Morning.
The first-year students' classes were in full swing.
Due to the impact of the Totsuki reform incident, Soma and the others had classes taught by the Elite Ten, who were also students. They served as lecturers, teaching and guiding the classes.
Later.
With Azami's downfall.
The newly appointed Director, Erina, abolished this rule.
Under her direction, Totsuki Academy hired some talented and virtuous lecturers and integrated the existing lecturers and professors to return to the traditional way of teaching students.
...
At this moment, in the First Culinary Classroom.
When a handsome figure walked in, the classroom, which was as noisy as a holiday sale, instantly fell silent.
The first-year students all looked up at the new lecturer.
Standing on the podium.
He stood tall, like a pine tree, exuding a unique youthful vigor.
His features were handsome, with distinct facial features and an air of determination and confidence. His attire was simple yet stylish, often wearing a deep black shirt paired with dark trousers, giving off a clean and sharp look.
His hair was neatly arranged, and his overall aura was indeed very distinctive.
Yes!
It was no exaggeration to say.
Just standing there, he was like a shining star.
"Ahem!"
"Good morning, students. I am your new Totsuki lecturer, Suzuki. You can all call me Mr. Suzuki."
Suzuki's voice was magnetic.
Warm and gentle, like the first rays of spring sunlight.
This unique voice was like a signature, instantly recognizable.
Meanwhile.
He was also observing the many students below.
Finally, his gaze settled on Soma, who seemed lost in thought.
...
Soma's expression was wooden.
Sometimes, his brows furrowed deeply, as if he was deep in thought, oblivious to everything around him.
Since last night, he had been troubled, and the reason was clear:
An older brother!
How could he have an older brother?
According to his father Joichiro, the leader of the midnight chefs was a foster son Joichiro had adopted during his travels in America.
This young man had been following Joichiro, learning culinary skills.
Later, in the midnight chefs' competition, he defeated all his opponents and became famous, eventually leading the midnight chefs!
He continuously demonstrated his exceptional culinary skills, promoting the "Shokugeki" rules to the chefs of the culinary world, and used various methods to defeat many elite chefs, causing numerous restaurant closures.
Ultimately, he was the one who orchestrated the invasion of Japan by the midnight chefs.
Thinking about such a person being trained by his father.
It was no wonder Soma was puzzled!
He!
Now, he was even doubting if he was Joichiro's biological son.
How could a foster son and a biological son have such vastly different treatments?
...
"Heh!"
"So, this is my foolish little brother?"
Suzuki, no, the person disguised as Suzuki, who successfully infiltrated Totsuki Academy as a lecturer, Asahi Saiba, withdrew his gaze and muttered to himself.
Then, with a warm smile, he said, "Alright, before we start the class, I have a question!"
"Many students, when they join this top culinary academy in Japan, come with great expectations, thinking they will learn a lot and gain many honors."
"However, under the harsh competitive system."
"They inevitably become disheartened, powerless, even desperate."
"They wonder why, despite their hard work here, they still haven't learned much."
"And."
"The lecturers don't seem to teach much."
"So, what should they do?"
...
The question!
Though it was stuttering.
It was a common problem that had long plagued Totsuki students, especially the freshmen with poorer grades.
Yes, is being a chef really that great?
With this effort, doing something else might have already made them successful!
At first, everyone was excited and happy to have passed the entrance exam and be able to study at Totsuki, as Asahi said, the top culinary academy in Japan, thinking they had a bright "future" ahead.
But after school started, the pressures were immense and unbearable for most people.
At this point, everyone realized.
Maybe giving up wasn't such a bad idea.
After all, with a graduation rate below 10%, no matter how hard they tried, they were destined to be "discarded pieces" or cannon fodder, as Senzaemon Nakiri put it!
...
"Now is the age of the Internet."
"Whether you want to learn online software, photography, or self-media, there are various video tutorials available."
"Whatever you want to learn won't be as difficult as before."
"Yes!"
"Admittedly."
"This is the era of supreme cuisine, where chefs hold high social status."
"But traditional professions are clearly on a decline, with limited development prospects and personal growth space."
"Speaking of which."
"Some students might think about inheriting the family business."
"After all, their families might be the largest suppliers, processing plants, etc., in Japan. This isn't necessarily a wrong idea."
"But is it really good?"
Asahi deliberately paused for a moment.
From the students' bright eyes, he seemed to see a glimmer of expectation, making his lips curl slightly, as he continued, "Let me share my own experience."
"I once interned at a Chinese restaurant in America that specialized in Teochew marinated dishes."
"The customers were mostly local Chinese."
"I stayed there for over a year, and the head chef never taught me anything."
"I just watched how he did it, and then followed along."
"When I left the restaurant, I didn't even know the ratio of the marinade, so I bought spices and soy sauce and hid in a small dark room, constantly experimenting."
"I sought out information to understand the properties of spices."
"And the primary flavors of the marinade."
