Chapter 93 Eight-Treasure Stuffed Pigeon

Chapter 93: Eight-Treasure Stuffed Pigeon

The third episode aired, and the competition entered its final stage.

After several rounds of elimination, those who remained were no pushovers. Song Yu and Lu Qian had both made it to the end, and Lucas was brought back through a revival round.

The final match was divided into two rounds. In the first round, each contestant would complete one dish. The six highest-scoring contestants, as judged by the panel, would advance to the second round. The contestant with the highest combined score from both rounds would be crowned the ultimate champion.

Opinions on who would win the championship varied widely across the Star Network, with everyone having their own views.

"Supporting Old Man Lu Qian—those extra decades of experience aren’t for nothing."

"Betting my entire savings on Ash. Remember, our streamer has never made us lose a bet."

"I admit Ash is skilled, but to be fair, he’s an amateur at heart. In terms of pure culinary skill, he probably can’t match these professional chefs."

"Agreed. I still think Lucas will take first place."

"Ash relies a bit on cutting corners. His spicy crab had such heavy seasoning—the judges had never tasted anything like it, so of course it felt novel to them."

"Ha! Professional chefs have already lost to our streamer twice. I don’t know where they get their confidence."

From the moment the stream went live, the comments were explosive.

"Welcome, everyone, to the finals of the Supernova Cooking Competition!"

The host’s enthusiastic voice slightly eased the tension in the comments section. Penguin Video, with its deep pockets, had given the finals venue a complete upgrade. Aside from retaining the sixteen cooking stations, they had also installed an outrageously designed awards podium. At the very top sat a gleaming golden trophy, with a spotlight shining directly down on it from the ceiling—dazzling to the eye.

This episode was broadcast both online and offline. In addition to the online livestream, live audiences were invited to fill the massive studio, which was packed to capacity.

The judges were no longer seated in a separate room but had returned to the main stage. This time, aside from the original three judges, three professional food critics, three public figures, and one lucky viewer had been added to the panel.

That’s right—before the finals began, the program had launched a "mystery grand prize" lottery on social media. Though the prize was never revealed, participation numbers were astonishingly high.

The lucky winner only found out after winning that they would get to taste the contestants’ dishes in person and even score them. Overwhelmed with excitement, they waved repeatedly at the camera, and the comments flooded with envy.

"Does he even have a refined palate? Move aside and let me do it!"

"So annoying! If I’d known I could go to the live show, I’d have gotten my entire clan to help me enter the lottery."

With the judges and contestants ready, the host announced: "The first round of the finals is about to begin. The theme for this round is—'No dish is too elaborate, no slice too fine.'"

The theme was straightforward: this round would test foundational skills.

After all, this was a cooking competition. Besides making dishes taste good, a chef’s ability to demonstrate technical prowess was equally important.

While the contestants prepared, the host interviewed the judges: "Which contestant do you think will score highest in this round?"

"It’s hard to say. There are plenty of professional contestants here with solid technical foundations, like Lu Qian and Lucas—they’ll definitely perform well," Chen Hongyun said, taking the microphone. "Of course, this round will be particularly challenging for non-professional contestants."

The non-professional contestant he referred to was none other than Yu Xin. Although Chen greatly admired Yu Xin, he had to admit that there was a world of difference between professional and amateur techniques when it came to skill. Anyone can make home-style dishes taste good, but complex, technical dishes are where professional chefs excel.

His comments resonated with many viewers. Even those who had supported Yu Xin from the start couldn’t help but feel nervous for him, sweating bullets.

"This round is really stacked against our streamer. He’s the only non-professional among all these chefs."

"It’s a cooking competition—testing foundational skills is normal. How is it targeting him alone?"

"It’s fine, it’s fine. There’s still the second round."

On stage, Yu Xin, the subject of everyone’s concern, had begun his preparations.

He gathered over twenty ingredients from the supply area—enough for a full-course meal. Fortunately, the program had provided ample ingredients, and Yu Xin found almost everything he needed.

He even pushed a kitchen cart back from the ingredient area, drawing curious glances from others.

Song Yu also glanced at his ingredients. There were so many that it was impossible to guess what he was planning to make. She set aside her curiosity and focused on her own dish.

She planned to make a Wellington Steak, a common Western dish, but with her own twist.

She used the sous-vide method to prepare the steak, evenly coating a filet mignon with salt, olive oil, black pepper, and other seasonings before sealing it in a vacuum bag to cook. She maintained the water temperature at precisely 56°C (approximately 133°F) throughout, ensuring the steak would be tender and juicy. Alternating between ice-water cooling and slow cooking, she locked in the beef’s juices.

