Chapter 2049: [A Perfect Smashed Cuc.u.mber Salad.]
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Smashed cuc.u.mber salad was a simple and quick dish to make.
Everyone would dare to say that they knew how to make smashed cuc.u.mber salad, but not everyone could make their smashed cuc.u.mber salad delicious.
Acuc.u.mber was placed on the chopping board with its skin left intact after being washed cleanly.
The skin was the essence of the smashed cuc.u.mber salad.
Of course, that was the same for marinated cuc.u.mber as well.
Mag held Fat Head Fish, and placed it between his eyes solemnly.
“Now!”
‘Mag lifted the cleaver, moving as fast as lightning. The moment the cleaver landed, he rotated his wrist, and instead of chopping, he smacked. Before the cleaver reached the chopping board, he slowed down suddenly to pat the cuc.u.mber gently.
Smack!
Smack! Smack! Smack!
The round cuc.u.mber was quickly smashed flat, and its juice squirted everywhere.
(Cuc.u.mber: I’m broken.)
Mag frowned a little when he looked at the smashed cuc.u.mber on the chopping board.
As he used too much force, the interior of the cuc.u.mber was overly squashed and destroyed, making it a smudgy mess and a little ugly.
“Fail.” Mag threw the smashed cuc.u.mber into a basin at the side, and took another cuc.u.mber.
The key of the smashed cuc.u.mber salad was the word “smashed.”
This action was the perfect union of power and technique, and it was crucial to control the power used.
Smas.h.i.+ng the cuc.u.mber could allow the flavors to go in better, and it would also taste better than sliced cuc.u.mbers.
‘The cuc.u.mber had to be smashed, but not completely disintegrated, and the interior of the cuc.u.mber could not be squashed. Otherwise, it would lose its refres.h.i.+ng taste.
This step made the smashed cuc.u.mber salad a very difficult dish that required technique.
Mag recalled his smacking move just now, and tried to control his strength and the angle of his smacking. After that, he wielded his cleaver again.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Inno time at all, the basin beside him was filled with smashed cuc.u.mbers.
“Father, are these cuc.u.mbers what we will be eating tonight? I think it’s a little too much.” Amy could not help but speak up when she saw Mag pick up yet another cuc.u.mber.
“Oh, no, these are all cuc.u.mbers that I did not smash well. I can’t use them to make smashed cuc.u.mber salad,” Mag said with a shake of his head.
“In that case, what will these cuc.u.mbers be used for?” Amy asked, puzzled.
“They will be thrown away,” Mag said.
“That’s a lot of cuc.u.mbers. What a pity to throw them away.” Amy took the basin with her. As she ate the smashed cuc.u.mbers, she said, “In that case, hand them over to me. I’ll eat them all up.”
Mag did not doubt her words at all.
However, this had also proven his conjecture right—Amy was here for the food indeed!
Mag shook his head with a smile, and continued to smack the cuc.u.mbers in his hand.
Smack! Smack! Smack!
He did not use too much or too little strength. Each smack allowed the side of the cleaver to get in contact with a segment of a cuc.u.mber, making it crack perfectly. The cuc.u.mber was covered in large and small cracks, but it was still whole.
Perfect!
‘Mag nodded as he looked at the cracked cuc.u.mbers on the chopping board. After that, he cut them into small pieces.
‘The cut cuc.u.mbers split naturally into even pieces. The cuc.u.mbers were covered with cracks, but they still looked very full and juicy.
‘The cuc.u.mbers were prepared. Next, it was the flavoring sauce.
The flavoring sauce was the core of the taste for smashed cuc.u.mber salad.
Cuc.u.mbers were light and refres.h.i.+ng, so the flavoring sauce would determine their taste.
Asa lover of sour and spicy smashed cuc.u.mber salad, Mag had already drafted a recipe for the flavoring sauce in his mind: soy sauce, vinegar, a little sugar, oyster sauce, garlic, red oil, and Chaotian pepper.
Although Mag had not made this dish before, he had eaten a lot of smashed cuc.u.mber salad.
After this period of understanding and familiarizing himself with the different seasonings, Mag could already guess what kind of seasoning was added to a dish based on his memory.
Of course, the specific amount still required trial and error.
After peeling off the garlic’s skin and pounding it down, Mag started his meticulous seasoning, as though he was making some chemical medicine.
The red oil was premade since it was needed in the pig ears salad and pig tongue salad.
“Too sour!
“Too sweet!
“Too salty!
“Too spicy!”
wee
Mag tried the sauce he made every time and frowned.
Amy returned to the kitchen with the large basin in his arms. There was a row of sauces by her side. She was eating the cuc.u.mbers happily with the sauces.
“Is it good?” Mag placed the unsatisfactory sauce down as he spoke to Amy, who was munching on the cuc.u.mbers like a little squirrel.
“Mm-hm. It’s good.” Amy nodded. “And it is getting better?”
“Try this, then.” Mag placed a plate of sauce in front of Amy.
Amy picked up a piece of cuc.u.mber, and dipped it in the sauce before putting it in her mouth.
It’s sour and spicy, delicious!
[An almost perfect dipped cuc.u.mber.]
Avalidation report appeared in Amy’s mind.
“Although it’s good, I think it can be improved to make it perfect,” Amy told Mag.
“Oh?” Mag was slightly shocked. The little fellow loved to praise him. He did not expect her to give her a not-perfect review.
However, that was what he was thinking too.
The sourness and spiciness were done perfectly, but he still felt that something was lacking.
“Father, is this cuc.u.mber eaten dipped?” Amy asked.
“Right! I should mix them together and see the results!” Mag’s eyes lit up. He was so caught up with the process that he neglected the possible reaction that would happen when both were combined.
Although the cuc.u.mber did not have much taste, it had its unique fragrance.
On top of that, the cuc.u.mber was very juicy. Therefore, when the cuc.u.mber was mixed with the sauce, the sauce would become lighter due to the cuc.u.mber’s juice. This was also something that Mag had to take into consideration.
“Smashed cuc.u.mber salad is a salad. You don’t eat it as a dip,” Mag said with a smile. He smacked another cuc.u.mber, and made the sauce according to the previous recipe. He drizzled the sauce over the cuc.u.mber, mixed them well, and placed them in the refrigerator.
Soon after, Mag took the smashed cuc.u.mber salad out from the refrigerator.
‘There was indeed more liquid in the plate. However, as the dish was refrigerated, the amount of liquid that seeped out was not too much.
‘The cuc.u.mber was still very green, and there were some garlic bits and red Chaotian pepper decorating it. The sour and spicy fragrance wafted over, making one swallow their saliva instinctively.
“Try this.” Mag took two pairs of chopsticks, and pa.s.sed one of them to Amy while he picked up a piece for himself.
‘The sourness of vinegar blossomed in his mouth immediately. The spiciness followed soon after. The fragrance of the red oil and Chaotian pepper infused together perfectly, bringing out the spiciness even more.
Mag bit into the cuc.u.mber. It was refres.h.i.+ng and crunchy. On top of that, the refres.h.i.+ng juice from the cuc.u.mber squirted out in his mouth, neutralizing the sourness and spiciness perfectly.
“This is it!”
Mag’s eyes lit up.
He finally found the key to its imperfection. It was the original taste of cuc.u.mber.
Now, this smashed cuc.u.mber salad had reached his expectations.
Although it could not be compared to a real master’s, it was enough to have with porridge and wine.
Amy took a piece of cuc.u.mber.
[A perfect smashed cuc.u.mber salad—shocking culinary skills..]