Chapter 72 - Live Broadcast : Sampling the Strange – Part 3
Ruan Tang quickly put on gloves, opened the oven and took the baking tray out of it. He then carefully peeled off the tin foil to expose the roasted lobster inside.
The lobster, which looked a bit fierce before had turned a beautiful red after being baked. Its body was slightly curled. The cheese turned golden-yellow because of the high heat and had spread all over the big red lobster. The red of the lobster and the golden yellow of the cheese, enhanced each other’s beauty and created a showy and dazzling sight.
Ruan Tang used a pair of chopsticks to part the cheese, revealing the white lobster meat below. Steam burst forth and brought out with it a sweet aroma.
“The cheese lobster is ready to eat.” He said with a smile. The audience immediately pounced on it with their chopstick. It seemed they were more accepting of the lobster meat than they had been of the crab meat. The lobster meat was glittering and translucent. It looked very clean and neat — not at all hideous or filthy. It was difficult to think that that hideous lobster before was actually so good-looking inside.
[Blue Jade: It’s delicious, delicious! Delicious! These things look ugly, but they taste really good!]
[Qi Qi: Exactly! Although this meat called lobster is not as tender as crab meat, its texture is great! So springy!]
The cheese lobster was very tasty. The lobster meat was steamed just right, creating an al dente texture. The milky fragrance of the cheese covered the lobster meat; it’s rich taste fills the entire mouth. Just one bite was not enough.
It seemed though, that the next ingredient won’t be so easily accepted. When the audience saw the huge and incomparably ugly purple octopus, they were all taken aback.
[Evening Snow Fairy: My God! This thing is too ugly!!!!!]
[Small transparent: Damn, they get uglier and uglier! Just looking at it hurts my eyes!]
[Linghu Liru: No no no no ... I refuse!!! At least you could peel the shells off those creatures before, the white meat inside was still very beautiful. But this big purple thing is not just hideous, it’s also sticky. How can we eat that?]
[Qi An: Yeah! It’s not only ugly, it’s also disgusting! ...I refuse! I won’t eat it!]
The audience was frightened by the ugly appearance of the octopus, and they expressed their rejection. They were unwilling to eat food made with this extremely ugly ingredient. The octopus was not dead yet, and several long tentacles were swaying weakly in the air. Maybe it was angered by their comments in the live chat.
Even the octopus that was going to be eaten wasn’t saying anything! But these people were unexpectedly still so choosy!
Although the audience was in an uproar, Ruan Tang didn’t pay it any mind. He was sure that after things were done, they would definitely like it.
——After all, this is not the first time that they all went “so delicious”.
Because the octopus was too big, Ruan Tang asked He Yun Chen to help. He chopped off a really thick tentacle, and cut it into small pieces with a knife.
He boiled a pot of hot water with ginger slices and chopped green onions. Once it started boiling, he put in the sliced octopus into the water and blanched it quickly. He then took it out and drained it, setting it aside for later use.
He took out the fry pan once again and poured in some cooking oil. He added ginger strips, minced garlic and sliced onions, and stir-fried until they turned fragrant. This familiar scent suddenly whet these viewers’ appetites. Ruan Tang added the blanched octopus pieces together with two spoonfuls of doubanjiang and red pepper paste. He sauteed it well until it was evenly distributed. As the octopus meat slowly cooked through, the slightly clammy purple pieces of meat gradually became translucent. The small pieces looked quite cute.
.
Because of the doubanjiang, there was no need to add additional salt. After making sure that it had absorbed enough flavor, Ruan Tang plated the stir-fried octopus.
[Not in the mood for a night out: Smells so good ...]
[Gu Yanqing: Hmm ... after cooking, it looks passable ...]
[Cora_G: I, I’m going to try and have a taste ...]
There were gulping sounds all around. It was unclear whether they were greedy for the food or the beauty.
[Genuine Devil:-My Heart!!!!! OK, OK, I will do whatever you say!!!!! ]
[Yu Lai You Lai Qing Qing: Ah ah ah ah, the anchor’s blinding beauty! My little heart is pounding!]
Seduced by the anchor, the once reluctant audience abandoned their reservations and began to eat.
