Ke Lian, as expected, didn't think much of it. He merely glanced thoughtfully at the plate of Stir-fried Green Peppers with Tiger Skin, then focused on rinsing the rice.
After helping Du Xixi put the inner pot into the rice cooker, Ke Lian didn't leave, but just stood quietly by, watching Du Xixi continue cooking.
For the second dish, Du Xixi chose to stir-fry baby greens, simple yet refreshing.
She heated oil in the pan, and when it reached about seventy percent heat, she put in two or three slices of scallion, releasing the aroma before adding the drained baby greens to stir-fry repeatedly.
Soon, the baby greens changed color. From a raw green, they turned into a tender green, with a glossy layer of oil on the surface, making one salivate at the sight.
Du Xixi then added a small handful of minced garlic, stirring evenly before naturally adding salt to enhance the flavor. At this time, Du Xixi fondly remembered her days on the Blue Star.
Why did Blue Star have dark soy sauce and regular soy sauce?
Du Xixi personally preferred baby greens that were slightly undercooked, crunchy to eat, but considering that Ke Lian might prefer them more cooked, she stir-fried them a bit longer, and when they were almost cooked through, she plated them.
No matter whether Ke Lian liked them raw or cooked, she let him try them first. If he was dissatisfied with the thoroughly cooked baby greens, Du Xixi could slightly modify her approach next time.
Placing the stir-fried baby greens alongside the Stir-fried Green Peppers with Tiger Skin, Du Xixi suddenly looked at the side where Ke Lian was watching her intently. Perhaps Ke Lian would like both?
"What's up?" Ke Lian, seeing her looking at him, furrowed his brows in confusion. Could it be that she was tired from cooking?
Du Xixi just shook her head, not answering, as she took a large potato, about the size of three adult fists, from the side and started peeling it with clean and efficient movements. Although she found it hard to hold because the potato was too big, it was clear that Du Xixi had done this many times before.
It's unclear what experiences the ingredients of the Star Era had gone through, as each had not only changed names but also sizes.
Ke Lian watched Du Xixi's actions in silence, his gaze briefly becoming serious. Her skills weren't particularly uncommon in the Military Department, as anyone with high spiritual power could achieve this with enough practice.
However, according to Ke Xing, Du Xixi was supposed to be frail and weak, yet from his observations, Du Xixi must have really studied and practiced at home; otherwise, achieving such skillfulness was impossible.
As Ke Lian pondered this, Du Xixi had already picked up the kitchen knife to start slicing the potato into strips, which left Ke Lian, who was initially only slightly surprised, now completely astonished.
As Du Xixi's hand rose and fell, the large potato became large potato slices. By Ke Lian's observation with the naked eye, these slices were of uniform thickness, undetectable without precise measurement.
What he thought was impressive turned out just to be the beginning, as Du Xixi then stacked the potato slices on the cutting board, pressing them down until the previously visible knife now seemed like a blur.
Ke Lian couldn't make out the expression on Du Xixi's face, as it was so focused. All he could see were the potato slices turning into thin, uniform potato strips at a different speed, though the knife rose and fell in the same motion.
Ke Lian couldn't hold back his inner shock. Earlier, peeling was something that those with high spiritual power could achieve with practice, but witnessing Du Xixi's extraordinary knife skills, he doubted he could cut better than her.
This went beyond the level achievable by simply having high spiritual power with a lot of practice; it required hard work and continuous refinement to cut with such natural skill.
Ke Lian's understanding of his supposedly delicate and weak wife was once again challenged.
Yet, Du Xixi was not as calm and effortless as Ke Lian perceived. She had the foundation of culinary skills, but this body was not the one she initially honed her skills in. Neither in physical strength nor in control did this body match her original one.
Though her potato strip cutting just now seemed quite good, who was Du Xixi? With over twenty years of culinary experience, her knife skills, supervised by many elders, were beyond mere mastery, defying simple description.
The knife skills she demonstrated now were less than sixty percent of her peak, and this was her biting the bullet to maintain it.
It seems that exercise is essential...
Du Xixi put the large pile of sliced potato strips in cold water to soak. If not soaked in cold water, those potato strips would slowly turn black after a while.