Chapter 56: Detailed Improvements of the Dishes

"Teacher Qin Lang, can we begin?"

"Ah?" Qin Lang quickly put away his phone, looked at the eager Zheng Kang beside him, and wore a warm smile on his face. "Yes, let's start."

"Make a dish that you think you are most skilled at."

"Alright!" Zheng Kang nodded with confidence.

"The dish I am going to make is called Crispy-Shell Soft-Center Duck!"

With that, Zheng Kang picked up a kitchen knife and got to work.

Taking a boneless duck breast, Zheng Kang skillfully removed the skin, then cut horizontally through the middle of the duck breast without slicing all the way through, creating a pocket. He then stuffed salted cheese inside.

Qin Lang stood nearby, watching his movements closely, and nodded slightly.

The pocket was cut well—the opening was large enough without tearing, which meant Zheng Kang had good control over the force of his cuts.

Zheng Kang's attention was completely focused on his cooking and he didn't notice Qin Lang's expression. He fetched a large bowl, added flour and various crushed nuts, and then stirred in water to mix them evenly.

Next, Zheng Kang rolled the cheese-stuffed duck meat in the mixture, making sure every corner was coated thickly with batter and crushed nuts.

Then, he wrapped it in tin foil to hold its shape and sent it into the oven.

200°C for 25 minutes.

Qin Lang silently watched Zheng Kang's operation, the corners of his mouth twitching fiercely.

How should he put it? Zheng Kang's culinary talent was perhaps slightly better than Cao Dongdong's; at least his cooking had a certain level of methodical order.

However, almost no consideration was given to various details.

Although Zheng Kang's dish was not yet finished, he already roughly knew how to guide the other person.

The 25 minutes passed quickly. Zheng Kang carefully retrieved the baked crispy-shell soft-center duck from the oven, peeled off the tin foil, and looked at Qin Lang expectantly.

"Teacher Qin Lang, please taste it!"

"Alright." Qin Lang nodded and stepped forward.

Judging solely by its appearance, the dish looked quite good.

The batter on the surface had been baked to a golden brown, and the crushed nuts on top emitted a rich, nutty fragrance after being subjected to high heat.

Qin Lang used a small knife to cut open the crispy-shell soft-center duck. The internal duck meat and the melted cheese right in the center were exposed. At the same time, the aroma of the duck meat and the savory scent of the cheese, previously sealed inside the crust, burst forth.

However...

Qin Lang sniffed, and as expected, he smelled an unmistakable, distinct gamey odor among those aromas.

Looking at Zheng Kang's expectant expression, Qin Lang picked up a piece with a blank expression and put it into his mouth.

The "crispy shell" on the outside was too hard, tasting a bit like a flatbread—and a flatbread sprinkled generously with crushed nut bits at that.

This texture clashed far too much with the duck meat.

While different textures could impart richer layers to a dish, one must be careful not to overdo it.

The crispy shell needed to be modified.

As for the duck meat...

It lacked seasoning, relying entirely on the salty creaminess of the cheese inside to impart flavor, which made its taste bland and monotonous. Furthermore, because it hadn't been marinated beforehand, it carried a gamey smell when eaten.

And this was under the condition that Zheng Kang had chosen high-quality duck meat.

If he had used inferior duck meat, it went without saying.

The only thing that had virtually no issues was probably the cheese acting as the "soft center," since the cheese Zheng Kang chose was already of the highest quality.

"Teacher Qin Lang, what do you think?" Zheng Kang asked expectantly. "This is my only self-created dish, combining elements from various cuisines."

"It's still quite good." Remembering the "welcome gift" the other person had given him, Qin Lang forced himself to lie with a clear conscience.

"Gulu?"

Dandabao, who had already entered study mode and begun learning [Gathering Light], suddenly opened its eyes.

Qin Lang said it's quite good, so can I have a taste?

Thinking of this, it eagerly crowded forward and took a huge bite out of the remaining crispy-shell soft-center duck.

"Gu!!!"

Rolling its eyes violently, Dandabao flipped over and slowly descended from the air, looking as if its soul was being spat out of its mouth.

Without changing expression, Qin Lang reached out to catch Dandabao and placed it aside, smoothly shifting the topic. "However, many details can still be optimized."

"First." He picked up another piece of duck breast with skin. "Duck meat tends to be quite lean and stringy, so you can leave the duck skin on when roasting. This makes the fat richer and enhances the texture."

"But you can't use it directly."

With that, Qin Lang scored a diamond pattern on the surface of the duck skin. "Pay attention: the blade should penetrate deep into the fat layer, but without cutting into the meat."

Given the pocket-cutting technique Zheng Kang had demonstrated earlier, Qin Lang believed he could easily master this step.

Zheng Kang nodded earnestly, pulled out a notebook, and began writing down notes with a rustling sound.

"Heat the pan." Qin Lang turned on the stove, and when the pan reached the right temperature, he placed the duck breast skin-side down into it. "Pan-fry for about two minutes."

"This step can render out the fat. At the same time, searing the duck skin before roasting makes the skin crispier and reduces any gamey odor."

"Scoring the surface beforehand serves two purposes: first, for aesthetics, and second, to make it easier to render out the fat within the duck skin."

"Next, take down the recipe."

Qin Lang thought for a moment and fetched a small bowl. "Two spoons of light soy sauce, one spoon of cooking wine, one spoon of honey, one spoon of garlic powder, and half a small spoon of white pepper powder."

"Mix well." After quickly finishing the mixing, Qin Lang placed the small bowl containing the marinade aside and lifted the duck breast out of the pan.

At this moment, the duck meat was still raw, but the duck skin side had already taken on a slightly golden-brown color, its surface glistening with oil, looking extremely appetizing.

"Use paper towels to wipe away excess oil from the surface of the duck meat." Qin Lang said as he worked. "Then, apply the marinade evenly to both sides of the duck meat."

"Give the duck breast a massage, and let it refrigerate for half an hour."

By the time Qin Lang placed the marinated duck breast into the refrigerator, Zheng Kang, who had been holding back a belly full of questions, finally spoke up. "Teacher, do we need to use this much marinade?"

"The role of the marinade is to remove gaminess and add fragrance to the duck meat while providing a base flavor, so that the taste of the final cooked duck meat will be richer."

"No matter how good the meat is, it will have a gamey odor—it's only a matter of degree. Handling the gamey odor is the key to making meat dishes."

Zheng Kang suddenly understood. "No wonder the dishes I make always have an underlying taste that won't go away, even though I used so much cheese to try and cover it up."

Qin Lang gave a faint smile and handed another piece of duck breast to Zheng Kang.

"While we wait, try doing the steps I just showed you."

"Alright!" Zheng Kang was eager to try.

By the time Zheng Kang successfully completed the preceding steps, the duck breast Qin Lang had put in the refrigerator to marinate was ready.

"Cut the pocket and stuff it with cheese..." Qin Lang paused slightly. "Here, we add a sealing step."

Saying this, he fetched a long, thin metal barbecue skewer and wove it through both sides like a skewer, gathering the edges slightly to form the shape of a lucky bag.

"This makes the appearance more aesthetic, and it's less likely for the cheese to leak out."

Zheng Kang's eyes lit up, and the look he gave Qin Lang held a few more shades of worship.

Just a small procedural improvement achieved two results at once. Teacher Qin Lang was simply too amazing!

"And then there's the crispy shell part." Qin Lang paused.

"For this part, we need to make major changes."