Chapter 338 - 218: Mashed Potato Seafood Porridge (Part 2)

Chapter 338: Chapter 218: Mashed Potato Seafood Porridge (Part 2)

"Oh, right. Speaking of which, here you go~"

She pulled out another bamboo tube. This one was the standard kind, open at the top, and it was filled to the brim with orange juice.

"?"

Lin Chen looked up in surprise. "Did you squeeze this yourself?"

"Nope. The oranges were a little cold, so they huddled together and squeezed themselves."

"...Haha, what a hilarious dad joke."

He rubbed the bridge of his nose, slightly embarrassed, only now realizing what a dumb question he’d just asked.

’But I have to admit, it feels really nice to have someone take care of you when you’re sick. Especially when that someone is a beautiful woman.’

He didn’t stand on ceremony with her. Taking the bamboo container of food, he scooped up a spoonful of the still-steaming mashed potatoes and blew on it to cool it down.

’Fish, crab meat, sea urchin, octopus, bamboo shoots, black boletes... and it seems like there are some bits of smoked venison, too.’

’Did she really just toss all of yesterday’s leftovers into one pot?’

The texture of the mashed potatoes was just right—not solid enough to be scooped into balls, but a thick liquid, almost like a sauce.

’Using mashed potatoes instead of rice to make a seafood porridge, and coconut milk instead of water... that’s actually a pretty interesting idea.’

He’d had seafood simmered in coconut milk many times before, but adding potatoes would completely change the texture and flavor profile.

The moment it entered his mouth, the creamy potato bits melted on his tongue.

Having soaked overnight, they didn’t need to be cooked for long to dissolve into a mash.

Moreover, because a lot of extra potato starch had been added, the mash had the thick, velvety consistency of a cornstarch-thickened sauce, perfectly enveloping the flavors of all the seafood.

The smoothness of the fish, the crispness of the bamboo shoots, the sweet umami of the sea urchin, the springy resilience of the octopus, the fragrant aroma of the crab, all combined with the spiciness of chili peppers and the refreshing sweetness of coconut milk. A single bite gave him the illusion of eating a Southeast Asian version of a Chaoshan seafood congee.

’If you ground rice into a powder to make the congee, it would probably taste pretty similar, right?’

[Enjoying a delicious potato and seafood porridge on the shores of Panama. Happiness Points +5]

Holy shit?!

Just as he swallowed the mouthful of scalding potato porridge, a pleasant notification sound rang in his ear.

A full five Happiness Points. He froze on the spot.

He took a moment to feel it, and sure enough, a deep warmth was spreading through his heart.

’Five points... If I remember correctly, five is the highest number of Happiness Points I’ve gotten so far. I don’t think I even got it more than a couple of times in Alaska, and it’s never happened once here in Panama.’

Staring in astonishment at the seafood potato porridge in the bamboo tube, he looked up at Erica, who was watching him with an expectant expression, her eyes clearly asking a question.

"It’s delicious. The cooking time for all the different seafood ingredients is well-controlled, the saltiness is moderate, and the amount of coconut milk is just right. It’s not too sweet or too salty."

"Your cooking skills are getting better and better, and it seems your way of thinking has improved too. The old you probably wouldn’t have thought of a fusion like this."

"Really?"

Erica had been mentally preparing herself for a critique, so she was completely caught off guard when he offered nothing but a string of compliments. A huge grin bloomed on her face, impossible to suppress, her expression filled with delight.

"Let me be clear, I was just making this for myself! I was inspired by a chicken stew my mom used to make for me when I was little. I just wondered if I could swap the ingredients for a seafood version. It tasted pretty good after I made it, so I brought some over for you, the great wilderness chef, to sample."

"I mainly just made too much. I didn’t expect the leftover mashed potatoes to absorb so much water. I was only planning to make two tubes’ worth, but I ended up with three. It would’ve been a waste not to eat it."

’Accidentally made too much, huh?’

Lin Chen smiled and nodded, not bothering to expose her little white lie.

