Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 131: Fried Cod Pie (Second Update!)

Chapter 131: Chapter 131: Fried Cod Pie (Second Update!)

"Can you give your opinion on the dish, Mr. Aoki?" Xia Yu said helplessly.

"Good, very good, extremely good!"

Mr. Aoki Motota slapped his thigh, first heaping praise upon praise, then with a deep voice he said, "But alas, it’s just missing one pyramid. With that, this dish of Egyptian Roasted Chicken would reach perfection. I dare not say for sure, but if it reached perfection, your dish could pry open the treasure vault of the eater’s taste buds, allowing one to experience the ultimate in flavor!"

"Really, it only falls short by a little?"

Aoki Motota looked so deeply distressed, it was as if he were more upset than Xia Yu, the creator of the dish.

"Miss by an inch, miss by a mile!"

Xia Yu shook his head, finding it hard to be optimistic.

Of course, he was well aware that the flaws in his failed attempt were not so easily mended.

After all, "Spice Nine-layered Egyptian Roasted Chicken" was genuinely Special Grade Cuisine, infused with an ultimate flavor that he could never have imitated to this extent without mastering the culinary skill "Spice Equation."

In fact, this was also related to his application of the "Spice Equation."

His mastery over spice formulas was still inflexible.

Just like solving math problems, he was the clumsiest student, who memorized the formulas but only knew how to apply them mechanically, not how to transform them or use them flexibly; he was at a loss when encountering spices he couldn’t manage.

Yet, with his experience in learning the "Bursting Flame" culinary skill, Xia Yu remained calm.

Sooner or later, he would thoroughly study the Special Grade Recipes of Dojima Yin.

Moreover, Xia Yu had another inspiration. If he could advance his "Spice Equation" technique further, perhaps he could tailor the recipe to his inspirations, modifying the Egyptian Roasted Chicken into a dish rich with Chinese spice flavors.

The key was still in the blend of spices!

...

Xia Yu cleared the plates and returned to the front of the store.

"I remember now, no wonder this dish seemed so familiar!"

Seated at the bar, Aoki Motota suddenly exclaimed in surprise: "This is Dojima Yin’s Special Grade Recipe!"

Then, he stared at Xia Yu with an odd look in his eyes.

"The recipe isn’t given by Dojima Yin, right?"

"I ate his cuisine, remembered the flavor of the spices, and tried to replicate it myself," Xia Yu shrugged and casually replied, not expecting Aoki Motota to continue staring at him as if he were a monster.

"You remembered the ultimate flavor of a Special Grade Cuisine?"

It took a long while, but Aoki Motota tentatively asked.

"It wasn’t an ultimate flavor," Xia Yu waved his hand, "I just know the techniques of spice pairing. Of course, many things were figured out by myself through experimentation." He certainly couldn’t admit that he peeked at secrets through the "Comprehension Crystal" item.

"Freak! Monster!"

A trace of shock flashed in Aoki Motota’s eyes, and after holding back for a while, he couldn’t help but say, "Special Grade Recipes are not so easy to learn by heart..."

As he spoke, he found himself at a loss for words.

The living example was right before his eyes. Aoki Motota shook his head with a wry smile, "If Dojima Yin knew you’ve snatched his recipe in secret, he would be so frustrated he might cough up blood. For a Special Grade chef, their recipes are the foundation of their livelihood."

"Every Special Grade Recipe is the crystallization of a chef’s hard work, documenting their wisdom and experience. In short, Special Grade Recipes are like a currency for exchange among top-tier chefs, and you’ll soon understand their value."

Xia Yu fell silent.

The small shop quieted for a moment until the sound of Ichise Hui’s voice came from the phone’s external speakers:

"Instructor Aoki!"

At this point, Aoki Motota finally noticed that Xia Yu was aiming his phone’s camera at him, and he paused.

