Chapter 337: How About This Time, System?
“Those are iridescent scale grass carp. Grass carp are freshwater fish with many small fishbones, which makes it rather annoying to consume. Those small fishbones are thin bone spikes formed from the bone structures between muscle tissues, and they’re most commonly found in low-grade bony fish. There are no highly evolved fish species that share this trait.
“As such, I cross-bred crocein croaker with grass carp, then selectively nurtured their offspring with favorable traits, finally producing the iridescent scale grass carp, which has the best traits all-round. This type of fish has the texture of grass carp and the delicious taste of crocein croaker. At the same time, it doesn’t have the small annoying fishbones that grass carp have, and can live in the ocean. I cordoned off an area in the Staro Sea to breed them as free-range fish, and after several generations, I’ve created a fish farm of considerable scale that can satisfy your cooking needs.” The system was very proud of what it had done.
“System, you intentionally made me draw the spicy grilled fish recipe, right?” Mag’s expression became more and more peculiar as he listened to the system’s in-depth explanation.
“Nonsense! What kind of system do you take more for?” the system refuted in a serious voice.“If I didn’t cook any grilled fish, then wouldn’t all your efforts to breed the iridescent scale grass carp be in vain?” Mag asked. The system was addicted to farming, and harbored an overzealous love for money. Both of those were traits that he couldn’t understand.
“You don’t need to worry about that. All you need to focus on is to quickly improve your power so you can advance toward the glorious goal of becoming the God of Cookery!” the system said in a serious voice.
“Alright, just don’t go bankrupt.” Mag raised an eyebrow as he scanned through the new condiments on the cooking bench. Chili oil, ground pepper powder, wild pepper… Everything was prepared.
In contrast with the common Sichuan-style grilled fish, the grilled fish recipe provided by the system included almost no other ingredients, and focused heavily on the fish.
Mag approved of this type of cooking. The worst grilled fish dishes that he had eaten were all ones where the restaurants had overdone it with the condiments, thereby overwhelming the flavor of the fish, and ruining the dining experience.
The dish was grilled fish, not grilled condiments.
“Simmer the old oil… kill the fish, and marinate, then grill, and braise…” Mag murmured to himself as he pulled a large wok out from a cabinet. When cooking Wanzhou grilled fish, one of the most important and complex steps was to simmer the old oil.Even though the system had shortened this process from six hours to one hour, he still had to constantly stir the oil in the wok while simultaneously adjusting the flame temperature to produce a good batch of old oil.
Aside from the large workload, and the boring nature of the task, it shouldn’t be too difficult, right? Mag lit a fire before placing the large wok onto the cooking bench. He then poured the oil into the wok, and used a large ladle with a long handle to stir the oil in accordance with the method planted in his memory.
“Fail!”
“No!”
“You’re so stupid!”
Mag failed 10 times just preparing the old oil alone.
“Why so strict…?” Mag couldn’t help but grumble. He tipped out the oil in his wok as he adopted a serious expression, and curbed his lackadaisical attitude. He couldn’t afford to waste so much time even before touching a fish. He still had to wake up early to run the restaurant the next day.
“Ding! Congratulations, you have simmered old oil to a satisfactory standard!” the system notified.
Mag looked at the bubbling oil in the large wok, and a smile appeared on his face. There really were no easy times when cooking. Only by completing each and every step with impeccable focus could he create the most delicious dishes.
He picked up a landing net, but fell silent as he looked at the iridescent scale grass carp that were happily swimming in the fish tank. It wasn’t because they were too adorable, and he simply couldn’t bear to kill them. It was just that killing a fish was a really alien activity to him.
Even though he had the best fish-killing methods in his mind, he was still very uncomfortable when he thought about grabbing its slimy body, and then slicing open its stomach with his knife.
I have to do this! If I can’t even kill a fish, then I might as well give up on cooking the spicy grilled fish. Amy is still waiting to taste my dish. After staring at the fish tank for a long time, a determined expression slowly appeared in Mag’s eyes. He picked the smallest grass carp, and grabbed its slimy and stick body, upon which he was immediately struck by the impulse to throw it away. However, before he could do so, the wild iridescent scale grass carp slipped out of his hand, and landed back in the fish tank, sending water splattering all over his face.
Even you dare to pick on me? I’m going to kill you! Mag wiped the water from his face as a hint of rage welled up in his heart. He picked up that same iridescent scale grass carp again, and slapped it on the head with the flat side of his cleaver, upon which it was immediately knocked out.
After killing the fish, he removed its internal organs before slicing grooves into its flesh, and applying the marinating condiments.
The oven was a new appliance that had been added to the kitchen, and it made it easier for him grill fish in large batches. Also, he didn’t have to frequently flip the grilled fish, so it wouldn’t interfere with his preparation of other dishes.
After grilling the fish to a half-cooked state in the oven, he pulled it out, and applied a layer of old oil onto its body. It was then grilled to about 90% done, upon which a second layer of old oil was applied, along with some cumin powder. After grilling for a short while longer, the fish was placed on a stainless steel dish over a bed of chopped onion.
After that, the sauce, ginger, garlic, bean paste… All of the ingredients and condiments were placed into the wok in a set order. Thus, a fiery red sauce was produced; it was poured over the grilled fish, and allowed to sit so its flesh could absorb the sauce.
In another wok, the wild peppers and dried chili were fried together, sending a delicious spicy scent wafting through the air. That, too, was poured over the grilled fish, along with a pinch of chopped green onions, and the red and green presented a bright contrast.
After finishing the dish, even Mag couldn’t help but swallow his drool. The familiar scent was already superior to all of the spicy grilled fish dishes he had sampled in the past.
“Not up to standard!” The system’s cold voice sounded.
Mag had just picked up a pair of chopsticks, preparing to have a taste, and his hand faltered upon hearing that. He knew that there was no way he would succeed on his first try, but after receiving that blow from the system, he suddenly lost the urge to taste the dish.
“Alright, then I’ll keep trying.” Mag put down his chopsticks, and strode over to the fish tanks. He repeated those monotonous tasks over and over again, improving throughout the process.
One grilled fish dish after another was produced, only to be rejected by the system over and over again. However, Mag didn’t utter as much as a single word of complaint. Instead, he became more and more painstaking and diligent, trying to perfect every single step.
“How about this time, system?” Mag poured the fried wild pepper and dried chili over the grilled fish, creating a sizzling sound. Chopped green onions were sprinkled on top, and a delicious scent wafted through the air.
