Chapter 219: Taotaoju

With that, Li Xiao extended his chopsticks and easily split the square turnip cake in half, and then into quarters.

He popped one of the pieces into his mouth.

The moment the turnip cake entered his mouth, a rich, seared aroma filled his senses.

The cake was slightly springy, a clear sign of high-quality rice slurry.

The rice slurry, made with mountain spring water, was mixed with a generous amount of mashed and shredded daikon radish.

Every bite revealed the clean, sweet flavor of the radish. To add more texture, the cake was also mixed with many matchstick-thin shreds of daikon.

After being blanched, these shreds were plunged into an ice bath, which made them delightfully crisp.

They had a crunchy texture and were mixed with an abundance of dried shrimp, dried scallops, and Jinhua ham, creating a wonderfully complex mouthfeel.

Despite the many ingredients, they didn’t overpower the flavor of the turnip cake itself.

“This is very good. The ingredients are well-balanced. The flavor is rich, the radish is sweet and refreshing, and the rice slurry is very smooth.”

“Any viewers who come here later should definitely give this a try.”

[Congratulations, you have unlocked illustration #85]

[You have unlocked the food illustration: Pan-Fried Turnip Cake]

[Food Rating: 91 [Excellent]]

[As the food rating is Excellent, the reward is multiplied by 4]

[Congratulations, you have received a cash reward: 800,000]

[Congratulations, you have received a cash reward: 800,000]

[Congratulations, you have received a cash reward: 800,000]

[Congratulations, you have received a recipe reward: Turnip Cake Recipe]

…

In the live stream:

“That turnip cake isn’t seared enough!”

“The shape of that turnip cake looks a little off.”

“It’s pan-fried, not deep-fried. The person above is probably thinking of deep-fried radish glutinous rice balls?”

“The heat control for this turnip cake is clearly just right.”

…

Watching the debate in his stream, Li Xiao didn’t know whether to laugh or be annoyed. ‘How can they argue about something like this?’

“There’s nothing wrong with how this turnip cake was cooked. In my opinion, it deserves at least a 90 out of 100.”

“Of course, if you prefer it a bit more seared and fragrant, you can definitely ask the chef for some extra cooking time. Just make a note of it when you order.”

…

Soon, the waitress brought the other dim sum dishes to the table one by one.

Next, Li Xiao reached for the Taotaoju Grand Shrimp Dumplings.

These weren’t the traditionally small and delicate type; each one was as large as a whole walnut.

If you compared the shrimp dumplings from Li Garden to these grand ones, the ones from Li Garden were only about half the size.

But even though these shrimp dumplings were bigger, the price was the same as at Li Garden.

This made Li Xiao very curious. After all, Taotaoju’s prices weren’t any lower than Li Garden’s.

Li Xiao picked up his chopsticks and lifted one of the enormous shrimp dumplings.

He held it up to the camera, comparing it to his fist, and said softly,

“This is one of Taotaoju’s specialty recommendations—the great-value Grand Shrimp Dumpling. It’s easily half the size of my fist! Bigger isn’t always better, but I’ll taste it for you guys and see how it is.”

As he spoke, Li Xiao took a large bite of the shrimp dumpling.

The wrapper was on par with Li Garden’s—very dry and not at all sticky.

The moment he bit down, juices burst out. The filling was crisp, firm, and packed with the rich flavor of fresh shrimp. However, he could immediately tell that a considerable amount of pork had been added as well.

Li Xiao had a moment of realization. No wonder there was such a huge difference in size, yet the prices were so similar.

It turned out Taotaoju was using less expensive minced pork to substitute for some of the minced shrimp.

‘No, that’s not quite right,’ he thought. ‘It seems what would have been pure minced shrimp was replaced with a mix of minced pork and shrimp.’

Overall, though, the difference in taste wasn’t drastically different from Li Garden’s shrimp dumplings.

The chefs at Taotaoju were highly skilled. The minced pork here was mixed with a good amount of pork fat, so after being steamed, the inside of the dumpling would have that “juice explosion” effect.

