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In a bustling corner of the city, there is a hidden dessert shop called "Sweet Haven." This little shop, with its unique decor and exquisite desserts, has become a sweet paradise for both locals and tourists.
Upon entering the shop, the first thing you notice is the warm lighting and the soft, comfortable sofas. The walls are adorned with soft-colored paintings depicting various sweet treats and dreamy scenes, making it feel as though you've stepped into a sugary dreamland. The music playing inside is gentle and soothing, adding a touch of tranquility and comfort to the space.
The dessert counter is filled with a dazzling array of sweets. From classic French macarons to creatively crafted matcha mousse, each dessert is so beautifully made that it's hard to take your eyes off them. The harmonious color combinations and diverse shapes of the desserts resemble works of art, capturing your attention before you even take a bite.
In one corner of the shop, there's a small reading nook filled with books and magazines about desserts, allowing guests to immerse themselves in knowledge while enjoying their sweets.
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It was nighttime. While Rindo was being defeated by Asahi Saiba, a similar confrontation between the Totsuki Elite Ten and the Midnight Chefs was taking place in this very dessert shop.
Western-style pastries, originating from Western countries, are a significant part of Western cuisine. They are typically made from flour, fat, eggs, sugar, dairy products, and various other additives, crafted into a wide range of pastries, tarts, cookies, and mousses, among others. Despite the vast variety, these treats can be mass-produced by machines or hand-made by chefs with unique designs and techniques.
Facing the Midnight Chef Bunnyhair was a small, quiet girl who always carried a teddy bear. Despite being in her third year at Totsuki, she appeared petite and rather shy, speaking very little.
Just by looking at her, Bunnyhair found it hard to believe that this small, fragile girl was really the fourth seat of the Totsuki Elite Ten.
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"I don't know why you Totsuki students are picking a fight at this critical moment," Bunnyhair said with a firm gaze. "But I won't be holding back in this cooking showdown!"
"Yeah," Momo replied, holding her teddy bear tightly, sounding a bit impatient. She then turned to her cooking station and began preparing her specialty: desserts!
The ingredients she had prepared were fairly common: butter, powdered sugar, fine granulated sugar, salt, eggs, milk, milk powder, cake flour, almond flour, and vanilla extract. Along with these were tools like measuring spoons, an electric mixer, a rubber spatula, piping tips, piping bags, heart-shaped and round molds, and an oven.
In the realm of dessert-making, Momo, who had a deep expertise, was highly skilled in using these ingredients and tools. She started by placing water in the freezer for a while, making ice water. She also chilled the cream, but only in the refrigerator, not the freezer—an essential rule in dessert-making.
Momo's swift, skilled movements immediately amazed everyone watching. She poured the cream into a clean container, added the granulated sugar, and to enhance the cream's flavor, she even added a few extra milliliters of rum. This distilled spirit, made from sugarcane molasses, would make the cream's aroma even more fragrant.
She placed the container of cream in the ice water and used the electric mixer at a low speed to blend the sugar into the cream, taking just seconds. Then, she switched the mixer to high speed, whipping until clear patterns formed in the cream. She carefully observed the mixture, continuing to whip until it was able to form stiff peaks, leaving the cream incredibly smooth and delicate.
"Such speed…"
"This is the power of the Totsuki Elite Ten?"
"I can't believe that Momo, the fourth seat, was able to whip up this cream in just about a minute."
"And the aroma of the cream, it's so rich and fragrant!"
"This is truly eye-opening!"
"So that's the purpose of the rum—to enhance the cream's flavor. Impressive. Her technique is astonishing."
The intense cooking competition had just passed the one-minute mark, yet the staff and even the experienced pastry chefs in the dessert shop were left speechless, especially impressed by Momo's mastery in making cream.
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On the other side, Bunnyhair was also surprised by Momo's performance. However, she quickly composed herself and began her own cooking.
She prepared her ingredients: all-purpose flour, shortening, cake flour, char siu (barbecue pork), sesame seeds, powdered sugar, water, char siu sauce, and egg yolks. She preheated the oven to 180 degrees.
Bunnyhair's special ability, "Savage Cooking," involves using harsh techniques to bring out the best flavors in her dishes. Her dough kneading was especially aggressive—kneading, pounding, and stretching the dough with such force that her movements and speed left the once-bustling dessert shop in stunned silence.
Everyone was simply too shocked.
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Honey-glazed Char Siu Pastry is a popular Cantonese dim sum.
The outer layer is golden and crispy, filled with sweet and savory char siu, bursting with flavor.
Char siu, or barbecued pork, is traditionally cooked over an open flame, which can dry out lean meat like loin. To counteract this, Bunnyhair used a mix of fatty and lean pork, glazing it with maltose to maintain moisture and infuse a sweet aroma during roasting.
Fragrant.
Sweet.
Savory.
A bit dry, but also slightly salty.
If you described Bunnyhair's char siu as "savory with a hint of sweetness, lean but tender and flavorful," it would be spot on!
She cut the char siu into small pieces, thickened the sauce with flour, and set it aside as the filling.
