Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 308 - 307: Sukiyaki

Chapter 308: Chapter 307: Sukiyaki

After accepting the exclusive interview, a week passed.

This week, Xia Yu’s life returned to normal. If he had free time during the day, he attended classes at school and, when inspiration struck, he cooked in the school’s dedicated kitchen to treat his friends.

Thanks to the help of the "Rapid Memory Pill" purple prop, Xia Yu had trained the two basic skills of the pastry field, "dough mixing" and "dough kneading," to a full 10 points each.

The remaining two, "wrapper making" and "molding," were each 5 levels high, only halfway towards full completion.

It must be mentioned that the talent "Skilled Hands" was of great help to him in pastry making. For instance, during these days, Xia Yu often called Makki Morioka to ask for some pastry techniques, and then he would try to create exquisite, beautiful, and delicious desserts.

Here, the "Skilled Hands" talent was indispensable.

Life was very peaceful.

Regardless of what the outside voices said, after venting with swear words during the interview, Xia Yu was completely calm like still water. Let those clowns jump as they wished; he was a chef and should focus his energy on the world of cooking.

Additionally, while learning pastry, Xia Yu finally sought knowledge about Japanese cuisine from Liangzi Lina.

He spent the week learning Liangzi Lina’s Special Grade Recipes.

Liangzi Lina was very generous, teaching him two Japanese Special Grade Recipes, Sukiyaki and Japanese Steamed Egg Custard, at once.

These two Special Grade Recipes, like "Valencia Baaiya," were filled with a strong populist appeal but were transformed by Super Chefs with a Stone-to-Gold touch, incorporating one or several Fantasy Ingredients, completely reinventing them.

The main ingredient for Sukiyaki was fatty beef, beef.

Without a doubt, the beef used was a Fantasy Ingredient, but not the "White-haired Cinderella Beef."

Another weekend arrived.

Daytime.

Leaving the main store’s kitchen to Koga Shoji, Xia Yu and Liangzi Lina were in the kitchen of the branch store.

Liangzi Lina, donning an apron, her long hair tied into a ponytail, a face without a hint of makeup, purely natural, was busy at a kitchen counter, while Xia Yu was on the opposite side, watching her every move.

"One cup of stock."

"The seasonings are soy sauce, mirin, and sugar."

Xia Yu rested his chin, contemplating.

Mirin is a unique seasoning in Japanese cuisine, essentially a fermentation product of rice, a type of cooking wine, with a sweet flavor, therefore often called ’sweet cooking wine.’

After seasoning the stock, he added diagonally sliced green onions.

The green onions used here were Kyoto green onions, thick and large, known as northern green onions in the mainland, distinct from the thinner southern green onions.

"No, that’s not right!"

Xia Yu’s expression subtly changed.

As the pot heated, the stock boiled hot and the freshly added green onion segments released a rich, aromatic scent.

Taking a breath, the nose and mouth were filled with the fragrance of onion, accompanied by a spicy note.

"This is not ordinary onion..." Xia Yu concluded.

Even without touching or tasting, merely by smelling, Xia Yu could now identify the quality of ingredients.

This was the second time Liangzi Lina cooked Sukiyaki in front of him.

The process and steps were mostly similar to the general recipe

But the essential difference between a Special Grade Recipe and a general recipe lay in the treatment of ingredients!

Xia Yu quietly observed.

The tofu was fried in a flat pan until golden brown on both sides.

Pouring oil into the flat pan, Xia Yu’s nostrils flared, sharply sensing the strong beef aroma in the oil.

"Beef fat?"

He nodded silently, watching Liangzi Lina attentively stir-fry the beef slices in beef fat, sizzling, wisps of smoke continuously rising, and Xia Yu watching intently, even using "Bursting Flame" to monitor the changes in the heat of the fire.

Unexpectedly, unlike the "White-haired Cinderella Beef," this unrecognizable Fantasy Beef cooked very quickly; it had reached about 50% doneness within just a few minutes of frying.

Out of the pot!

