Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

Roland Chapel said these words with a serious expression, but his eyes were fixed on Soma Yukihira, clearly saying them specifically for him to hear.

After all, of the six students present, he didn't recognize him.

"Cook Roland Chapel, the head of the French cuisine department, is an extremely skilled and experienced master chef. Even in Totsuki Culinary Academy, he can be described as strict in his teaching."

Glancing at Soma Yukihira's expression, Megumi Tadokoro gave a brief introduction, but her eyes showed no fear, only eagerness.

She is no longer the cowardly and incompetent Tadokoro Megumi from the original story. Now, she has undergone a transformation and is not flustered even when facing Professor Roland Chapel.

Under Teacher Bai Yuan's guidance, she has greatly increased the number of times she has received an A grade. Now, her bungee jumping success rate is as high as 95%, and the remaining 5% are all B+.

Today's menu is bouillabaisse.

Although it's a very basic French dish, I'll still write the recipe on the whiteboard.

As soon as Roland Chapel finished speaking, his assistant, who had already written down the recipe for bouillabaisse, stood upright behind him.

"The time limit is two hours. The team that finishes cooking will serve it directly."

Incidentally, after a meeting and discussion among the teachers, it was decided to add an S-grade rating above the A-grade. Only one group from each classroom will receive this rating; it's an honor for the strongest students, and accumulating ten S-grades can be exchanged for a chance to attend Teacher Bai Yuan's class.

When Bai Yuan was mentioned, Roland Chapel's eyes flashed with amazement and admiration. He was definitely the most talented genius he had ever seen.

No, he has grown up; he should be considered the most skilled chef.

If his mentorship opportunity were offered to the outside world, people would fight tooth and nail to get it, even if it were worth hundreds of millions. That's the value of a top-tier seven-star chef!

"Gudu."

Roland Chapel couldn't help but swallow as the image of Bai Yuan treating them to dinner and personally cooking for them flashed through his mind.

That meal was absolutely the most delicious meal he had ever eaten in his life. If he could eat it again, he would be willing to die right now!

"Master Baiyuan's guidance?!"

"Is the reward really that generous? Looks like I absolutely have to get this S-grade rating!"

"What a joke! With me here, why would I give you an S grade?"

As Roland Chapel finished speaking, the atmosphere instantly became tense, with everyone except Tadokoro Megumi starting to challenge each other.

The newly added S-grade rating for first-year high school students immediately became coveted by everyone!

And this will be the most powerful catalyst!

"Alright, let's begin now."

As soon as those words were spoken, the kitchen immediately became busy, with people moving back and forth to the ingredient area to retrieve the ingredients they needed.

“Let’s begin. Bouillabaisse requires many kinds of fish. Because it’s a popular French dish, there are many variations. This is one of the ones that Teacher Chapel has written on the blackboard.”

Because processing a large number of fish is time-consuming, it requires two people to work together. After understanding Yukihira Soma's role, Tadokoro Megumi felt a little more relaxed.

She didn't trust the outsider, only the culinary skills she had acquired under Bai Yuan's tutelage, so she decided to personally oversee the main part of the dish.

"Ten S-grade ratings?"

Upon hearing Roland Chapel's words, Soma Yukihira murmured to himself. He had accumulated many culinary questions that he needed Shirabuchi to answer.

Now is the perfect opportunity!

Once you get ten S-rank ratings, you can take Bai Yuan's class, and all the questions that have been accumulating in your heart will be answered!

"Wait here, I'll go take a look at the recipes first. I've never properly cooked French food before."

Because he didn't know how to make this dish and was afraid of delaying Tadokoro Megumi's progress, Yukihira Soma walked towards the whiteboard and looked at the recipe on it.

"Huh? You don't know how...?"

Tadokoro was somewhat surprised. After hearing his boastful remarks that morning, she thought he would be a very capable person, but she didn't expect him to be unable to cook such a basic dish.

"Soma Yukihira, let's have a contest and see who can get an S-rank rating from Professor Shapel. Let us see your true strength, and whether you're as good as your mouth is!"

Seeing Yukihira Soma walking towards him, Ueno Sugi assumed he was there to provoke him, so he spoke first, his eyes filled with fighting spirit.

"Okay, but we'll have to wait a bit."

As he spoke, Soma Yukihira walked past Sugi Ueno and stood in front of the whiteboard. He then crossed his arms and began to look at the recipes on it.

"So this is your first time making this dish? I've made it at least ten times already, and I know the process by heart. I'm sure I'll win this competition!"

Ueno Sugi chuckled at the sight, then focused his attention on the kitchen counter in front of him.

He challenged Soma Yukihira not for any other reason than to prove that the students of Totsuki Academy were not stepping stones!

It's one thing for Commander-in-Chief Totsuki to say it casually, but you, an outsider chef, actually took it seriously.

Even if we, the students of Totsuki, really become stepping stones, we will not allow an outsider like you to step on us. You rude fellow!

Chapter 160 Bouillabaisse, the Taste of Home

"I see."

Looking at the recipe for bouillabaisse written on the whiteboard, Soma Yukihira stroked his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"This dish is so similar to the cooking method that Teacher Baiyuan taught me a couple of days ago; I never noticed before..."

Tadokoro Megumi stood in front of the kitchen counter, closed her eyes and recalled the cooking methods that Shirai had taught them a couple of days ago, and was surprised to find that the two methods had quite a few similarities.

"However, Teacher Bai Yuan teaches the principles, while this dish teaches the method. To be fair, what Teacher Bai Yuan taught is actually more useful."