This step seemed simple but was actually quite difficult. It required precise control of the steak’s core temperature to achieve a perfect medium-rare doneness throughout—something that relied entirely on the chef’s experience.

Beyond that, achieving a harmonious balance of flavors and ensuring the pastry crust was flaky and crisp after baking posed a significant risk of failure.

By choosing this dish, Song Yu was challenging herself.

Meanwhile, Lu Qian stuck to traditional Huaiyang cuisine. Huaiyang cuisine, known for its refinement, had been a staple of state banquets in China and had survived into the Interstellar Age.

Lu Qian came from a family of Huaiyang cuisine experts. His restaurant, Hidden Pavilion, specialized in Huaiyang dishes, giving him a clear advantage in this round.

He planned to make "Golden Broth with Jade-Like Lotus Shrimp," using the classic "lotus" technique of Huaiyang cuisine to achieve an exceptionally smooth and tender texture.

The so-called "lotus shrimp" involved pounding shrimp into a paste, mixing it with unbeaten egg whites and water starch, and stirring until it formed a smooth, uniform paste. This was then "slipped" into hot oil to form pristine, jade-like slices—a technique that tested a chef’s precise control over heat and ingredient handling.

For seasoning, Lu Qian broke from Huaiyang cuisine’s typically light and fresh profile. Instead, he used pumpkin puree and yellow bell peppers to create a golden, sweet, sour, spicy, and savory broth that would surprise and delight diners’ palates.

Other contestants also showcased their best-kept secrets, pulling out all the stops. With the program’s insightful commentary, even viewers without culinary knowledge could follow along and enjoy the spectacle.

"Look, what is Ash doing?!"

Suddenly, an audience member’s exclamation drew everyone’s attention.

Yu Xin was holding a gleaming, razor-sharp knife, fully focused yet effortlessly skilled as he worked on a small fowl.

The knife obeyed his every command, its tip dancing between his pale fingers as he carefully separated the skin and meat from the bones. In no time, a complete skeleton was cleanly removed.

"He’s deboning a pigeon," Chen Hongyun observed closely before exclaiming, "What exquisite knife work!"

As a camera drone moved closer, Yu Xin cooperatively held up his work for display.

Under the lens, the deboned pigeon retained its perfect shape, its skin smooth and intact without a single tear.

"Suddenly feeling a chill down my neck."

"Getting hypnotized. Beautiful people should play with knives—so fierce."

"What beautiful hands—wait, I mean, what a shiny knife (wipes drool)."

Those in the livestream who had doubted Yu Xin were now silent. With skills like his, few on stage could match him.

"I didn’t expect Ash to have such tricks up his sleeve," Felix remarked, stroking his chin with interest.

"A wolf in sheep's clothing? How intriguing."

"What other surprises do you have, your emperor, that I don’t know about?"

"Looks like some people’s hopes are about to be dashed again. Hehe."

Yu Xin's inspiration comes from the classic Chinese dish—Three-Set Duck. While the original version layers domestic duck, wild duck, and pigeon together, he uses the deboned pigeon as the outermost layer, stuffed with mountain and sea delicacies, creating a similarly rich, nested texture.

The second layer consists of seafood—fresh shrimp are pounded into a paste, mixed with minced pork fat for richness, seasoned, and whipped until elastic. Then, diced fresh scallops are folded in, intentionally left slightly coarse to retain a granular texture.

The innermost layer is made of delicacies from the mountains—finely chopped morel mushrooms and black truffle envelop a molten salted egg yolk filling, which includes butter and custard powder.

The assembled filling ball, layered from inside out, is carefully stuffed into the deboned pigeon through the neck opening, evenly filling the deboned bird’s body and legs to restore its plump shape.

A clear broth is prepared using top-tier ingredients like aged hen, ham, and dried scallops. The pigeon is then placed in a steaming pot with the broth and steamed until cooked.

Given the uniqueness of this round, the program team appropriately extended the cooking time to give the contestants ample room to showcase their skills.

As time passed, contestants gradually entered the final stages of preparation.

Yu Xin removed the steaming pot from the steamer, lifted the lid, and after the steam dissipated, the contents came into view on camera.

The whole pigeon appeared plump and floated in a crystal-clear, tea-colored broth. Its pale yellow skin was garnished with vibrant green bok choy and bright red goji berries, creating a visually appealing presentation.

Though the dish may seem simple on the outside, it contains a universe of flavors within—from mountain delicacies to oceanic treasures, all encased in a small squab.

Carefully transferring the pigeon to the plate, Yu Xin raised his hand to announce, "Stuffed Eight-Treasure Pigeon, ready to serve!"