Chapter 2442: Old Bootlicker

Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations

“It’s golden. Must be crispy, right?! I want to eat it!”

“Although it is charcoal-grilled, the mutton ribs still look very clean. No soot or charred parts can be seen.”

“Hades YYDS[1.YYDS (yǒngyuǎn de shén; yyds) means “eternal God” and describes an outstanding person or thing. It’s similar to the saying GOAT (Greatest of All Time) in English. The phrase is often used by fans to praise their idols or simply to describe something they are fond of.]!”

The judges’ comments made those in the audience, who were not present, get gradually excited.

The camera zoomed in and on the grilling rack, and on the mutton ribs that were grilled until they were golden, sizzling and splattering. They could almost smell the aroma coming out of the screen.

!!

Compared to the other contestants’ reserved way of cooking. The grilling over charcoal was more straightforward and greater to watch.

The contestants who had completed their dishes, focused their attention onto Mag too.

A hint of surprise appeared in Angelina’s beautiful eyes. This grilled mutton ribs’ aroma was indeed special. It was much richer than the mutton ribs that she had roasted before. It was a mesmerizing and intoxicating aroma.

At first, she thought Mag was using this ancient cooking method of grilling over the charcoal as a gimmick to wow the crowd, but now, she began to think that perhaps, it was this cooking method that bestowed a different taste to these mutton ribs.

Just with this aroma alone, she already decided that Hades was a contestant with real skills and not one of those pretty faces who had no skills.

1

Iman, whose cooking bench was closest to Mag’s, experienced the strongest scent now. He even couldn’t help but gulp a few times when the rich grilled meat’s aroma washed all over him and the sizzling sounds went into his ears.

As the disciple of the chef of Tucker Restaurant, Iman had always believed that his culinary skills were the best since he joined this show. Even though he had once deemed Angelina to be his greatest opponent for the first place, he didn’t think that her culinary skills were above his. He only thought that her plating was prettier than his.

However, he had to admit now that if his steamed yellow dragon fish and Hades’ grilled mutton ribs were completed at the same time, his steamed yellow dragon fish’s aroma would be completely overwhelmed.

Of course, this was just the aroma.

As for what the taste was like, just as Judge David said, they had to taste it to know.

And now, the most nervous contestant was, without a doubt, the contestant, Denton, who was placed at number four.

Denton had thought that he was definitely making it to the top four. After all, his manager had told him before the competition that the replacement contestant was just a filler. He didn’t have to take him into consideration.

However, Hades’ performance now made them look at him seriously.

There was already an obvious disagreement among the judges, which was a good thing.

The contestants’ skills were close. In the situation whereby Hades was 10 points behind, such a disagreement was enough to get him out of the competition.

The control of heat was just right and the ribs were in their best condition. Mag started to plate them.

There was no fancy plating. The 12 ribs were stacked on the long plate in a pile. They were done after the chopped green onions were scattered over them.

“Judges, I am done.” Mag raised his hand up.

There was only five minutes left on the two hours countdown. The time was almost up.

“This plating is really casual,” David said laughingly with disdain.

“Don’t tell me that you want him to place the ribs in a fan shape? Isn’t a pile a kind of classic plating too?” Old Hunter dissed him. He was in loggerheads with David today.

David looked displeased and he was about to rebut Hunter.

Right then, Nancy spoke up leisurely. “I think his plating suits his overall cooking style. It highlights his theme with simplicity. Grilled mutton ribs are grilled mutton ribs. There are no other fancy things. Moreover, the ribs themselves are enticing enough.”

David’s words were choked in his mouth. He swallowed them and turned to butter up Nancy. “Miss Nancy is right. There is a spirit in this casual plating. It looks like a mountain from afar and the chopped green onions look like the greenery dotting in between them. It’s really the highlight. These ribs are amazing.”

“Old bootlicker.” Old Hunter flicked a disdainful glance at David and held back his urge to diss him.

Mag couldn’t help looking at Judge David too. His comprehensive skills were really awesome.

Although there were many ways to plate the ribs, Mag was too lazy to do any of them. Hence, he chose the easiest way and stacked them all together. There was no spirit at all.

However, Miss Nancy’s sudden support for him was a surprise.

The Top Chef Competition might look like a culinary competition on the surface, fundamentally it was still a variety show which focused on viewership, and to choose a chef for the McCarthy Family.

As the person-in-charge of the show, other than being the judge, Nancy wielded even more power than the director.

After David, all the judges switched their positions and heaped praises on Mag’s mutton ribs.

Only Julian remained calm and quiet.

As the chef of Tucker Restaurant, he had his pride. What did a little girl know about cooking?

The ribs were sent to the judges’ table and placed on the conveyor belt for the judges to take a closer look.

The ribs were grilled to a golden brown. The sizzling sounds were still audible as the aroma washed over them. They were irresistible.

Nancy’s throat moved and there was a hint of anticipation in her eyes.

The dishes that she tried previously were normal and couldn’t compare to their family’s chef’s culinary skills. The so-called delicacies were worse than the dishes that she normally ate, so they weren’t unusual.

However, the grilled mutton ribs were different, even the family chef who specialized in grilling, had never made the grilled meat smell so enticing.

After looking at the dish, the staff members plated a rib for each judge and presented it to the judge.

The surface temperature of the ribs had cooled down a little and it was the best time for eating them right now.

Nancy picked up her fork and knife gracefully and cut off a piece of meat from the rib before putting it into her mouth.

She pursed her lips and chewed gently, savoring it carefully while maintaining her always-graceful persona.

However… in the next moment, she lost her control.

The skin that was grilled till it was crispy, was wrapped around the succulent mutton. With only a gentle bite, before Nancy could react, the juice and fat exploded in her mouth. The slightly spicy fat melted on the tip of her tongue and triggered her taste buds instantly.

“Ah—”

Nancy opened her mouth slightly and made an enticing moan.

Yes.

Nancy realized she had lost control and blushed slightly, but her gaze was still fixed on the rib in front of her. Her fork and knife cut another piece of meat and she popped it into her mouth.

The long-lost surprise for food made her a little excited.

Even though she had led a wealthy lifestyle since she was young, she had lost most of her interest in food. However, it was just because of that, that she wanted to search for more tastes and thus, came to the Top Chef’s variety show.

She was rather disappointed in this year’s Top Chef Competition. It didn’t let her find a whole new taste. She didn’t expect a replacement contestant, who was found at the last minute, to give her the greatest surprise.