"After a lot of research, my marinade was as good as the one from that restaurant."
...
Asahi spoke passionately, with expressive gestures.
His experiences were indeed very inspiring and realistic to the students.
Unconsciously.
The entire culinary classroom.
Became even quieter, with only Asahi's voice echoing, and the students listening intently.
"Later, I followed a very skilled chef."
"I called him Father, and he happily adopted me."
"He was the head chef at a five-star hotel, often visited by WGO-star chefs, who sent him many high-end ingredients."
"Like hundreds of pounds of matsutake mushrooms, caviar, black truffles, Iberian ham, bluefin tuna, Japanese Wagyu beef, bird's nest, abalone..."
"Various top ingredients I encountered daily."
"I learned many culinary skills from him and broadened my horizons."
"He was very kind!"
"He let me taste those high-end ingredients."
"Telling me to remember their flavors, advising me that only by remembering the taste of ingredients could I create better dishes!"
"He taught me not to just replicate recipes but to understand cooking principles."
"To use the simplest methods to bring out the flavors of ingredients, utilizing even the trimmings, and discarding the spoiled parts."
"If, in learning certain dishes."
"If you're in a strange city without those ingredients, does that mean you can't cook?"
"So to this day, I have never been impressed by any so-called secret recipes or techniques."
"As long as you understand the characteristics of ingredients, even without secret recipes, you can make delicious dishes!"
"Chefs, essentially, need to master four adjustments."
"Adjusting heat."
"Adjusting water."
"Adjusting flavor."
"Adjusting mindset."
"Of these four, adjusting the mindset is the most crucial."
"Having the right mindset to cook is the basic quality of an excellent chef. Cooking with emotions cannot produce good food."
"At Totsuki Academy, only the top student can teach you how to be number one!"
"And I don't deny that talent is important, but behind that talent is a lot of unseen effort."
"If you want something, you must strive for it."
"Otherwise, do you expect others to give it to you?"
"Following a top student for a year teaches you more than following average people for five years."
"So, in the coming days, let me lead you all!"
"I will use my strength to help everyone become the best students, the best chefs!"
...
The once dazed Soma was completely stunned.
He listened to Asahi's lecture, feeling profoundly shaken.
This description.
These experiences.
Were vividly captivating.
And the nurturing father in America, his teachings, and views on food, ingredients, and chefs mesmerized and envied Soma.
This reminded him of his father Joichiro's foster son, his brother!
"Huh?"
"Could it be?"
"Is this lecturer on the podium my brother?"
Soma suspiciously stared at Asahi but shook his head, finding it hard to believe in such a coincidence.
Besides, he knew the midnight chefs were at odds with Totsuki Academy.
Could it be.
He would foolishly walk into a trap?
But again, this new lecturer indeed seemed extraordinary.
"I'm curious to see what kind of students a chef from America, someone who has been by a five-star hotel's head chef's side, will train at Totsuki."
Soma muttered to himself.
...
"Alright."
"Enough talk."
"Now, let's get to the main point. For this class, I will give you a culinary task. You just need to complete it before the end of the class."
"Don't worry, whether the dish is good or not, I won't fail you or make any expulsion decisions."
"But… if I see anyone not putting in effort, I won't hesitate to punish them!"
Finally, Asahi, standing on the podium, spoke with a playful smile.
The students below were both surprised and happy, surprised at another assessment, but happy they wouldn't face expulsion as long as they weren't too terrible.
Before the students could react, As
ahi finally announced the topic for today's class:
Create a dish using ingredients unrelated to cooking skills!
...
"Huh?"
"Unrelated to cooking skills?"
Seeing Asahi write the topic on the whiteboard, Soma's expression turned cautious and serious.
Ingredients unrelated to cooking skills?
What could that be?
With less than forty minutes left until the end of class.
To successfully create a dish that would impress this new lecturer seemed quite challenging!
"Lecturer!"
"Can you give us a hint about what ingredients unrelated to cooking skills might be?"
A student, unable to figure out the task, reluctantly raised his hand and asked Asahi.
"Think for yourself; don't expect answers from me."
Asahi glanced at the student, shrugged, and replied nonchalantly.
...
With no other choice.
All the students could only ponder what ingredients unrelated to cooking skills might be.
Beautiful presentation.
Fresh ingredients.
Tender, delicious texture...
And stimulating seasonings.
Indeed, ingredients unrelated to cooking skills mean the focus isn't on the cooking techniques, but rather on the ingredients that don't require techniques such as:
No frying, sautéing, stir-frying, roasting, poaching, searing, stuffing, braising, simmering, baking, grilling, smoking, etc., to handle the ingredients, fitting the topic's intention.
In essence, this task tests a chef's adaptability, ingredient selection, knife skills, and other abilities.
So, in Soma's mind, he quickly thought of sashimi.
Similarly:
Fruit platters, molecular gastronomy.
These dishes also align with the idea of "ingredients unrelated to cooking skills."
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