Culinary God in Wilderness

It was still early, and he couldn’t sleep. Besides, he had nothing better to do.

After a moment’s thought, he took out the Chinese wok he had just acquired.

"An iron wok?"

He smiled knowingly when he saw what the wok was made of.

"This manager gets it. He really knows what chefs like."

Although he had trained in Western cuisine, he had been teaching himself Chinese cooking ever since quitting his restaurant job. The food he sold at his street stall was all Chinese, and he considered his skills to be quite decent for an amateur.

"Iron woks are different from stainless steel and non-stick pans. They require a special step right after you buy them, otherwise they’re difficult to use and food will stick to them."

"Western chefs definitely used iron pans in the past, but they were such a hassle for this exact reason. That’s why they were eventually upgraded to non-stick pans."

"Non-stick pans are certainly convenient and easy to use, but they have critical flaws. For one, the non-stick coating on the surface peels off after extended use. Second, and more importantly, that coating isn’t very good for your health."

"Unless you’re willing to spend a lot on a high-end model, I wouldn’t recommend using the cheaper non-stick pans."

He filled the iron wok with some snow, poured in the leftover water he’d boiled the fir needles in, and brought it to a boil.

"If you want an iron wok to be easy to use, it needs to go through at least two seasoning steps. If you have time, you can extend it to three."

"First, carefully wash the wok inside and out with warm water and dish soap. Cookware can have residual industrial oils or rust on the surface from the factory, and warm, soapy water is perfect for removing these potential contaminants."

"When you scrub it, be sure to use a cloth or a sponge. Never use steel wool or a stiff brush. If the surface of the wok gets scratched, it will actually make food stick even more."

The fir needles weren’t hard to begin with and grew even softer after being heated. Using them as a substitute for a dishcloth, he scrubbed the entire wok before pouring out the water.

After wiping it clean with snow, he placed the wok on the torch to dry it.

The torch had been burning for a long time and had lost its initial intensity. A light touch was enough to make it crumble into pieces of charcoal.

He picked out the steel fishing line that had been holding it together. The stuff could be reused.

He placed the iron wok directly on the charcoal, constantly rotating it to ensure all the moisture on the inner surface evaporated evenly.

"If possible, I’d recommend wiping it with a cloth before drying. Excess water droplets can leave white marks on the surface."

Once it was dry, he went into the storage room, cut off a small piece of mutton fat, and tossed it into the wok. He used chopsticks to hold the fat and rub it all over the wok’s inner surface.

The mutton fat left a thin, even sheen of oil wherever it touched. He repeated this process until the piece of fat was completely rendered.

"This process of applying oil is called ’creating an oil film.’ It means you’re letting the inner surface of the wok absorb the fat. This gives it a built-in layer of oil, which prevents food from sticking when you cook."

"If you’re using vegetable oil, just pour some in, coat the entire inner surface, then pour out the excess. Then, use a paper towel to apply a bit more oil and rub it in repeatedly. If you’re using animal fat, you can do what I’m doing: cut a piece of lard or beef tallow and just keep rubbing."

"After completing these two steps, now for the most important part."

"Never, ever wash it with dish soap. That will completely destroy the oil film, and all your work will have been for nothing. All you need to do now is rinse it with warm water."

"If you have time and don’t need to use it right away, you can apply another thin layer of oil after cleaning it and let the wok sit overnight. This will make the seasoning even more durable."

"It’s the same after you cook in the future. Just rinse it with hot water. Since it’s already non-stick, it won’t get that dirty. If you absolutely have to use dish soap to get it clean, just dry it, heat it up again, and apply a thin layer of oil to maintain it."

After being seasoned, the once matte, dull, and unremarkable iron wok was completely transformed. It was now glossy and glistening, reflecting a soft sheen.

’Oh, right. Andre mentioned he wanted to try bear paw. I’ve never had it either, so I might as well stew it now.’

He held two frozen bear forepaws, each a good bit larger than his own palm. After a moment’s thought, he suddenly realized he had no idea how to prepare them. All he knew was that the forepaws tasted milder than the hind paws.

’That makes sense. Bear paws have long been banned, so it’s hard to find specific information online. The algorithms definitely won’t promote it. Unless you specifically look for old documents and videos, you’d never normally come across it.’

In that case, he’d just prepare them using the red-braising method.

’The bear paw’s skin is thick; I should probably peel it off. And all this fur... Hmm, I’ll try scalding it with boiling water.’

He made a new Swedish torch, filled the iron wok with snow, placed it on top, and tossed the bear paws in to boil as well. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

’Some places use fire to remove the fur and skin, then scrape off the charred outer layer, but I don’t want to use that method.’

’Burning fur creates a foul smell, and bears are gamey to begin with. If that smell seeps into the meat, mixed with the scorched taste, there’s no way it could be delicious. Just thinking about it is gross.’

He wasn’t sure how long the bear paws needed to boil before the fur could be plucked and the skin removed. After the water came to a boil, he pulled them out to check almost every five minutes.

He was exasperated to find that he only managed to pull out the first clump of fur after a full twenty minutes of boiling. The rest was still firmly embedded between the toes.

’With poultry like chicken or duck, you can pluck the feathers right after a quick scald in boiling water. I didn’t expect bear fur to be this hard to deal with.’

’Would it have been better to dry them first and then rehydrate them? Or is it because they were frozen, causing the pores to shrink and making the fur harder to pluck?’

After a full forty minutes of simmering, large patches of black fur finally began to float on the water’s surface. The thick, tough skin of the bear paws had also been successfully boiled until it looked swollen and waterlogged.

Lin Chen frowned and covered his nose. The smell was really quite hard to take. He had no choice but to open the door to air the place out.

WHOOSH—

The moment the wooden door opened, a twenty-below-zero wind scrambled to rush inside, and the warm room’s temperature instantly plummeted to the freezing point.

"Damn..."

Even though he was prepared for it, the blast of cold air still made him shudder, the hairs under his clothes standing on end.

The temperature inside the shelter was maintained at around twenty degrees Celsius thanks to the constant fire. A vent kept it from getting any higher.

But when the twenty-below wind blew in, the temperature difference was a full forty degrees. That kind of shock to the system wasn’t something most people get to experience.

With the door open, a convection current formed, quickly drawing out the warm air and, along with it, the nauseating stench.

He hurriedly shut the wooden door. In just ten-odd seconds, a touch of white frost had already condensed on his eyebrows.

What came next was a pure test of patience.

He fished out the bear paws and plucked the black fur clump by clump. Using his combat knife to help, he tore off the entire waterlogged, calloused pad of skin, revealing the pale pink flesh beneath.