Chapter 1497 - 580: The Representative of Steamed Dessert—Zeng Cake! Chen Yan: The Damage Actually Rebounds? [Subscription Request]

Chapter 1497: Chapter 580: The Representative of Steamed Dessert—Zeng Cake! Chen Yan: The Damage Actually Rebounds? [Subscription Request]

"The host suggests involving retired chefs in the filming of a state banquet documentary, triggering the side quest [Old Warhorse]: Please invite more than twenty retired state banquet head chefs to participate in the filming of the documentary. Upon completion, you will be rewarded with a Perfect Level Shandong Cuisine Cooking Technique type draw once, and a Sichuan Cuisine flavor draw once!"

Listening to the prompt in his mind, Lin Xu was slightly surprised.

Adding together the retired master chefs under his master’s group, there were only eighteen. The system actually required twenty, which meant external assistance might be needed?

Thinking about it, that was indeed necessary because not all eighteen retired head chefs might have the time.

Some were shining at their family-owned restaurants, others had returned home to enjoy their golden years, and some had settled with their children in coastal cities.

Ordinary people might rush over upon hearing about such filming, but these master chefs, they might have countless photos with leaders and were constantly interviewed when they were younger, so fame meant little to them now.

So this matter required careful consideration, and arrangements must be made in advance to gather twenty people together.

This is not only to complete the mission but also to ensure that netizens and the general audience remember these master chefs who once stood at the pinnacle of culinary arts.

Their contributions deserve such honor.

Most importantly, a suitable person needs to be approached first to persuade, and once they agree, inviting others will be much easier.

As for the selection, Lin Xu had already made up his mind: it would be Qiu Yaozu, who loved bustling events. This master chef valued reputation highly, and the first banquet of the founding era was Huaiyang Cuisine.

As the leading figure of Huaiyang Cuisine, he would definitely agree to be on camera.

Once he nods, other master chefs would hesitantly yet inevitably join in as well.

At that time, finding some peer master chefs among them to make up twenty people would not be a problem.

After deciding on filming the state banquet documentary, Lin Xu drove back, while Chen Yuanyuan and Dou Wenjing helped Zeng Xiaoqi start writing the proposal.

Such a proposal was quite challenging, needing to showcase the highlights of the show and display Joyful Media’s strength while also keeping a card up the sleeve to prevent someone from taking the proposal to directly film it.

Zeng Xiaoqi had encountered such situations at the TV station.

In her graduation year, she had planned an interview program discussing social hot topics.

After submitting the proposal, there was no response for a long time.

A month later, another director at the station suddenly organized an interview program, and the content and format were exactly the same as in Zeng Xiaoqi’s proposal.

This made her furious, and when she expressed her objections, the leadership transferred her to the newly formed Travel Channel on the grounds of "young people needing more experience".

"Don’t worry, Miss Zeng, if these proposals are not approved, I’ll pack them up and send them over. The TV station will not keep archives. If someone else uses your ideas, I’ll take the lead in suing them!"

Luo Jiayao, being a leader at the station, still had some say, otherwise, he wouldn’t have been organizing new programs.

His words were very touching to Zeng Xiaoqi. Had there been such a reliable leader back then, perhaps her development at the TV station would not have been so tumultuous.

Lin Xu returned to the store, checked the soaked glutinous rice and red kidney beans, and then asked Che Zai to prepare the pitted red dates and golden honey dates needed for the next day.

Making zhengao couldn’t do without red dates, sometimes considered the very soul of zhengao.

Although ordinary red dates looked good, when steamed, they had a sour taste, which intensified with longer steaming, so some honey dates had to be used in combination to counter the sourness with their sweetness.

Besides these, he also asked Che Zai to buy a large basin with holes at the bottom. Although called a basin, it was more like a deep bucket that could fit into a steam cabinet.

When using it, they place the entire bucket into the steam outlet of the steam cabinet to begin steaming.

This allows for a continuous supply of steam and helps the ingredients to blend, resulting in a richer taste.

After having lunch the next day, Lin Xu soaked the red dates and began the preparation.

He took out the red kidney beans, which had doubled in size, from the water, placed them in the electric pressure cooker, added clean water, and cooked for twenty-five minutes.

The beans were a tough ingredient to cook thoroughly, so even after almost twenty hours of soaking, the electric pressure cooker was needed to soften them properly.

While the beans were cooking, he transferred the soaked glutinous rice, which could be crushed easily by hand, into a steaming tray and put it into the steam cabinet for steaming.

Additionally, the cleaned pitted red dates and honey dates also needed to be steamed before use.

While busy with this, the assisting Che Zai curiously asked:

"Can’t we just steam them directly, boss? Why do we have to steam them before making?"

Lin Xu closed the steam cabinet door and set the time, then explained:

"Steaming them first before combining enhances the texture. Zhengao, when eaten, should be not just soft and sweet but also have a chewy texture. By pre-steaming the glutinous rice, this texture stands out... If we just steam it directly, that would be Eight Treasure Rice, not zhengao."

Eight Treasure Rice and zhengao are two desserts that can easily be confused.

Although Eight Treasure Rice seems to be steamed one bowl at a time while zhengao is a large piece steamed together—which appears to be a difference in size—there is, in fact, a difference between raw steaming and pre-cooked steaming.

Raw steaming involves putting raw rice and various ingredients in the steamer, creating a dessert with distinct grains that, while soft and sticky, lacks the chewy texture of zhengao.