As expected, after the professional and public judges gave their scores, Jin Jiexiang only managed to scrape by with 79 points, relying solely on his decent royal hawthorn cake.
Immediately after, the audience's attention shifted to the remaining two groups of guests.
During the previous two rounds of judging, their roast ducks had already been carved, plated, and placed on the display table.
Both main courses were roast duck, accompanied by thin lotus leaf pancakes, sauce, shredded scallions, and other side dishes.
However, due to the different roasting methods, the skin of the roast duck from Zhao Yanting's team was a deep jujube red with fine diamond patterns;
while the roast duck from Xu Yanxia's team was a light jujube red, exuding a warm, mellow luster.
In addition, Zhao Yanting's team paired theirs with a duck frame and cabbage soup, whereas Xu Yanxia's team paired theirs with braised cabbage with chestnuts.
As for dessert, Zhao Yanting's team made braised hawthorn, while Xu Yanxia's team presented an upgraded version: red honey-braised three fruits.
The bright red hawthorns, slow-braised over a low fire, were stuffed with lotus seeds and arranged in a circle on the plate, surrounded by a ring of ginkgo nuts. Both the hawthorns and the ginkgo nuts were coated in a vibrant red, honeyed sugar glaze. It looked absolutely delicious!
Displayed clearly under the high-definition cameras, both the judges in the studio and the staff off-camera could not help but quietly water at the mouth.
The host looked toward the off-stage directing team. Which group should we taste first?
Before the directors could speak, Zhao Yanting immediately said, Taste ours first. Our roast duck was carved first, and if it gets cold, the texture will be ruined.
However, Chairman Wang from the judging panel spoke up, I think since the dishes from both teams are so similar, we might as well taste them together. It will be more intuitive.
Good idea!
Judge Qiao immediately agreed.
Master Chef Chen also nodded and said, This way, the temperature of the dishes will remain consistent, making it fairer.
After all, it was already late November, and Jingbei was quite cold. Even with the air conditioning on in the studio, the food cooled down very quickly.
Seeing that the public judges also agreed with this suggestion, the director announced, Then let us taste them together. But judges, please make sure you distinguish between the two teams' dishes. Do not mix up your critiques! Especially with the roast duck.
How could we?
Judge Qiao said with a smile, One group used a hanging oven, and the other used a closed oven. The textures are completely different. For any food lover, it is absolutely impossible to mix them up.
This made everyone burst into laughter.
Next, as the staff quickly portioned out the dishes from both teams and brought them to the judges, the critique session began.
As usual, Judge Qiao spoke first. Chef Zhao's team made a classic hanging-oven roast duck. It is dry, fragrant, and crispy, with relatively firm meat, and it genuinely has the aroma of fruitwood! It is truly rare to achieve this level of roasting with an electric oven!
Zhao Yanting immediately led his apprentices in nodding to express their thanks.
But right after, Judge Qiao turned to Xu Yanxia and said, Director Xu's closed-oven roast duck is also excellent. The skin is flaky, the meat is tender, and it is much juicier. And surprisingly, it also has a fruitwood aroma?
With a curious look, he asked Xu Yanxia, We did not seem to see you put any smoking materials in the oven earlier. Where did this aroma come from?
Before Xu Yanxia could answer, Chairman Wang chimed in, The main thing is that the aroma is not just on the skin; it is in the meat too.
He picked up another slice, put it directly into his mouth without dipping it in anything, and chewed. He could not help but marvel, To taste such an aroma in an electric-roasted duck is simply incredible. May I ask how you did it?
Of course,
Xu Yanxia smiled generously and explained, The fruitwood aroma you tasted on the duck skin originates from the sugar water we brushed on it earlier. We added red dates when boiling the sugar water. Red dates and glucose syrup are rich in reducing sugars and amino acids. When heated, the Maillard reaction occurs, producing various flavor compounds that mimic the aroma of fruitwood roasting.
As for the aroma in the meat, that comes from an open secret recipe of our Shandong-style closed-oven roast duck.
She gestured to the remaining ingredients on her workstation. Our Shandong-style roast duck usually has eight-treasure stuffing filled inside the duck's cavity. During the closed-roasting process, their fragrance permeates into the meat through the steam, adding complex layers of flavor.
Actually, there is another key point,
Senior Uncle Chen added on her behalf, When Little Xu was prepping the duck earlier, she deliberately used a knife to sever the tendons inside the duck's cavity. With this step, the aroma of the eight-treasure stuffing can penetrate much more thoroughly.
So that is how it is,
The judges nodded in agreement, sighing in admiration, We have really broadened our horizons today!
...
Having finished tasting the roast duck, everyone moved on to the second side dish.
