Reborn in Japan as a Chef God -
Chapter 156: Ichise Hui’s Lower Limit Theory
Chapter 156: Chapter 156: Ichise Hui’s Lower Limit Theory
Food Duel?
And with a Five-Star Chef?
Standing behind Xia Yu and Makki were Aoki Daigo and Sato Shoko, the muscle-bound duo who often went unnoticed.
The residents of Polar Star Dormitory, just a moment ago shrouded in gloomy discussions about the upcoming stay-in seminar next week, were now crowding around Xia Yu and Makki.
Xingping Chuangzhen fixed his gaze on Xia Yu, "Yu, what’s going on?"
This guy was way too familiar. While Xia Yu still addressed him as Xingping, he had boldly used the nickname for Makki that only close friends dared to call.
Seeing how the Polar Star Dormitory crew were all ears, including Ichise Hui who had joined in, curious as kids, Xia Yu had no choice but to explain the whole situation in detail.
The ones coveting the old shopping district were two groups of real estate agents. The first group had been cleverly dealt with by Xia Yu through his cooking. The second group was backed by the wealthier and more influential Tokyo Three Tigers Construction Company.
"Ah—"
Xingping Chuangzhen suddenly let out an exclamation, then scrutinized Xia Yu up and down, his look extremely odd.
After a while, he muttered, "So, the talented young chef that woman from Feng Zhizi was raving about is you! No wonder, the last time I made two of my specialty dishes, I couldn’t wash away the aftertaste of hers..."
At this point, no one paid attention to Xingping’s complaints; everyone was focused on listening to Xia Yu briefly introducing the Five-Star Chef, his opponent in the Food Duel.
"A Five-Star Chef who is only eighteen or nineteen?"
Ichise Hui spoke with a solemn air, "In the last few generations, including Kikuchi Sankaku and Kazasaki Tatsuki, who graduated as the second seat among the elite ten, would probably be at this level of chef."
"Si Yingshi has the skills of a Four-Star Chef, and he would pass the rating assessment with one hundred percent certainty if he chose to take it, but with his personality..." A hint of exasperation crossed Ichise Hui’s face as he mentioned the current top student.
"What about you, Senior Ichise?" Everyone from Polar Star Dormitory, including Xia Yu and Makki, was genuinely curious about Ichise Hui’s self-assessment.
"If I’m lucky and get a straightforward question, I’m quite confident about passing the Four-Star assessment!" Ichise Hui didn’t hide his self-confidence.
In fact, Ichise Hui had the strength to be within the top five spots of the current elite ten. Once Si Yingshi, Kobayakawa Ryodan, Nakamuki Fuyosuke, Kishikubo Momo, and Saito Sohmei, the five third-year students, graduated and left Far Moon next year, he would definitely aim for the top spot.
Tiqie Helinai also shared the same ambition.
To them, other than the top position, there wasn’t much difference between the other seats.
"Graduates, huh?"
The group from Polar Star Dormitory all felt that graduates were a world away, knowing even if their studies at Far Moon went smoothly, their own graduation was still three years in the future.
And now, someone capable of competing with the graduates, a peer of their own age, was sitting right before them. Everyone, including Xingping Chuangzhen, felt a subtle sense of unreality. It suddenly dawned on them that Far Moon might be just the beginning of their journey in the gourmet world; the mountains they had yet to conquer were many and varied.
Xia Yu was an instructor at Far Moon, and even without considering his instructor role, the Polar Star Dormitory residents internally regarded him as one of their own, thanks to Makki.
"Yu, are you confident?" Xingping Chuangzhen clenched his fist, "Don’t lose to some other chef before I have the chance to beat you!"
Xia Yu rolled his eyes, half annoyed and half amused.
"I, I think Instructor Xia won’t lose!"
It was unexpectedly Tanaka Hikari who spoke up. When everyone turned to look at her, she promptly bowed her head and added shyly, "Because, because Instructor Xia is stronger than Senior Si Yingshi, if he were to take the Five-Star rating assessment, he would definitely be a Five-Star Chef!"
