Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 317 - 316: CP Pairing of Fantasy Ingredients

Chapter 317: Chapter 316: CP Pairing of Fantasy Ingredients

"Lobster meat..."

On screen, the three heavyweight judges stared intently at the pristine ceramic pot.

Their attention was not on the golden fried rice atop, nor the steamed pearl rice of the second layer, but on the lobster meat hidden within, and a mysterious seasoning ingredient with a faintly bitter taste.

"What is this!"

The female judge, Indira, spoke in a low voice.

"Lobster soup rice!"

The woman evaluator, with the demeanor of a Bohemian goddess, smiled slightly.

"I know it’s lobster soup rice!" Indira frowned, "What I’m asking is, what did you put at the bottom of the pot... Why is there a bitter taste!"

Qiushan Hong and Shinohara Shigetaro also cast interested glances.

"Taste it and you’ll know!"

In front of the prominent judges, Yuchuan Ayaka appeared very calm, answering with a hint of mischief.

"Hmph!"

Judge Indira was visibly displeased, and her face showed it.

Yuchuan Ayaka took a step forward and served each a bowl of rice. Her movements were delicate and gentle, serving each bowl with half a portion of golden fried rice and steamed pearl rice.

A scoop of the rice.

At the bottom of the ceramic pot, lobster meat and something black, as fine as black sesame, finally appeared.

Seeing this, Judge Indira’s expression changed slightly.

Qiushan Hong and Shinohara Shigetaro seemed to recognize this material as well, exchanging puzzled glances.

The camera gave a long close-up of the pot bottom as the Far Moon Classroom buzzed with discussion.

"The black seasoning, it’s not sesame, what could it be?"

Beside Xia Yu, Instructor Auson furrowed his brow in thought.

At this moment, the live camera panned to the waiting area, where the three previous failures and the successful candidates Takai Masashi and Hase Ichiro sat, five candidates in total.

They all rose from their seats, each wearing expressions of surprise and disbelief.

"It couldn’t be that, could it!"

"What do you think?"

"Look at that lobster soup rice, the golden hue on the surface is from top-quality Thai fragrant rice, already fried, aromatic but not greasy, the middle layer is steamed rice, likely Thai pearl rice, drenched in rich shrimp broth over two layers of rice. The freshness of the lobster soup and fragrant rice merge perfectly... Just watching it, I’m salivating uncontrollably!" A male evaluator around thirty, eyes shining, gazed at the delicacy on stage, then at the goddess-like Yuchuan Ayaka, his admiration clear.

Next to him, Takai Masashi spat out two words: "Foolish!"

He glanced at the solemn-faced Hase Ichiro.

"Mr. Hase, you see it too, don’t you?" Takai Masashi’s eyes were meaningful.

"Of course!"

Hase Ichiro’s expression changed, sighing, "I can only say, as expected of the eldest daughter of the Yuchuan Family, reputed as the strongest genius chef among the ’Big Four’... She actually added the ingredient ’black grass’ to the creatively presented lobster soup rice, so bold!"

"Hey, black grass!"

"This fantasy plant is actually a precious forage grown by the IGO organization for herbivorous animals."

Takai Masashi seemed self-mocking, yet as if sarcastic.

But his next sentence changed tone:

"Black grass, a perennial of the nettle family, though slightly bitter, has a freshness that no other wild vegetables or forages can match. In terms of texture, black grass has a crunchiness resembling leeks or green onions!"

The commotion in the waiting area was sharply captured by the camera, sound and picture synchronized, naturally transmitting sound to the audience’s devices.

Many instructors and professors from the Far Moon left their seats in shock, standing up.

Instructor Auson mumbled, "Doesn’t that mean, Miss Yuchuan has incorporated two types of fantasy ingredients into her dish? This, this is incredible!"

Xia Yu bore a similar expression of surprise.

He couldn’t stay calm.

