Following the rule that the first one to serve their dish will lose miserably, Ryo, who was a bit slow, finally removed his headband. His wild expression turned lazy again.
"Whew~"
"It wasn't an easy win."
Then, Ryo took a deep breath and looked at Hisako, who was collapsed on the ground.
"Following the right person is important, but if all you do is follow behind your master like a little dog wagging its tail, doing everything she says, you won't accomplish anything!"
"You'll end up just like now, as her little follower, dependent on her to survive."
"And you, you have no control over your own life."
"Yes!"
"If your master is successful, the dog can enjoy the benefits too."
"But if the person you follow falls on hard times, what will you do then?"
"No!"
"Never!"
"Lady Erina would never..."
Hisako screamed in despair, tears streaming down her face.
She knew she had always been following in Erina's footsteps, never thinking of surpassing her.
Though she had found happiness in this journey, as Ryo pointed out, what would she do if Erina ever faced a crisis? How would she protect her?
"Many people see me as Lady Alice's lackey, thinking I'm not as good as her!"
"But they don't know that years ago, I was already better than her."
"You've always followed Lady Erina, but never dared to surpass her cooking philosophy. In my eyes, that's very childish."
"Between chefs, there is only the competition of the survival of the fittest, like the law of the dark forest. It's either you die, or I die."
"That's why you failed."
"In the end, following someone's shadow will only make you nothing."
These words were like a sharp sword piercing Hisako's heart. She had one thought:
Was I wrong?
Was I really wrong?
...
"Ryo, what are you gloating about?"
"A few years ago, I wasn't as good as you, but now that's hard to say!"
Alice, standing beside the judges' table, overheard Ryo mocking Hisako and bringing herself into it. She was furious.
"Lady Alice, I look forward to our cooking showdown after you win against Megumi."
As Ryo walked down from the competition stage and passed Alice, he paused slightly and said.
"I'd love that."
"We should settle this once and for all."
"Before I surpass Erina, I must win the autumn selection championship."
"And even if you stand in my way, I'll crush you without mercy!"
Alice's eyes flashed.
She knew the road to the championship in the autumn selection would be filled with blood and killing.
But she wasn't afraid. Even if she ended up like Hisako, she wouldn't feel fear.
"Good, let's see."
After saying this, Ryo lazily left the competition venue.
...
"Hisako, are you... are you okay?"
Seeing the dazed Hisako, Erina couldn't bear it and hurriedly ran onto the stage to comfort her.
Hisako slowly stood up, took a few steps back, and looked at Erina with a determination Erina had never seen before. Biting her lip, she said, "Lady Erina, I'm really sorry."
"No!"
"You didn't do anything wrong."
Hearing this, Erina hurriedly held her back and said loudly.
Hisako hesitated, tears welling up in her eyes. She shook her head and said, "I've shamed you."
"Maybe, as Ryo said, between you and me, there can only be a competitive relationship, not a master-servant relationship!"
"I... I've always followed you, using you as my role model, but as your secretary, I'm clearly unqualified. So... so... we should part ways!"
After saying this, Hisako held back her tears, turned around, and left the stage without hesitation.
"No."
"Hisako, I... I..."
Watching the suddenly departing figure, Erina was stunned.
At that moment, she felt like she had lost something important, and it made her feel very sad.
She remembered how she and Hisako had talked heart-to-heart last night, but today things had turned out like this.
...
"Let her go!"
"She's spent most of her life quietly following you and hasn't experienced any setbacks."
"Losing to Ryo in the quarter-finals might make her rethink her life goals. I don't think it's a bad thing."
Leonora stood up from the judges' table, walked over to Erina, gently patted her shoulder, and sighed.
"But..."
"I'm worried she'll leave and face danger outside..."
Erina's eyes were full of worry.
"Don't worry."
"Believe me, if she's desperate, she'll go to the tavern."
"There's no place better than there. Your secretary won't be in any danger."
Leonora's eyes flashed.
...
Food made from flour is called noodles.
Different kinds of noodles exist worldwide: in the East, there are noodles, buns, pulled noodles, steamed buns, pancakes, dumplings, and stuffed buns. In the West, there are bread and various baked goods.
Among many kinds of noodles, noodles are definitely the most common and resonate with people all over the world.
So.
Because noodles are a universal food.
The cooking showdown between Alice and Megumi was all about noodles.
After an hour of rest and adjustment, the second round of the quarter-finals began.
...
With rapid transportation and nearly instantaneous information flow, many dishes can be perfectly copied and transplanted. Especially in Tokyo, you can find flawless French cuisine, Italian dishes, top-notch kaiseki restaurants, steakhouses, sushi, and Chinese food.
Even though Tokyo is often not the origin of these cuisines or ingredients.
This bustling metropolis has built a dense network of delicious food with its powerful "urban market." It seems there's nothing Tokyo can't find or do.