After that, Liangzi Lina placed the prepared ingredients—slices of beef, tofu, crab sticks, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, and so on—into the pot in one go.

Before adding the lid, Liangzi Lina sprinkled broth into the pot for the second time.

But this time, the broth was dark and glossy.

This was the secret sauce broth!

"Sizzle..."

Five minutes later, the female super chef lifted the lid, and with a roar, the kitchen was instantly blasted with a fragrant aroma.

Xia Yu was utterly intoxicated.

At the doorway, Kobayakawa Ryodan and Tiqie Helinai had just pushed the door open and hadn’t had the chance to greet anyone before they stiffened in place.

"This scent!"

Tiqie Helinai merely sniffed and her expression overflowed with blissful intoxication, her voice unconsciously softened as she murmured, "It’s sukiyaki! Ah, such a classic flavor, is it Kansai style? Beef slices, konnyaku noodles, garland chrysanthemum, Chinese cabbage, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms... so many ingredients melting together in one pot, splendid and magnificent!"

Kobayakawa Ryodan simply had stars in his eyes, constantly wiping drool from his mouth.

"There’s seafood too! Seafood!" Kobayakawa Ryodan asserted confidently, "The broth must contain kelp, bonito flakes... Eh, Main General Liangzi even added crab sticks! This doesn’t quite resemble Kansai-style sukiyaki!"

The two were murmuring to themselves.

Sukiyaki is an extremely famous Neon dish, with flavors divided between Kantou and Kansai. The standard way to enjoy this dish is similar to hot pot. Families often choose sukiyaki to savor together during festive gatherings or celebrations.

In reality, the ingredients used in sukiyaki may seem assorted, but there was an adherence to the principle of "simplicity."

The main ingredients are always beef, vegetables, and tofu.

The sauce varies by region, and is generally divided into Kantou and Kansai flavors.

"Crack!"

Liangzi Lina took four transparent, crystal-clear chicken eggs, cracked them open, and poured them into four seasoning bowls.

That’s right, raw beaten egg is the authentic Japanese hot pot dip.

The pot continued to steam, the high flame had been reduced to a simmer, and Liangzi Lina, full of Dahe Fuzi poise, held a slight smile as she picked up a pair of wooden chopsticks and placed them on the chopstick rest on the table.

"Give it a try."

Liangzi Lina said this, but her gaze unintentionally lingered on Xia Yu.

Kobayakawa Ryodan and Tiqie Helinai were merely enthusiastic diners. Her meticulousness and deliberately slowed pace were simply to allow Xia Yu to have a clear look, to truly understand, and to grasp the deeper essence of the "Sukiyaki" recipe.

Seeing that Xia Yu hadn’t moved, lost in thought with his chin propped up, Liangzi Lina nodded in approval.

"Delicious—"

On the other side, Kobayakawa Ryodan and Tiqie Helinai had already started eating.

The thinly sliced beef, once simmered and dipped into the egg, created a supremely smooth sensation upon entering the mouth, causing them both to involuntarily moan, their cheeks flushing red.

"So smooth! So tender!"

Kobayakawa Ryodan was excited enough to shriek, his voice trembling, "The moment it enters the mouth, it’s already ’perfection’!"

Tiqie Helinai’s hand, holding her chopsticks, trembled as she struggled to chew and swallow the slippery beef in her mouth, then fixated on the pot full of a dazzling array of ingredients, her eyes flickering with conflict, murmuring to herself, "The green is chrysanthemum greens, vegetables."

"The shiitake mushrooms have been carved, so beautiful!"

"The grilled tofu is a perfect golden color!"

"Ah, burdock root strips!"

Finally picking up one of the ingredients from the pot, Tiqie Helinai crisply bit off a piece and exclaimed while eating, "The burdock root strips have no earthy taste! Such a gentle flavor!"

"Mm!"

At this moment, a nameless emotion welled up from within, leaving Tiqie Helinai speechless for quite some time.

"...Is this the capability of a top-tier super chef?"