HPDBC Chapter 58 Open-ended Assessment
Chapter 58 Open-ended Assessment
The Hunan Provincial Chefs Association is located on a historic street.
The gatehouse, with its blue bricks and gray tiles, is adorned with a heavy plaque made of golden nanmu wood, exuding a low-key and profound charm.
"This is it." Song You stopped and looked up at the four large, elegant characters.
Jiang Milu followed beside him, curiously looking around: "It looks quite impressive, unlike the kind of activity center for retired cadres that I imagined."
Song You smiled and was about to step inside when a man in a white chef's uniform came out.
The man was not tall, but he had a very straight posture and a slightly raised chin. He was none other than Liu Kun, the "Third Master of Hengshan Knife" whom I had met at the food festival last time.
Liu Kun's gaze swept over Song You, finally settling on his overly youthful face, and his brows furrowed involuntarily.
"You're Song You?"
"It's me," Song You nodded.
Liu Kun's expression was somewhat complicated. He didn't say anything unnecessary, but simply turned slightly and gestured with his chin towards the inside: "Come with me, the assessment room is inside."
He led Song You and Jiang Milu through a small courtyard planted with banana trees and green bamboo, and into a three-story building.
The lobby on the first floor is very spacious, and the wall directly opposite the door is covered with various medals and certificates of honor.
Liu Kun pushed open a door at the end of the corridor.
The room was large, with three stainless steel countertops in the middle, fully equipped with all kinds of kitchen utensils, which looked brand new.
There were already two young men in the room, both dressed in clean chef's uniforms, and they looked to be about the same age as Song You.
When they saw Liu Kun come in, they all respectfully greeted him as "Teacher Liu".
Song You and the others exchanged glances and nodded to each other as a greeting.
Liu Kun pointed to the innermost control panel: "Your seat is over there."
He glanced at Jiang Milu, who was following behind Song You, and frowned again: "Family members are not allowed near the kitchen utensils. Go sit over there."
"Oh, okay." Jiang Milu stuck out her tongue and tactfully withdrew.
Song Yougang had just walked to his workbench and hadn't even had a chance to familiarize himself with the environment when he heard Liu Kun instruct a staff member at the door: "Xiao Wang, go and put up a notice at the door saying that there is a Level 3 chef assessment today, and all neighbors are welcome to come and watch."
announcement?
Song You was a little surprised. It was just a certification exam, why was it being made to look like a performance?
Not long after, a commotion of voices could be heard outside the door.
The first to enter were several middle-aged women carrying shopping baskets. They sat down on the chairs arranged on both sides of the room, munching on sunflower seeds and observing the three young men in the room with great interest.
"Oh, another test today? Let's see how the young man's skills are this time."
"The one in the middle looks the most energetic and neat."
Then, more people came in one after another, including older women holding children and older men who had nothing to do.
The small room was quickly filled with people.
Jiang Milu had already found a seat in the front row. Looking at the scene, she felt it was even more lively than a school open class.
Looking at the room full of audience members, Song You asked Liu Kun beside him, "Teacher Liu, is this a common practice of the association?"
"Hmm." Liu Kun crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and responded casually. "A chef cooks for people to eat. Whether his skills are good or not, it's up to everyone's mouths to judge. Let them taste it too. If it's popular, then it's a real skill."
Song You found this idea quite novel.
Just then, a few more people walked in through the door.
Leading the group were three middle-aged men dressed as examiners, their expressions serious, who sat down behind a row of tables at the very front of the room.
Liu Kun also walked over and sat in the middle seat.
The last person to enter was a young man who bore a resemblance to Liu Kun. As soon as he entered, his eyes scanned the room like radar, and when he saw Song You, his eyes lit up instantly.
He strode over to Song You's workbench and looked Song You up and down, especially his hands.
"You're Song You?" the young man asked, his voice brimming with barely suppressed excitement.
Song You nodded.
"My name is Liu Xu, and I'm Liu Kun's younger brother." Liu Xu introduced himself, then rubbed his hands together and asked expectantly, "Your knife skills at the last food festival, can you show them off again today?"
Song You found his fervent expression somewhat amusing.