[Hand over the dried fish meow: Hey! It’s unexpectedly delicious!]
[The world’s favorite A’Qiqi: It’s nice and chewy and it tastes delicious!]
[Twilight drinker: (.﹏. *) I was wrong ... I shouldn’t look down on this octopus just because it looks ugly ...]
The stir-fried octopus had absorbed a lot of the flavor from the sauce because it was cut small. It tasted delicious and savory. The meat was plump and full of bite. It was even springier than the lobster. It bounced against your teeth. Aside from being delicious, eating it was quite amusing.
“Actually, octopus is a very delicious ingredient that can be made into many dishes. One of them is a special snack called octopus balls. Unfortunately, I don’t have the appropriate mold. I will try to make it for you when I have the chance in the future.” Seeing that the audience really liked the octopus, Ruan Tang was relieved and started on his last dish — baked oysters.
The oysters, like the scallops, were quite large. Ruan Tang knew that he wouldn’t be strong enough to open them so he didn’t invite ridicule onto himself. He had He Yun Chen help him pry open the oysters, which caused the live chat to burst out in laughter.
Ruan Tang, this time, was unperturbed by the audiences’ teasing. He carefully washed the oyster shells with a brush, and rinsed the oysters with water. He spread a new foil on the baking sheet and laid down three oysters side by side. He stir-fried minced garlic and minced red pepper with hot oil and spread it over the oyster meat. He seasoned it with a little pepper and salt and after marinating for ten minutes, he put it in the oven.
After just a few minutes of baking, the baked oysters were done.
As soon as the foil was opened, the aroma of the baked oysters spewed out immediately. The oyster meat was plumper and fuller than the scallops. With one bite, the delicious taste of the minced garlic and the spicy taste of the red peppers burst in the mouth. The oyster had absorbed the sauce, making it plump and tender. It was simply enchanting.
[I’m not called strawberry: I am shook! These things taste better than the last! And the cooking method was so simple. I can’t wait for these ingredients to be available in the shopping site.]
[Peerless Cucumber: Yeah! Yeah! But just being able to taste it like this simply isn’t enough. My stomach still feels so empty. I’ll be even sadder after the broadcast ... I really want to eat the real thing!]
[Stone: Exactly! I hope these ingredients come soon!]
Unfortunately, because the 19th planet was so remote, he couldn’t draw a lottery. Ruan Tang could only apologize to the audience and then, he ended today’s live broadcast.
“Okay, Big Brother He, Chen Ge, we can start eating too.” Ruan Tang called the brothers, He Yun Yi and He Yun Chen to come over and eat.
The two of them had been standing to the side, exposed to all these delicious fragrances. They had already been waiting impatiently since a long while back, so they now rushed in to help serve the food.
“Mi-, Mr. Ruan ...” At this moment, someone suddenly called out to Ruan Tang.
Ruan Tang turned his head and found that the person who spoke was a neighbor he had met a few times. This neighbor was an old foodie. He often went to various restaurants and after finding out that Ruan Tang could cook, he also came to freeload some meals off him a few times. Ruan Tang smiled, “Mr. Gao?”
“Mr. Ruan, can I, can I have the pleasure of tasting these dishes that you’ve made?” This Mr. Gao watched the whole process. The scent of the food that assailed his nose, and the profuse praise of the live audience, made his foodie instincts rear up so that he thickened his face and asked to be allowed a taste of the food.
“Of course, you can.” Ruan Tang, naturally, wouldn’t refuse, and generously invited Mr. Gao to join the table. These water monsters were special products of the 19th planet. In the future, they would still rely on them as the main force for its production. If they can’t overcome their fear of water monsters and regard them as delicious ingredients, it might not be possible to carry out the needed work in the future.
This precedent set by Mr. Gao was obviously a good breakthrough.
Ruan Tang had a table especially set in the yard. At this time all sorts of dishes were set on it, their delicious aromas wafted about making the surrounding people’s mouths’ water. They were all impatient to get eating!
Because the water monsters were so large, the four of them would not be able to finish it all by themselves. So, Ruan Tang had specially set a table to the side and said, “Everyone, if you’d like to eat, then please feel free to have a seat.”
