Fried pork cutlet, plain noodles, vodka to survive...
Humanity's understanding of food in this interstellar world is truly barren. Sangye doesn't intend to make "grand dishes" that are time-consuming and don't last long, such as boiled cabbage in clear broth. These require a certain level of culinary knowledge to appreciate their subtleties. Nor does she intend to make dishes that require fermentation and refrigeration for several hours to succeed—her time is very limited.
Sangye was preparing to give the emperor some direct and effective stimulation.
The side dish of fried pork chop is sweet, spicy, sour and fragrant, and it is paired with a refreshing staple food, plain noodles.
Most importantly, it was to let her feel the spiritual power emanating from the ingredients. This was Sangye's ultimate goal for this trip, and it was also the only bargaining chip she currently held in her hands.
Sangye carefully selected a thick piece of pork tenderloin from her storage ring. This was from her master's ten-month-old spirit pig in his cave, the strongest among its peers, and nourished by her master's spiritual power. Just by taking it out, one could feel the rich spiritual energy emanating from it. In the cultivation world, the delicacies of the Shifangwu Restaurant are regarded as powerful tonics, and the fundamental secret lies in the raw materials.
The little spirit pig that runs freely in the master's cave has even incorporated its meridians into its meat, making the meat firm and eliminating the need for pounding.
Sangye finely chopped scallions, ginger, and garlic, mixed them with special cooking wine, poured the mixture over the pork tenderloin, and then combined it with salt water, black peppercorns, and apple puree. He pressed and rubbed the mixture in repeatedly, allowing the marinade to slowly seep into the meat. Then he let it sit for a while.
A better approach would be to marinate it overnight to allow the flavors to penetrate, but she doesn't have that time right now.
Then, he casually took out a few white steamed buns, peeled off the smooth skin, crushed them into crumbs like bran powder, and separated the yolks of 10 hibiscus eggs.
Next, pour a large amount of oil into the wok. Because she was inexperienced, Sangye almost couldn't start the fire. When small bubbles appeared in the oil, add a piece of fatty meat to fry together; this makes the oil more fragrant.
The stove in the interstellar era was convenient, with easy control of the heat, but the knives were incredibly difficult to use. Sangye thought to himself, "If I ever have the chance, I definitely want to have a set of knives made for myself. Professional chefs always have their own custom-made knives, tailored to their hand width, finger length, and cooking habits. Instead of having just one razor blade for all the delicate work here."
The reason is that there is no demand for cooking, so there is no motivation for development. The kitchen utensils that Kuwano sees now are no different from those from centuries ago, except for the power source.
Sangye glanced at the door, and the four of them only looked inside occasionally to make sure the person was still there before ignoring them.
Wrap the entire tenderloin in starch, egg wash, and breadcrumbs in that order, and then fry it in oil.
With a sizzle, the aroma of the pork chop burst forth with the oil, the smell of deep-frying being the most pronounced and the most exciting. Along with the aroma of the food, the inherent spirit of the ingredients themselves spread, instantly filling the entire room.
Those outside the door were also startled by the noise; both sentries and guides were particularly sensitive to the power of their spiritual senses.
"What's going on?" The head chef, the most impatient of all, was the first to step inside.
Mental energy is only released during group healing, but this puts a great strain on the guide's mental energy. Only guides of S rank or above are capable of sustaining a group healing session. The last time a group healing session was held was when the emperor personally treated the returning expeditionary force.
As Sang Ye's direct superior, Su Mo knew her mental level all too well. As a B-level guide, Sang Ye could only perform mental analysis on 7-8 low-level sentinels a day at most, and group analysis was far beyond her current capabilities.
However, the spiritual energy overflowing in the kitchen was undeniable. Not only him, but also the sentries who escorted Sangye were all invigorated when they came into contact with the spiritual energy.
Besides the abundant spiritual energy, the kitchen was also filled with an unfamiliar aroma that made one's mouth water, as if stimulating the body's instincts.
The head chef took a deep breath. Although interstellar cuisine was beyond saving, he felt that since he had taken on the title of head chef, he should occasionally research food. However, the ancient recipes he found on the StarNet were not suitable for the ingredients of this era. The taste of the dishes was indescribable, like the stench of pus emanating from a sentinel's wounds during a rainy season—disgusting, sticky, and the smell lingered.
But in Kuwano's hands, it was given a different kind of "vitality".
Su Mo and the head chef looked at Sang Ye with complicated expressions, each of them thinking about something.
Sangye seemed oblivious, preoccupied with his work.
When frying these thick pork chops, the most important thing to control is the oil temperature. It's easy for the outer layer to burn while the inner meat is still raw. When the outer layer turns golden brown, you should immediately lower the oil temperature.
However, Kuwano was not familiar with the kitchen utensils and did not know how long it would take for the oil temperature to drop, so she chose another method.
She swiftly scooped the pork chop out of the oil and set it aside to cool. Once the skin had cooled, she sliced it into almost uniformly thick pieces. The slices were still slightly bloody, incredibly fresh, and steam was constantly rising from them. Then she coated them with the remaining egg mixture and deep-fried them again.
The hot pot sizzled, and the aroma filled the air once again.
Instead of preparing other seasonings, Sangye decided to make tomato sauce directly, since she had also discovered a tomato-like species in the warehouse.
