Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 242 - 241: Help from ’Divine Tongue’ (Part 2)

Chapter 242: Chapter 241: Help from ’Divine Tongue’ (Part 2)

Disgusting!

The assessment was straightforward.

Moreover, Tiqie Helinai even set the bowl down, clearly not intending to take a second bite.

"Can you be more specific?"

Xia Yu had invited this esteemed figure over for detailed feedback.

"The rice’s cooking time is off, you overcooked it by 5 seconds. During the second step of roasting, both the oven temperature and the timing were wrong!" Divine Tongue stated.

"The rice is overcooked!"

She glanced at Xia Yu and said without mincing her words, "Moreover, the rice you used is also a problem. For a dish like ’Valencia Baaiya,’ you need to use Spanish rice, which is harder and has a slightly undercooked texture when eaten."

The criticism about cooking time matched the systematic evaluation perfectly.

As for the rice, she was even more accurate. Xia Yu had simply used any rice as a substitute, just to practice.

"Anything else?" Xia Yu took mental notes.

"The quantity of spices!"

"What about it?" Xia Yu perked up.

"Actually, the quantity of spices and the broth boil down to one issue, overlapping flavors!" Tiqie Helinai explained, "When you were simmering the seafood broth, you added scallions, celery, carrots, and diced onions. During the process, you also added chunks of tomato, thyme, and tarragon!"

She spoke as if she had witnessed Xia Yu cooking, mentioning each ingredient he used.

"First, you added too many tomato chunks, which made the broth lean towards a sweet and sour taste. Ordinary people might not notice, but under the scrutiny of a top gourmet, it’s blatantly obvious. Reducing the amount by 10 grams would make the broth’s flavor more authentic!"

"Second, it’s the artichokes and the saffron!"

As she spoke, Tiqie Helinai’s eyes conveyed deep perplexion.

"These two spices are extremely out of place in this dish," Tiqie Helinai couldn’t help saying, "Saffron barely has any flavor, but its mild, grassy fragrance with a hint of spiciness doesn’t escape divine taste buds. What are you trying to cover up? Artichokes, too, with their taste akin to walnuts, are too prominent. They overwhelmed the fragrance of the rice so much that I couldn’t taste the lingering aroma of the rice in your seafood dish!"

"Valencia Baaiya should have a texture similar to ’slightly undercooked rice’ and that rich flavor only emerges from thorough chewing. That’s the secret of this dish!"

She spoke all in one breath.

Tiqie Helinai felt a bit annoyed in her heart.

In her eyes, this ’Valencia Baaiya’ was simply not a dish Xia Yu should be presenting at his level. The ingredients were too casually chosen, and the structure was too loose, not meticulous at all. If it had been any other student or chef from Far Moon or those renowned restaurants, letting her ’Divine Tongue’ taste such carelessness, Eriina would have had a piece of her mind for them.

But after she finished, a realization clicked in Eriina’s heart.

She stole a glance at Xia Yu, who was frowning next to her, and she couldn’t help but reflect on whether she had been too harsh.

For some reason, in front of Xia Yu, Tiqie Helinai consciously retracted her claws, trying her best to appear ladylike.

Yes, just like Morioka Makki.

There was silence in the kitchen for several minutes, and as for the two unfamiliar young men behind her, Eriina had already ignored them.

"I see."

Xia Yu’s expression relaxed, "In the end, it’s all about the ’rice’!"

’Artichokes’ and ’black rice’ are a pair in combination.

Saffron serves a similar purpose, apart from coloring, its main role is to balance the overly sweet taste of ’black rice.’

And here he was, using an ordinary rice paired with the original special grade recipe, which of course made the structure of spices appear incredibly awkward!

"Thump, thump!"

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door of the personal kitchen.

"I’ll get the door—"

Nishimura Eiki set down his bowl and turned to open the door, only to be scared out of his wits.

Standing outside was a middle-aged, scholarly man in a suit, none other than the principal of White Seagull High School.

Beside him stood a woman carrying a sturdy suitcase, wearing sunglasses. Nishimura Eiki’s first impression of her was of a strikingly cool and impressive figure!

Totally different from the cool of Boss Sakamoto.

"Who are you?"

Seeing that Chiyoda Naoto didn’t see Xia Yu and that an unfamiliar young man had opened the door, with another young man sitting quietly eating inside the kitchen, he couldn’t help but frown.

"Principal Chiyoda, I’m inside!"

Xia Yu’s voice came from the room.

The principal immediately humbly said to the woman beside him, "Main General Liangzi, Chef Xia is inside, please enter—"

Saying this, he handed Liangzi Lina a school gate pass.

The security at White Seagull High School was quite strict. Aside from the faculty and students, it was difficult for others to enter or leave, but a teacher’s pass was different.

"I’ll take my leave now."

He actively closed the door, and Chiyoda Naoto finally sighed with relief.

In front of the renowned female Special Grade chef, he hardly dared to breathe deeply.

"There are rumors saying, Main General Liangzi, that you are climbing to even higher realms..." Chiyoda Naoto’s eyes gleamed with admiration, "Beyond Special Grade, it’s the ’Lin’ rank, right? At the headquarters, there are no Lin Chefs left."

He couldn’t help but worry about the Chiyoda Family.

Without a Lin Chef to hold the fort, could the Chiyoda Family firmly maintain their position as one of the ’Four Great Houses’?

...

"Miss Liangzi, put it here!"

Xia Yu left the bar stool and turned to guide Liangzi Lina.

Bang!

Upon opening the food box, a chill, like a gust from the Arctic Ocean, swiftly spread through the kitchen.

Sakamoto and Nishimura Eiki shuddered, feeling the cold.

"It’s already May!" Nishimura Eiki turned his head towards the open kitchen window, murmuring, "This wind feels like the cold blasts during a heavy snow in Tokyo!"

As the one who opened the box, Xia Yu was the first to face it.

He subconsciously shrank his neck.

At the moment of opening the box, the cold was tangible, like a knife scraping across his face, causing a faint pain.

He quickly closed the box.

"How many pounds of this ’Black Rice’ are there?" he asked.

"Ten pounds."

"I’ll transfer the money to you, how much in total?" Xia Yu already had Liangzi Lina as a friend on the IGO online software and immediately opened the transfer menu,

"Just at market price, 80,000 yen per 100 grams..."

"Let’s see, 10 pounds, 5 kilograms, four million yen, right?"

Without blinking, Xia Yu typed a series of numbers, entered his payment password, and pressed the "Confirm" button.

Ding!

In an instant, Liangzi Lina’s phone in her pocket alerted with a notification sound.

The money was transferred.

"Cough cough!"

Severe coughing.

Nishimura Eiki, who was eavesdropping while eating a seafood rice dish, was startled by the number. He failed to swallow a mouthful of hard rice, covered his neck forcefully, and his face quickly turned purplish. Boss Sakamoto silently handed him water, with lightning speed.

"Tycoon!"

"Krypton Gold Warrior!"

Nishimura Eiki couldn’t help but think of his dungeon game’s guild master from the ’Array Cat’ group—an opulent player decked out in divine gear due to his cash-player supremacy ideology.

Four million yen—that was a certain company employee’s annual income.

He remembered a recent survey stating that the average annual income for workers around thirty years old was four million yen.

Yet, an ordinary person’s annual income could barely buy 10 pounds of rice?

"What kind of rice is that..."

Nishimura Eiki muttered to himself in awe: "It must be made of gold!"