"Although the methods for identifying the quality of fruits and vegetables vary depending on the type, there is also a universal and highly effective method."
Stepping onto the thick, loamy soil and looking at the garden full of fruits and vegetables, Liu Anqing's voice was deep.
"I call this method the 'Five-Discernment Method for Fruits and Vegetables.' It consists of five techniques, which can be summarized in five words: Look, Smell, Ask, Touch, and Weigh.
The so-called 'Look' is to observe the color. Those with vibrant, full, and glossy colors that exhibit the inherent hue of the variety when ripe are of superior quality.
Leafy greens should be a vivid emerald, tomatoes should be uniformly red, and cucumbers should be a bright green. The color of each ingredient at maturity is different; this is all information you can find in books.
Let's take the sour tomato you two just ate as an example. Although its surface was indeed red, and it didn't look too different from a ripe tomato.
But when I came over, I took a close look at the tomato you discarded. The bottom of that tomato, the end with the stem, wasn't a thoroughly deep red.
That part is called the 'shoulder.' If there are still traces of green on it, even if the rest of it is completely red, you can be almost certain that the tomato is sour.
This is because tomatoes ripen from the inside out, and the chlorophyll in the shoulder area breaks down slowly, so under normal circumstances, it's the last part to turn red.
This tomato, however, is sweet. Its skin has a natural, matte, waxy layer. And at its stem, it will emit a rich, unique, and fresh tomato aroma.
By the way, if you hold a sour tomato up to your nose, you'll smell almost no fragrance. Even if there is a scent, it will be grassy and unripe—very easy to distinguish."
He plucked a large, red tomato hanging naturally from the branch and tossed it to the three little ones watching nearby, letting them have a taste.
"As long as you understand the characteristics of the plants and use the method I'm teaching you, you can easily distinguish the quality of ingredients.
Even if you encounter a completely unfamiliar plant, you'll understand after being fooled just once."
The key is to apply knowledge to practice.
Information is just content in books. No matter how much you master, it's intangible. Only when it is truly applied in practice does it become a useful skill for a chef.
As he spoke, Liu Anqing looked over at Okabe not far away. Upon receiving the tomato, he bit into it directly. Juice splattered all over his small face, but it couldn't hide his look of astonishment.
"My turn, my turn!"
Beside him, Alice Nakiri chirped excitedly, eagerly leaning in to take another bite from the same spot Okabe had bitten. Her eyes lit up afterward: "So sweet!"
"I think it's a little too sweet. A balance of sweet and sour tastes better; it's more... tomato-like, I should say."
Looking at the tomato that had been bitten by both Okabe and Alice Nakiri, a subtle look of distaste appeared on Erina Nakiri's face, but she still took a bite.
Sensing the somewhat excessive sweetness, she couldn't help but furrow her brow slightly.
"Hey, but I think a little sweeter is more delicious!"
Hearing Erina Nakiri's critique, Alice Nakiri said with some urgency.
"Then you might as well just eat candy, since it's all sweet. A tomato needs to taste like a tomato!"
Erina Nakiri retorted with a pout.
"Surprisingly old-school."
Hearing their conversation, Okabe pinched his chin and quipped like a little adult.
"Haha, sweet-and-sour tomatoes and sweet tomatoes each have their own uses. Even unripe, sour tomatoes have occasions where they are needed.
During long stewing, the acidity of a sour tomato becomes mellow and rich, and it can permeate other ingredients, serving the dual purpose of enhancing flavor and cutting through richness.
Take the very famous Borscht from the Russian region, for example. The acidity of sour tomatoes stewed with beetroot, beef, and cabbage creates a complex flavor profile of sweet, sour, salty, and savory, which is the very soul of Borscht!"
Meanwhile, hearing the three little ones' discussion, Liu Anqing couldn't help but laugh before offering his perspective.
Every ingredient has its purpose from the moment it comes into existence. Even a disliked sour tomato can be a crucial material for adding flavor in other dishes.
Therefore, there is no absolute formula for whether an ingredient is good or bad. The key lies in the needs of the dish you are making. If the recipe calls for a sour tomato, then a sour tomato is a top-quality ingredient.
When the three of them can fully understand the meaning of ingredients and apply them flexibly in various dishes, their skills will also experience an epic leap.
"That's so complicated."
"Indeed, it's a bit profound."
Hearing Liu Anqing's words, Erina Nakiri and Alice Nakiri pursed their lips, troubled expressions on their faces, while Okabe, to the side, was lost in thought.
As someone with an adult mind, Liu Anqing's words were actually quite easy to understand.
It's like placing talented individuals with different abilities into positions that suit them, allowing them to realize their maximum potential value.
For a worker, it's about having a boss with a keen eye for talent, but for ingredients, it requires a chef who understands and can utilize them.
Thinking of this...
...a sense of enlightenment dawned in Okabe's heart.
"[Host has achieved a profound understanding of the correlation between the essence of ingredients and their culinary application. Passive Skill successfully awakened: Gustatory Image Deduction (Purple)]"
"[Gustatory Image Deduction (Purple)]: When the host fully understands the intrinsic connection between ingredient characteristics and culinary systems, they can construct a complete culinary deduction process in their mind based on existing knowledge. This ability can simulate the complex flavors and textural changes that ingredients may exhibit during a specific cooking process. The accuracy of the deduction is positively correlated with the host's own five-sense acuity."
At the same time, a system notification sounded in his mind, which made Okabe freeze for a moment. He clearly hadn't expected to awaken a new skill this way.
Moreover, this skill was linked to his five senses, meaning he didn't need to train it from scratch.
It was important to note that after two years of Liu Anqing occasionally feeding him Special-Grade dishes, his Elementary Sense of Taste had already reached a decent level of proficiency.
In half a year at most, he could master it completely, reaching the limit achievable by an ordinary person. At that point, perhaps he could unlock an even higher-grade talent and reach the pinnacle of his life.
Thinking of this, the corners of Okabe's mouth turned up slightly as he looked once more at the tomatoes hanging on the branches.
This time, although he still saw tomatoes, with just a little bit of imagination, the production processes for classic tomato dishes like Tomato Braised Cod, Scrambled Eggs with Tomato, and Tomato Beef Brisket Stew appeared in his mind.
One by one, ingredients materialized out of thin air in his mind, coming together to form various dishes.
Among them, the images for Tomato Braised Cod and Scrambled Eggs with Tomato were particularly clear, as he had personally witnessed Liu Anqing cook them.
As for the Tomato Beef Brisket, although he had tasted it in his past life, the lack of personal cooking experience made the deduced image blurry and indistinct, leaving only a general impression.
"'It seems this Gustatory Image Deduction can't create something from nothing. The more complete my own experience is, the higher the completion level of the dish in the image.
But why can I only perceive the taste of the dishes in my mind? Is it because my five senses are too weak? No, perhaps it's because I only have the Elementary Sense of Taste.'"
Looking at the dishes that appeared perfect in color, aroma, and flavor, Okabe could only perceive their general taste, lacking the finer layers and details.
Even so, this ability was god-tier.
It could save him a vast amount of trial-and-error time during the dish development phase. Even just a general sense of the flavor profile was enough to judge whether it would be delicious or not.
What's more, this skill still had room to grow.
Once his proficiency increases and his five senses break through further, he might be able to perceive even more subtle layers of taste in the future, or even deduce a more complete culinary experience.
Numerous thoughts flashed through his mind. Okabe shook his head to clear it and refocused, continuing to follow behind Liu Anqing and listen to his explanations of the various methods for identifying fruits and vegetables.
_____
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