Reborn in Japan as a Chef God
Chapter 366 - 365: Replicate (Part 2)

Chapter 366: Chapter 365: Replicate (Part 2)

Xia’s Restaurant was closed today.

About two hours later, Xia Yu emerged from the kitchen only to find an additional person in the dining area.

Reiko Lina, along with the newly promoted special chef Ujou Mamie, were casually sitting at a table chatting. Hearing footsteps, they both turned their heads simultaneously.

"You’re finally out!"

Ujou Mamie pointed at the empty clay pot and plate on the bar with a playful tone, "I enjoyed the porridge all by myself, thanks for the treat. The black curry rice was eaten by Reiko. If there’s an issue, talk to her..."

She was adept at shifting responsibility.

As she spoke, she suddenly paused, a look of astonishment appearing on her face.

For at that moment, Xia Yu was carrying a plate of similarly dark-colored cuisine.

Smelling the strong aroma wafting through the air, Ujou Mamie’s expression shifted slightly. "Is this curry rice? Hmm, the recipe seems very familiar!"

"Damn it! Can it be!"

Ujou Mamie then thought of a certain possibility, gritted her teeth, and glared at Xia Yu, asking, "Is this your attempt to replicate my Extreme Spicy Black Curry Rice?"

Xia Yu nodded, then turned his head in surprise towards Main General Liangzi, dressed in casual clothes.

"I locked the door though, how did you get in?"

Reiko Lina’s lips curved into a slight smile, gesturing towards the courtyard behind the dining area.

"Climbed over the wall?"

Xia Yu instantly understood. He was aware of Reiko Lina’s exceptional physical ability, her being a master of Kendo. If it indeed came to risking life, he had no doubt that with his lack of practical experience, he would probably be taken down by Reiko in a moment.

"Perfect timing!"

Xia Yu then smiled, "You just tried Ujou’s curry rice, now try mine and see what’s different!"

A hint of puzzlement appeared on his face.

Looking at Xia Yu’s young and confident visage, Reiko Lina couldn’t help but find it odd.

It was clearly a copy and the original creator was right before him, yet the source of his confidence was his own creation?

Suddenly, she became interested.

Beside her, Ujou Mamie sat with arms crossed, making no move to stop the main general from picking up a spoon.

"I can’t believe you tried to replicate my dish..." Ujou Mamie gave Xia Yu a slightly surprised look. "Your skill in combining spices is not much inferior to mine, but the realm of spices is too vast. My expertise lies in curry blending! You can’t mimic that!"

"The reason the Sen Company hired me as a consultant for HUB Food..."

Her words abruptly stopped.

With the corner of her eye, Ujou Mamie caught sight of the main general’s shocked face after she had scooped up a spoonful of the curry rice.

A pang shot through her heart!

"Spicy!"

Reiko, not used to heavy flavors, suddenly had red-rimmed eyes, a hint of tears shimmering as she hurriedly covered her mouth with her hand. She struggled with the spicy taste but was unwilling to spit out the food, persevering through the difficult chewing.

Finally, after swallowing a spoonful of curry rice, the main general was drenched in sweat, her cheeks flushed, her shirt clung to her fair skin, accentuating her exquisite curves.

"Here’s some water—"

At that moment, Xia Yu timely offered a cup of warm green tea.

Taking the tea, she downed it in one gulp, then wiped her damp red lips with the back of her hand. Looking up, she stared incredulously at the smiling young man before her, "How, how did you manage to do this?"

"Does it taste good?" Xia Yu didn’t answer, but instead asked a question in return.

"Delicious!"

Reiko Lina nodded, her eyes sparkling with a glint of fire, "Though extremely spicy, it possesses a ’magic power’ that makes one want to devour it all at once!"

"And..."

"And what?" This was Ujou Mamie asking from the side, unable to remain calm.

Lips trembling, Reiko Lina glanced at her friend, helplessly saying, "It feels like ’the student surpasses the master!’ It’s just a feeling!"

"Ha?!"