But there's one thing that changes once you leave Kagawa Prefecture.
That thing is:
Udon noodles.
In northeastern Kagawa Prefecture, near Megumi's hometown, there is a kind of Takamatsu udon. These noodles are thicker than usual and relatively white.
This might be because Japan often uses imported flour, making udon noodles, which are between regular noodles and rice noodles, softer. Paired with carefully prepared broth, it becomes a delicious noodle dish.
Megumi first washed and sliced the beef and put it in a bowl.
She added oil, soy sauce, cooking wine, and cornstarch, mixed well, and marinated for 15 minutes.
She washed the broccoli and bok choy.
Boiled water in a pot, added salt, and blanched the broccoli and bok choy for 2 minutes, then drained.
From preparing the noodles to washing and slicing the ingredients, it was clear that Megumi was meticulous.
This was a stark contrast to her nervousness yesterday in Group B, where she couldn't even hold a knife steadily!
Yes.
She was very calm.
And her calmness was frightening.
"Using traditional Japanese sake, soy sauce, MSG, and dried fish flakes."
"And the noodles seem to be Takamatsu udon from Kagawa Prefecture."
"Wow, such delicate skills."
"It looks like Alice is in for some trouble this time."
Judge Leonora, not focusing on her daughter, carefully observed Megumi making the udon noodles and sighed deeply.
...
Meanwhile, Alice was adding cheese to coconut milk.
She then added a common molecular gastronomy gel, carrageenan, and heated it.
Under high heat, the ingredients underwent a chemical reaction, making them stringy.
Next.
She prepared a special tool, a syringe.
Using the syringe, she drew the cheese coconut milk and pushed it out into ice water.
This formed the noodles.
Finally, she made the beef from tofu.
In terms of aroma and appearance, her molecular cheese noodles looked exactly like regular noodles.
This dish was deceptive, and no one could tell the difference.
Clearly, even though the theme was noodles, their approaches and understanding were completely different.
Megumi used udon, while Alice used coconut milk and cheese to "create" noodles with a chewier texture.
"Wow!"
"Different kinds of noodles."
"Yeah, Megumi's udon looks very appetizing."
"I thought she was insignificant, but she's quite impressive."
"She could handle monkfish with the hanging cut method, so she has some skills, right?"
"Wow!"
"Megumi used to be at the bottom!"
"I remember her always getting E and D grades in assessments. But since the school year started, her cooking has been praised by the instructors."
The audience was amazed by the different cooking styles.
...
Time passed, and soon both finished their noodle dishes.
The noodles on the cold bamboo tray were as translucent as porcelain from Jingdezhen. The noodles were flat and wide, not round and thick.
The broth looked simple, like ordinary soy sauce soup.
But inside, there was a secret, a dashi broth made from seafood!
On the flat wide udon, there was a large piece of fried tofu, its color resembling a fox's fur, hence the name "Kitsune Udon."
Finally, a handful of chopped green onions completed Megumi's noodle dish.
Yes!
To be more precise.
Megumi's noodle dish was an improved version of cold In
aniwa udon.
"As expected."
"She really used Takamatsu udon!"
"These udon noodles, I think, need to be made with salted water first."
"Salt promotes the formation of gluten in the dough, making the noodles flavorful."
"During the process, adding rice flour to the dough makes noodles that are between regular noodles and rice noodles."
"Eating them gives a soft texture."
Leonora blinked and understood.
Udon can be eaten hot or cold, with or without broth, boiled or stir-fried, with simple seasonings or rich toppings.
But now, Megumi chose the coldest method.
"Yes, to perform well in the autumn selection, I went back home and brought many local products."
Hearing this, Megumi nodded.
...
Slurp, slurp.
Slurp, slurp.
The noodles were smooth and chewy.
The udon had the perfect texture.
The dipping sauce was made from bonito, sardines, mackerel, and kombu, giving a rich fish flavor.
Even with just the dipping sauce, it was delicious.
No exaggeration.
This demonstrated the skill:
How delicious can thick, plump, chewy udon noodles be?
"Wow, surprisingly, I thought these regional udon noodles wouldn't suit our taste. But this cold noodle is warm and delicate, making me feel energized."
After one bite, the Director excitedly stood up and burst his clothes, shocking everyone.
"Am I dreaming?"
"The bottom-ranked dish made the Director burst his clothes?"
"This growth rate is terrifying!"
"Impressive!"
"It seems her nomination for the autumn selection wasn't by chance."
...
"Okay, my turn."
Alice was shocked that Megumi's dish made her grandfather burst his clothes.
But she calmed down and presented her dish.
"Braised beef noodles?"
"No, it doesn't look right."
Coming from the cool, refreshing cold noodles, the Director was captivated by Alice's molecular noodles.
Curious, he tasted his granddaughter's dish.
Rip!
Next moment, he burst his clothes again.
The fantastic yet real scene amazed the crowd again!
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