Using Mage Hand

Organ meats are indeed a rather difficult ingredient to handle, and the Halfling's concerns were pretty accurate.

They have a strong odor, are difficult to clean, and in this world, they're basically only used as food by the poor to supplement their lack of oil and fat.

However, this wasn't a problem for Du Pont. As a citizen of the Great Foodie Nation, he knew that countless people there had studied various ingredient combinations, and removing the odor and enhancing the flavor was just the basics.

He had the Butcher help him split the pig's face, went to the kitchen to scald the pig's trotters to remove the sweat glands, and then used magic to remove the blood and dust before soaking these odds and ends in water, treating all the organ meats in the same way.

However, the smell of these large intestines was indeed strong. Even with the extraordinary efficiency of magical cleaning, it was inevitable that they would stink during the washing process.

Fortunately, the power of magic was endless, and in just over ten seconds, these several meters of pig intestines were thoroughly cleaned.

The farmers had already gone home, and there was no one to help, but this didn't stump Du Pont. As the second incantation was chanted, a deep blue hand, slightly larger than a human's, was summoned.

School of Transmutation cantrip: Mage Hand. It was one of the compulsory subjects for mages.

What Du Pont needed to do now was to use Mage Hand to help him wash the large intestines, while he went to the kitchen to find spices.

Seeing Du Pont doing this so skillfully, the Butcher glanced at the chef and raised his eyebrows: "This guy seems to have some real skills?"

The Halfling nodded and said, "He's got something going on. Flour can quickly absorb the smelly mucus, and salt can marinate a base flavor and kill some bugs. I usually add a little when washing fruit, but I don't know what this stuff will taste like when it's cooked."

As he spoke, the Halfling suddenly remembered something and quickly returned to the kitchen: "No, I have to keep an eye on this kid, or he'll mess up my expensive spices!"

At this time, the kitchen was bustling with activity. Most of the breakfast had already been made by the human chefs, and the freshly slaughtered pork was being cooked in large pots. The stoves using dry firewood and coal emitted terrifying heat, and with the help of the blower, the entire kitchen was filled with a large amount of steam.

At this moment, Du Pont walked in.

The chefs were a little surprised to see Du Pont wearing an Apprentice Robe. Some of the people getting food naturally recognized who he was, but they saw him acting as if he were at home in the kitchen, taking out the freshly made small sausages and throwing them into his mouth, not forgetting to comment: "Breakfast isn't until seven o'clock. If you fry them like this, won't they be soft in a while?"

"What are you doing using such a high heat for these boiled eggs? The shells are all cracked. Who are you going to give them to?" After saying that, he peeled off the shell and stuffed it into his mouth without fear of burning himself: "What are you looking at me for? Go look at the meat broth. If you don't stir it, it'll burn, and I don't think you'll be able to make another pot."

"Goddess above, there's still oil on this plate that hasn't been washed clean. If people see this, they'll smash the plate. Do you not want your salary anymore!"

The chefs scattered in all directions after being scolded, and only after seeing that he was no longer pursuing the matter did they exchange glances.

Where did this kid come from?

I don't know. How did he even get into the kitchen?

Could it be that the academy sent someone to inspect us? Then we have to do a good job today and not slack off.

When Judy returned, he saw the orderly kitchen, which surprised him a bit.

As a head chef, his authority over the dishes in the kitchen was absolute. He could fire anyone he wanted, but he didn't know why every chef who came here would become a little more lax after the initial trepidation.

However, now he didn't have time to care about the changes in these chefs. All he could see was Du Pont in the storage room: "Hey, close the door. The steam from cooking might spoil some of the expensive spices!"

However, as soon as the door was closed, Judy suddenly remembered that he hadn't come to see this: "The Hearthkeeper's Cauldron, I haven't even gone in yet!"

The door opened, and Du Pont was taking a wooden bowl to fill with spices.

Star anise, cinnamon, peppercorns, angelica, fennel... cloves, amomum, this seems to be a mutated variety. No soy sauce or dark soy sauce, but there's fish sauce and Red Yeast Rice: "Judy, why don't you have any dried chili peppers? There should be scallions and ginger in the kitchen, right? This brandy is also good for removing the odor."

