Food Wars, My Dishes Don't Just Shine

Hearing Mito Ikumi's words and seeing her incredulous expression, Bai Yuan slowly explained.

From an objective perspective, high-quality ingredients are the result of careful cultivation in various fields, and their superior quality can indeed bring about a qualitative leap in cooking, which is beyond doubt.

But to make a dish truly exceptional, it requires a resonance between the ingredients.

Simply put, it's about cleverly combining ingredients to create a synergistic effect, resulting in an overall delicious flavor that far surpasses the sum of the individual flavors of each ingredient.

"Let's take this dish as an example. The clue to this dish is shrimp oil."

Seeing that Mito Ikumi still looked confused, Baiyuan thought for a moment and then used the dish in front of him as an example to explain it to her in the simplest and most understandable way.

"When pre-treating the rice, I used shrimp oil, starch, and salt, and when making the golden rice cakes, I used shrimp oil again..."

Bai Yuan picked up the peony shrimp golden rice cake with a soft-boiled egg and walked towards the dining table in the living room, recounting the process of making the dish.

The entire dish uses shrimp oil as a culinary guide, making the most of the flavor of the peony shrimp.

The beauty of this seasoning lies in its ability to create a harmonious blend of flavors throughout the dish, allowing the tastes of various ingredients to naturally merge without any sense of disharmony, as if they were meant to be paired together.

This is also an essential element for creating luminous dishes.

"Don't think about it too much now, the food will taste worse when it gets cold."

As Bai Yuan explained, he placed the dish in the center of the table.

After handing Mito Ikumi a set of cutlery, he personally cut the dish on the plate in half evenly.

The semi-cooked egg yolk slowly flowed out, adding a brighter golden color to the rice cake that was originally fried to a light yellow.

The first thing your sense of smell will detect is the rich aroma of shrimp oil.

The pan-fried shrimp heads and shells release a deep seafood flavor that blends perfectly with the creamy aroma of butter, creating a rich and enticing complex fragrance.

The soft-boiled egg has a gentle eggy aroma.

The peony shrimp releases a sweet, refreshing ocean scent.

The fried scallion shreds on top add a slightly charred aroma and a subtle spiciness.

A variety of aromas come together in one dish, clashing yet blending together, ultimately creating the complex and profound rich flavor of this dish!

"Gudu..."

"That's true, let's talk about it after we finish eating."

Smelling the complex and enticing aroma, Mito Ikumi couldn't help but swallow.

She had actually been itching to get started for a long time, but Bai Yuan was watching, and in order to leave him with a relatively dignified impression, she didn't pounce on him like a starving ghost.

Now that she had received permission from Hakubuchi to taste it, Mito Ikumi immediately picked up her utensils.

She deftly cut off a piece of golden rice cake, coating the cut surface evenly with egg and soy sauce foam, and then elegantly put it into her mouth.

"The simple seasoning of salt highlights the deep flavor of shrimp oil, and the rich aroma of the sea slowly spreads in the mouth through the golden rice cake."

The rice cakes, pan-fried until golden brown, are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The savory aroma of shrimp oil permeates every grain of rice, and the slightly charred outer layer formed by mixing with starch provides a crispy texture, while the inside retains the unique softness of glutinous rice.

Mito Ikumi's face showed enjoyment as the thick egg liquid, coating the rice cake, gave it a warm, creamy texture.

The whipped egg white foam resembles savory clouds, not only neutralizing the richness of the egg yolk but also layering with the umami of the shrimp oil to create a complex umami flavor similar to seafood broth.

This feeling is simply irresistible!

"And then there's this peony shrimp..."

Muttering to herself, Mito Ikumi reached out with her chopsticks, picked up a shrimp, and savored it carefully.

The pan-fried shrimp meat is translucent and bouncy. The slight acidity from the lemon juice marinating enhances the natural sweetness of the shrimp meat. When you bite into it, the juice that seeps out from the shrimp meat fibers collides with the crispy aroma of the rice cake, and the umami flavor bursts out almost instantly.

"This feeling is amazing!"

The flavors of shrimp oil and shrimp umami blended together in the golden rice cake, and Mito Ikumi couldn't help but close her eyes. Then she felt the tide surging like ocean waves, washing over her body in layers.

Mito Ikumi twirled a bit of scallion on top with her fork and put it in her mouth.

The crispy fried scallions provide a touch of smokiness and spiciness, while the slight bitterness and floral aroma of the pansy petals balance out the greasiness.

"This...the flower petals that Teacher Bai Yuan casually plucked for decoration actually have this effect!?"

As she savored the exquisite combination of crispy fried scallions and pansy petals, Mito Ikumi's shock intensified, and her admiration for Hakubuchi grew.

She knew best what ingredients she had at home; they were mostly leftovers and unrelated ingredients. The pot of pansies was left by the previous owner.

But Bai Yuan managed to turn these leftover ingredients into a dazzling dish!

Although the light was very faint, it did not change the fact that it was a dish made with light.

This is Chef Bai Yuan, one of the world's top chefs!

If Bai Yuan weren't so young and had less experience in the culinary world, this "one of" could be completely removed; he would be the strongest chef in the world!

The admiration in his heart had somehow surfaced on his face, and his fervent gaze made Bai Yuan feel a little embarrassed. He could only awkwardly touch his nose and try to change the subject.

"Every ingredient in the world has its purpose. Even a flower or a blade of grass can sometimes be very useful because of the flavor it contains."

Just like rosemary in Western cuisine.

