He poured the seawater from one bamboo tube into another that had been split in half and placed it over the fire to boil.

As the seawater slowly evaporated, a layer of white crystals visibly formed on the inner wall of the bamboo tube.

This sea salt wasn’t like the pure white sea salt you’d find in a kitchen; it had a faint yellow color.

This salt was inedible. It was even a grade lower than coarse salt, mixed with a large amount of minerals. It had to be purified and filtered before it could be eaten.

Fortunately, he had come prepared. On his way back from the beach, he had made a detour to the stream and collected two tubes of fresh water.

When the seawater in the bamboo tube had mostly evaporated, with crystals clearly forming at the bottom and a layer of yellow liquid remaining on top, he removed it from the fire and carefully poured off the surface liquid.

This method was much simpler than filtering. It didn’t require any special tools, just a container that could be used for boiling.

A bamboo tube, a coconut shell, or even a stone would work.

He poured half of the fresh water into the bamboo tube, scraped all the crystallized salt from the walls, and stirred until it completely dissolved. Then, he placed it back on the fire to continue the refining process.

The salt from the second crystallization was noticeably whiter than the first. The liquid on top had also changed from yellow to a pale yellow, at least twice as light as before.

Then came the third time.

Although the final amount of salt collected wasn’t much, only a small handful, its color was nearly pure white and the grains were quite fine. It had already surpassed the quality of coarse salt and was approaching that of fine salt.

"Salt of this quality is safe to eat. As long as you don’t eat too much at once, it won’t do you any harm."

"Besides the evaporation and refining method, filtering is also very useful. You can do it with bamboo tubes, too. You just fill them with layers of sand, soil, gravel, moss, and so on, then pour seawater in. The water that flows out the bottom will be filtered."

"That method is more commonly used for purifying fresh water. I’ll show you all how to do it one of these days. You’re bound to get tired of drinking coconut water every day, right?"

[I think you’re getting cocky.]

[If you don’t want it, give it to me. I’m thirsty.]

[You have to remember it’s February. It’s not coconut season at all. You can only get them in the tropics.]

[Even though it’s cold outside, I wish I had a chilled, fresh coconut in my fridge right now.]

[I can skip the coconut, but you have to make the grilled fish. I’ve been craving it for so long. I just want to see how Lin’s grilled fish is different from a normal one.]

[Speaking of grilled fish, I suddenly remember a colleague from Great Xia treating us to a meal. We had grilled fish, but it was prepared in a strange way—grilled and then boiled. The taste was still pretty good, though.]

"Oh? This friend has actually had Great Xia’s grilled fish. But I should clarify that Great Xia has many different regional cuisines, and the preparation methods vary from place to place."

"The grill-then-boil method you’re talking about is more like hot pot. It’s one of the more popular ways to prepare grilled fish in Great Xia, perfect for a small gathering of two to four people. It creates a nice atmosphere."

"Because it’s boiled, it has a sauce or broth base, and you can add side dishes. Even though it’s called grilled fish, it’s really a main dish served with rice."

"Aside from that method, what people usually mean by grilled fish is the kind you’re imagining, skewered on bamboo sticks."

"Don’t worry, I’ll definitely make grilled fish, and Lobster and all that, but not right now."

He cracked open a new coconut, took a few sips of the water, then slid his combat knife along the inside of an abalone shell, removing the meat whole.

"Abalone is olive-shaped. On one side, there’s a distinct tentacle-like structure. That’s its mouthparts. You just have to pull it off."

"This dark green part on the back is the abalone’s liver. As long as the water quality is good, it’s edible. In Japanese and Western cuisine, it’s even used to make abalone liver pâté."

"If you eat it directly, it’ll have a slight bitter taste, and if you’re unlucky, it might have other strange flavors. Plus, the liver is where toxins accumulate, so to be safe, it’s best not to eat the liver of a wild abalone."

"If you’re truly short on food, I’d recommend cooking it thoroughly before eating. But at that point, you’re usually not too concerned about whether it tastes good or not."

He deliberately held the abalone up so the camera could capture the entire process. There really wasn’t much to it—just a snip and a pull, leaving the complete abalone meat.

He submerged the whole abalone into the coconut water. To be safe, he only put one in to test the waters.

He’d had chicken stewed in coconut water before, but abalone... ’He really wasn’t sure about this.’

"Abalone doesn’t need to be cooked for long. One to two minutes after the water boils is enough. If you cook it too long, it will become tough to chew, like most shellfish."

While the coconut water was coming to a boil, he brought over a piece of bamboo tube. He picked three basil leaves and tore them up, then took out two allspice berries and crushed them with the back of his knife. He added a little salt and mixed them together, pounding them a dozen or so times with the knife’s handle to help the scents of the spices and the basil leaves meld together better.

Just then, the coconut water boiled. He ladled some of the hot liquid into the mixture.

The moment the scalding liquid hit it, the aromas of the two spices erupted. The fresh scent of the basil leaves, in particular, rushed over him like a tsunami.

He dipped a finger in to taste it and shook his head with regret.

"It’s still a bit too one-dimensional. It would be perfect if I had some soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and Thai chilies."

"Gray, I’m talking to you. That’s right, don’t doubt it."

He didn’t care whether the guy could hear him, though he probably hadn’t even reached the back kitchen yet.

But it didn’t matter. The guests who wanted a taste would be sure to pressure him.