Chapter 291: Chapter 291: Mud Cage

Translator: 549690339 |

“You two, get started. I can hardly wait,”

Said Zhou Tianhao, one of the judges, his face beaming with anticipation after listening to the participants’ introduction.

Facing Shen Qian’s dish named “Caged Rabbit,” he was intrigued by the new spices that he had never tried before and seemed complex to prepare.

As for Qin Lang’s dish, the literal and historical background of “Beggar’s Chicken” piqued his interest, making him admire Qin Lang’s skill even more.

Although both he and Qin Lang were from Tianhua State, Zhou had never heard of Beggar’s Chicken. It was clear that the young man had much more culinary knowledge and experience than him, which explained his impeccable cooking skills.

“No problem!” Shen Qian cheerily replied. She then knelt down on the soft grass and meticulously started peeling the outer skin of the small branches with a knife.

As the branches were fairly young, no bifurcation occurred. They were slender and resilient, not breaking even when bent.

Once the pink outer skin was peeled off, the inside of the stick revealed an intriguing blood-red colour, which was also the reason behind the tree’s name.

A somewhat odd yet pleasant fragrance emanated from the blood-red interior, causing Shen Qian to break into a satisfied smile.

That was the smell she was after!

In no time, all of the initially collected branches were processed in the same manner, turning them into a bundle of blood-red sticks.

Subsequently, Shen Qian moved on to preparing the wild rabbit.

On the other hand, Qin Lang was preoccupied with his own things.

What he was doing was in stark contrast with Shen Qian.

Leaving the wild chicken and shore lotus grass aside, Qin Lang roamed on the creek side and swiftly gathered heaps of moist clay.

What are you…” Zhou Tianhao was taken aback when he saw Qin Lang coming back with armfuls of clay.

However, he realized that his surprise was premature.

Because Qin Lang casually sat cross-legged on the grass, picked up a small bowl, and got absorbed in playing with the clay.

It would be more accurate to say that he was kneading it like dough, taking out any small stones or other debris in the process.

But it was still a lump of clay nonetheless?!

Zhou Tianhao was baffled.

Shen Qian, who was also observing Qin Lang’s actions from the side, was equally stumped, making her rabbit butchering knife quiver.

After making sure that the clay was completely free of any foreign materials, Qin took a whiff of it.

The smell of clay hit his nostrils. Finding no unusual smells, he gave a nod of approval.

The dish Beggar’s Chicken had specific clay requirements.

If the clay contained too many microbes and fermented smells, even the lotus leaf’s blockade might affect the flavor of the chicken.

Indeed, if there were any special smells in the clay, it would have been even better.

For sophisticated Beggar’s Chicken dishes, the clay that has been soaked in aged liquor is preferred. The smells from the liquor slowly permeate into the clay over time, naturally infusing it with a mild wine aroma.

Although Qin Lang could not find such clay, he had a way to achieve that wine aroma.

“Dan Bao, fire spray!”

Qin Lang gave the clay-filled bowl to Dan Bao.

Dan Bao understood immediately. He quickly caused the clay in the bowl to float in the air using Thought Waves and started baking it with the fire.

The water absorbed in the clay evaporated quickly under the heat of the flame. The clay that initially released water when squeezed started drying out visibly. By the end, it crumbled into a powder with slight pressure.

Zhou Tianhao and Shen Qian were still clueless about what Qin Lang was trying to do. Shen Qian decided to set the rabbit aside and focused on deciphering Qin Lang’s actions.

After the clay turned into powder and returned to the bowl, Qin Lang added some creek water and a bit of rice wine and started kneading it again, allowing it to absorb the water and reform into a lump, much like kneading flour.

First baking the clay to dryness and then kneading it again not only allowed the wine scent to mix in but also killed any microbes in the clay using high- temperature. Moreover, the moisture level of the clay could be controlled as needed.

It was like killing three birds with one stone.

Of course, to Zhou Tianhao and Shen Qian, this step seemed even more absurd.

Playing with clay was one thing, but adding wine to it was another.

What the, was he seasoning the clay?

“Uhm… we are not going to eat clay, are we?” Zhou Tianhao asked, trembling a bit.

No, the clay is not for eating,” Qin Lang replied dryly, effectively calming Zhou Tianhao down.

After the clay was ready, Qin Lang set it aside and began preparing the wild chicken.

He bled out the chicken, removed the feathers and guts, thoroughly cleaned it and then stuffed a variety of ingredients like spices and shiitake mushrooms into its stomach. Promisingly, he wrapped three layers of washed shore lotus grass around it, and finally bound it tightly with the hemp rope.

Only when Qin Lang covered the lotus leaves with the prepared clay did Zhou Tianhao and Shen Qian start to understand his actions.

The clay was being used to encase the chicken, with a layer of shore lotus grass in between.

As an herb that can be dried and brewed, shore lotus grass was a viable ingredient for cooking. Moreover, Qin Lang had also stuffed spices and mushrooms inside the chicken.

This way, if the seemingly ordinary clay ball was heated…

Both the people with high culinary skills started imagining what would happen next.

The clay would not penetrate the meat through the shore lotus grass, but the wine aroma could. Additionally, the heating process would dry and solidify the clay, thus effectively sealing everything inside.

Under such conditions, the smell of shore lotus grass and the aroma of the ingredients inside the chicken would permeate through the meat…

Qin Lang hadn’t even started cooking, but both Shen Qian and Zhou Tianhao were almost drooling.

Moreover, the realization this cooking method brought was more shocking.

If shore lotus grass could be used to wrap chicken, then it could be used for other ingredients as well. The shore lotus grass and spices could be replaced with other things, and even the clay on the outside could be adjusted based on different situations.

This was an entirely new cooking idea.

“I guess, it’s time to bring my A-Game!” Shen Qian’s eyes glimmered with anticipation as she quickly went back to finish preparing the wild rabbit.

She didn’t need to observe Qin Lang’s next steps. It was about controlling the heat, an aspect learned through experience rather than instructions. Her dish “Caged Rabbit” still had many steps remaining.

She skillfully prepared a small cage out of the blood-red branches she had skinned earlier. The cage accommodated the rabbit perfectly and ensured it was securely fitting. There was a small hook at the top that made it easy to hang the whole cage.

After fastening the cage using a sturdy bifurcated branch, she moved near the fire they had prepared earlier and cheerily started grilling the rabbit, “I am quicker than you, Qin Lang… What are you doing?!” she exclaimed.

“Phew!”

Qin Lang wiped the imaginary sweat off his forehead and admired the pit dug out by Dan Bao, “I’m going to start the fire for cooking now too!”

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