Before its culinary uses were discovered, who would have imagined that this spice could both remove fishy smells and enhance umami? Its unique woody pine aroma adds layers to grilled meats, giving simple grilled dishes a rich flavor profile.

As a man who had studied biology for several years, Bai Yuan knew every single edible ingredient in his biology textbook by heart.

In his view, there is nothing that cannot be eaten, not even a flower, a blade of grass, a tree, or a leaf; only an unprofessional chef cannot cook them to their full flavor.

"What you said makes sense, I've learned something."

A skilled chef is adept at utilizing the elements around them to achieve their goals and create a worthy dish.

The essential difference between Baekyeon and an ordinary chef lies in...

He can transform any ordinary ingredient into a top-notch dish, while ordinary chefs can often only reach a high level of skill in a specific ingredient or cuisine.

Pastry chefs are not good at stir-frying, stir-fry chefs cannot cook Western food, and Western food chefs do not understand Chinese food.

Under the same time conditions, few people can achieve such comprehensive mastery across fields as Bai Yuan, and make outstanding achievements in each professional field.

This trait endowed him with exceptional culinary adaptability.

No matter what kind of dish he is faced with, he can always bring out the full potential of the existing ingredients and present them in their most perfect state.

In the culinary world, such chefs are known as all-around chefs.

Bai Yuan, on the other hand, maximized his six-dimensional attributes, becoming a true all-rounder!

"Speaking of which, your hair is still wet. This is a rare opportunity, let me help you."

If you've had too much sashimi, it's nice to switch to grilled fish once in a while. Sashimi is tender, but grilled fish has a richer, more robust flavor.

Mito Ikumi was someone he had his eye on, and the shy demeanor she occasionally showed when she was alone with him was genuine; she was most likely interested in him.

Since one can enjoy the company of a beautiful woman, who would want to sleep on a hard bed?

"Hey... blow-dry, blow-dry your hair?"

After being reminded by Bai Yuan, Mito Ikumi realized that she had only simply dried her head with a towel after coming out of the bathroom, and immediately blushed.

It wasn't because her hair was wet, but because the other person offered to blow-dry it for her!

This is just a small matter.

But for Mito Ikumi, who had always longed for Bai Yuan's attention, or even his favoritism, she was somewhat flattered.

There is no other reason.

In the past, Bai Yuan would never have done anything so ambiguous to her. He would even avoid intimate contact as much as possible on ordinary days, let alone blow-dry her hair when they were alone.

Now that he's done this, does it mean that after seeing her in such a disheveled state, Teacher Bai Yuan was also somewhat moved?

"Meat Charm, where do you keep your hair dryer? Do you need my help? It'll be easier to dry your hair from behind, and it'll be much faster than if you do it alone."

Seeing Mito Ikumi's dazed expression, Hakugen urged her on.

However, his words sent a shiver down her spine, and her eyes filled with shame and indignation.

"Teacher Bai Yuan, where did you hear that title from!?"

It's so embarrassing to call someone that in public.

"Meat Demon" is a nickname that Mito Ikumi has among the students because she is skilled at cooking meat dishes and her name contains the character "魅" (mei, meaning charm/charm). Therefore, she is affectionately called "Meat Demon" by everyone.

Of course, Mito Ikumi herself did not agree.

Since the nickname came from Hakubuchi, Mito Ikumi felt ashamed and couldn't utter a single word of reproach.

Chapter 318 Mito Ikumi, who is insecure, finds skin color to be no flaw!

"An embarrassing nickname? I think it's quite cute. 'Meat' represents your culinary skills, and 'charm' represents your alluring appearance. Isn't that a perfect match?"

Seeing Mito Ikumi's flushed cheeks and embarrassed expression, Shiro chuckled.

As he spoke, he reached out and pinched her cheek, praising her sincerely.

"A charming appearance... I'm nowhere near as good as you describe. I've always been quite dark-skinned. When I was little, people even jokingly called me Cinderella, which made me so angry that I grabbed a teddy bear and chased them for three miles. In the end, I managed to ride on their backs and make them cry..."

How could someone like me possibly be associated with the word "alluring"?

When she got to the heart of the matter, Mito Ikumi's eyes visibly dimmed. She had always been darker-skinned than the average person, which was the reason for her inferiority complex.

Although she usually appears very outgoing, that's just a way of hiding her inner pain, and that's the real reason why she doesn't dare to express her feelings to Bai Yuan.

Rather than being rejected after confessing her feelings, she would rather stay by his side quietly, even if she could only remain an unknown person.

"You can't be called dark-skinned! You haven't seen those guys in Africa. Those guys are really dark-skinned. At night, you can't see anything except your eyes."

Even so, some of them were beautiful, though their skin was so dark that it was genuinely hard to accept.

Bai Yuan admitted that there are beautiful women in Africa, with delicate and three-dimensional features, smooth and delicate skin, and a graceful appearance. It can be said that they are good in every way except for their dark skin.

But his aesthetic sense just can't accept it.

But Mito Ikumi is different! She's not simply evil; in fact, in Bai Yuan's eyes, she's not even that evil.

It's like a perfectly grilled steak, slightly charred but cooked to perfection, with juices constantly oozing out due to the heat!

"Am I not dark-skinned enough...?"

Mito Yumi bit her lower lip, taking Bai Yuan's words as comfort, but her inner inferiority complex could not be resolved by these simple words.

"Of course not! At most, you'd be considered a dark-skinned hot girl, not in a derogatory sense. There are quite a few people in society who like this style."