Chef Zhao's duck frame and cabbage soup has no flaws. It is fresh and delicious. But what surprised me even more is Director Xu's braised cabbage with chestnuts!
Judge Qiao exclaimed once again, This is a truly traditional dish! I remember the last time I had it was when I was a child, eating out with the adults. It is rarely seen in restaurants nowadays!
That is right. Although it is a vegetarian dish, it requires very precise heat control,
Chairman Wang recalled from the side, I remember many years ago, the old state-run restaurant in Jingbei, which is the predecessor of today's Decui Restaurant, used to make this dish. But it gradually disappeared later on.
He specifically turned to Xu Yanxia and said, Little Xu made this dish very authentically. The chestnuts are soft and glutinous, the cabbage retains its texture, and there is a lingering sweetness amidst the savory flavor. The taste is incredibly rich, very much like the one I had back then!
Thank you, Chairman Wang.
Xu Yanxia smiled and said, I learned this dish from my grandfather. Back then, he also worked as a chef at the state-run restaurant you mentioned. If the timing aligns, perhaps the dish you tasted back then was actually made by him.
Is that so?
As soon as she said this, a wave of surprise swept through the studio and the off-camera crew.
Judge Qiao hurriedly asked, In other words, Director Xu, your grandfather also cooked at Decui Restaurant back in the day? Why haven't we ever heard anyone mention this?
Exactly. The producers, directors, and other staff members off-camera all looked at Xu Yanxia with the same question in mind.
If this was true, why had Decui Restaurant only ever promoted Old Master Bao Deshun and never mentioned Director Xu's grandfather?
However, Xu Yanxia merely said lightly, To be exact, when my grandfather was in Jingbei, that place wasn't called Decui Restaurant yet. It was purely a state-run restaurant. But that was already fifty years ago. Even we only found out about this recently.
Then your grandfather must be an absolute master hidden in the city,
Judge Qiao sighed in admiration. No wonder he could teach a talent like you!
Indeed.
The other judges on the panel all nodded in agreement.
Afterward, they tasted the remaining two desserts.
If Chef Zhao's braised hawthorn is a hundred points, then Director Xu's red honey-braised three fruits deserves a hundred and twenty points.
Judge Qiao sighed with emotion again, saying, "Chef Zhao's standard is without any problems, but Director Xu's creation is more exquisite and attentive. Embedding the lotus seeds inside the hawthorn, and then slowly stewing them with ginkgo nuts in sugar syrup, the sweet and sour, powdery and glutinous flavors blend together, giving it a very layered taste!"
"No matter which ingredient it is, its shape remains intact, but the texture has been brought to the extreme. It can be said that both the creativity of the taste and the technique are absolutely amazing! It's so delicious! This is the precise embodiment of our traditional Shandong cuisine's principle of 'never tired of the finest food, never tired of the finest minced meat'!"
"Yes,"
Chairman Wang also smiled at Xu Yanxia without stinting his praise, "Compared to stewed red fruits, this Three Honeyed Fruits is indeed a comprehensive upgrade. There's no need to say much about the taste. What's especially worth mentioning is that the texture is very friendly to people of my age. It doesn't take much effort to chew, which shows that a lot of thought was put into it."
"These three dishes are all very amazing. I'm also very happy to be able to taste dishes of this standard on my first time participating in this program. No matter what, I have to give it full marks."
Saying that, he took the lead in giving her the first five points.
And Judge Qiao followed closely behind, also giving a five.
Seeing this scene, her Senior Uncle Chen also smiled and said, "Although Chef Zhao performed stably today, I have to admit that our junior martial niece is superior in both traditional details and creativity."
"Just like Chairman Wang said, I'm very happy to be able to taste such a standard today. This proves that there are successors to our sect. I believe the founder will also be gratified in heaven."
"I hope Little Xu will keep up the good work and continue to bring us surprises in the upcoming competitions!"
Saying that, he also gave a full score of five points.
...
At the end of this program, Xu Yanxia and her friends once again got a full score of one hundred points.
And her martial uncle Zhao Yanting, followed closely behind with a difference of five points.
Thanks to the strategic mistake of Jin Jiexiang's group, Best Actor Yao luckily kept his seat and smiled as the other party was eliminated.
With the host finishing the closing remarks, the recording of this episode officially ended.
...
After nearly four hours of recording, the sky outside was already dark.
Her friends had already gone to eat. Xu Yanxia, who had walked out of the studio, was also preparing to take a taxi to the clubhouse to see her grandparents and report today's results along the way.
However, just as she took out her phone, she heard someone call her, "Mrs. Lu?"
Huh? This voice...
She hurriedly looked around, but before she could see the target clearly, she was pulled into the arms of a tall figure.
The cold air rushed towards her face with a familiar fragrance. She heard him laughing in her ear and saying, "I finally see my baby!"