Flour, eggs, sugar, and lard were mixed with just enough water to form a smooth dough, which was rolled out, folded multiple times, and cut into small squares. Each square was filled with a tablespoon of the char siu mixture, sealed, brushed with egg yolk, and sprinkled with sesame seeds. The pastries were then baked for 25 minutes until golden and crispy.
Although the process seemed simple, the taste was anything but ordinary.
This particular pastry, evolved from the dishes in the Manchu-Han Imperial Feast, was a variation of traditional char siu. After years of refinement, the honey-glazed char siu pastry was born and has been popular ever since!
The result was a pastry that was fragrant, sweet, crisp, and not overly rich.
"What… kind of dessert is this?"
"Honey-glazed char siu pastry?"
"A dessert that combines crispy pastry with savory char siu?"
"Well, let's try it."
Amid their surprise, the judges overseeing the competition eagerly picked up a piece of the honey-glazed char siu pastry and took a careful bite.
The pastry melted in their mouths, crispy yet soft, not too sweet—a delightful contrast.
What surprised them even more came afterward.
The fat from the char siu melted during roasting, making the meat tender and juicy without being greasy. With every bite, the juices burst forth, overwhelming the judges with an unexpected shock that left them stunned.
Their minds went blank for a moment.
The sweet and savory flavor of the char siu stood out, while the crispy texture added another layer of enjoyment.
Visually, aromatically, and taste-wise, this dish shattered the judges' preconceived notions.
"This… is an amazing dessert!"
"Who would have thought you could blend meat flavors into a dessert so seamlessly? Incredible, just incredible."
"Despite the complex flavors, as you chew, you can still taste the rich, tender char siu, which melts in your mouth."
"Moreover."
"The pastry, made with a mix of cake flour and milk powder, is deliciously crisp."
"Even after it cools down, the flavor remains outstanding."
"This is truly an unprecedented dessert!"
The judges could barely contain their excitement, and soon they were devouring the pastry, afraid someone else might snatch it away.
Seeing their reactions, Bunnyhair couldn't help but smile slightly. Her goal was to captivate the judges' taste buds completely, ensuring they would remember nothing but her honey-glazed char siu pastry.
With this approach, it didn't matter if her opponent was the fourth seat of the Totsuki Elite Ten. By using her "savage" techniques to create such a delicious dish, victory was hers!
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Just as Bunnyhair was lost in her thoughts, a gentle hand suddenly tugged at her sleeve.
The small, quiet Momo, still clutching her teddy bear, looked up at Bunnyhair with wide, pleading eyes. "Can I try your honey-glazed char siu pastry?" she asked softly.
It was clear that Momo, who had a deep love for all things cute, was moved by Bunnyhair's creation. Her cheeks were flushed, and she seemed eager to try it.
After all, Momo was known for her expertise in cakes and pastries, having secured the highest sales in the Totsuki Academy festival's dessert section.
She knew that the honey-glazed char siu pastry was a classic Cantonese dessert.
Seeing the judges so entranced by it, Momo couldn't resist. While she wasn't as much of a glutton as Rindo, the thought of missing out on such a delicious dessert was unbearable.
So, she blinked and kept her gaze fixed on Bunnyhair.
Bunnyhair, also a woman, hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Sure, there are a few pieces left."
"Thank you," Momo's eyes lit up.
She eagerly took the pastry from Bunnyhair, and without hesitation, took a bite.
"Wow, this is so good," Momo murmured as the rich flavor burst in her mouth, leaving
her unable to get enough of it.
As someone who excelled in desserts, Momo knew that her own cookies wouldn't be able to compete with Bunnyhair's creation.
Recalling how she had underestimated the Midnight Chefs, Momo sighed.
Even I lost.
That means Rindo, Nene, Kuga, and the others will likely struggle as well.
"Well, I admit defeat to Bunnyhair."
"So… I surrender this cooking battle to the Midnight Chefs."
Her words left the dessert shop in stunned silence.
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Sweet and Sour Pork
A representative dish!
The origin of this dish is widely debated.
One popular belief is that during ancient times, amidst the chaos in central China, a group of Henan people traveled to Guangdong, settling in the area now known as Meizhou, becoming the Hakka people!
During the New Year, they continued the tradition of making a dish called "crispy pork," which involved coating pork in flour and frying it to a crispy finish.
However, the Hakka people made some changes.
After frying the pork, they coated it in a sugary syrup, rolling the crispy pork balls in the syrup, then sprinkling them with sesame seeds as the syrup hardened.
This resulted in a dish with a crispy, sweet exterior and a tender, flavorful interior.
Because the pork balls had to be rolled in the syrup to evenly coat them, people began calling this dish "gulu pork" (meaning "rolling pork").
When this simple yet rustic Hakka dish made its way to the provincial capital, Cantonese chefs further refined it.
They decided to use tomato and lemon juice mixed with the syrup to create a sweet and sour flavor, which was much more enjoyable than the purely sweet original.
Over time, the sweet and sour "gulu pork" became a famous dish, beloved and passed down through generations!
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"Oh?"
"So, the eighth seat of the Elite Ten."
"If I recall correctly, you're known for your expertise in Sichuan cuisine, right?"
In a Chinese restaurant, another Midnight Chef, Don Calma, glanced at the sweet and sour pork Kuga had prepared and couldn't help but express his surprise.
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