Xia Yu was taken aback, then shook his head while Tanaka Hikari met his eyes, her cheeks flushing red as she turned away.
"The IGO culinary institution’s ratings actually focus more on a chef’s lower limit, rather than their upper limit..." Ichise Hui explained, "Every rating evaluation, from one star to nine stars, even the special assessments, contain many secrets."
"Take the one-star for instance. IGO collects and organizes applicants’ information, assigns them to various assessment groups based on their background and areas of expertise, and then devises questions specifically targeted at them. Generally speaking, it hits right at their weaknesses..."
When it came to devising targeted questions, Ichise Hui’s eyes twitched, clearly having been duped by IGO before, a memory she would rather forget.
"But if that’s the case, wouldn’t gathering information and designing targeted questions increase the workload tremendously?" The group from the Polar Star Dormitory, none of whom had a chef rating, listened with chilled spines.
"What do you think gives the IGO culinary institution its global reach and considerable influence even in the mysterious and ancient Chinese Land?" Ichise Hui asked with a smile.
"Is it the ’lower limit’ theory?"
Xia Yu recalled his own near disaster during the two-star assessment, and strongly agreed with Ichise Hui’s perspective.
Codfish.
Reflecting on the details of the event, Yuchuan Meisha, Dubian Junya, and others obviously weren’t chefs specializing in seafood. Everyone relied on their culinary experience and in-the-moment creativity to work the ingredients into their area of expertise. As a result, out of ten candidates, including Xia Yu, only four passed the evaluation, keeping the pass rate firmly below half.
Applying the ’lower limit’ theory to a Five-Star Chef made the competitor known as Lancelot seem even more formidable. Xia Yu couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
At the very least, with Xia Yu for comparison, faced with a topic or an area he wasn’t proficient in, his lower limit could possibly tumble below three stars.
And when it came to upper limits, it was about one’s trump cards and the ability to adapt on the spot.
All of a sudden, Xia Yu realized that relying on the "Dragon Roll Fish Fin Sausage" to crush a strong opponent seemed uncertain. He must think harder, refine his approach, and prepare additional techniques.
However, discussing other advanced improvements was premature; for now, Xia Yu just wanted to perfect the shining "Dragon Roll Fish Fin Sausage" dish.
"Iwazaki, could you give me some of that smoked intestine you’ve prepared?" Xia Yu asked Iwazaki Jun.
"Sure."
The taciturn boy turned and headed for his own ingredient pantry.
"I’ll also need ham, bamboo shoots, and loose shark fins..." Xia Yu turned to the others with a smile, "Help me gather these ingredients, and I’ll treat you to a lavish lunch later."
"Bamboo shoots? As luck would have it, I dug up some fresh bamboo shoots in the school bamboo forest a few days ago and simply boiled them before refrigerating!"
Ichise Hui’s eyes gleamed as she quickly made her way to the kitchen’s large freezer, pulling out several bags of fresh bamboo shoot tips that had been well-sealed in Ziploc bags without being sliced.
"I have ham! I’ll go get it!"
Yoshino Yuuki called out excitedly and ran off.
"Loose shark fins? Wouldn’t packaged fins do?" Shen Liangzi asked, looking perplexed.
"Packaged fins would work, but it seems a bit wasteful to separate them into loose fin strands..." Xia Yu scratched his face.
"If the ingredients are used in a superb dish, it’s not wasteful."
Shen Liangzi said gently.
This beautiful girl with a gentle and mature demeanor and long purple hair, who played the role of the big sister at the Polar Star Dormitory, was very much to Xia Yu’s liking. Watching her leave, Xia Yu treated the Polar Star Dormitory kitchen like his own small restaurant, taking a round to collect all the necessary cooking tools he needed.
Soon after, the sausage casings, ham, bamboo shoots, and shark fins were all laid out on the kitchen counter.
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report