Seeing this, Xia Yu turned the phone’s screen around and switched on the front camera. A kind and honest face of a monk was enlarged on the screen. Looking at this face, one would never guess that Aoki Motota was known as "Ghost-faced Monk" in the culinary world.

"It’s you, the seventh seat of the Ten Masters of Far Moon!" Aoki Motota smiled, "Ichise... Hui, that’s the name, right?"

"Yes, it was me."

Ichise Hui spoke respectfully, with a hint of surprise in his eyes at having his name called.

"Interesting!"

Stroking his chin, Aoki Motota noticed the group of people behind Ichise Hui and turned to Xia Yu, saying, "So you’ve already made a bunch of Far Moon friends. And here I was, worried about whether you’d be able to get acquainted with the academy since we all have teaching tasks to attend to."

Xia Yu, not knowing whether to laugh or cry, was about to explain when Sen Tian Makoto presented her cuisine.

"Huh!"

Aoki Motota was immediately captivated by the three dishes arranged on the plates.

"This is..." Xingping Chuangzhen’s pupils contracted slightly.

On the pristine white plate lay a pastry that was a hue of egg yolk yellow; at first glance, it resembled a pizza crust.

"Wait, there’s one final step!"

Sen Tian Makoto hurried back to the cooking table, grabbed a few stalks of fresh green asparagus, cut some cherry tomatoes and baby carrots, placed them in the frying pan for a brief heating, and then scurried back, arranging them at the edge of the ceramic plate.

With a small knife in hand, she cut the square pastry in half. Sen Tian Makoto also brought over a small bowl, scooping up some white, gluey sauce with a spoon and drizzling it around the pastry.

Now the plating was complete.

The once plain-looking pastry on the plate, now accompanied by garnishes and sauce, instantly scored full points for visual effect.

Exquisite!

Beautiful!

Everyone, gazing at the colorful Western pastry in the dish, thought of the same word.

"This style of cooking, why does it remind me of Tiqie Eriina..." murmured Ichise Hui.

"Squid Pie Mille-feuille!"

Ichise Hui immediately said.

"Nope, it’s Fried Squid Pie!" Sen Tian Makoto corrected with a smile.

"But the pastry you used for the Squid Pie, it’s made with the French mille-feuille technique, right?" said Ichise Hui, lifting her left palm which had several characters clearly written on it in black ink—

French Mille-feuille!

Seeing this, Xia Yu also showed the characters carved with charcoal on his palm to the camera: Pâte feuilletée.

The two in the video looked at each other in astonishment.

Pâte feuilletée, mille-feuille.

In fact, the pastry techniques used for these two kinds of desserts are quite similar, but obviously, Sen Tian Makoto’s cuisine wasn’t simply pâte feuilletée or mille-feuille—they both had only half the answer right.

Looking at the cross-section of the ’Fried Squid Pie,’ it wasn’t hard to notice the layering of the pastry sheets, which is the secret to constructing pâte feuilletée or, to put it another way, the mille-feuille.

In crafting the mille-feuille pastry, Sen Tian Makoto paid meticulous attention to detail; thus, from the front, the pastry was delicately scored with crisscrossing fine lines. Seen from the side, the layers of the Squid Pie were distinct and neatly arrayed like a work of art. Apart from a large piece of sliced fish, there was also a filling that exuded a rich aroma.

"Give it a try!"

Makki sliced open the Squid Pies, and with her excluded, there were six people in the kitchen. The three pies cut in half were just the right amount to share.

The most lively among them, Yoshino Yuuki, was the first to grab a fork and knife, cutting off a corner of Squid Pie and bringing it to her mouth.

Teeth sank in.

The pastry of the mille-feuille was tender, and the sensation of teeth layer-by-layer breaking through the pastry sent shivers through Yoshino Yuuki’s entire body.

Finally, it was a moment of clarity as the filling spread in her mouth and the fish bounced on her tongue!

"This taste..."

Yoshino Yuuki leaned over with her head down, gripping her fork and knife tightly.