Chapter 169 Cold Water for Soup, Boiling Water for Flavorful at!
Ouyang Lin claid he’d had better Twice-Cooked Pork before, even using exaggerated phrases like “not even close” and “way off” to describe Gu Tielin’s dish.
Gu Tielin refused to accept that. They could say he wasn’t skilled in other cuisines, like Cantonese or Shandong dishes—but when it ca to Sichuan cuisine, he had every reason to be proud. He didn’t believe anyone could make a Twice-Cooked Pork that was significantly better than his.
Just then, the restaurant manager walked in with a strikingly handso young man. Ouyang Lin was first surprised, then delighted, and eagerly went to greet him.
“Mr. Lu, I thought you were coming tomorrow.”
In the kitchen, all eyes were on Lu Qin. Gu Tielin, already annoyed, didn’t wait for an introduction and directly asked, “President Ouyang, is this young man the one you said could make a better Twice-Cooked Pork than ?”
Gu Tielin crossed his arms and stared at Lu Qin, his posture resembling the classic arrogant antagonist in web novels—one who was about to be put in his place. Lu Qin glanced at Gu Tielin with an indifferent expression.
It seed like Ouyang Lin had eaten his cooking at lunch, and now his taste had beco more refined—more demanding.
Sigh.
Wasn’t this just creating more trouble for him?
Sure enough, Ouyang Lin smiled and said, “Mr. Lu, this is Chef Gu Tielin, the head Sichuan cuisine chef at Wangjing No.1. Why don’t you two have a little competition? Here, this is his Twice-Cooked Pork.”
He pushed a plate towards Lu Qin, signaling him to taste it.bLu Qin glanced at Ouyang Lin.
Showing off costs extra, you know.
He picked up his chopsticks, took a bite, and gave an honest, straightforward review.
“The lean at isn’t dry and fragrant enough, the fat isn’t tender enough, the skin lacks chewiness, the spice isn’t strong enough, and the aftertaste is weak.”
Lu Qin looked up at Gu Tielin.
“You made this?”
As soon as he said that, Gu Tielin’s face turned red and then pale. Everyone around was wide-eyed.
Wait… wasn’t that exactly what President Ouyang said earlier?
Could Chef Gu’s Twice-Cooked Pork really be that bad?
No way!
They had all tasted his cooking before—his skills were highly regarded in Haishi. Ouyang Lin, however, nodded with a smile. Compared to Lu Qin’s Twice-Cooked Pork, this assessnt was spot on.
Gu Tielin snorted.
“Yes, I made it. Mr. Lu, was it? Then let try yours. Please—!”
He gestured towards the kitchen.
Lu Qin had no reason to hold back—making a dish of Twice-Cooked Pork would only take about ten minutes. With Chef Gu’s personality, he wouldn’t be convinced until he was humbled.
Lu Qin stepped forward, raised his hands, and suddenly exuded a strong presence. The staff instinctively stepped back, clearing space for him.
Ouyang Lin gave a look to one of the assistants, who quickly caught on and ran to fetch an apron, tying it around Lu Qin. Lu Qin selected a piece of second-cut pork belly. He had to admit—Wangjing No.1 used top-tier ingredients.
Every cut of pork looked excellent.
As the water was coming to a boil, word spread that an outsider was challenging Chef Gu. Curious kitchen staff began sneaking over to watch. Before long, the kitchen entrance was packed.
“Who’s this kid? Daring to challenge our Chef Gu? Must be clueless. Probably from out of town.”
“Actually, yeah—he’s from Jiangcheng.”
“President Ouyang said his Twice-Cooked Pork is way better than Chef Gu’s.”
“No way! For real! That’s a bold claim! Chef Gu is one of the top five Sichuan chefs in Haishi!”
“Jiangcheng is known as a ‘culinary desert’—I once ate at a famous Sichuan restaurant there called Lou Wai Lou, and honestly, it wasn’t as good as Chef Gu’s cooking.”
“He’s young—how skilled could he be? I’ll give him credit for bravery, though.”
…
Whispers filled the room. The water ca to a boil. Lu Qin placed the at in, skin-side up, at-side down.
Ouyang Lin, unfamiliar with cooking, asked curiously, “Isn’t the at supposed to go in cold water? Why boiling water?”
Lu Qin smiled.
“President Ouyang, cold water for soup, boiling water for flavorful at. Cold water brings out the freshness of the broth; boiling water enhances the at’s aroma.”
“Oh, I see,” Ouyang Lin nodded.
Lu Qin added, “Also, fresh at can be blanched in boiling water, but if it’s feedlot at or frozen, you have to use cold water—otherwise, the blood won’t be fully extracted.”
Ouyang Lin gave a thumbs-up.
“I never knew there were so many techniques in cooking, and this is just the start.”
He couldn’t help but gain a newfound respect. The surrounding chefs, hearing how clearly Lu Qin explained things, put aside their initial doubts.bThis guy knew his stuff.
So even realized they’d been doing it wrong all along—always putting at in cold water. Gu Tielin narrowed his eyes. What Lu Qin just explained wasn’t sothing you could easily learn outside—his ntor had taught him personally. He had never taken on a disciple, so he never shared these details.
In a competitive kitchen, knowledge was power. Teaching others only reduced his own edge. Yet Lu Qin openly revealed it without hesitation. Lu Qin skillfully twisted a bunch of scallions into a bundle and tossed them into the pot.
Using a ladle, he skimd off the scum and added scallions, ginger, garlic, cooking wine, and Sichuan peppercorns. He adjusted the heat and flipped the at over. Gu Tielin watched intently, now completely serious. Many chefs thought blanching at was just about cooking it through. But that was a huge mistake!
The level of heat was crucial. Too high, and the at cooked too fast, becoming dry. Too low, and the at wouldn’t firm up properly. And the at shouldn’t be fully cooked—it needed to be half-raw in the center and fully cooked on the outside to achieve the signature “lamp-shadow” texture when sliced. Even he couldn’t always control this level of precision.
But—!
The way Lu Qin handled it with such confidence and ease shocked him. This guy was legit. Once the at cooled, Lu Qin began slicing. Everyone stretched their necks to watch his knife skills.
Among chefs, knife skills were a major test of ability. As Lu Qin started slicing, people’s expressions gradually shifted to astonishnt.
“Whoa! He’s so fast! That’s real skill!”
“This level of knife work takes at least a decade to master!”
“The slices are so even! I bet the thickness difference between each piece is less than half a milliter. I kinda wanna grab a coin to compare!”
“Damn! He might be even better than Chef Gu!”
In just over three minutes, the at was perfectly sliced.
Gu Tielin’s heartbeat quickened.
He was more than twenty years older than Lu Qin, but when it ca to knife skills—Lu Qin had the upper hand!
This young man was terrifying!
Then ca the stir-fry.
Lu Qin’s technique was the embodint of one word—professional.
In no ti, the dish was plated. A rich aroma filled the air. Everyone instinctively swallowed.
Damn.
It slled better than Chef Gu’s!
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