As if she had thought of something, the corners of Tadokoro Megumi's mouth turned up slightly.

Throughout history, countless talented chefs have shared the same ideas and thoughts.

In this situation, simply copying their recipes is like imitating a cat without truly understanding them. Only by grasping their core principles can one truly unleash some of their divine power.

By slicing three types of fish into thin slices and layering them together to make sashimi, the dish's flavor can be elevated by discarding its drawbacks and combining its strengths.

This bouillabaisse is also made by mixing several types of fish together, but it is cooked using a stewing method.

There are countless methods and approaches, but they all lead to the same goal.

"Monkfish, sea bass, and mussels—these ingredients taste delicious together. Let's use these ingredients to make this bouillabaisse."

Bouillabaisse, a world-famous soup, is surprisingly easy to make. Even an ordinary housewife can prepare it with incredible skill, creating a dish that is unforgettable and leaves a lasting impression.

However, it will definitely taste better if a skilled chef makes it.

With a precise and earnest expression, Tadokoro Megumi slashed her knife into the fish's head, then used her arm to slice it in two, handling the fish with practiced skill.

By the time Soma Yukihira returned to his original position, Megumi Tadokoro had already finished processing the monkfish and sea bass, removing the bones and perfectly extracting the fillets.

The remaining bones with some meat on them are used to make fish soup.

"These bones aren't enough; we need to add a whole sea bass. The broth for bouillabaisse requires extra fish."

Seeing that Yukihira Soma had already chopped the side dishes and was heating the pan, Tadokoro Megumi reminded him that he didn't need to rush.

"Doesn't it say on the whiteboard that we can just use the leftover fish bones to make soup?"

Soma Yukihira asked with some confusion.

Because he had never made bouillabaisse before, he didn't know the specific steps for making the dish, but based on the instructions on the whiteboard, it shouldn't be too difficult to prepare.

But why did this little girl stop him? Could the things on the whiteboard be wrong?!

"This is how bouillabaisse is made. In the Nordic region, fishermen sell the best-looking fish to customers after they catch them, and take the rest home. They remove the fish meat first and use the bones to make bouillabaisse."

This is to prevent the fish fillets from falling apart during cooking. Before simmering the fish soup, the fillets are removed and cut into small pieces, then added to the pot for cooking only after the soup has been prepared.

Tadokoro Megumi gave a brief explanation, then took a fresh sea bass, quickly killed it, and put it together with the previous fish bones.

Beside him, Soma Yukihira nodded slightly after hearing her words, feeling a greater sense of approval for the girl. He then began preparing the spice packet for the bouillabaisse according to the instructions on the whiteboard.

Thyme, bay leaves, orange peel, parsley root, and fennel, all prepared and rolled up with a scallion, make a simple French spice packet.

After preparing the sea bass, Megumi Tadokoro officially began cooking. She poured olive oil into a preheated pan, added a chopped onion, fennel root, celery, minced garlic, scallions, seeded chili peppers, and star anise, and stir-fried until fragrant.

Once the vegetables have softened, add the fish bones and fish meat, and continue to stir-fry until the fish meat turns completely white. Add a spoonful of tomato paste and two peeled and diced tomatoes.

"And there's anise liqueur, right?"

Soma Yukihira, with his keen eye, handed over the fennel wine. Looking at the fish and meat that were beginning to smell delicious in the pot, and thinking about the girl's skillful technique, he was slightly surprised.

"That's right, it's a specialty of Marseille, France."

Megumi Tadokoro nodded, took the fennel liqueur and poured it in, while Soma Yukihira brought some pre-boiled water, which was a small help.

"Simmer over low heat for about 20 minutes. During this time, could you help make a baguette?"

After tying the prepared spice packet with string to ensure the spices inside wouldn't leak out, put it into the pot. Then, Yukihira Soma saw that she added a little saffron, which wasn't on the whiteboard.

"it is good."

Soma Yukihira nodded in agreement.

The recipe for baguettes is also on the whiteboard. Although it's not an ingredient used in bouillabaisse, it is an important side dish for bouillabaisse.

"After grilling, slice it thinly and grill it again, then brush it with minced garlic to make it full of garlic flavor."

Seeing that Yukihira Soma had immediately started kneading the dough, Tadokoro Megumi gave him some instructions, then stood aside and waited, her eyes fixed on the soup pot in front of her.

However, now, when she looks at the pot, there is no tension in her eyes, but rather a sense of maturity and composure.

"Chuangzhen-kun, please bring me the filter."

Keeping a close eye on the heat in the pot, when she felt it was about right, Tadokoro Megumi took out the spices and star anise from the pot, and then took out the high-speed blender.

This thing can function like a high-speed blender, similar to an egg beater, but it has blades on it to break up cooked fish soup.

As for why this is done, it's obviously to allow the flavors to blend together perfectly.

This is the most obvious difference between Chinese fish soup and French fish soup.

One person prefers clear broth, while the other prefers thick broth. It's not a matter of which is better or worse; it's simply a difference in national tastes.

As the fish soup in the pot was broken into a fine paste, Soma Yukihira pushed the strainer over, which made Megumi Tadokoro give him a second look.

"You're quite observant. It seems that what you said at the opening ceremony was based on some truth."

"Such a trivial matter is not worth praising."

Tadokoro Megumi spoke softly as she poured the musai soup, now reduced to scum, into a strainer to remove all the large particles of residue.

Beside him, Soma Yukihira shook his head and said something, while staring intently at her. The girl's cooking skills seemed to be better than he had imagined.

And these were just the people he randomly encountered.