Adorable Food Goddess

Chapter 48

Ye Jiayao focused on carving the carrots in her hands . She hasn’t played with them for a long time and handling them now felt unfamiliar . It wasn’t until she carved the first flower that she found her groove back again .

 

 

When other kids were busy with playing the piano, dancing, and learning maths, Ye Jiayao played with carrots . At that time, she was jealous of the stuff that his father carved, so she practiced intensively to mimic them . After carving for a few years, she finally reached the point that the things she carved were better than her father . There wasn’t a challenge anymore and she eventually lost interest in the art .

“How did you know how to do this?” second lady Li asked in surprise .

“I learned from my father before,” Ye Jiayao answered vaguely .

The second level chef helper, Liu Qisheng, elbowed the first-class chef helper Zhong Xiang and quietly said, “Brother Xiang, this guy knows how to play a show . ”

Zhong Xiang groaned unhappily . He had to admit that this Li Yao was a strong competitor . However, he knew that he wasn’t any worse than him . What Zhong Xiang lacked was chance .  He was an apprentice for four years and he spent six years being a chef helper . He literally climbed from the bottom to get where he was today . He had real skills and he was a consistent hard worker . Master Chef Niu was just too selfish and didn’t want to promote chef helpers because he feared they would surpass him . Now that Chef Niu left, he thought now was finally his chance to excel, but Manager Li was reluctant to promote him . Instead, Manager Li hired second lady Li, who in turn brought Li Yao .

Within just one morning, Li Yao had already become the first-class chef helper – the same level as Zhong Xiang . Now, Li Yao was handed such an important dinner for his first test . It was not fair .

Zhong Xiang secretly hated Li Yao for stealing what was supposed to be his .

Ye Jiayao carved the decorations for the plate and asked the other workers to put tonight’s dishes in a straight line . She determined different shapes for each dish before she got started on creating a pattern .

The chef’s order goes color, fragrance, taste, and shape . However, Ye Jiayao has always thought that color and shape should be put together and placed before everything else . It was the color and shape of the dish that the customers would see first and would largely influence their decision . Also, a dish’s color and shape that was well done would set a huge appetite for the customers .

From the moment she saw the menu, she immediately pictured how they would look individually . She decreed that every dish on the menu would get a different design of plating .

There were eight cold dishes and 18 hot dishes in total tonight .

There would be 26 plates and 26 different styles . Never repeated .

Second lady Li didn’t know which dishes were in which plates, but she admired them all the same . She was amazed by the beauty and uniqueness of the patterns and designs on the plates .   This Li Yao is truly talented!

Decorations were frequently used in Huaiyang food, as Huaiyang food paid a lot of attention to refinement . They used refined materials, refined work, and beautiful matches, but Li Erniang hasn’t seen any other master chef making such exquisite accessories .

 

 

After the food materials for the cold dishes were prepared, Ye Jiayao went to work on arranging them .

She neatly positioned the duck tongue, using bamboo leaves to make rolls . She arranged the preserved and braised beef into the shape of a crescent moon and decorated the plate with the carrots she carved as flowers .  She used honey to flavor the Chinese yam and decorated it with a few matrimony vines . She then used coriander and red cabbage to add more flourish to the plate .

Next, Ye Jiayao made cucumber rolls by cutting the cucumber into thin slices . She sliced the lettuce leaves into slivers and wrapped it around the cucumbers . She mixed onion, garlic, coriander, spice, fish sauce, and lime and poured it over the rolls .

It looked amazing but it was not what the guests had ordered . Li Erniang was dubious so she tasted one .

She was surprised by how the flavors and texture worked together . “What is this dish?”

Ye Jiayao smiled and answered, “Double crispy rolls . How do you like it?”

Li Erniang nodded in delight . “I think we can add one more recommended cold dish in Heavenly Residence’s menu . ”

Everyone burst into cheers . For the new chef’s dish to be a recommended dish on the menu was the highest compliment . Creating a new dish that would get put on the menu was hard enough, but creating one that rose to the title of the recommended dish was comparable to a heroic feat . This new Chef Li Yao was really something else .

Ye Jiayao felt a little bit guilty . What she made was simply Thai cold cucumber rolls . She only modified it a bit to make it more suitable for the Southern people’s taste .

“He might become the master chef in Sky Live if this goes on,” Liu Qisheng commented sulkily .

Zhong Xiang sneered . “You think being the master chef would be that easy? He was only opportunistic . ”

Zhong Xiang spoke proudly but he was worried inside . The better that Li Yao performed, the more threatening he was to his career .

“Little Lu, tell the waiters to bring out dishes,” second lady Li requested .

The guests trickled in one by one .

 

 

“Didn’t they say this is the celebration of the success of the Heir-son Lord of Jing An Marquis? Why is Xia Chunyu still not here?” someone asked .

Zhao Qixuan laughed flippantly . “That was just an excuse to gather everyone around . If I didn’t use brother Chunyu’s name, would any of you have come?”

Xia Chunyu was an outstanding royal among the nobles . He worked as undercover for more than half a year in Black Wind Ridge and got rid of the bandits with Helian Majesty’s outside help . He made a great merit with that achievement . He jumped two levels from level four Yunhui ambassador to level three first-hand guard . He was favored by the Majesty and has become so popular that everyone wanted to befriend him .