Having studied the sukiyaki recipe given by Liangzi Lina, he knew how difficult it was to blend two different fantasy ingredients into a single dish or pot.

Fantasy ingredients were distinct, hard to tame, and even harder to integrate.

Studying sukiyaki for nearly half a month, besides purchasing fantasy ingredients in reality for practice, Xia Yu also repeatedly made ’sukiyaki’ in the Chef God Space using system-provided ordinary ingredients.

But until now, he couldn’t grasp that subtle balance point.

Balance was, in reality, a kind of feeling, an understanding.

With deep enough knowledge of fantasy ingredients and the dish form, that feeling just naturally arrived.

"Incredible!"

He said to himself, "Incorporating two fantasy ingredients, what does that mean?"

’Special Level Three Stars,’ even a must-kill quality of cuisine!

"Phew..."

Suppressing the astonishment in his eyes, Xia Yu kept his eyes fixed on the screen, awaiting the judges’ evaluation.

"Black grass!"

"It truly was black grass!"

As Qiushan Hong and Shinohara Shigetaro chewed the rice soaked in lobster broth, their faces showed satisfaction, "So that was it, black grass replaced green onions, and instead of downgrading the texture, it enhanced the flavor. With a hint of bitterness, the sweet and greasy taste of fried fragrant rice and steamed pearl rice was diluted, providing a refreshing taste! It feels like eating herb ice cream!"

"Not just that..."

Qiushan Hong picked up a second spoonful of rice.

The golden-hued fried fragrant rice, the white creamy steamed pearl rice, distinct in layers, from the side looked like a rice cake, exquisite and pretty.

Curiously, the thinly sliced lobster meat wasn’t laid atop the rice cake but embedded in the bottom, along with crushed black grass.

To taste the lobster, you had to take a whole bite of the rice, which Qiushan Hong did, cheeks puffed up, savoring it while exclaiming, "The natural freshness of the black grass greatly enhanced the deliciousness of the lobster meat and lobster soup!"

"Didn’t you notice?"

Judge Indira couldn’t help but say, her voice slightly trembling, "’Beer Lobster,’ its beer flavor fully melded into the dish, with no sense of disharmony! It’s the black grass!"

Snap!

The chopsticks in Shinohara Shigetaro’s hand snapped.

"You, you discovered the best CP pairing for ’Beer Lobster!’" Shinohara Shigetaro said with a look that combined awe and respect, speaking slowly, "Black grass, with Beer Lobster!"

"Incredible!!"

He evaluated.

"Yes, incredible."

Qiushan Hong put down his chopsticks, exhaled, and said, "Even though there are minor flaws elsewhere aside from the pairing of black grass and Beer Lobster, it does not affect the overall quality and taste of the dish..."

Seeing this, everyone knew the result.

Dong! Dong! Dong!

All three judges pressed the button simultaneously, and the screen above the hall immediately displayed the word "Qualified" in red.

"Thank you!"

Yuchuan Ayaka remained as composed as ever, her smile unchanged.

After she received the Special Level badge, the camera shifted to the female host, Chiyoda Aichi, whose cheeks were flushed, apparently excited earlier, her voice not as steady as usual:

"This Special Level assessment concludes here."

"The qualified individuals are Mr. Takai Masashi, Mr. Hase Ichiro, and Miss Yuchuan Ayaka!"

Applause erupted from the guest seats at the scene.

On the TV side, the Far Moon Classroom also erupted in applause.

Even Xia Yu joined in clapping; these three newly minted Special Levels could be said to be truly deserving.

"Wait—"

An unexpected situation occurred at the scene.

Chiyoda Aichi was momentarily stunned, and then the microphone in her hand was suddenly snatched away, and she was pushed aside.

"Yuchuan, Miss Yuchuan?" Chiyoda Aichi’s forehead was full of question marks.

Always exuding an aura of elegance and composure, Yuchuan Ayaka faced the camera with a serious expression, "May I have a few words with that ’youngest Special Chef in Neon’s history’?"