"Wait, that's cinnamon, not cassia bark. The price is several times different, and the taste is different too. And this brandy isn't the cheap stuff that costs 10 coppers a glass!"

Du Pont echoed and replaced the spices, but he didn't put down the wine bottle: "What good wine could you have in this kitchen? Isn't it all for cooking?"

"Who told you that? Sometimes the Mentor orders it too, okay? One glass of this stuff is more expensive than those organ meats." Judy rolled his eyes and took out a dusty wine bottle: "Use this. One silver for a bottle. Use as much as you want."

Du Pont wasn't polite. After gathering all the spices, he took away the utensils he needed, but right now, there was an important matter to attend to: "These organ meats might still have a smell after blanching. Should we wait until they've finished eating before we make them?"

"No need. Just set up a simple stove outside the back door." Judy pointed to a half-section of a tin bucket: "Use this with an iron pot, and it's a simple stove. It's usually used to boil whole chickens or geese. Just don't make my kitchen smelly."

Du Pont naturally had no objections. Over there, Mage Hand had already washed the intestines and stomach clean, and all that was needed was to change the water and wash away the flour and debris.

However, just as he was moving the water, Boulderstone, who had been watching the fun, frowned, and a somewhat lazy voice rang in his ear.

"Why are you staying here so long today? This isn't like you."

"Someone's making a new dish today. It's quite interesting, and I'm preparing to try it."

"A new dish?" The person's voice had a hint of doubt: "Did the fleet going to the Far East bring back a new recipe, or did Judy come up with some other new trick?"

"No, it seems like they're going to make stewed organ meats. It's been many years since I've eaten this stuff." The Butcher replied through telepathy, a malicious smile appearing on the corner of his mouth: "And there are intestines filled with shit. Are you interested in trying them?"

"Ugh, you're still so good at ruining people's mood. I shouldn't even be chatting with you. You won't get any of the evening's beef thymus."

"It's not like I like to eat it. The last time I ate that crap, I felt like it was no different from pig brains. The texture was weird, and it was a bit like the lymph nodes that Morningstar said you absolutely couldn't eat. Only you like to eat that crap."

"Heh, what do you know? This is a top-notch ingredient that's famous even in the Silvermoon Federation. Forget it, I'm not going to chat with someone who doesn't understand food like you. Goodbye."

Du Pont didn't know what other people were busy with. After blanching, he changed the water, poured the spices, salt, and pork into it, and put on the lid.

"Alright, after a while, skim off the blood foam after it boils, then you can switch to low heat, and after an hour, you can remove all the flames and simmer for 2 hours to let it absorb the flavor. It should be ready to eat at 9 o'clock."

"By the way, Judy, give me a whole chicken. This stuff can be cooked with the meat to enhance the flavor of the entire pot of food."

"I always feel like you're ruining my stuff." Although Judy was reluctant, he still picked out a fat chicken that was going to be made for lunch and called a chef over to process it. The Halfling's curiosity made him patient with this interesting new cooking method: "What about these organ meats? Aren't you going to make these things? Why did you just scald them with hot water and then leave them alone?"

"Cooking them together will definitely affect the taste. We'll cook them after the pig's head meat and pig's trotters are cooked. These things are easier to cook, and an hour should be enough." As he said that, Du Pont cleaned his hands: "By the way, do you have any flour? This stuff is a perfect match with flatbread. You can also use cucumbers, scallions, and Chinjao to make a refreshing side dish, otherwise, you probably won't be able to eat much later."

"Real men don't eat that green crap." Boulderstone shook his head and asked, "By the way, are you practicing killing to become an adventurer?"

"That's what I'm thinking." Du Pont nodded: "Nowhere is peaceful, so I'm practicing my courage, anyway, I'll have to face it sooner or later."

"Adventuring isn't simple. In addition to their own powerful spells, mages actually value the ability to improvise more. But even if you do that, whether or not you can find reliable teammates is also a difficult thing." The Butcher said with a look of reminiscence on his face: "But it's good to have this ambition. If what you make tastes good later, then you can go with me to Great Barley Village in the Western Mountains. I'll let you see something truly challenging."