a type of chemistry, especially in the Middle Ages, that dealt with trying to find a way to change ordinary metals into gold and with trying to find a medicine that would cure any disease

a process that is so effective that it seems like magic

She manages, by some extraordinary alchemy, to turn the most ordinary of ingredients into the most delicious of dishes. 她像用了魔法似的，竟然能用极普通的配料做出非常可口的菜肴。