The chef who prepared the minced pork was a true veteran. The pork was washed multiple times through an extremely fine sieve, completely removing any gamy smell.

An average diner, without paying close attention, would be completely unable to tell whether it was shrimp or pork.

Of course, Li Xiao didn’t feel like they were deceiving customers.

After all, most restaurants were unwilling to make pure shrimp dumplings; the cost was simply too high.

So, there was a long-standing unwritten rule in the industry: shrimp dumplings don’t necessarily contain only shrimp.

Moreover, it was worth noting that when making the dumpling filling, the chef had also added a small amount of jicama juice. This gave the filling a faint, clean sweetness and cut through the richness of the pork and shrimp.

The recipe was very clever, and the amount was just right. The simple jicama juice even managed to enhance the umami of the other ingredients.

[You are tasting: Shrimp Dumpling]

[Food Rating: 89 [Good]]

[As you have already unlocked this food illustration, there is no additional reward for this tasting.]

…

Li Xiao swallowed the shrimp dumpling in his mouth and said,

“Not bad at all. It’s a hefty portion, and even though it isn’t pure shrimp, it’s not the least bit inferior to one that is!”

“The filling seems simple, but there’s a lot of ingenuity hidden inside. The minced pork, the jicama juice—these seemingly simple ingredients provide the perfect finishing touch!”

“If you like a big, meaty bite, you should give this a try.”

Li Xiao picked up his camera again because this Baked Sticky Rice with Chicken and Cheese was genuinely good-looking.

Most importantly, it was different from traditional sticky rice in lotus leaf. The traditional version is wrapped in a lotus leaf, served as individual parcels.

But this Baked Sticky Rice with Chicken and Cheese before him was not only missing the lotus leaf wrapper, but it was also huge.

The entire dish was served on a black plate. There was a lotus leaf placed between the plate and the sticky rice, and the surface of the rice was covered in a thick layer of cheese.

‘If they didn’t call this dish “sticky rice with chicken”,’ Li Xiao thought, ‘I would have assumed it was some kind of cheese-baked rice on a lotus leaf…’

‘I have to say, this innovation seems a bit over the top.’

With a critical eye, Li Xiao used a dedicated pizza server to lift a portion of the sticky rice into his bowl.

The chef’s preparation was meticulous; even the lotus leaf underneath had been carefully cut.

He scooped up some of the cheese from the surface with his spoon. As soon as he brought it near his nose, a rich, milky aroma wafted up.

It was a high-quality blend of cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, which ensured a rich, complex cheese flavor while also creating that classic, crowd-pleasing cheese pull.

He mixed the cheese on his spoon with the sticky rice, then brought a spoonful of the cheesy concoction to his mouth.

Li Xiao’s eyes instantly widened. Perhaps it was because the dish’s appearance was so unorthodox.

It had drastically lowered his expectations, so much so that when he actually tasted it, he felt the same kind of surprise as if he’d randomly walked into a roadside stall only to discover it served four-star cuisine.

The aroma of milk, the fragrance of salted egg yolk, the savory scent of chicken, the earthiness of shiitake mushrooms, the brine of dried shrimp, the sweet notes of Huadiao wine, the fragrance of the lotus leaf, and the perfume of lotus seeds.

Over ten ingredients, tightly encased in sticky rice, had undergone a marvelous reaction under high heat and pressure, causing all their flavors to meld together.

And all of these rich, complex juices were, in turn, absorbed by the tightly packed sticky rice.

After being steamed, the sticky rice parcel was unwrapped, sprinkled with the two-cheese blend, and then put into an oven for a second reaction.

This second baking, at a higher temperature and without the constraint of the lotus leaf, caused the structure of the sticky rice to loosen slightly.

This allowed the flavors that were once locked inside to permeate every part of the dish.

At a time when everyone believes sticky rice in lotus leaf must be made wrapped in a lotus leaf, for someone to actually think of shattering a tradition that has been passed down for centuries—that pioneering spirit is truly incredible!