Chapter 232: The Sensitive "God Tongue"
"Oh? Are you quite familiar with the Yukihira family's restaurant, Hikigaya-kun?" Seeing Hachiman's mysterious demeanor, Dojima became intrigued.
"Well, not too familiar, just visited a few times occasionally with my light novel editor," Hachiman replied with a faint smile.
"But the chef of that restaurant is quite extraordinary. So, under his guidance, Soma naturally became quite excellent."
"Oh? An extraordinary chef? Who is it?" Dojima's interest deepened, and everyone, including Erina, perked up to listen.
"The person, Dojima-senpai, you should be familiar with."
"He's a student of the 69th generation, the former second seat of the Elite Ten."
"Saiba Joichiro!"
Hachiman effortlessly revealed Soma's background.
As his words fell, Dojima, who had been smiling, widened his eyes.
"Are you saying Yukihira is Joichiro's son?! But his surname? Could it be..."
"That's right. Soma's father has now changed his name to Yukihira Joichiro, and he's running a small diner together with Soma," Hachiman nodded. Watching the surprised expressions of everyone, he felt a bit pleased.
The feeling of being a spoiler is quite nice; no wonder so many people enjoy being spoiler dogs.
"Soma's enrollment in Totsuki was probably arranged by Mr. Yukihira."
Speaking of Soma's enrollment in Totsuki, Erina was one of the judges at that time. The girl started disliking Soma from that time, and Yukihira Joichiro was the chef she admired the most.
Tsk tsk, the relationships here are a bit tangled.
As expected, when he turned to look at Erina beside him, the girl's face indeed showed a complex expression.
If I hadn't appeared, Erina would probably still follow the original story, engaging in a love-hate relationship with Soma, gradually developing feelings through multiple conflicts. But now...
Looking at Soma busy on the other side with Megumi, Hachiman smiled.
You should focus on getting along with Megumi in the future; after all, red and blue make a great couple.
As for Erina, he couldn't let go. He had fallen in love with her. They had hugged and kissed before, making it impossible for him to step back and let someone else take her.
At this moment, the ingredients that Hachiman had asked Dojima for were delivered by one of the kitchen staff.
"You can ask Soma for the details later, Dojima-senpai. Now that the ingredients are here, I'll get started."
After inspecting the quality of the ingredients, Hachiman nodded, then subtly held Erina's hand.
"Erina, come with me."
"Huh... What?"
Surprised by the sudden hand-holding, Erina hadn't spoken yet when Hachiman pulled her toward the kitchen counter.
"Let go of me, you jerk."
Finally regaining her senses, Erina quickly and shyly shook off his hand. She then looked curiously at the ingredients on the counter.
"What dish are you planning to make?"
Hearing her question, Hachiman smiled faintly.
"Watch carefully. Today, I'll teach you a dish, and the ingredients are quite simple."
Upon hearing this, Erina nodded attentively. Given Hachiman's cooking skills, every lesson was a valuable experience for her.
Seeing Hachiman preparing to cook, the graduates diverted their attention to observe.
He started by soaking premium Jinhua ham in clear water to remove the oxidized layer. Afterward, he blanched it in boiling water, washed it, and cleaned mushrooms, such as tea tree mushrooms and shiitake.
Once all the ingredients were cleaned, Hachiman added green onions, ginger, and Jinhua ham to the pot, poured in water, and then added the cleaned mushrooms. He brought it to a boil over high heat and simmered it over low heat for 40 minutes.
As the ham had its inherent saltiness, he didn't add salt. Only when it was nearly cooked, he added some pepper for seasoning.
After cooking the ham, Hachiman took it out and added sliced bamboo shoots and shredded fish fins to the soup. He let them cook for 10 minutes, allowing them to absorb the rich flavor of the ham broth.
He finely sliced the ham and bamboo shoots, showcasing his knife skills. The thickness of the ham and bamboo shoots needed to match the shredded fish fins, a seemingly simple task for Hachiman.
A flash of silver, and the ham and bamboo shoots turned into uniformly thin shreds.
With the three types of shreds ready, he began the manual work. Crossing and stacking the three types of shreds, he braided them into a rope.
Seeing this, Erina was a bit puzzled. "What are you doing?"
Hachiman smiled slightly in response to her question. "Pay close attention; this is the key to this dish."
Braiding the ham, bamboo shoots, and shredded fins into a three-strand braid, he intentionally made it tight to ensure that, upon biting, it would create a "tornado" in the mouth.
Yes, Hachiman was preparing the dish inspired by "Tornado Sausage" from "Chuuka Ichiban."
He filled the braided shreds into the sausage casing. Instead of choosing to fry it, he set up a steaming rack over the ham broth he cooked earlier and steamed the sausages in it. Since the ingredients were already processed, it didn't require much time—just 20 minutes.
During this period, Hachiman started preparing the side dishes, slicing the remaining ham and frying the slices until golden brown in a pan with heated oil.
Once the potatoes and other side dishes were cooked, the sausages were ready. Hachiman arranged them on a plate with the fried ham slices and cooked potatoes, finally drizzling the prepared sauce over the dish.
"It's done. Come, taste it first!"
He picked up a sausage with a fork and offered it to Erina's lips.
Observing this scene, Erina blushed. She didn't anticipate Hachiman playing the feeding game again. However, after the previous experience, her shyness was not as pronounced. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, she opened her red lips and accepted the sausage.
From Hachiman's perspective, this scene appeared somewhat mischievous. He couldn't help but jest to himself, "Does this count as Erina having my big sausage? Nah, I'm kidding."?"
However, he wondered about the sensation of the "God's Tongue" and made a mental note to experience it if the opportunity arose.
"Mm, this is!"
As soon as she bit into it, Erina widened her eyes. In her mouth, it felt like a tornado had swept through. The flavors of ham and shredded fins scattered through this whirlwind, instantly filling her entire oral cavity with deliciousness.
The "God Tongue," already more sensitive than an average person, was suddenly stimulated so intensely that Erina's legs went soft, almost unable to stand. Fortunately, Hachiman quickly supported her shoulders.
Feeling the softness of the girl's body, Hachiman's expression became somewhat peculiar.
He wondered if, like with Utaha and Yumiko, he had discovered Erina's sensitive spot. Strangely, it turned out to be on her tongue.
Just as Hachiman marveled at this discovery, Dojima's voice echoed.
"Time's up. Both sides, stop."