Chapter 44

Chapter 44

Before the crabs arrived, Ning Chan had already prepared the gelatinous broth and dough in advance, thinking that even if the crabs didn’t make it in time, they could still enjoy soup dumplings.

But he had underestimated everyone’s eagerness to earn money. Working round-the-clock, they delivered the crabs to him the very next day after the announcement was made.

With all the ingredients ready, how about making crab roe buns?

Originally, for convenience and speed, Ning Chan had considered simply boiling the crabs in water. But realizing this would cause some loss of freshness and nutrients, he dismissed the idea.

If they were going to do it, they had to do it right—no cutting corners!

Besides, this was his first time making crab roe buns. Though the steps were burned into his memory, what if skipping a step ruined the dish? That would be a waste of good ingredients!

"Forget it. Are there any extra steamers left? Once the water boils, put them in to steam too." Ning Chan tapped a crab with plump roe and discreetly licked his lips.

For someone who had lived through the post-apocalyptic world, no one could resist food—especially delicious food!

A steamer full of crabs like this would have had those with superpowers fighting over it in the apocalypse.

And in just over ten minutes, he would get to savor the first taste of these delicious crabs.

What a shame he couldn’t show off to them.

With everything going according to plan and his youthful body lightening his mood, Ning Chan’s suppressed gloom faded further, and genuine smiles appeared on his face more often.

Kane, who had followed him into the kitchen under the principle of "personal protection detail," watched this scene with a smile, fingers idly rubbing the small knife used for cleaning crabs.

Once, he had despised this wretched world with every fiber of his being. Now, he wanted this exalted one to find more reasons to cherish and delight in it.

With this person around, life would surely no longer be so dull.

Noticing the intense gaze fixed on him, Ning Chan turned and saw Kane. He beckoned him over.

Having previously raved about the crabs, Ning Chan figured the kid must be eagerly anticipating them. Seeing that longing look, he decided to let Kane have the first bite.

While waiting for the crabs to steam, Ning Chan rolled the proofed dough into long strips, pinched off evenly sized portions, shaped them into balls, then flattened them, and rolled them into thin wrappers.

"Prepare the wrappers to this size and thickness. We’ll need them for wrapping later." He had taught them how to make soup dumplings before, so rolling out wrappers wasn’t difficult for the chefs present.

However, compared to the small soup dumplings, the crab roe buns they were making this time would be much larger—sure to be filling.

In Ning Chan’s memory, each crab roe bun would fill a small steamer. Poking a tiny hole in the thin wrapper with a straw would release a gush of piping-hot, flavorful broth, awakening dormant taste buds with an explosion of crab flavor.

They didn’t have many small steamers here, but there were plenty of bamboo steamers used for steaming millet cakes—perfect for holding one large bun each.

"Alright, the crabs are done. Let’s all have a taste first."

Right on schedule, Ning Chan lifted the steamer lid and nodded approvingly at the sight of the perfectly steamed crimson crabs. He invited everyone to share.

The kitchen staff looked up to Ning Chan for many reasons.

He had rescued their families, given them jobs, and generously taught them how to make all kinds of delicious food. Beyond that, what earned their heartfelt respect was the fact that this remarkable holy man never looked down on them.

In his presence, past experiences and status didn’t matter. What mattered was who controlled the heat best, who had the finest knife skills, and who had the best palate. If anyone had questions, they could always turn to him, and he would patiently explain.

This "equal" attitude helped them stand tall again. Some even gained admiration and respect from others thanks to their newfound skills.

The fulfillment—both physical and spiritual—made them feel that even a king's ransom couldn’t tempt them to trade it away.

Perhaps those nobles would promise them money, beautiful women, and status out of respect for their culinary skills—but that respect would only be temporary. In the eyes of those people, without the backing of the church, they were merely cooks, replaceable at will.

But within the church, they were esteemed teachers, free to pursue what they desired.

Moreover, whenever there was something new to eat, they were always the first to taste it. Who wouldn’t be happy with such good fortune?

They had practiced with those dead black crabs before, so they knew exactly how to dismantle them. The thought of soon tasting the exquisite delicacy Lord Holy Son had described made them forget the crabs had just come out of the steamer—they grabbed a leg without hesitation.

Though they were now chefs, they had done plenty of hard labor in the past, their calloused hands unfazed by the hot shells.

Ning Chan, who’d play with fire without fear, had no trouble handling a freshly steamed crab. With a light twist at the joint, a strand of snow-white crab meat, tinged with red, slid out from the opening.

"Want a taste?" Ning Chan held the crab meat to Kane’s lips—the boy was still working carefully with his small knife. He’d bet that with Kane’s usual meticulousness, a bit more practice would make him a pro at using crab tools.

Kane had originally intended to prepare his own crab for Ning Chan, never expecting to be fed first.

