Chapter 152 Culinary Consultants

Qi Yan brought the stall owners to the Cold Noodles Girl's kitchen.

Although the other stall owners weren't particularly skilled at making roasted cold noodles, they had all come along, wanting to see exactly how Zhang Yahui would "guide" and what this so-called "culinary consultant" was responsible for.

After Qi Yan briefly explained the situation to the chef, the chef immediately started making roasted cold noodles.

Zhang Yahui and the other stall owners stood around, watching intently.

This chef had also participated in the street food competition, so he recognized Zhang Yahui and the stall owners. Performing roasted cold noodles in front of them made him feel a bit uneasy, but since Qi Yan had asked, he obediently followed the previous method.

Zhang Yahui watched very carefully.

Although he and this chef had both participated in the street food competition and were in the same roasted cold noodles group, they had been too busy making their own roasted cold noodles to pay attention to each other, so Zhang Yahui hadn't known how the Cold Noodles Girl's roasted cold noodles were made.

Now, watching from close range, he realized that the biggest difference between their roasted cold noodles and his own was "accuracy."

For a simple example, the chef would use a timer to record the cooking time and a thermometer to measure the temperature of the roasted cold noodles, only adding the egg and seasonings after reaching the appropriate temperature.

When Zhang Yahui made roasted cold noodles, he relied entirely on experience. However, he was quite talented and had made so many roasted cold noodles that even without these tools, the results were always pretty consistent.

Qi Yan didn't pay too much attention to the process of making the roasted cold noodles, but instead observed the expressions of the chef and the stall owners.

This chef had been hired by Meng Chang at a high salary and was a legitimate hotel chef. Although he wasn't at the level of a five-star hotel head chef, he was by no means ordinary.

After all, Cold Noodles Girl had so much marketing expenses that they could easily squeeze out a little to hire a relatively expensive chef. Meng Chang had been touting how good Cold Noodles Girl's taste was, and it would be counterproductive to hire an average chef and get exposed.

However, the roasted cold noodles made by this highly paid chef weren't as good as those from roadside stalls, and it seemed that there weren't that many consumers buying them either, which was a perplexing problem for Qi Yan.

The roasted cold noodles were quickly made. The chef followed the standard procedure to cut the roasted cold noodles into sections, carefully plated them, and set them aside.

"It's done," the chef said to Qi Yan.

Qi Yan nodded and said to the stall owners, "Everyone, try some and feel free to offer any suggestions."

The stall owners each took a piece and tasted it carefully.

Zhang Yahui said, "Well, it's just like the judges said in the competition. The moisture control isn't very good. The texture is a bit tough and not soft enough. As for the vinegar flavor... it's okay, not as bad as the judges said."

The chef was silent for a moment, then explained, "I deliberately added a little more vinegar today."

Obviously, the judges' comments yesterday had been quite accurate. The chef had humbly listened to their opinions and added a little more vinegar today to improve the taste of the roasted cold noodles.

The chef said to Zhang Yahui, "Why don't you make one too, so I can learn from you?"

Zhang Yahui quickly said, "I wouldn't dare to say I'm teaching you. I've just made too many roasted cold noodles and I've been tinkering around myself, so I have a few little tricks."

Zhang Yahui was modest, but he still switched places with the chef. After pouring the oil, he took a sheet of cold noodle skin and started to make it.

This time, it was the chef's turn to watch.

Both sides followed similar steps in making the roasted cold noodles, but the chef held a timer and observed Zhang Yahui's specific techniques, discovering some differences in the details.

The difference in the taste of the roasted cold noodles might lie in these details.

Soon, Zhang Yahui's roasted cold noodles were also ready, and he also invited everyone to taste them.

Qi Yan tried both types of roasted cold noodles and could indeed taste that Zhang Yahui's roasted cold noodles were better.

A person's tongue doesn't lie.

A certain entrepreneur had said something absurd before. When someone criticized his restaurant brand for not being delicious, he angrily retorted: That's because your taste buds haven't opened up yet. You've only tasted your mother's cooking, so you can't tell what's good and what's not.

This absurd statement had become a joke.

Of course, people have different abilities to taste food; otherwise, everyone could be a food critic.

But to say that "taste buds haven't opened up, so good food tastes bad" is pure nonsense.

Truly delicious food, as long as it enters your mouth, everyone can taste that it's delicious.

Conversely, if ordinary people think it's bad, then it's often really bad.

The chef didn't force anyone to say that his roasted cold noodles were delicious, but instead humbly admitted defeat and earnestly asked Zhang Yahui about some of the details in the process.

Zhang Yahui answered seriously, but often his methods relied entirely on feeling and he couldn't explain them very clearly.

