Chapter 1264: Hot! Hot!

Chapter 1264: Chapter 1264: Hot! Hot!

"Come on, let’s toast to celebrate holding onto a badge today!" Ye Fei raised her glass and said.

Everyone raised their glasses and took a small sip.

The light yet fragrant aroma of rice wine slowly glided down their throats.

As the gold flakes in the glass gradually decreased, they couldn’t actually taste their presence.

Li Xiaoyun loved to have a little drink.

Sipping on such a delicious sake, she squinted with satisfaction.

Even the little guy joined in the fun, holding his glass of yuzu juice, pretending it was alcohol.

He took a sip and shook his head in satisfaction.

Ye Fei then served everyone a bowl of soup.

Each bowl contained a piece of white radish, two chicken meatballs, two slices of matsutake, and a tiny bunch of shimeji mushrooms.

The little guy, although small, could now use chopsticks proficiently, without needing training chopsticks.

However, the adult chopsticks were too long for the little guy.

So, although he didn’t need helpers, he still had to use children’s chopsticks.

He’s become quite skilled at using them.

He picked up the chopsticks and lightly pinched the white radish at about one-fifth from the top.

Without much effort, the soft radish was pinched down.

The radish was stewed until it was translucent, with a slight brown hue, at first glance resembling soft tendon.

The little guy took a big bite, engulfing the radish.

"Hot! Hot!" The little guy exclaimed while blowing to cool it down.

Ye Fei quickly reached out to his mouth: "Spit it out quickly."

"Mmm..." The little guy closed his mouth tightly, enduring the heat, unwilling to spit it out.

Once his mouth adjusted to the temperature, he began savoring the taste.

He didn’t even need to chew, just a gentle press inside his mouth, and the radish would completely fall apart.

Even after swallowing, he was still relishing the flavor.

He closed his eyes, kicking his legs in satisfaction.

Holding his face with both hands, he continuously hummed in admiration.

"So delicious, so tasty." The little guy quivered with joy.

Zhao Gushen was amused by the little guy’s reaction.

He knew Ye Fei’s culinary skills were remarkable.

But to this extent?

He picked up a piece of white radish with his chopsticks.

Having seen the little guy’s reaction, Zhao Gushen blew on it several times, gauging that the temperature was bearable before putting it in his mouth.

Unexpectedly, as soon as it entered his mouth, Zhao Gushen was stunned.

The white radish was stewed to a marrow-like consistency.

Not like the commonly seen grilled bone marrow.

But rather a whole cross-sectioned bone, roasted together with the bone.

The thick marrow inside was more like fatty meat.

It sounded greasy, but was actually smooth, soft, and melted in the mouth.

It was like the fatty part of pork belly, cooked until impossibly tender, breaking apart with the slightest pinch of chopsticks, dissolving in the mouth.

Yet, it wasn’t as greasy as fatty meats.

Even when cooked well, fatty meat can become cloying after a couple of bites, but this was different. It was radish, merely cooked to a similar mouthfeel, but never greasy in taste.

Carrying a slight aroma of fat.

Zhao Gushen guessed that the fatty aroma probably came from the chicken meatballs, with a faint sweetness.

The white radish absorbed all the flavors of the broth.

Combined with the umami of chicken, matsutake, and shimeji mushrooms, plus a touch of smoky aroma from the dried bonito.

Such simple white radish, yet with such a complex flavor.

No wonder the little guy had such an exaggerated reaction.

Zhao Gushen closed his eyes, even he couldn’t resist shaking his head in delight.

Zhao Dingli and Li Xiaoyun had the same reaction as Zhao Gushen without prior agreement.

They were both surprised and delighted, after just one bite, smiles of surprise and satisfaction spread across their faces.

"So tasty!" The little guy’s voice came again.

Everyone looked, the little guy had already taken the lead in tasting the chicken meatballs.

The tip of his chopsticks skewered half a meatball.

The other half had obviously already made its way into his mouth.

Zhao Gushen chuckled, this boy was always a step ahead of them.

Li Xiaoyun, fearing the heat, cautiously bit into half a ball first.

"Why isn’t the chicken meatball dry at all?" Li Xiaoyun asked Ye Fei, "And it’s still juicy."

"It’s made with chicken thigh, with added eggs. You see, the parts of a chicken that get exercised the most every day are the wings and legs. So these parts are the firmest, most tender, and juicy," Ye Fei explained with a smile.

"So it’s actually not about any special cooking method, it’s just that the meat itself is excellent."

"How is it so springy?" Zhao Gushen was surprised.

He initially thought the essence of this soup lay in the white radish.

The selection of white radish seemed simple, but it’s very representative of Japanese cuisine.

Like Oden, the most common and representative street food, where radish completes the dish.

There’s also a simple method where it might even appear in high-end Kaiseki cuisine.

Stewed in a secret broth until tender, then drizzled with a special sauce.

Simple radish, yet enough to hold up an entire dish.

That’s why Ye Fei chose white radish; it fits the theme perfectly.

He thought the soup’s essence was all in the radish.

But he didn’t expect the chicken meatballs to offer such a pleasant surprise.

Zhao Gushen examined the halved meatball and noticed some small thin particles in the middle, but he couldn’t tell what they were.

Then he heard Ye Fei explain: "It’s chicken skin. I cooked the chicken skin, then washed it repeatedly with cold water. After removing the gelatin from the skin, it became very elastic. Mixed into the meatballs, it gives a distinct texture and a bouncy bite every now and then."

"You’re amazing," Li Xiaoyun admired.

No need to say much about the matsutake and shimeji mushrooms.

They naturally carried the umami of mushrooms.

After absorbing the sweet and savory flavors of the chicken and dried bonito, they became even more delicious.

"Did you impress the judges today?" Li Xiaoyun asked expectantly.

Thinking of Sharuk’s expression, Ye Fei smiled, "Perhaps... in a different sense of impressed."

"How so?" Zhao Dingli asked with a smile.

"I actually know that people from the Indian subcontinent generally don’t eat chicken skin. Some, for religious reasons, don’t even eat chicken. But ordinary people do eat it; they just don’t eat the skin," said Ye Fei. "It’s not due to culture or religion, just habit. Like Westerners not eating organ meats, pig trotters, chicken feet, etc."

They can’t visually accept it, and also don’t know how to cook it.

But offering it doesn’t offend them.

"I just thought, since the chicken skin was chopped up and mixed into the meatball, he wouldn’t know," Ye Fei said with a smile.

"Like some short videos, inviting foreign friends to eat things they usually wouldn’t."