自從決定參與111學年度的中學生商業類競賽，從今年暑假的第一天，便開啟了競賽的練習計畫---每天練習完成四道菜。
暑假期間，我每天看著影片學做菜，從選擇學習的影片、買參考書籍、規劃菜單、採購食材等等，這歷程雖然瑣碎辛苦，且偶爾必須忍受燙傷、刀傷，但也因為這兩個月的自我鞭策，靠著自學進步了許多。到了9月開學後，在雨芳老師的辛苦指導下，持續進行每週整整五天扎實的訓練，這段日子大多時間都在中餐教室練菜，回家後繼續看影片學習隔天要做的菜。
訓練剛起步時，我還沒有感受到壓力，每次做完成品都超過應該完成的時間，當時我總是浪費時間在創意和盤飾上面，每次的盤飾總要花上一個小時，耗掉太多時間。
之後，我參加第一場在醒吾科技大學舉辦的友誼賽，很開心題目都是做過的菜，但因為不熟悉那所學校的瓦斯爐設備的操作方式，火開得太小導致蒸籠鍋的水一直沒滾，最後於競賽時間結束前三分鐘才上菜，當時深深感受到有效率的完成料理，是如此的重要！此後，我開始設定每次出菜的時間，因此漸漸的，比較能掌握準時完成菜餚的節奏。
這段練習的歷程，我完成了幾百道料理，開心又幸運的，是在這次全國商業類比賽中，抽到的菜色都曾做過，而我也能掌握時間準時出菜。這次的競賽讓我深深體悟「幾分努力就有幾分收獲」，而「人外有人、天外有天」，感謝帶領我走入中餐廚藝殿堂的雨芳老師，我將帶著老師的諄諄教誨，持續努力不懈的充實自我、精進廚藝。
National Champion Interview with Miriam Li in the National Skills Competition for Students in Advanced-level Commercial High Schools - Chinese Cuisine Category
Once I decided to participate in the 111th academic year's competition for students in the commercial category, I devised a plan for preparation, starting on the first day of summer vacation. I followed a practice schedule of preparing four dishes every day.
During the summer vacation, I watched cooking videos every day on topics ranging from selecting learning materials to buying reference books, planning menus, purchasing ingredients, and so on. Although this process was tedious and sometimes involved burns and cuts, it was through the self-discipline of these two months that I made real progress through self-study. Once school started in September, with the diligent guidance of Teacher Yu Fang, I continued with solid training for a full five days every week. Most of my time during this period was spent practicing cooking in the Chinese cuisine classroom. Even at home, I continued to watch videos to learn about the dishes to be prepared on the following day.
When my training first started, I didn't feel much pressure, and I always came in well under the expected completion time for each dish. In these early days, I would often waste time on creative touches, sometimes spending up to an hour on each plating.
Later on, I participated in the first friendly competition held at Xingwu University of Technology. I was delighted that the dishes assigned were ones I had already practiced. However, because I wasn't familiar with the gas stove equipment at that school, the flame was too low, and the water in the steamer didn't boil. As a result, I only served the dishes three minutes before the competition ended. It was at that moment that I deeply felt the importance of time management in the cooking process. From that point on, I set a time for each dish and gradually gained a better grasp of the rhythm of completing dishes on schedule.
Throughout this practice journey, I have completed hundreds of dishes. Luckily and happily, the dishes I drew in the national competition were ones I had already made, and I was able to manage my time and serve everything promptly. This competition deepened my understanding of the saying "the more effort you put in, the more you gain," and impressed upon me the fact that there will always be people more skilled than I. I am grateful to my teacher, Yu Fang, for guiding me into the realm of Chinese culinary arts. With my teacher's sage instruction, I will continue to work hard and improve my culinary skills.