The chef listened attentively and sighed, "I see... it seems that it's my problem. I've taken roasted cold noodles too simply. I never thought that such a simple snack could have so many details and intricacies..."

Qi Yan suddenly understood why a legitimate hotel chef couldn't make roasted cold noodles as well as a street vendor.

On the one hand, it was because of skill, and on the other hand, it was because of attitude!

If it were other dishes, the chef could definitely beat Zhang Yahui by a mile, because these dishes had recipes and the chef had undergone rigorous professional training. It would be impossible for him to lose to a self-taught amateur.

But snacks are different. Snacks don't have a clear recipe, and chefs in various restaurants don't specifically study how to make pancakes or roasted cold noodles. So even a hotel chef starts from about the same point as a street vendor.

And this chef had obviously looked down on foods like roasted cold noodles before, so he hadn't put in a lot of effort to study them. He simply thought that whatever he made would definitely be better than what was made on the street.

But the result wasn't a significant improvement over the roasted cold noodles from roadside stalls.

Of course, even if he had studied hard, he might not have been able to figure it out.

There are so many cities in the country, and each city has countless stalls. So many stall owners trying this and that, only to come up with a few relatively good ways to make roasted cold noodles. How long would it take for the chef to figure it out on his own?

The reasons for both skill and attitude meant that the chef couldn't master roasted cold noodles.

It was precisely because the taste of Cold Noodles Girl's roasted cold noodles wasn't significantly different from ordinary street roasted cold noodles, and the price was higher, that customers felt like they were paying an "IQ tax" and didn't think Cold Noodles Girl's roasted cold noodles were delicious enough.

Qi Yan couldn't help but sigh, sure enough, one must specialize in a certain field. Making snacks is a matter for professionals.

Both are chefs, but whether they make regular dishes well is one thing, and whether they make snacks well is another.

Qi Yan suddenly realized that this was exactly what President Pei was trying to convey!

A key reason for Meng Chang's failure was that he didn't understand this point. He thought that he could just find a chef to deal with it and make good roasted cold noodles.

But he hadn't thought about whether the chef was good at making roasted cold noodles or whether the chef was willing to ask the stall owners about the details of making roasted cold noodles.

Meng Chang had been emphasizing the need to focus on the taste of the roasted cold noodles, but he was only talking about it and hadn't taken any real action.

Qi Yan felt that President Pei was obviously hinting to her not to follow in Meng Chang's footsteps and to be down-to-earth and realistic!

The other stall owners also started talking about their experiences with snacks.

Qi Yan could see that although these stall owners hadn't undergone particularly professional culinary training, their commonalities were that they had a certain ability to appreciate taste, were good with their hands, and loved to study.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible for them to master ordinary snacks and make them so popular without a teacher.

They had the attitude and the ability. As long as Cold Noodles Girl paid for them to receive some training in culinary knowledge and then streamlined and refined their cooking methods... they could definitely improve the taste of Cold Noodles Girl's snacks!

Then, not only roasted cold noodles, but other types of snacks could also be made!

Thinking of this, Qi Yan immediately made a decision: "I think everyone's abilities are fine and they are qualified for the position of culinary consultant. I guarantee everyone that Cold Noodles Girl can definitely provide a bigger platform for everyone so that your strengths can be fully utilized!"

...

At the same time, Jingzhou.

Li Shi was using voice chat to tell the author of that article about the stories he knew about President Pei, Round Dream Ventures, and Cold Noodles Girl.

"That's all the information I know."

"There may be some more hidden things. After all, President Pei is good at planning, and what we see may only be part of his plan. But these things, we can't know."

"Use these materials as you see fit."

A man's voice came from the other end of the phone: "Thank you very much. These details are really wonderful. I never thought that there were so many stories behind Cold Noodles Girl!"

"Can I ask who you are and where you got this inside information? Don't worry, I'm just curious and won't write it in the article."

"Of course, it doesn't matter if you don't want to reveal it."

Li Shi chuckled: "I'm just an ordinary investor with a student mentality."

Seeing that President Li was unwilling to say, the person on the other end of the phone didn't ask any further, but said: "Please rest assured, I will write this article soon and it will definitely be very exciting!"

Li Shi suddenly thought of something and said, "Oh, there's one more thing. I heard that Meng Chang is now desperate, and President Pei plans to give him some work to do, but it's not yet certain what position he will be responsible for."

The person on the other end of the phone pondered for a moment: "This..."

"Okay, I understand. This also seems to be a very important piece of information."

"I'll start writing the draft now so that the story behind Cold Noodles Girl can be revealed to the world!"