Ujou Mamie, provoked into anger, suddenly stood up, rolled up the sleeves of her long-sleeved shirt, and slammed her palms hard on the dining table. First, she glared at her friend, then turned her irked gaze on Xia Yu, "You little brat..."

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Xia Yu had no intention of escalating the situation with the violent woman. He raised his hand to stop her shouting and pointed at the curry rice steaming on the table, "Just eat it and you’ll know!"

"Fine!" Ujou Mamie finally didn’t explode, "I want to see how well you can imitate!"

She picked up the second metal spoon next to the plate.

Scooped up a spoonful of rice.

Apart from the curry sauce’s glossy black color, this dish could be said to be a classic curry rice.

In the curry rice, there were always the hints of onions, carrots, and potatoes.

The true reason was that these three added vegetables, all rich in sweetness, naturally added depth to the dish’s flavor. Speaking of Ujou Mamie’s Extreme Spicy Black Curry, she pursued the extreme in spiciness during preparation. Therefore, to make the spicy flavor smoother and easier on the palate, vegetables had to be added for a secondary adjustment.

This was a dish with layers of flavor.

At the special exam, Lin Chef Qiushan Hong emphasized "structure," which included these layers of flavors.

Taking a small, fresh, and hot bite of the curry rice, Ujou Mamie’s eyes adorably widened.

"My God..."

She chewed uncontrollably, the sauce breaking down into at least twenty different spices on her tongue. Ujou Mamie’s taste buds trembled, "The doses of turmeric, anise, and black pepper are perfect!"

"Bay leaves, cloves, thyme, lemongrass..."

The extremely spicy sauce made it feel like there was a flame hidden inside her body.

However, as she continued to taste carefully, Ujou Mamie began to sweat coldly down her spine.

Her body fluctuated between cold and hot.

She was genuinely scared.

From yesterday to now, the recipe for Extreme Black Curry Rice had just been created. Except for the special hall’s kitchen, she had just cooked ’Extreme Black Curry Rice’ for the second time at Xia’s Main Store.

Yet, such a freshly devised black curry recipe had been completely imitated by a young chef the day after its creation.

No, it shouldn’t be described as stealing but rather learning openly and fairly.

Ujou Mamie regretted it so much that her guts turned green.

Her expression was colorful as she stared at Xia Yu for a good while, her lips moved, but she lost all mood to scold.

Sitting back down, Ujou Mamie continued to eat.

Liangzi Lina was also eating.

For a time, only the crisp sound of the metal spoons touching the plates remained in the restaurant.

Soon, Xia Yu served the two ladies some warm tea, and turning back to look at the table, the empty plates were set there.

"Actually, it’s different."

Liangzi Lina said softly, "The recipe can be learned, the dish can be imitated, but the ’heart of the chef,’ the personal mark of the chef, is absolutely impossible to replicate!"

Ujou Mamie covered her head, her fingers entangled in her long hair, completely messing it up—clearly showing how down and regretful she was.

"Really?"

She hung her head and gave a bitter smile, "Why do I feel like he even replicated the imprint I gave to the dish?"

Main General Liangzi clearly choked.

"You little brat, listen!"

Soon, an emotionally composed Ujou Mamie glared at the young man, "Don’t leak my Extreme Spicy Black Curry recipe to a third party! It’s my proudest creation in recent years, priceless! If it leaks, you know the consequences!"

Xia Yu smiled slightly, "Of course!"

Ujou Mamie was annoyed, but she was helpless.

The recipe had been thoroughly learned, the roles reversed; she was now the supplicant.

Speaking of which, even if Xia Yu blabbed her recipe, and she complained to the IGO organization, and they truly confronted each other in a food battle, Ujou Mamie couldn’t see herself at an advantageous position no matter how she thought about it.

Thus, she could only hope for Xia Yu’s integrity.

Around eight o’clock at night, this newly emerged Female Special Chef left dejectedly. She did enjoy a pot of ’Jile Four Gods Porridge’ alone, but it came at the price of her unique curry recipe—a substantial loss.