluation was truly high!