Chapter One Hundred and Twelve: No Rice, No Life
As I lift the lid off the pot, a sweet and savory aroma suddenly assaults my face. On the gently bubbling surface, golden circles of fat float—rendered from the mad otter meat. I take a quick taste of the broth, and wow, it is delicious! Rich but not overpowering… it has that perfect, well-extracted flavor!
“Alright, shall we eat?”
“Got it. Plates and drinks are ready!”
“As expected, you’re so prepared! As usual, please help yourselves!”
I heaped the freshly stewed meat and potatoes onto a large platter and placed it squarely in the center of the table. Ideally, you’d let it cool once and reheat it to allow the flavors to soak in more, but my stomach was already at its limit! Today, we’re eating right away!
Since we also had the golden roe from the milk trout, I didn’t use rice bowls but instead served the rice in deep soup bowls. Then, I took the roe out of the fridge… All set!
“I’m grateful to have food again today.”
“Bless this bounty I’m about to consume.”
“Gratitude for thy manifold blessings.”
“Humbly accepting thy kindness, I partake of this day’s fare.”
“Itadakimasu!”
Surrounded by steaming, freshly made dishes, everyone said their prayers, then reached for their utensils and chopsticks at the same time.
The first thing we go for is meat and potato stew. Meat is best when it’s hot, right? I totally get it! Of course, I have joined in the serving frenzy too! Fluffy potatoes, tender onions, slightly softened carrots, plump mushrooms soaked in the broth, and the mad otter meat—its fatty parts melting and the lean parts firm—I enjoy them all!
“This meat is amazing! It’s firm, but the fat just melts in your mouth!”
“The mad otter I ate back home was terribly greasy, but this has just the right amount of fat removed… I could eat this endlessly!”
Mr. Ville and Mr. Xenon had barely taken a bite of the mad otter meat when they froze, their eyes widening. They gave me a thumbs up before diving back into their servings of stew with gusto. Well, I’m glad it suits their taste!
“The meat flavor is so rich. The broth is tasty, but the meat still retains its richness.”
“The meat… it’s so good… I’m in heaven!”
“You’re right, this meat is incredibly delicious! And the vegies that have soaked up its flavor… especially the potatoes…!”
The meat, packed tightly with fibers, had been simmered for quite a while, but it still held its shape. Yet, it isn’t tough at all. One bite and it easily tore apart. Is it because of the high density of muscle fibers and moisture content? When you bite down, the texture is firm yet elastic, and the juices and umami burst out from the inside.
The layer of fat on top wobbles and melts on my tongue, making for an interesting contrast. But personally, I think the true star of this stew is the potato. Potatoes that have absorbed all the umami from the meat and other vegetables—that’s the main attraction of the meat and potato stew. You could even say the meat is just there to flavor the broth.
By the way, in the Takanashi household, we always added aburafu (deep-fried wheat gluten) to such stew. It adds richness and is so delicious.
“…Indeed. Even I can eat vegetables like this. It’s good, really good…”
“It’s soaked up the flavors of all the ingredients! Oh, let’s add some roe too…!”
I deliberately cut the large potato pieces with my chopsticks, letting the broth soak into the cross-section… then took a big bite. The potato is so soft it can be mashed with just my jaw and tongue. It has absorbed all the umami, clinging to my tongue with a creamy texture. Follow that with a mouthful of rice as a chaser… It might not be the most elegant, but it’s truly delicious!
Mr. Ville, who had just tasted the caramelized onions, was helping himself to a second serving of the stew. Seeing him take care to include vegetables too, it seems he really enjoyed it.
Now then. While everyone is engrossed in the stew, I think I’ll indulge in some roe!
“…These are… fish eggs, right? Are they edible?”
“We ate them all the time back where I’m from. They were considered a delicacy!”
“I see… cultural differences in food, eh?”
Taking advantage of the fact that we had a whole large container full of roe, I generously topped my white rice with the golden eggs. Xenon watched me nervously as I did so. Well, I’ve heard that people in the West don’t eat much fish roe… I guess it’s not commonly eaten in this world either… Such a shame, when it’s so delicious…
The glistening golden roe pearls sat atop the pure white rice… Thanks to my care in preparing the marinade, they maintained their beautiful gold color! Before the rice’s heat could warm them up, here goes…!
“Mmmmmm! This is… incredible!”
“Wh-What’s wrong, Rin?! Does it taste bad?!”
“No, it’s the opposite! This is so good, no amount of rice would be enough… It’s delicious!”
Mr. Ville started rubbing my back in concern when I involuntarily let out a moan. Ah, I appreciate the gesture, but I’m sorry! It was just more delicious than I expected!
The roe pearls, slightly smaller than the ones I usually see, burst in my mouth, releasing their creamy contents and filling it with rich umami. The marinade had permeated well, and there was not even a hint of fishiness. The rice gently embraced and balanced out the intense umami that nearly numbed my tongue.
The saltiness of the roe enhanced the sweetness of the rice, while the rice brought out the roe’s savory qualities… This… this… I can’t stop eating it!
“Xenon, if you’re not going to eat it… I’ll take it!”
“Now, now, I never said I wouldn’t eat it. In fact, judging by Rin’s reaction, this seems like something I absolutely must try…!”
“Right? If Rin is that engrossed in eating it, it must be super delicious!”
“Let’s divide up what we have now. At this rate, Rin and Aria will devour most of it.”
While I was lost in my rapture over the golden roe rice, it seemed a friendly war over the roe had broken out right next to me… Though, blinded by the deliciousness of the roe rice, I hadn’t noticed at all…
…For the record, the roe war was apparently settled peacefully, with Mr. Ville dividing it up among everyone.
And I should note here that we managed to polish off both the pot full of stew and the container full of golden roe completely.
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