After blanching five tomatoes, score the skin with a cross, mash them, and put them in a pot with rock sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it becomes a thick, viscous liquid. The simple tomato sauce is now ready. By adjusting the ratio of rock sugar to tomatoes, you can achieve a sweet and sour taste.
The ketchup perfectly balanced the greasiness of the pork chop, making it taste refreshing and delicate.
Kuwano Susumu's kitchen was specifically responsible for the "food" of the royal family members, while the meals for the staff and guards inside the palace were handled by the "outer kitchen" in front of the kitchen. When Kuwano arrived, it was the time when people were changing shifts in the evening. The nutritional supplements provided by the palace were of much higher quality than those sold in the market, so many people would wait for the outer kitchen to provide their evening meals.
The aroma of the fried pork cutlet was so overpowering that it spread outwards and into the outer kitchen as soon as the kitchen door was opened, carried by the airflow.
It quickly caused a commotion, with some loud voices already shouting, "What are they making in the kitchen? It smells so good!"
If it weren't for the rule that unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter the kitchen, they would probably have already swarmed in by now.
Ignoring the outside disturbances, Sangye focused on preparing the staple food, plain noodles.
She had just secretly taken out the soup base from her storage ring. It was a rich broth made from spirit pheasants raised near the Ten Directions Ditch spiritual vein for ten years and pork bones, with added white fish, mushrooms, shrimp roe and other seasonings.
The preparation of the broth is very meticulous; even the utensils are made of spiritual earthenware to lock in the spiritual energy to the maximum extent. During the simmering process, fire-element disciples must constantly monitor the process, simmering it slowly over a low flame until it boils but does not overflow. In the end, even the bones are cooked until they can be broken apart easily, and the remaining broth is reduced to minced meat, which is then scooped out and discarded, as all the spiritual energy has infused into the broth.
The soup base is contained within a piece of chalcedony, clear and luminous.
Outsiders criticize Shifangwu for using spiritual artifacts and objects to store ingredients, merely to satisfy their appetites, deeming it a waste of resources. But only the members of Shifangwu know that only in this way can the original flavor and spiritual energy of the ingredients be preserved.
Heat the broth with a little water, then add a handful of thin noodles and cook together. This way, you can enjoy the rich flavor of the broth even in the noodles.
Add a spoonful of lard, a spoonful of sesame oil, a little chopped green onion, and a spoonful of light soy sauce, then pour over broth. The aroma will instantly fill the air.
Sangye slowly scooped out the noodles, which were then coiled and placed in the broth. The noodles were green onions, yellow oil, and white soup, and just looking at them made one's mouth water.
In this way, both the simple main dish and staple food are ready.
Kuwano had originally planned to pair it with some wine, but after tasting the wine from this era, she found it unbearably dry and strangely flavored, wondering what it was made of.
Seeing how enthusiastically they were drinking, she thought at least there was something edible in this era, but it turns out she was overthinking it.
Sangye thought about the raw materials in the warehouse and took out a high-proof liquor from his storage ring. This liquor was made by his senior sister in her spare time using rye and potatoes. It had a sharp taste, like the wind blowing across the ice field, containing snowflake particles that made people's throats hurt.
She added ice, alcohol, and a small glass of milk, then mixed in freshly squeezed grape juice to reduce the alcohol's harshness, and a simple drink to accompany the meal was ready.
Su Mo and the others looked at her with complicated expressions, their expressions like silent interrogation. Su Mo, however, had another layer of meaning. As her direct superior, he was unaware that Sang Ye possessed this skill, let alone that she could project her spiritual energy.
The head chef from the outer kitchen, who had somehow arrived after being drawn by the aroma, didn't have many thoughts running through his mind. Despite the harsh environment of interstellar space, he had managed to eat his way to a plump figure. At this moment, he was staring intently at the remaining broth that Sangye had prepared: "It smells so good. Can I have the rest?"
Not everyone working in the palace is a guide or sentry. According to the Employment Protection Act, more than 80% of jobs in industries not related to the military must be provided to ordinary people to prevent guides/sentinels from taking advantage of their special abilities such as mental power.
The head chef is just an ordinary person. He can't sense the spiritual energy that fills the kitchen. All he sees are delicacies he's never seen since birth.
Sangye was stunned for a moment, and felt a little sorry for them, but it was fleeting. She was already sentenced to death, so who could be more pitiful than her?
"I'll make you another bowl when I get back," she promised.
*
Emperor Lin Shuangqiao of the Gamma Empire is a guide, and one of the empire's five S-class guides.
Her perception of spiritual energy far surpassed that of everyone else in the palace. When Sangye took out the pork tenderloin, she caught a wisp of spiritual energy emanating from it. She paused, her pen still on her hand, as she was reviewing official documents.
When mental energy overflows in a guide, it becomes a collective mental cleansing, but in a sentinel, it becomes a mental rampage.
However, this overflowing spiritual energy remained very stable, without any of the violent and manic energy she was familiar with.
She remembered the eunuch's report earlier that the guide, who had recently caused the deaths of several sentries, wanted to prepare her dinner. It seemed something unexpected had happened.
She had initially agreed to this somewhat bizarre thing out of curiosity, but now she felt that this guide might bring her a great surprise.
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