The actual reason they came was not here, and though everyone was somewhat disappointed, Zhao Qixuan knew how to create a good atmosphere . It wasn’t long before he got everyone in a cheerful mood and people started openly chatting as they drink tea .

Helian Jing was dragged by Zhao Qixuan on the lake and they spent the whole afternoon there . He was not in the mood for any more socializing in the dinner . There were people who tried to engage him in a conversation but he only gave them clipped answers . He just wanted to go home .

The waiters brought out eight cold dishes to the roundtable .

Zhao Qixuan’s eyes turned brighter .  “Waiter, are these cold dishes made by your new chef?”

“Yes, Heir-son Lord, they are made by the new chef,” the waiter answered politely .

Zhao Qixuan picked up one of the double crispy rolls and said,”Not bad, not bad! What is this called? I don’t think I ordered that . ”

“It is called the double crispy roll . It is a new dish in our restaurant . The new chef made it especially for you, Heir-son Lord . ”

Everyone picked up their respective chopsticks and rose to taste the new dish . Helian Jing was not interested . He knew that no matter how good it was, it could not compare to what big Raorao could do .

“Truly double crispy . ”

“The taste is very special . Sour and sweet . ”

“Tasty!”

Everyone was impressed with the food .

Zhao Qixuan said, “I have eaten the same food over and over again, and finally, there is something new . ” He put one silver bullion on the waiter’s tray and ordered, “Give this to the new chef . If I’m satisfied with the hot dishes, I will give him more reward . ”

Manager Li was shocked . Truthfully, he was worried that Heavenly Residence’s business would quickly go bankrupt after Master Chef Niu left . In the five days without him, the restaurant only managed to make even less than what they usually make in a day! The opportunity of the Heir-son Lord dining in the restaurant could make or break them .

It was very risky to hand the feast over to Li Yao . When the waiters brought the cold dishes out, Manager Li was impressed with how novel they looked . He was even surprised to see two dishes that he didn’t recognize . However, he was still not certain about their taste and he held his breath as the guests sampled the dishes .

Now, seeing the delighted faces of the guests, Manager Li finally relaxed . The gamble with Li Yao paid off and he had a feeling that this was just the start of the good things that the new chef would bring to the restaurant .

The waiter rushed back to the kitchen and presented the silver bullion in front of Ye Jiayao, smiling . “Congratulations, brother Yao! The Heir-son Lord gave you this reward for a job well done . ”

The look of envy on everyone’s faces was obvious . This Heir-son Lord was famous for his generosity . Every time he came to the restaurant, he would give an extra reward . Sometimes, the bell boy got it and sometimes it would be the waiter who served him . What he never did was reward any chef, even Master Chef Niu . Li Yao has only arrived today, and not only did he managed to create a new recommended dish, he also managed to get a reward and acknowledgment from the Heir-son Lord .

The chef helpers felt cheated and started to think whether they should suck up more to Li Yao .

Ye Jiayao was entirely focused on making the double taste duck roll and didn’t even look up as she said, “It was everyone’s work . Go and exchange it to coins and split it with everyone . ”

The waiter did a double take .   The silver bullion was worth five silver coins! Did he really say ‘split it’?  He hesitated and looked at second Lady Li .

Second lady Li nodded subtly and the waiter sprung into action . “Aye, Chef Li Yao!”

Ye Jiayao said loudly, “Everyone, let’s work hard! The better we perform, the more rewards we can share . ”

The helpers went back to their jobs with more energy and vigor .

Li Erniang smiled with relief . It seemed that she didn’t need to worry after all . Li Yao knew how to cook as well as how to properly interact with his workers . He had the credit, and instead of being too proud, he shared the honor with everyone .

The hot dishes were brought out one by one . They looked like exquisite handicrafts that made the people ravenous for them . They didn’t think that the taste could compare with the appearance, but they were wrong . It tasted even more delicious than it looked .

Everyone was extremely pleased the dishes . Helian Jing picked his chopsticks up reluctantly and tried one of the fried eel slivers . They were smooth and fresh to the taste, and before he knew it, he had already picked up three more .

This is actually so good .

“Double taste duck rolls,” the waiter announced as he put the dish down on the table .

Helian Jing looked at the plate that the waiter just brought in and froze .

Tomatoes slivers were made to look like a blossomed hibiscus flower . Cucumber slivers were arranged to look like green leaves . Why do they look so familiar?

They were talking about a new chef earlier .  Helian Jing suddenly sat up straight . “Waiter, how old is your new chef?”

“He is quite young but he is very skillful . What do you think, Young Royal Highness? Are you satisfied with his cooking?”

Zhao Qixuan said, “After all the dishes are brought out here, bring him over to us . I want him to make a toast . ”

Helian Jing wanted to ask more questions, but the waiter had already left .

Is it really possible?

His heart started pounding in his chest and his hands began to shake . He wanted to run into the kitchen to find out the truth, but that would be too impolite . The new chef would come out in just a few moments . He just has to wait for a little while .