Without hesitation, he bent down and took a hearty bite from Ning Chan’s hand.

The tender crab meat bounced lightly on his tongue, its rich juices seeping out along the fibers, flooding his mouth with freshness, making his stomach demand more.

"Delicious!" Kane’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Ning Chan, his lips curling into a grin at the delight of good food.

Having practiced in secret, Kane worked swiftly, extracting several strands of crab meat from the shell in no time.

He piled all the meat onto a spoon and held it to Ning Chan’s lips. "Here, you try some too."

Ning Chan wanted to say a small bite would be enough, but seeing Kane’s stubborn expression, he relented and opened his mouth and accepted the spoonful.

Mmm… not having to crack the shell himself made eating crab feel even better!

Kane, having dismantled a few legs, had hit his stride, his movements growing faster and smoother, rivaling even the expert crab pickers in documentaries.

Meanwhile, Ning Chan, the one who had taught him, worked at a leisurely, painstaking pace.

After being "repaid" with several more spoonfuls of crab meat, Ning Chan threw in the towel. Kane’s speed alone was enough to supply crab meat for both of them.

The others in the kitchen, after indulging in two or three crabs, began the work of extracting crab meat and roe.

They still remembered there were other dishes waiting—they couldn’t get too carried away by the feast before them.

"Alright, alright, eating too much of this plain isn’t good for the stomach. Let’s use it to make something else," Ning Chan said. Thanks to his Wood-element Superpower, he could stuff himself with crab without worry, but Kane was different—he couldn’t set a bad example. Tasty as it was, moderation mattered.

At Ning Chan’s words, Kane stopped feeding him and obediently heaped the crab meat and roe into a bowl, waiting for it to be transformed into another delicacy.

With so many hands in the kitchen and Ning Chan only testing a small batch, they soon had a bowlful of crab meat and roe ready for the filling.

The discarded shells weren’t thrown out with the gills and stomach—instead, they were stir-fried in a large pot with oil to render crab fat, which would later be used to sauté the crab meat, deepening the filling’s richness.

The broth for the meat jelly was made by simmering pork skin and chicken, later enriched with minced meat to refine the broth and intensify its flavor.

Once the gelatin-rich broth was cooled in the "icebox," it set into a jelly-like consistency. After breaking it apart, they mixed in the crab meat, added ginger-scallion water to neutralize any fishiness, seasoned it, and stirred vigorously—ready to wrap.

The wrappers were incredibly elastic, easily pinched into pleats under Ning Chan’s fingers.

Once the filling was fully enclosed, a small pinch of crab roe was placed atop each bun before they were arranged in the steamer.

While waiting for the crab roe buns to cook, Ning Chan eyed the remaining roe, licked his lips, and heated the pan again.

Diced fatty pork crackled in the pan, sizzling like blossoms as they turned from pale pink to a translucent off-white, then gradually deepened into a golden brown.

Ning Chan scooped out the rendered pork fat crisps and set them aside. Honestly, just sprinkling some salt and chili powder on these would make them a dish nobles would scramble for out on the dining table.

The oil continued to sizzle at high heat, releasing waves of fragrance. Ning Chan watched the timing carefully before pouring the crab roe into the pan for stir-frying. The mingled aromas of the two were enough to make mouths water uncontrollably.

When the rice wine was poured into the pan, the high heat made the alcohol fumes bloom, intensifying the fragrance even further.

By the time minced ginger and aromatic vinegar were added and stir-fried in sequence, many people outside the kitchen were already peeking in eagerly.

This was yet another aroma they had never smelled before—ahhh, when would the dish finally be ready? They were practically drooling!

Looking at the vibrant, fragrant crab roe oil, Ning Chan was itching to steam a pot of rice right away to devour three big bowls of it.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough rice at the moment—most of it had been reserved for seeds, and what was left wouldn't go far enough to feed everyone.

But that wasn’t much of a problem. If there was no rice, noodles would do.

The noodle mill in the city was already operational, and the kitchen had plenty stocked. Boiling water and cooking noodles would only take a few minutes.

Once the noodles were done, they could be drained and slathered with that luscious crab fat, coating every strand in intense crab fragrance.

Taking a slurp, the oil would glide over the tongue while the crab roe melted in the mouth, the noodles' plainness utterly drowned in the overwhelming umami.

If emotions could materialize, you'd see little joy waves rippling behind Ning Chan.

Crab roe oil without crab meat—now that's living large! He was already satisfied. Even if the crab roe soup dumplings didn’t meet expectations, he’d call it good enough!

But that thought only lasted until the lid was lifted off the crab roe soup dumplings.

Alright, he was wrong—this was just the beginning. Salt-baked crab, wine-marinated crab, spicy crab... were they any less amazing?