The crowd responded absently. Although they looked on covetously, they still had their misgiving and in the end they did not dare to come forward. They just stood watching from a distance.
He Yun Chen and He Yun Yi couldn’t wait any longer. They each reached out for a piece of crab and had a taste.
“It’s delicious! Ah! Who could have thought that this water monster could taste this good!” As soon as the crab meat entered his mouth, He Yun Yi couldn’t help but give his praise.
“It’s wouldn’t be good if not for A Tang’s craftsmanship.” He Yun Chen said with disapproval. He stretched out his chopsticks in the direction of the garlic scallops.
Ruan Tang smiled, and began to eat. These “water monsters” tasted much better than he imagined. Even fresher and more delicious than those imported seafood from his previous life.
Seeing that they were eating so deliciously, Mr. Gao’s last bit of hesitation dissapeared. He stretched out his chopsticks and pinched a piece of crab meat. Then his eyes widened.
“Oh my God, it’s so delicious! Is this really monster meat?”
He sang its praises again and again. Slthough he felt that it was unbelievable, he didn’t slow down in his eating at all, for fear that he would eat less if he paused even the slightest bit. It wasn’t enough to just have a taste of the crab meat, but also the lobster meat, the scallops, the oysters, and the octopus pieces. All of these gave him a pleasant surprise. He even couldn’t help but to let out a few drops of tears while biting down on the octopus pieces and vaguely whimpering, “It’s so delicious ... how could it be so delicious ...”
The rest of the people looked at the dishes on the table as, under the four’s chopsticks which fell like raindrops, the dishes were quickly reduced by half.
The crowd around them couldn’t help it anymore and they started to become restless. Although they were still subjectively resistant, their bodies wouldn’t listen. Their movements were stiff as their sinful hands extended towards their goad — the dishes on the table.
–No! We can’t be defeated by this temptation!
Despite the desperate refusal in their hearts, their bodies had acted honestly. They picked up a piece of lobster meat and put it into their waiting mouths.
–Damn it!
——The taste of these monsters was damn good! Not only was the flesh tender, but it was also so delicious that one was helpless against its deadly appeal.
The inhabitants of the 19th planet never could have imagined in their wildest dreams that these water monsters that had troubled them for so many years and in their eyes, represented extreme danger, could be made into such delicious food.
As the sweet and full flavor exploded in their mouths, the very last bit of resistance vanished like smoke. One by one, just like Mr. Gao, while weeping, they began to whisper indistinctly, “It’s delicious ... how could it be so delicious......”
And just now they also heard Ruan Tang say that the government was preparing to supply these water monsters to the entire empire as specialty products of the 19th planet. These water monsters tasted so good. They could just imagine what a big business opportunity these water monsters would be to the planet. In this way, they will never need to worry about finding jobs and earning money.
Everyone’s eyes turned to the monsters, and some emotional girl couldn’t help but cry and say to them, “Sorry, I was wrong to blame you!”
How could these be monsters? These were angels! Angels who sacrifice themselves for others!
Even Ruan Tang, whose original intention was to get them to accept these water monster, didn’t expect their reactions to be so intense. In fact, they had all been tortured by water monsters for so long. For generations, they had been shrouded by these monsters’ frightening legend. Add to that, that it was their first time to have eaten such delicious food, their minds were scrambled for a moment.
If the current scene was filmed, it would definitely become a black history that would render many of them unable to raise their heads for a lifetime.
Ruan Tang couldn’t help but restrain a smile. He had a bite of the spicy crab. The spicy taste stimulated the tongue and made it swell slightly, it was so hot and spicy. If he could have a bottle of cold beer or ice-cold cola, it would simply be bliss...
His eyes turned to He Yun Yi, and he remembered a sinful thought he had before.
He Yun Yi realized that Ruan Tang had been about to say something. He raised his head, his mouth was similarly made glossy from the spiciness. “What’s wrong?”
“Well ...” Ruan Tang sighed softly, and said lowly, “Have you ever heard this happy and boundless drink—Fat House Happy Water?”
He Yun Chen and He Yun Yi: “??????