"It’s because you added a lot of starch to those mashed potatoes yesterday. Starch absorbs water. In our Great Xia, there’s a type of soup called ’geng.’ It’s where you add a starch slurry right before taking it off the heat, and the whole pot of soup becomes thick like a sauce."

"Oh, right, let me put it this way. The effect of adding a starch slurry to soup is similar to making a béchamel or a cream soup in French cuisine. They all serve to thicken it."

"Oh, so that’s why," Erica nodded in understanding. "No wonder I added so much water while cooking and it wouldn’t get any thinner. I almost thought I’d messed it up."

Lin Chen didn’t hold back. Right now, replenishing his nutrients was the most important thing.

After finishing the entire tube of piping hot potato and seafood porridge, fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. The heaviness in his body was replaced by a feeling of lightness.

"Looks like you weren’t lying. You finished it so fast! My dad used to say that words are cheap; truly delicious food never has leftovers."

Erica straightened up with a smile and waved at him. "Well, I’m going back to eat now. Watching you enjoy it so much is making me hungry. See you tomorrow~"

"Be careful on your way back."

After watching Erica walk away, the smile on Lin Chen’s face slowly faded.

’This won’t do. It seems I’m slowly straying from my original goal. If I hang out with this girl Erica every day, even if I do end up placing high in the competition, it won’t have any real merit in others’ eyes.’

’Once this fever breaks, I have to get back on track. If she really wants to learn from me... I’ll set it to once a week, just like in Alaska.’

He thought it over carefully and decided this was the most appropriate course of action. This was an individual competition, after all. Even that glutton Andre was restraining himself from coming to beg for food. He had to be firm and refuse the advances of a beautiful fan.

’Maybe it’s because I’ve been living abroad alone for so long. I might act like it doesn’t bother me, but it’d be a lie to say I’m not lonely.’

’As a regular guy, having a pretty foreign girl suddenly show up, claim to be my fan, and parade around in front of me in revealing clothes every day... it’s hard not to get a little full of myself.’

’Yep, that’s settled then. I’ll teach her properly after the competition is over, assuming she still wants to learn. I can also pop into Gray’s shop then and borrow his kitchen.’

At this thought, he suddenly raised his camera to his face.

"Gray, that mashed potato and seafood porridge Erica made earlier is really interesting. You could try making it."

"It doesn’t have to be presented this way. You could make it as normal mashed potatoes, or as a gravy to go with fries or other fried foods. Of course, serving it as a standalone soup or ’geng’ would also be great. You should experiment with it yourself."

He didn’t care whether Gray was watching the live stream right now or not; someone would surely let him know.

Having slept for a full day and night, he figured he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep again anytime soon.

He stepped outside to feel the temperature, put on his Hat Lamp, and went to the nearby pineapple field to pick two ripe, orange-red pineapples. Then he went down to the orange trees and picked a dozen or so oranges.

’Oranges are great. Not only do they replenish dietary fiber and vitamins, but the peel is also an ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine. Once dried, it can be stored for a long time. Whether you’re making soup or cooking other dishes, adding a bit of orange peel can greatly enhance the flavor.’

’Here by the sea, I’m not short on protein. With so much fruit around, I’m not lacking vitamins either. And thanks to the potato field, I’m not short on carbs. The only problem now is the lack of vegetables.’

Lin Chen strolled leisurely around the orange trees with the heavy load of fruit on his back. He scanned the ground every so often with his Hat Lamp, hoping to find some wild vegetables to take back.

He had only passed through here before and had never searched the area carefully. Since he was wide awake with nothing to do, he decided to take advantage of the night to have a good look around.

The thought of wild vegetables reminded him of the metal can he had hidden in the chili pepper field.

’I almost forgot about that. I have to go get it as soon as my fever’s gone.’

Before he knew it, he had wandered into an unfamiliar patch of bushes.

He pushed aside the waist-high weeds and casually swept his Hat Lamp inside. A large patch of peculiar, broad leaves that looked a lot like banana leaves caught his attention.