"I'll do exactly what the assessment requirements say," he replied calmly.
Liu Kun coughed on the judges' panel and glared at his younger brother: "Liu Xu, come back here!"
Liu Xu reluctantly moved to the judges' table, found a small stool and sat down, but his eyes were still fixed on Song You.
"Alright, quiet!" Liu Kun slapped the table, and the room instantly fell silent.
He cleared his throat and began announcing the rules: "For the Level 3 Chef Assessment, contestants are required to independently prepare three dishes—one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and one soup—within one hour. Ingredients are self-selected, and flavors are unrestricted. Five judges will taste and score the dishes; those receiving four or more votes will pass the assessment."
He paused, then picked up a lottery tube: "Now, we'll draw lots to determine the order of the assessments."
The other two young chefs were a little nervous, their palms were sweaty.
Song You remained calm. He stepped forward and casually pulled a bamboo stick from the tube.
Upon opening it, I saw a bright red "壹" (one) written on it.
"Alright, contestant number one, Song You, the assessment begins!" Liu Kun announced.
Song You put the bamboo skewers aside and turned to walk towards the food area in the corner of the room.
In the food section, various vegetables, meats, and seafood are neatly arranged and all look very fresh.
The middle-aged women in the audience began to whisper among themselves.
"This young man is going first, he's under a lot of pressure."
"Look at what dishes he chooses. If he chooses something fancy, he probably doesn't have a solid foundation in basic skills."
Song You did not hesitate at all.
He first picked out a piece of pork belly with alternating layers of fat and lean meat, then took a few potatoes and a bunch of fresh green garlic sprouts.
Then, he went to the seafood section and scooped up a lively crucian carp.
Finally, he took a piece of tender, white tofu.
Pork belly, potatoes, crucian carp, and tofu.
All of them are the most common and popular everyday ingredients.
"Oh dear, the dishes this young man chose are the same ones we usually make at home," an older woman said with some disappointment.
Another woman nodded: "That's right, the more home-style the dish, the more it tests one's true skill. Let's see how he does it."
These neighbors have seen it all before; even those who can't cook have watched others cook and have their own standards in mind.
Song You carried the ingredients back to his work station.
He first cleaned the crucian carp and then made several cuts on both sides of its body.
Then, wash and peel the pork belly and potatoes.
Everything is ready.
He picked up the broad-bladed kitchen knife from the cutting board.
The moment he gripped the hilt of the knife, his entire demeanor changed instantly.
The young man, who had seemed somewhat easygoing, now had a focused gaze and steady movements, as if the whole world consisted only of him, the cutting board, and the knife in his hand.
Liu Xu's breath caught in his throat; he leaned forward, his eyes unblinking.
Song You moved.
With a light flick of his wrist, the blade traced a silvery arc through the air.
"Tap tap tap tap tap..."
The sound of chopping vegetables, dense and rhythmic, filled the quiet room.
The piece of pork belly was quickly sliced into evenly thin slices in his hands, each slice so precise it looked as if it had been measured with a ruler.
Next up are potatoes.
Instead of using the common pushing and slicing method, he flicked his wrist, the blade brushing against the potato, and quickly began to slice it in a spiral motion. The potato shreds fell like snowflakes, each one distinct and of uniform thickness.
The entire process was fluid and graceful, full of power and beauty.
"My God." Liu Xu's mouth dropped open, and he felt his heart pounding in rhythm with the sound of the knife.
A collective gasp of surprise erupted from the audience.
"This knife skill is absolutely amazing!"
"That young man is so handsome! The way he's focused on cooking is even better looking than those TV stars!" An older woman's eyes lit up as she nudged her friend beside her. "Tell me, if he passes the Level 3 Chef exam, he'll open a small restaurant and never have to worry about business. Getting a wife will be easy for him too."
Another middle-aged woman next to her nodded in agreement: "That makes sense. She's skilled and looks good; her future looks bright."
Jiang Milu sat in the front row, listening to the discussions behind her, and a smile quietly appeared on her fair face.
She looked at the figure focused and busy at the control panel, nodded vigorously, and silently echoed the old lady's words.
Of course.