Gourmet: Midnight Vending-Chapter 442 - 381: Mom’s Table Unlocks Hidden Delicacies!

Chapter 442: Chapter 381: Mom’s Table Unlocks Hidden Delicacies!

The dish of braised sea cucumber differs slightly from braised sea cucumber with scallion, mainly in the method of preparation.

Braising emphasizes tenderness, simmering over low heat for a long time to enhance the flavor.

The plump Guan Dong Cane was drizzled with a bright glaze, appearing on the round table in the courtyard, just as Chen Mo anticipated. Guests who rarely ate seafood were a bit shocked at first sight of this dish.

"Sea cucumber? A whole plate of sea cucumber?"

"This stuff is a big tonic; I need to eat a few more bites."

"Wow, Jiang Fei, sea cucumber isn’t cheap, right? You really went all out with the dishes today. How much did it cost you?"

"I wish I could have a table like this when I get married, such a status symbol!"

Listening to all the flattery from the guests, Jiang Fei felt a sense of pride, casting a smug glance at Zhang Yaling, "Who said village banquets aren’t prestigious? Look around, which invited guest isn’t giving a thumbs up? Who doesn’t want a grand banquet like ours?"

Zhang Yaling couldn’t stand her husband’s smug demeanor, "Isn’t it all thanks to Xiaochen? You should properly thank him."

Jiang Fei knew this well.

The end-of-year evaluation was pretty much decided; it had to be Chen Mo.

Recently, Jiang Fei was processing new paperwork for Chen Mo, changing from unpaid leave to external study. This way, not only would his salary continue, but crucially, his social insurance wouldn’t be interrupted.

Because the company had received multiple banners from various social sectors, the group started to pay attention to the name Chen Mo, and this process was progressing smoothly. Jiang Fei planned to inform Chen Mo once everything was completely settled.

Yet, upon seeing this dish, Jiang Fei was a bit hesitant.

He initially set the budget at 2,000 yuan for the dishes, but several cold dishes earlier looked quite upscale, and now they served sea cucumber. Could it have exceeded the budget?

"Chen Mo is too honest; even if it exceeded the budget, he wouldn’t say a word. He probably covered the extra cost out of his pocket. Looks like I’ll have to find a way to subsidize him later."

Lost in thought, Jiang Fei only saw the sea cucumber in the dish decreasing visibly, "Oh my, you all are fast!"

Without further hesitation, Jiang Fei quickly grabbed his chopsticks, picked up a plump piece of sea cucumber, and shoved it into his mouth without a word.

"Delicious!"

Wang Heng, who only managed to eat bones from the previous dish, saw the new dish was braised sea cucumber. His previously expectant face immediately fell.

Slices of sea cucumber, even with chopsticks, could only be taken two or three at a time at most.

As the third in ranking for this dish, he had no advantage!

Seeing Wang Heng upset, his colleagues couldn’t be happier!

After round one, only a few pieces remained on the plate, and Liao Feng moved on to round two!

Fangfang also made it to round two!

Wang Heng watched as Fangfang’s chopsticks picked away the last two pieces of sea cucumber, almost blurting out in frustration, "Wang Fang, you’re not fair! There were only two pieces left; couldn’t you leave me one?"

"Ha, who was the one who said it should depend on one’s skills?"

Liao Feng held back a laugh, "See, you should never have a fluke mentality; although Fangfang dropped from second to the second-to-last, it was a blessing in disguise, haha."

The battle at the mothers’ table was destined to be even hotter from the start compared to other tables.

After all, others had no idea what was really happening until they arrived, simply expecting a regular rural banquet.

But these stocking-clad mothers knew exactly what they were in for; they originally didn’t need to come, yet they contributed money because they were here for the food!

Zihan’s Mother, leveraging her advantageous geographical position, analyzed the situation as the kitchen helpers brought in the dishes.

Simultaneously, she swapped her weapon from chopsticks to a more effective one—a spoon.

As the bottom of the sea cucumber plate touched the table, Zihan’s Mother stood up, bent over, and reached out!

"There’s only one chance! It must be steady!"

The spoon, amidst the base of the plate, scooped up five or six pieces of sea cucumber in a ’fishing for the moon’ maneuver.

The other mothers, using chopsticks, barely managed one or two pieces.

Seeing Zihan’s Mother’s strategy, Gao Le’s Mother regretted extending her chopsticks and quickly switched to a spoon.

When she returned to the fray, all that was left was an empty white plate, with only some amber red glaze remaining.

"You all..."

At this moment, the other mothers sat gracefully at the table’s edge, leisurely wiping their mouths with napkins as if nothing had happened.

"Can’t I at least taste it?"

The war among women is terrifying!

Zihan’s Mother sent a spoonful of sea cucumber straight into her mouth. The freshly poured glaze seemed harmless but was actually enveloping intense heat.

Others picked one or two pieces, no problem.

But her spoonful contained both sea cucumber and sauce, burning her eyes wide open!

However, she couldn’t admit defeat.

Zihan’s Mother didn’t even intake a breath, lowered her head, held her forehead with one hand, and used the other to gently press a tissue to her mouth, frantically trying to release heat through her nose without opening up.

After a good ten seconds, her mouth began adjusting to the food’s temperature.

"It’s fortunate it’s not scalding hot."

Zihan’s Mother breathed a sigh of relief; otherwise, her mouth might have blistered after such a long time.