May 10th, Zhuqing Breeding Center.
Tomorrow was the competition day, but Li Wei still hadn't grasped the knack, only able to make Aromatic Poffins.
But it was too late to change; he had already reported the required ingredients to the event organizers.
He had made 17 Poffins yesterday, and Li Wei felt like his entire body smelled of Poffins.
The Poffins he made were either consumed internally or given directly to wild Pokemon.
This also greatly improved his Poffin proficiency.
Poffin (Advanced): Slightly (22,134 / 100,000)
He had directly gained several thousand points of proficiency in one day!
To reach top-tier, at this rate, it would only take Li Wei about half a month of frenzied production.
But unfortunately, he couldn't; tomorrow was the final.
According to the system's evaluation of Poffin (Advanced), Li Wei still had a chance to make a Super Aromatic Pokémon Puff.
It was just that the probability wouldn't be very high.
For example, when Energy Cube first reached top-tier, it indicated a 50% chance of producing perfect quality Energy Cubes.
As of today, it had increased to 66%.
Li Wei guessed that this probability might be below 10%.
It wasn't impossible, but it required some luck.
Luck?!
Li Wei suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish!
Li Wei looked at the system's special dish compendium.
It was clearly written on Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish (A-rank) that consuming it would grant a luck BUFF lasting 24 hours.
As long as Li Wei made an A-rank Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish before midnight,
He would gain a luck BUFF that would last until the day after tomorrow.
This BUFF might help him make a Super Aromatic Pokémon Puff during the competition.
Li Wei decided to call for divine intervention.
"Grandpa!!!"
Even though the old man was the NO.1 Breeder in the family, he wasn't particularly busy.
After all, Li Wei, with his Super True Human physique, could be worked like an ox, but the old man couldn't.
Whether the old man worked or not depended entirely on his mood.
The old man usually just managed the berry cultivation and paid attention to the Growth conditions and living environments of Eevee, Piplup, and Turtwig.
With the old man guiding him in making Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish, his success rate would be higher.
Li Wei watched videos of Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish and Chopped Pepper Fish Head production every single day, without fail.
Then, whenever he had free time, he would try to make them; in fact, both dishes were on the verge of success.
Because Li Wei had been constantly making Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish, there was always a fresh supply in the water tank outside the kitchen.
The live mandarin fish in the water tank gurgled and blew bubbles, unaware of what was about to happen to them.
The old man, Farfetch'd, and Gengar watched from the side, "Go on."
Instantly deceased, cooked on the spot.
"Gah!" (=ω=;)
Seeing Li Wei so proficient, Farfetch'd hugged his leek tightly.
Gengar, on the other hand, stood by with chopsticks, ready to join the battle at any moment.
Li Wei skillfully removed the gills, scales, and internal organs, cleaned it thoroughly, and then used kitchen paper to completely dry the surface moisture.
The fish head was directly chopped off, and a cut was made on each side for easier plating.
As long as the old man didn't speak, it meant that Li Wei's production process had no mistakes.
After handling the fish head, Li Wei removed the backbone of the mandarin fish with two cuts.
The tail was not cut off, and the two sides of the fish meat were connected at the tail, which was one of the key points of Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish.
Watching Li Wei's movements, the old man nodded in satisfaction.
Li Wei's progress speed was something the old man had never anticipated.
Whether it was cooking skills, Breeding techniques, or Energy Cubes and Poffins.
Li Wei was like a dried sponge, frantically absorbing knowledge.
As Li Wei worked, the production process of Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish flashed through his mind like a revolving lantern.
He carefully removed the pectoral fins from the chest and abdomen of the mandarin fish at an angle.
He had made Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish no less than a hundred times, and he already had muscle memory.
Diagonal and straight cuts left decorative patterns on the two pieces of fish meat, cutting down to the skin without breaking it.
"It's cut."
Li Wei held each fish fillet by one side, and the fish meat grew on the fish skin like wheat ears.
Even when Li Wei shook it, the fish meat with the decorative cuts did not fall off.
Only when cut like this would the fish meat become fluffy and easy to curl when fried.
Next was marination; Li Wei had already prepared the marinade, which consisted of green onion, ginger, cooking wine, and a little salt.
Then, he gave the cut mandarin fish a spa, letting it rest for 15 minutes.
After marinating, Li Wei again used kitchen paper to dry the surface moisture from the fish head and fish meat, then evenly coated it with starch, ensuring every piece of fish meat was covered.
Li Wei felt a little smug; the old man hadn't said a word until now, and Farfetch'd's leek hadn't pointed anything out.
This meant there were no mistakes in his production process.
After shaking off the excess starch, it was time for deep frying.
Li Wei inserted chopsticks into the oil, and there were dense small bubbles around it; he lifted the fish tail to let the fish meat hang naturally.
Then he used chopsticks to shape and fry it, then took it out, and then fried the fish head.
During the frying process, the old man did not speak.
It wasn't until Li Wei had finished frying the fish meat and fish head that the old man, who had been watching, spoke: "You fried it too early."
Li Wei also vaguely felt the same way.
It was like when he made Poffins, where the cooking time was always a little off.
His knife skills and seasoning were not a problem, but the cooking time was always a bit off.
The old man had seen it early on.
He had seen it from the moment Li Wei put the fish in.
But if Li Wei didn't learn from his mistakes, he would never succeed, so he didn't speak up to remind him.
This kind of thing could only be improved through practice.
He evenly poured the thick, bright tomato sauce, which had been simmering, over the freshly fried mandarin fish, and a sizzling sound immediately erupted.
Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish (B+ rank)
It still failed, just short of success.
His frying of the mandarin fish and simmering of the sauce were already seamless; there were no problems with the process.
The old man took a bite with his chopsticks, "The seasoning and knife skills are fine, but the cooking time is still lacking; you fried it too early, and then too long during the second fry."
Li Wei also took a bite himself; it was crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and sweet and sour, with no problems.
He could even open a restaurant and sell this dish without issues, but a master chef could still find problems.
The old man put down his chopsticks, "Gengar, you eat it."
Farfetch'd didn't eat meat; he was a pure herbivore Pokemon.
"Gengar!"
Gengar impatiently picked up the plate and began eating with gusto.
"Gengar!" (,,•́ ؎ •̀,,)
(Delicious, love it!)
The old man instructed before leaving, "Keep practicing; it's purely a cooking time issue."
"Gengar, cheer me on!"
"Gengar!"
Li Wei continued to practice, and four consecutive Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish hovered at B+ rank, all due to cooking time issues.
"Son, don't practice too late, take care of yourself."
His father, Leon, left with a plate of Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish.
Lucario, Arcanine, Milotic, Metagross, and Dragapult all joined the cheering squad.
At eleven o'clock at night, the last Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish came out fresh.
Squirrel-shaped Mandarin Fish (A-rank)!!!