Culinary God in Wilderness
Chapter 225 - 174: Deadly Brazil Nut, Crafting a Bamboo Knife
’Come to think of it... I haven’t eaten those two big crab claws yet, only the three legs. I could really use them to test it out. What if it works?’
After wandering through the bamboo forest for a bit, he found two broken, dead bamboo stalks that had already turned yellow.
All the leaves on these dead stalks had yellowed and fallen off, but the stalks themselves had retained some of their green.
He tied the two dead stalks together with a rope made of tree bark, dragged them to the edge of the woods, and pointed them downhill. After locating his shelter, he gave the bamboo a hard push, sending them speeding down.
The two dry stalks shot down the hillside like a snowboard. The post-rain dampness of the soil and grass reduced friction and resistance. Propelled by their own weight, they zig-zagged down the incline before flying off the end of the slope, landing with a thud not far from his shelter.
’This type of dead bamboo has lost almost all its moisture, making it brittle. After a good soak, though, it could be used for weaving. I’ll leave it for now and deal with it later.’
Back in the bamboo grove, Lin Chen figured since he was already here, he might as well make the most of it. After looking around for a bit, he finally settled on a relatively slender stalk of Guada Bamboo.
He gripped his stone axe and began tapping lightly on the stalk, about two finger-widths above a joint near its base.
Since the stone axe didn’t have a handle, he could use it for hacking, but he couldn’t apply too much force, or he’d risk tearing the skin on his hands.
Furthermore, the edge of the axe was relatively thin and not made of a particularly hard material. Too much force could cause it to chip or shatter.
With a series of precise, controlled taps, the fibers on the bamboo’s surface began to break, forming a shallow groove.
He then used his sharp military knife to score along the groove, slicing through the fibers that hadn’t yet been broken, before going back to chiseling with the stone axe.
After repeating this process a few times, the thick Guada Bamboo stalk was almost chopped clean through.
’Phew... Good thing I picked a thin one. A thicker stalk would’ve been a real pain.’
He wiped the sweat from his brow, moved to the opposite side of the cut, and, grabbing the stalk, pulled down hard.
It took almost no effort. Aided by its own weight, the tall stalk crashed to the ground. The two halves were still connected by a tangle of fibers that hadn’t completely broken.
He severed them with his military knife, and the stalk was finally free.
’This should do it. One stalk is enough for several baskets, and I can also use it to test the strength of those crab claws.’
He grabbed the thinner, top end of the stalk and started dragging it down the slope, which required very little effort.
While chopping the bamboo, he had noticed that the stone for his axe wasn’t very durable. After just a few strikes, the edge already showed clear signs of dulling.
If he had tried to cut one of the thicker, older stalks, the axe head would probably have shattered on the spot.
’Looks like this stone axe won’t last much longer. Its durability is limited. I’ll have to find a more suitable stone soon.’
’Just holding the stone in my hand isn’t a long-term solution, either. I need to make a proper axe with a handle.’
Back at the entrance to his shelter, he dragged over the two dead stalks as well. He used the stone axe to chop off all the branching twigs, then cut the main stalks into three sections. He split each section in half and leaned the pieces against the earthen wall to air-dry.
Splitting bamboo was much easier than felling it. All he had to do was create a small crack in the opening.
It didn’t need to be big; a tiny, insignificant fissure was enough.
Bamboo’s unique fibrous structure means that once a crack starts, a gentle tug is all it takes to split it from top to bottom with almost no effort.
Fresh, green bamboo is far more flexible than dead bamboo. It can be used not only for weaving but also for making all sorts of furniture, tools, and even simple weapons.
He sat at the cave entrance, holding a piece of Guada Bamboo, his mind racing with all the things he could make from it.
A bamboo bow, a bamboo knife, a Blowgun, a bamboo spear, a bamboo saw, bamboo chopsticks, a bamboo cabinet, a bamboo table, a bamboo chair...
’Wait a minute... bamboo tubes?’
As he thought about it, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him. He remembered a type of street food he used to eat when he went hiking with his parents as a kid.
Bamboo-tube rice.
You cut off a whole section of bamboo, sealed at both ends by the natural joints. Then you cut a "window" in the side to reveal the hollow space inside.
Then you stuff it with sticky rice or whatever, cook it over a fire, and add a layer of toppings before eating.
’I don’t have any staples like rice, but I do have seafood. I can definitely use a bamboo tube as cookware.’
’Frying or stir-frying would be a stretch, but boiling and steaming should be perfectly fine.’
’Whoa, hold on. Why is my brain suddenly full of food? No, no, I need to focus. First, I need to think about what tools I can make to help me chop down more bamboo.’
’A saw would be too much trouble to make; I don’t have the right tools. Maybe I should try making a bamboo axe and a bamboo knife?’
He got right to it. He broke off a slat of bamboo and, using the same method of hammering with the stone axe and cutting with the military knife, trimmed it to the length of his forearm.
"I’m going to make a bamboo knife first to get the hang of it. It’s simple to make and doesn’t take long."
He held the slat of bamboo up to the camera to show its length, thickness, and overall shape.
"What I’m making is a machete for chopping, not one of those slender sabers you see in movies and TV shows. That means the body of the blade needs to be thicker than a normal knife."
"This piece of bamboo is already about the right thickness, so I won’t thin it down any further. Now I just need to grind an edge on it."
First, he found a strip of Mulberry Tree bark and wrapped it tightly around the handle area to create a grip. Then, shouldering the bamboo stalk he had just cut down and grabbing his proto-knife, he headed to the stream.
He found the large rock he’d used to sharpen his stone axe, soaked the piece of bamboo in the water for a moment, and shaved off one of the top corners to create the curve of a blade tip. Then, he began grinding it directly on the surface of the rock.
"Since I’m grinding a blade, the angle needs to be about the same as when I sharpened the stone axe. Hold the bamboo against the rock’s surface at a fifteen to twenty-degree angle and just rub it back and forth."
After that brief explanation for the camera, he gripped the handle with both hands, pressing down firmly as he moved the bamboo blade back and forth.
The water-soaked bamboo easily wore away, producing a slurry of yellow-green fibers. The ground surface was noticeably thinner, though still quite rough.
"This is just the first pass for shaping. There will be a second, finer pass, which is for actually putting an edge on it."