Chapter 2440: Go, Haley Goat!

Translator: Henyee Translations  Editor: Henyee Translations

“The high-end ingredients indeed only need to be cooked simply.”

Mag smelled the aroma in the air and lamented as he flipped his goat ribs over.

The aroma in the air was rather enticing, but to Mag, these aromas were a little bland.

That was the main ingredient’s umami, like the yellow dragon fish from Iman. After steaming, the umami of the fish was magnified and became even more enticing.

But… that was all.

Even though he also agreed with the idea that high-end ingredients should be handled simply, if a high-end ingredient had a matching high-end cooking technique, it would win over the former many times.

The mainstream cooking concepts of Underground City now were health first and original taste second.

The concepts were not wrong, but over emphasizing on these two concepts would lose many other tastes.

Like a person who only ate fresh fish soup, he could never experience the sourish spiciness of the spicy and sour sliced fish and the fragrant spiciness of the spicy grilled fish.

The seven other contestants obviously followed that concept as well.

Be it the boiled black jade turtle in clear soup, or the steamed yellow dragon fish, they all followed that rule.

This was also why half of the judges didn’t favor Mag as this was against their cooking concept.

The goat ribs were flipped to the other side and the aroma that had just spread was pressed down again.

The speed of the charcoal-grilled goat’s ribs couldn’t compare to the speed of their high-end kitchenware. It had to be grilled over a mild fire slowly, otherwise the inside would be rare and the competition would be all over.

Mag wasn’t in a hurry. He still had an hour more, so he didn’t have to be the first to serve his dishes.

“It’s indeed the black jade turtle. Simply boiling it could release such an enticing aroma.”

“I think Iman’s yellow dragon fish smells even better. Even though it was steamed, that secret sauce makes the umami even better. He’s indeed Julian’s disciple.”

“The yellow dragon fish’s aroma is indeed not bad. It has suppressed the other aromas.”

The judges didn’t idle around. They began to smell and comment on the dishes. The contestants had received mainly positive comments from the judges.

“This is weird. Why didn’t we smell any mutton aroma?” Julian looked at Mag and smilingly said, “Could it be that the charcoal’s fire has died down?”

“It’s normal that we can’t smell it. The other contestants are all using top tier ingredients. The Haley Goat’s aroma will naturally be suppressed. The contestant should have considered that when he chose his main ingredient,” David said. It was also a reminder to the other contestants that they should be more careful when they choose their ingredients in the competition later.

Nancy looked at Mag. His expression was still calm and collected. He was brushing oil onto the goat’s ribs with a brush. He didn’t seem to be affected by the judges’ comments.

His focus and calmness made Nancy stare at him in a daze.

“Is a focused man indeed very charming?” Nancy regained her wits and smiled from the bottom of her heart. She didn’t expect herself to stare at a contestant in a daze. This situation had never happened before.

“Go, Haley Goat! Go, Brother Hades!”

“Could it be that only high-end ingredients can create scrumptious food? Could it be that these judges eat yellow dragon fish every day?”

“I don’t care! I just want to support Brother Righteous! Go against the flow! Prove them wrong!”

“This is the first time I’ve seen a dish that I can afford on the Top Chef Competition. I hope he gets a good result!”

Compared to the judges’ pessimistic comments on Mag, the comments on the bullet chat were completely the opposite. They were all supporting Mag.

“Judges, I am done!” The contestant, Alfonso, who chose the black jade turtle, spoke up. He was the first to finish.

The camera panned over to Alfonso’s cooking bench and zoomed in on the dish.

The black jade turtle’s shell was already taken away and the black jade turtle that was cut into a few pieces, was pieced back into a complete turtle again. He also carved out a shell with some kind of melon to hold the turtle together. It looked rather beautiful.

Mag took the time to look at the big screen. That fellow’s carving skills were not bad. The turtle shell looked life-like and he made use of the fact that the melon would turn transparent after it was cooked to make the dish look even more exquisite.

The boiling method was very simple but the carved turtle shell helped it gain more points.

This was the restaurant’s so-called: Although it’s useless, it can make the dish cost twice as much.

“Judges, I am done too.” Shortly after, Iman next to Mag also raised up his hand.

The camera immediately panned over to Iman’s cooking bench. On the long fish-shaped plate, a golden yellow dragon fish was standing in the midst of the mist, as though it was going to fly away. The rocks and seaweeds that were carved out from carrots and melons, made this dish look picturesque.

Mag nodded. This Iman’s culinary skills were indeed not bad. Be it his cutting skills, his control of heat, or his imagination for plating, they were all better than the contestant who chose the black jade turtle. Given this dish’s presentation, he would definitely make it to the final four.

“Wow! This yellow dragon fish is so beautiful! It looks delicious!”

“My turtle indeed loses out to the dragon.”

“He’s indeed the top disciple of Tucker Restaurant. Click ‘Like’ for Chef Iman!”

As the contestants began to show their dishes, the audience began to get excited.

According to the rules of the Top Chef Competition, the finished dish would be presented to the judges immediately for grading to ensure that it would be in the best state of consumption.

The contestants’ grades would naturally affect the mental state of those contestants who hadn’t finished yet. The programming division wanted them to panic.

Alfonso’s boiled black jade turtle in clear soup and Iman’s steamed yellow dragon fish were brought to the judges’ table.

There was a conveyor belt on the judges’ table and the two dishes moved in front of the judges slowly. It was to ensure that every judge could see the dishes’ details closely and smelled the dishes’ aroma.

The dishes were placed side by side and the difference in their appearances could be seen immediately. The steaming method had preserved the yellow dragon fish’s shape very well and the intricate plating made it look even prettier.

Meanwhile, although the black jade turtle was held in a crystal bowl, there was still an obvious difference when it was compared to the yellow dragon fish.

“The steaming method has preserved the yellow dragon fish’s shape and intricate exterior.The concealed way of cutting made sure that the fish was marinated and also preserved the fish’s exterior at the same time. Contestant Iman’s method is very intricate.” David praised him.

All the judges also nodded to show their recognition for Iman.

Old Hunter commented on Alfonso’s dish, “Contestant Alfonso’s idea is also very exquisite. He carved out a crystal melon and used it to replace the shell that was taken away. His carving is so intricate that it looks life-like. The presentation’s effect is not bad.”

After appreciating the plating and presentation, here comes the important part… tasting.

The staff members scooped a helping of the fish and a helping of the turtle soup for each of the judges to taste and comment on.