met free Chapter 11 What's so special about this dish?
Chapter 11 What's so special about this dish?
Soon, Li Mao arrived at the kitchen of the Prince's mansion.
Upon seeing Li Mao enter, all the chefs bowed and knelt on the ground.
"I have met the prince."
Li Mao waved his hand.
"No gift."
"Enough with the small talk, let's begin. Let me see what you've accomplished these past few days."
Upon hearing this, the dozen or so cooks all grinned.
"Your Highness, just you wait and see!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the cooks stood up, rolled up their sleeves, and walked to the stove.
Under Li Mao's watchful eye, the chefs quickly prepared the ingredients.
Immediately afterwards, the cooks swung their arms rapidly, causing the iron pots to flip continuously in the air.
Each flip was precise, and the ingredients were evenly stir-fried in the pan without any sign of falling off.
Finally, with a powerful swing of the arm, the iron pot landed precisely back on the stove with a crisp sound. The whole process was completed in one go, without any hesitation.
Each toss in the wok carries a unique rhythm, like a brisk drumbeat.
The chefs kept their eyes glued to the ingredients, carefully observing changes in color, texture, and the seepage of juices.
Seeing this pleasing scene, Li Mao smiled with satisfaction.
These chefs seem to have put in a lot of effort; they've even become quite skilled at tossing food in the wok.
As the aroma of various dishes wafted throughout the kitchen, the cooks placed their dishes on the table in front of Li Mao.
"Your Highness, please enjoy your meal."
The exquisite dishes were neatly arranged on the table, like carefully crafted works of art.
"That's right. The most important thing about a dish is that it has a perfect combination of color, aroma, and taste. It seems that you have achieved the color and aroma. Now, let's see how well you do the final 'taste'."
As Li Mao spoke, he took the chopsticks from a servant standing nearby.
Seeing Li Mao begin to taste it, the dozen or so chefs held their breath, swallowed hard, and waited for Li Mao's evaluation.
Li Mao picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth, chewing it slowly.
The rich flavors instantly spread throughout the mouth, with the freshness of the ingredients and the mellowness of the seasonings blending perfectly, making every bite feel like a feast for the taste buds.
Li Mao's face first showed a hint of surprise, then he nodded slightly, his eyes full of approval.
"Hmm, this dish has a rich flavor, a perfect balance of saltiness, and the natural taste of the ingredients is brought out very well. Excellent!"
Upon hearing this, the cook's face immediately lit up with an excited smile, and he quickly bowed to express his gratitude.
"Thank you for the compliment, Your Majesty."
Li Mao tasted another dish and then closed his eyes.
"This dish has a refreshing and pleasant taste, it's very good."
"It seems you have not disappointed me."
Li Mao once again gave high praise, and the chefs' tension gradually eased, their faces beginning to show pride.
He tasted each dish one after another, giving detailed and precise evaluations of each one.
The chefs listened attentively to Li Mao's evaluation.
After Li Mao finished tasting all the dishes, he put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth.
It must be said that these chefs have fully mastered the dishes he taught them.
However, what Li Mao regretted most was that without chili peppers, relying solely on other spices, the dishes he made could never match the original flavor of these dishes from later generations.
But other spices are easy to find, the most important of which are sugar, salt, and soy sauce.
As long as you control the amount of these ingredients, the cooked dishes will still taste delicious.
Thinking of this, Li Mao raised his head and looked at the cooks in front of him.
"I am very satisfied with your results today. You have fully mastered what I have taught you."
"Next, prepare these dishes to the same standard as today and send them to the racecourse for the nobles and princes to enjoy."
"Yes, Your Highness, I will prepare it immediately."
After receiving Li Mao's order, the chefs got busy again and began cooking.
……
After leaving the kitchen, Li Mao instructed the servant beside him, "Go to the Prince Sheng's residence and tell Twenty-One that I will be hosting a banquet at the racecourse tonight. Tell him to invite some princes and ministers to the banquet."
"The villain understands."
Time passed, and Prince Sheng, Li Qi, arrived at the racecourse with several princes and ministers he was on good terms with.
Even Prime Minister Li Linfu came upon hearing the news.
As the owner of the racecourse, Li Mao arrived early to welcome the princes and ministers.
After being ushered into the racecourse, Prince Sheng, Li Qi, pulled Li Mao aside.
"Brother Eighteen, don't let me down later."
"If this banquet is ruined, I will lose face in front of my brothers and lords."
Upon hearing this, Li Mao smiled calmly and patted him on the shoulder.
"Twenty-first brother, don't worry, I won't let you down."
Seeing Li Mao's confident demeanor, Li Qi breathed a sigh of relief, but remained skeptical.
"I hope so..."
Before long, the banquet officially began, and exquisite dishes were served one by one.
The invited princes, ministers, and other dignitaries took their seats.
Among them, Prime Minister Li Linfu was the first to take a bite. After taking a bite, a look of amazement flashed in his eyes. He then praised, "This dish is excellent in color, aroma and taste. It is truly a delicacy. Prince Shou is indeed discerning and has trained such an outstanding chef."
Still somewhat uneasy, Li Qi picked up a piece with his chopsticks, tasted it, and his eyes lit up immediately.
"Hey, Eighteenth Brother, you really didn't lie to your younger brother! Brothers and younger brothers, stop standing there and eat!"
Seeing this, the other princes, ministers, and other officials also picked up their chopsticks.
With just one bite, everyone froze on the spot, speechless for a long time.
But soon, someone exclaimed in surprise, "It's so delicious!"
"Eighteenth Brother, you're so unfair! You should have brought such a chef out sooner!"
"Yeah, Eighteenth Brother, how long have you been eating all by yourself before you remembered to share with us!"
Immediately, everyone present praised the dishes.
Faced with the public's criticism, Li Mao smiled calmly.
"Brothers and sirs, you have wronged me. I have only just trained these cooks."
"If you like to eat, then eat as much as you want. Tonight it's on me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the princes, ministers, and other officials were overjoyed.
"Prince Shou, you said it yourself, give me a few more dishes!"
"Yeah, Brother Eighteen, bring a few more plates of this dish!"
"Very well, very well, I will immediately order people to prepare."
Li Mao greeted everyone with a smile.
However, what Li Mao didn't notice was that a figure was silently watching all of this from the corner.
That figure was none other than the close attendant Gao Chen!
Ever since he suffered a loss at Li Mao's hands during the day, Gao Chen had been filled with resentment.
So he went to the racecourse under the cover of night, hoping to find some new dirt on Li Mao to report to Li Longji.
Unexpectedly, this led them to Li Mao's banquet featuring new dishes.