Chapter 211 Cooking Showdown
"You'll get better with more practice."
Su Yingxue responded with a smile, then added ginger slices, cooking wine and a little salt to the chicken wings, and gently rubbed them evenly with her hands.
Shen Yu quickly handed over a clean bowl: "Sister Xiao Su, use this bowl, I just washed it."
Su Yingxue took the bowl, put the marinated chicken wings in, and instructed, "Keep an eye on the time for me, and remind me in ten minutes. The marinating time needs to be long enough for the flavor to be strong enough."
"No problem! I'll set an alarm right now!" Shen Yu immediately took out her phone, carefully set the alarm, and stared intently at the screen, afraid of missing the time.
Just then, Xia Paopao ran over excitedly, carrying a large bottle of cola. "Sister Su Su, I've brought the cola! Let me open it for you!"
As she spoke, she unscrewed the cap of the Coke bottle, but her hand trembled and she lost control of the force, causing most of the Coke to spill into the flour sack next to her with a "whoosh".
The white flour was instantly soaked by the cola, turning into a sticky lump that splattered everywhere.
Xia Paopao froze on the spot, her eyes filled with panic: "Ah... I'm sorry, Sister Su, I didn't mean to."
Seeing this, Lin Qiao immediately lost her temper and pointed at Xia Paopao's nose, yelling, "Xia Paopao! Are you out of your mind? I knew bringing you out would never end well! You can even pour a perfectly good can of cola into the wrong place, what else can you do?"
Xia Paopao shrank back in fright, her eyes instantly reddening as she looked at Su Yingxue with a pitiful expression: "Sister Su, I really didn't mean to..."
Su Yingxue sighed, rubbing her forehead. Looking at the mess in front of her, she felt a sense of helplessness. She patted Xia Paopao's shoulder gently and said, "It's okay, just be more careful next time. If the flour gets dirty, just replace it with another bag. If the cola is gone, just get another bottle. It won't affect the competition."
Shen Yu quickly put down her phone and comforted her, "Yeah, Bubble, it's okay. We can just get another Coke. Don't take Lin Qiao's words to heart; she just has a short temper."
As she spoke, she took the initiative to pull Xia Paopao to the food area to get another Coke. After returning, she helped Su Yingxue clean up the mess on the floor, her movements quick and meticulous.
Seeing that Su Yingxue was not only not angry, but also comforted Xia Paopao, Lin Qiao felt even more annoyed. Just as she was about to complain a few more words, Su Yingxue glanced at her.
That gaze was indifferent, yet it carried an inexplicable intimidating power. Lin Qiao swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue, and could only snort coldly before turning back to her workbench and quickly starting to stir-fry tomatoes and eggs. Xia Paopao obediently handed her the seasonings, finally not causing any more trouble.
Su Yingxue ignored them and focused on preparing the ingredients again.
After the alarm rang, Shen Yu immediately reminded her, "Sister Su, ten minutes are up!"
Su Yingxue nodded, heated oil in a wok, and when the oil reached 60% of its maximum temperature, she put the chicken wings into the wok and slowly fried them over low heat.
The chicken wings sizzled in the pan, quickly developing a golden-brown skin, and the aroma instantly filled the air.
Shen Yu leaned closer, sniffed hard, and exclaimed with delight, "Wow, it smells so good! Sister Su, you're amazing! It smells so good even before you've added any seasoning!"
Su Yingxue smiled and glanced at her: "The aroma will be even stronger after adding cola."
Meanwhile, in Zhu Lili's group, Chef Wang was meticulously preparing the ribs.
He cut the ribs into evenly sized pieces, each piece accurate to the millimeter in length, and then soaked them in water to remove the blood foam. His movements were as meticulous as if he were creating a work of art.
Zhu Lili assisted from the side, posing for photos every now and then, while constantly muttering, "Chef Wang, slow down, don't cut your hand. Make sure the ribs are cooked nicely so they look good in the photos."
Chef Wang frowned, clearly a little impatient, but still patiently said, "Don't worry, I guarantee it will be exquisite."
Chen Mo and Chen Chen's side was also making great progress. Chen Chen was processing the fish. His knife skills were superb. He quickly cleaned the fish scales, gills, and internal organs, and then used his knife to make several beautiful patterns on the fish's body. His movements were so fast that they were almost blurry.
Chen Mo was preparing the seasonings on the side, his eyes focused, and he would remind Chen Chen from time to time: "Pipe the fish dry a little, so it won't fall apart when you steam it later."
The kitchen gradually became lively, with the aromas of various ingredients mingling together, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.
Su Yingxue had already taken out the fried chicken wings, and Shen Yu quickly handed her the prepared cola, even helping her unscrew the cap: "Sister Su, the cola is here! Do you want me to pour it in for you?"
"No need, I can do it." Su Yingxue took the cola and slowly poured it into the pot. Then she added light soy sauce, dark soy sauce and a little rock sugar, and brought the cola to a boil over high heat.
Shen Yu stood to the side, watching intently, and kept asking, "Sister Su, is this enough? Should we add some other seasonings?"
"No need, the cola is sweet enough, these seasonings are enough, the flavor will be very rich." Su Yingxue explained patiently. After the cola boiled, she poured the fried chicken wings into the pot and turned the heat to low to simmer slowly.
She would occasionally flip the chicken wings with a spatula, while Shen Yu helped by handing her plates and wiping the stove. The two worked together very well.
Xia Paopao leaned closer, her eyes wide as she gazed at the bubbling cola chicken wings in the pot. "Sister Su, it smells so good! I really want to learn how to make cola chicken wings too, and I want them spicy. Can you teach me next time?"
Su Yingxue shook her head: "Cola chicken wings are still the classic sweet flavor. Adding chili will affect the taste. But if you want some, I can make you a separate serving later."
Xia Paopao immediately and happily agreed: "Okay, okay, thank you, Sister Su!"
Lin Qiao stood to the side, watching Su Yingxue's skillful operation and the rich aroma. The doubt in her eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by surprise.
She hadn't expected that a simple cola chicken wing dish could emit such an enticing aroma. It seemed that Su Yingxue was indeed quite capable.
Zhu Lili smelled the aroma and felt a little uneasy. She walked to the kitchen door and glanced at Su Yingxue's worktop. The cola chicken wings in the pot were bright red and the broth was thick, looking very delicious.
She bit her lip, quickly returned to her workstation, and urged, "Chef Wang, can you hurry up? Look, everyone else is almost done. We can't lose."
Chef Wang was getting a little annoyed by her urging, but he remained calm and slowly added seasonings to the ribs, simmering them over low heat.
His sweet and sour pork ribs are all about refinement and texture, which takes a lot of time and can't be rushed.
An hour and a half passed quickly, and Hu Xiaoguang shouted through a megaphone: "Time's up! All groups, stop what you're doing and bring your dishes to the judging table! The staff is ready to vote; the winning group will have special privileges!"
In the blink of an eye, the four dishes were ready.
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