Culinary God in Wilderness

Chapter 353: Chapter 226: Knife Skills and Heat Control

"Clear them all out? W-won’t that..."

"How long has it been since the first release? The only ones left are exceptionally good at hiding."

Robert waved his hand dismissively. "Grouse aren’t native to this area. Since we released them, we’re responsible for retrieving them. That’s perfectly normal. Besides, the drop was only ever a small measure to help the contestants get through the initial rough patch."

"Now that the contestants are all gradually settling into a rhythm, these uncaptured grouse have no more use."

"The black-tailed deer are another story. The forest already has a deer population, so a few more won’t make a difference. Plus, we’d need guns to retrieve them, which is way too much of a hassle."

"Oh, so that’s how it is."

Several staff members nodded in understanding and immediately began to tally the specific locations of the remaining grouse.

A little over an hour later, the unlucky soul who was bitten by a venomous snake was brought back. After receiving some preliminary treatment from Ariana, he was immediately put on a helicopter to a hospital in the nearest city.

A venomous snakebite is a tricky situation. First, you have to know what kind of snake it was. It’s best if you can bring the snake with you; otherwise, you can’t administer the correct antivenom.

Different types of venomous snakes require different antivenoms, and they can’t be used interchangeably.

...

"Someone was bitten by a venomous snake and had to pull out of the competition?"

Lin Chen mechanically split one bamboo strip after another. He was now so practiced he could find the exact right spot almost without looking.

His efficiency had also improved drastically since yesterday; he could now process an entire bamboo stalk in just over half an hour.

To keep the chore from becoming too tedious, he would glance at the chat box when he had a free moment, occasionally exchanging a few words with the viewers.

When he saw the news about someone getting bitten by a venomous snake, he was secretly alarmed.

’If it hadn’t been for this incident, I would’ve completely forgotten that the Panama Forest is also a paradise for venomous snakes.’

’Snakes usually hide underground or in trees, so you rarely run into them. It’s almost as if they don’t exist. Plus, I haven’t seen a single one in all this time, so I completely forgot about them.’

"I finally get why the cabin’s previous owner planted tobacco all around it. On one hand, it’s to satisfy a craving. On the other hand, the tobacco leaves’ unique, pungent smell repels mosquitoes, snakes, rats, and ants, creating a natural safety zone."

’To be honest, I really haven’t been bitten by any annoying insects since I moved in here.’

’At first, I thought the faint, unpleasant smell of tobacco in the air around here was a bit much, but now that I’m used to it, I can barely smell it.’

"Besides being careful of venomous snakes on land, you have to be extra careful of sea snakes. Their venom is often even more potent than that of land snakes."

By the time he finished splitting the last bamboo stalk, the sky had grown noticeably dark.

Erica arrived as promised.

"I’m here! What delicious thing are we making tonight?"

"Mashed potato and seafood congee."

"Huh?"

She walked over with her hands behind her back, a curious look on her face. "How is it different from the one I made last time?"

"Last time, you just brought the mashed potatoes to a boil with water and coconut milk, and then threw in the rest of the seafood, right?"

"Yeah. Is there a problem with that?"

"Of course there is. That way is quick and easy, sure, but you lose a lot of the unique seafood flavor. You can watch how I do it today. I’m going to use some professional kitchen techniques to make this mashed potato and seafood congee."

"Come on, let’s go to the stream."

Compared to cooking in front of the shelter, he now preferred cooking by the stream, mainly for the convenient access to water.

Besides, it was only a few minutes’ walk from the bamboo hut to the stream, so it was incredibly convenient.

"The ingredients I’ve prepared today are all pretty common. I caught them in the ocean this afternoon just before I sent word to you."

"Fresh black tiger shrimp, scallops, abalone, grouper, sea urchin, blue crab, oysters, and rehydrated dried sea cucumber. It’s not a huge amount, but it’s definitely enough for dinner."

"Besides the seafood, you should be familiar with the other ingredients: wild ginger, black porcini mushrooms, and bamboo shoots."

As he listed the ingredients, his hands were already busy. He grabbed a plump black tiger shrimp, pinched the edge of the second shell segment on its belly, and gave it a gentle upward tug. The shell on the upper half of its body came away easily, along with the legs.

With the upper shell gone, he just had to pinch the tail and give a light tug to pull the rest of the shell off in one piece.

Finally, he twisted off the head and piled it with the discarded shells.

"Got it?"

"Got it!"

Erica excitedly rolled up her sleeves, immediately grabbed a shrimp, and using the technique she had just learned, peeled it in just a few seconds.

"The rest are yours. I’m going to start on the crab."

He’d had good luck today. He’d run into a swarm of black tiger shrimp near the Mangrove Forest, and one scoop of his bamboo basket had netted a dozen of the unlucky ones that couldn’t get away in time.

The grouper was a similar story; it was half-dead, stranded in the shallows by the receding tide, so he’d kindly put it out of its misery.

The rest of the seafood was basically just foraged from around the beach.

He grabbed the female blue crab and flipped it over. First, he tore off the fan-shaped abdominal flap, then he pried the top shell right off where it connected to the body, revealing the translucent, jelly-like meat inside.

A little bit of reddish-orange crab roe clung to the inside of the shell, but not much. It wasn’t breeding season, so neither the male nor female crabs had much roe.

The sides of the crab’s body were lined with many leaf-shaped gills, all of which needed to be removed. Then there was the crab’s heart and stomach, located near the mouthparts.

Once all these inedible parts were removed, everything left was good to eat.