NOVEL NEXT Chapter 10: Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken
In the Douluo Continent, there weren’t many forms of entertainment to enjoy. For Spirit Masters, cultivation was probably the best form of entertainment, and for ordinary people, the night was for sleeping.
Although Qi Han said he would deal with it tomorrow, he still went to bed early and woke up before dawn, entering the system space once again.
Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken was a famous soup dish in Cantonese cuisine from his previous life. It involved the handling of pork stomach and chicken meat, making it more challenging than Egg Fried Rice.
From this perspective, it deserved its 2 Star rating.
The demonstration was still conducted by the virtual chef in the training space. The chef swiftly handled the tender pork stomach and a whole chicken, cutting them into small pieces, seasoning them, and stewing them. The entire process flowed smoothly like water.
The hours-long process of making soup was compressed to 5 minutes under the system’s black technology.
Finally, what appeared before Qi Han was a pot of creamy white soup and the tender chicken meat and slightly curled pork stomach within it.
Unlike stir-fried dishes that emitted a strong aroma, the aroma of a Perfect-grade Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken was delicate but alluring, captivating one’s senses with every subtle whiff.
Qi Han couldn’t resist and scooped up a spoonful of the soup, combining the rich aroma of pork stomach and chicken meat with the warm essence of ginger. The three flavors melded together, elevating the Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken to a new level. A sip of the soup captured the essence of the entire dish.
Savoring it for a long time, Qi Han couldn’t help but take a deep breath and then used his chopsticks to pick up a piece of pork stomach.
With a resilient texture, the pig stomach straightened when it was picked up, and then quickly returned to its curled state. This elasticity was not typical of a soup dish; instead, it resembled the texture of stir-fried pig stomach.
When bitten into, it was chewy but not tough. Under the perfect handling, the pig stomach strips had no trace of any unpleasant taste. On the contrary, they exuded a delicate aroma that belonged to pig stomachs, combined with the absorbed flavor of the chicken. It was refreshing and not greasy, truly exceptional.
When a piece of chicken meat was picked up and placed in his mouth, it was from the most fibrous part of the chicken breast, which was usually the toughest. However, there was no hint of toughness upon tasting it; instead, it was tender and juicy, with the flavors of chicken at its most primal essence. The rich aroma was intoxicating.
Was this considered a 2 Star dish? He must Master it!
Suddenly, Qi Han felt an endless motivation.
An entire morning passed in the system space, which felt like 8 days. During those 8 days, Qi Han was accompanied by the cold and merciless voice of the system.
【Error occurred. The pig stomach wasn’t scrubbed with enough force. Please restart, Host.】
【Error occurred. The chicken meat wasn’t cut along the grain. Please restart, Host.】
【Error occurred. The blanching time for the pig stomach was too long. Please restart, Host.】
【Error occurred. The ingredients were added in the wrong order. Please restart, Host.】
…
Although there were continuous errors, Qi Han could clearly feel that he was making progress much faster compared to when he practiced Egg Fried Rice. It’s worth mentioning that the system chose a 10 Years Spirit Beast called “Iron Spikes Pig” and a 10 Years “5-Colored Brocade Chicken” as the main ingredients for the pig stomach chicken dish.
The pig stomach was provided directly by the system, but Qi Han had to personally handle the 5-Colored Brocade Chicken, starting from slaughtering it to complete the dish. In terms of strength, Qi Han might not even be able to defeat a ten-year 5-Colored Brocade Chicken since he was only a level 1 Spirit Master.
So, the system thoughtfully tied up each 5-Colored Brocade Chicken.
Finally, with the system’s reminder, Qi Han exited the system space.
It was already noon, and he had to open his shop.
‘Huh?’
As he walked downstairs, Qi Han suddenly noticed that there were people waiting in front of his shop.
Upon opening the door, 2 tall men walked in with smiles on their faces. “Boss, we thought you wouldn’t open today.”
“No, there’s no special reason. The shop opens at the same time every day.” Qi Han shook his head, recalling who these two men were.
They were the second pair of the 5 disciples under Zhou Long from last night—Zhang Ji and Zhang Mo, twins with somewhat lonely names.
‘Right, this was their second visit, so they could be considered regular customers.’
Qi Han looked at the Quest and found that the Quest description had indeed changed.
【Main Quest 3: Gaining Some Fame.
Make the Small Shop have 100 regular customers.
Quest Description: A qualified first restaurant of the Food God should have a taste that people can’t forget.
Quest Rewards: Random Recipe Drop x 1, Spirit Power Level +5, 2 Star Optional Recipe Fragment x1
Quest Progress: 2/100】
“Two plates of Egg Fried Rice, please!” Zhang Ji opened with a cheerful smile and pulled Zhang Mo to sit at a table on the first floor.
Although Qi Han had just experienced intense training in the system space, his physical condition was not affected at all. He swiftly cooked the Egg Fried Rice as usual, and soon he approached the table with two plates of Egg Fried Rice for the Zhang brothers.
Zhang Ji glanced at Qi Han and couldn’t help but ask, “Boss, your cooking skills are so good, why does the restaurant only have one kind of cuisine?”
Qi Han hesitated for a moment and decided to give a sneak peek of the new dish to the returning customers. “There should be a new dish in a few days.”
“Oh?” Zhang Ji’s eyes lit up. “Then I’ll ask Captain Zhou to come and try it in a few days.”
Zhang Ji and Qi Han chatted for a while, while Zhang Mo had already started eating quietly. He ate while listening attentively to their conversation. When he heard Qi Han mention the new dish, he couldn’t help but perk up his ears.
‘A new dish, how exciting.’
Having understood the rules of Qi Han’s small restaurant, the two brothers didn’t waste any time and ordered a total of 5 servings of Egg Fried Rice. After finishing their meal, they left happily.
Qi Han watched the two brothers leave, tidied up the plates, and put them into the high-tech dishwasher provided by the system. After some thought, he suddenly spoke.
“System, can we introduce two different sizes of Egg Fried Rice, large and small?”
This was an idea that Qi Han had just thought of because in the Douluo Continent, some Spirit Masters had a bigger appetite due to their Martial Spirits. It would be inconvenient to serve one plate at a time, but if everything was changed to large portions, customers with smaller appetites wouldn’t be able to finish it.
So, he thought of introducing large and small portions. One large portion would be equivalent to two small portions, making it more convenient for customers to eat.
However, after Qi Han finished speaking, the system seemed to have suddenly crashed, remaining silent for a while without responding.
After a long time, a mechanical voice without emotion sounded.
【The Host’s suggestion to divide the Egg Fried Rice into small and large portions, as determined by the system, is considered a reasonable improvement. Large portion Egg Fried Rice is now available, with a serving size twice that of regular Egg Fried Rice, priced at 10 Gold Coins per serving.】
【The Host has proactively improved the dish and is rewarded with 1 Star Optional Recipe Fragment.】
‘Huh? Is simply adding a large portion of Egg Fried Rice considered an improvement?’
Qi Han was a bit confused, but he had to accept the reward given for free.
1 Star Optional Recipe Fragment could be directly exchanged for a 1 Star recipe, and he can even choose which recipe he wants.
However, this item couldn’t be used now because Qi Han hadn’t Mastered the Perfect Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken yet. He had to make a perfect-grade Braised Pork Stomach with Chicken before he could use it to exchange for a new recipe.