Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle
Chapter 275 - 183 Eat

Ever since Qin Huai’s yeast skills were elevated to the advanced level, not only has his proficiency with yeast not diminished, but it has actually improved.

The quality of the dough often plays a decisive role in the quality of the snacks. The crab dumplings, which heavily depend on filling skills, are rare, while the Three Meat Buns, which require a comprehensive development of multiple skills, are more common.

As Qin Huai kneaded the dough for crab shell cakes, Pei Xing watched stealthily from the side. For some reason, he felt that Qin Huai’s dough-kneading status now seemed very normal. It was as if he had just mastered some magical technique when kneading dough, not only making the movements fancy, but also producing dough that seemed of higher quality.

Pei Xing and Li Hua were very efficient in their work, quickly handling all the ingredients Qin Huai needed. Qin Huai skillfully mixed and cooked the filling, the smell of the meat wafting through the kitchen and into the dining hall.

The aroma of the meat was delectable.

To make an inappropriate comparison, sometimes kids who have seen their elders cooking pig feed using sweet potatoes and various vegetables know that when the pig feed in the big pot reaches a certain point and starts being stirred, it smells really good, tempting people to taste it even though they know it’s pig feed.

In the dining hall, lots of customers wanted to sneak into the kitchen for a taste.

Without having eaten any of the buns he made himself, waking up shortly after 3 am and holding out until now, Qin Congwen inhaled deeply and murmured, "Why do the buns Huaihui cooked today smell so good?"

Zhao Rong glanced at her husband disdainfully and said honestly, "It is quite fragrant, maybe you haven’t eaten in a while."

By the way, Zhao Rong had also been hungry since around 3 am.

An Youyou said nothing but silently inhaled.

Among the helpers at Yunzhong Restaurant, An Youyou, the only one with a name, had been highly valued by both Zhao Rong and Qin Congwen during this time.

After hiring new helpers, those completely non-technical tasks like washing vegetables, moving ingredients, cleaning machines, and mixing fillings no longer required her. Now she helps with cutting, wrapping buns, making shumai, and sometimes when Qin Congwen is tired and Chen An is busy, he calls her to help with kneading dough.

Rather than being a helper, she’s more like an apprentice, someone who can genuinely practice and learn something.

The enticing aroma of the cooked bun filling captivated everyone, but to Qin Huai, it seemed ordinary.

Alas, yesterday he smelled something even better.

The bun filling he cooked only tempted people to sample it, the effect being stronger when they’re hungry.

The filling cooked by Jiang Weijin made everyone want to gulp down three bowls before worrying about anything else, just enjoying the taste.

Qin Huai’s fire control was pretty average.

He had made progress compared to before, but it could not change the fact that his fire control was intermediate.

Pei Xing and Li Hua could also tell that Qin Huai’s fire control was basic, but they didn’t mind. A skilled pastry chef naturally has strengths and weaknesses; it’s normal to have both, as a hexagonal warrior is not a human.

Soon, the bun filling was done.

After letting it cool slightly, Qin Huai began to wrap the buns.

After wrapping a few buns, Qin Huai realized that as a master chef, he didn’t actually need to do such work; the helpers could handle it.

Having worked at Huang Ji for so long, a habit he developed daily in the restaurant is that the master chef has tasks that are the master’s job, and helpers have tasks that are the helper’s job. As a master chef, you should know all the tasks, but you don’t necessarily have to do them.

Making snacks is a long and tedious process. If the master chef does every step by hand, very few snacks could be made in a day.

"An Youyou." Qin Huai beckoned to An Youyou, "Are you free? Come help me wrap buns."

"Coming, Boss!" An Youyou cheerfully put down the shumai she was holding, not forgetting to wash and dry her hands before trotting over to Qin Huai’s cooking station.

Qin Huai started preparing the filling for the crab shell cakes.

Today, he’s making crab shell cakes with a fresh shrimp filling. Recently, they’ve made a lot of crab dumplings, so making a shrimp-filled snack comes naturally.

While skillfully adjusting the filling, Qin Huai glanced at An Youyou wrapping buns and found that as a helper, An Youyou’s bun-wrapping skills were quite good.

Skillful, quick, and most importantly, the quality control was excellent, with each bun being roughly the same size.

This was very important as Yunzhong Restaurant sells buns individually, and size differences could easily cause disputes.

"An Youyou, what time do you start work now?" Qin Huai asked.

"3 am." An Youyou answered gaily, "I’ve moved again, Sister Xi helped me find a cheap shared apartment by her neighborhood. It has a communal kitchen, each room comes with a balcony for drying clothes, really nice. The best part is it’s closer to the restaurant, so I get to sleep an extra half hour compared to before!"

Hearing this, Qin Huai was momentarily stunned, not having much of an impression of An Youyou, just vaguely remembering hearing she had changed rental places before, and now again. It seemed rather frequent.

"Did your previous house not have a balcony?" Qin Huai asked casually.

"The last room I rented didn’t; I could only dry clothes indoors and couldn’t hang many, the room lacked ventilation, so clothes always had a mildew smell." An Youyou said while wrapping buns, "But that room was still much better than where I started out."

Qin Huai:?

"Where did you first live?" Qin Huai vaguely remembered that Yunzhong Restaurant was An Youyou’s first job in Shan City. An Youyou was too young and had little educational background, so there weren’t many good jobs suitable for her.