Food Wars!: God's Tongue is no match for me.

Page 4

elegant.

noble.

She simply stood there quietly, like a fairy from heaven.

Afterwards, Erina kept replaying in her mind the shrimp tempura that Lin Xu had made.

……

suddenly.

She opened her eyes and stared intently at the dozen or so grape-shaped shrimp on the cutting board.

Grape shrimp, also known as grape prawns or scarlet prawns, has a romantic-sounding name, and its appearance is quite unique.

They are mainly distributed in Rausu and Sendai, Hokkaido, in waters 300 to 600 meters deep.

When it is in seawater, the shrimp's shell is dark red.

However, once it comes out of the sea, it turns purplish-red, just like the color of grapes, hence the name "grape shrimp".

In Japan, this type of shrimp is called "phantom ebi," which speaks volumes about its importance in Japanese cuisine.

Meaty.

Absolutely delicious and sweet!

The generous amount of shrimp roe makes every bite incredibly satisfying.

During the peak season from July to September, the flesh of the grape shrimp is particularly tender, and the roe is distinct, dark green, and looks mouthwatering.

Of course, scarcity drives up value, and its rarity contributes to its high price.

Fishermen typically need to use special shrimp traps when catching grape shrimp, because using ordinary trawl nets might damage the shrimp's flesh.

Therefore, the entire fishing process is very difficult and costly.

Sometimes only a few kilograms can be caught in a day.

Therefore, the price of grape shrimp in the market can often reach more than 1 yen per kilogram, and sometimes even approach 2 yen.

Chapter 5 Beyond the Tongue of God

The proportion of face coating is 31.6%.

"The coating time is accurate to 12 seconds."

"The peak value of the oil temperature curve, I remember... was at 180, no, 182℃..."

On the counter, the grape shrimp gleamed with a mother-of-pearl-like luster.

Erina's fingertips gently caressed the shrimp's body, its iridescent scales reflecting a wisteria-colored glow under the overhead light—a dreamlike ingredient found only at a depth of 500 meters in Hokkaido.

She closed her eyes and concentrated, and in the memory palace of the God Tongue, the fresh shrimp tempura that Lin Xu had made that morning was playing back.

In fact, the moment Lin Xu's dishes touch the tip of the tongue...

All the taste nerve units awaken at the same time, imprinting the taste of that ordinary ingredient deep into her consciousness, so that Erina will never forget it!

……

after that.

Erina opened her bright eyes.

My wrist trembled slightly the moment the ice tweezers pierced the third segment of the shrimp's neck.

The unique ring-shaped nerve cords of the grape shrimp create a tremor-like effect reminiscent of ripples in Lake Baikal during processing—a captivating beauty that only top-tier chefs know how to achieve.

As she watched the shrimp, curled up in the icy water, gradually unfold into a translucent crystal sculpture, Erina's lips curved into a slight smile.

"He was just using tiger prawns."

"How can it compare to these high-grade ingredients that are worth a fortune?"

After saying that, Erina continued to prepare the batter, using Hokkaido low-gluten flour and the water from the Fuji River, with the ratio precise to the milligram level.

The moment the grape shrimp slid into the oil.

She heard the sound of dough hitting hot oil, creating a soft, rustling sound like fine snow falling into a dry landscape garden.

"19...20...21 seconds, okay, now."

With her eyes fixed on the oil pan, Erina silently counted in her mind until the God Tongue deduced the optimal time to remove the oil from the pan, at which point she reacted swiftly.

However, just as she moved the tempura to the ceramic plate, she faintly smelled a fishy odor emanating from the shrimp heads, like rotting seaweed in the crevices of rocks on the eve of a storm.

……

Crunch, crunch.

The moment the sharp teeth pierced the mask, God's Tongue immediately issued a piercing alarm.

The sweetness of the grape shrimp is enveloped by a kind of sticky bitterness, as if swallowing an entire severely acidified coral reef.

The Tongue of God began to go berserk.

It instantly identified 63 incompatible elements:

The ice water environment caused the muscle fiber crystals to become misaligned, the batter over-locked in the flavor of the shrimp shells, and the fatal two seconds of overheating triggered a mutation in monosodium glutamate...

"啕~"

Erina staggered and grabbed the counter for support.

A bitter taste of betrayal from the fine ingredients welled up in my throat, and then I finally couldn't hold on any longer and started to vomit.

……

After a long time, she finally felt a little better.

But the residual signals of the Tongue of God still leaped between her teeth, like grains of sand stuck in a fine gear, grinding her pride into powder.

"Impossible... I even have the batter mixing ratio and frying time accurate to 0.01% error."

Erina seemed to remember something.

I quickly grabbed an unprocessed prawn, and a memory suddenly flashed back.

The sweetness of fresh shrimp.

The batter is crispy.

And, a subtle vanilla scent.

It must be said that, even by Erina's high standards, Lin Xu's skill in selecting ingredients and mastering cooking techniques is top-notch.

But for her, who possesses the tongue of God, the pursuit of perfection is an endless journey.

"why?"

"I really can't understand it."

"The Tongue of God has never given such a discordant response so clearly."

"Where exactly did the problem lie? Was it with the ingredients themselves?"

"No, I used grape shrimp. Could it be that I made a mistake in some detail during the frying process?"

"Or is it that... high-quality ingredients don't necessarily mean an improved final product, but rather that their unique properties might require completely different processing methods?"

"what!"

"So annoying!"

"That Lin Xu, really."

"How can you make such delicious tempura with such a common ingredient as tiger prawns?"

Finally, Erina slumped in a corner of the kitchen, still holding the half-eaten grape shrimp tempura in her hand, staring blankly at the night outside the window.

……

early morning.

The first ray of sunlight pierced through the thin mist, bathing the entire Totsuki Academy in its light.

In the third cooking classroom, students stood or sat, each with a face beaming with anticipation and excitement for the upcoming class.

But among this group of energetic young people, one student stood out from the crowd. She was:

Megumi Tadokoro.

A girl with an introverted personality and a gentle nature.

At this moment, her hands unconsciously clasped together, and her eyes flickered with unease and tension.

Her beautiful face was slightly pale; the all-night studying last night had brought her little comfort, but rather made her feel tired.

Then, in order to alleviate anxiety.

She began to write a large "人" (person) character on the palm of her hand.

Then she brought her palm close to her mouth and made a swallowing motion, as if she could swallow the unease and inferiority along with it.

"I wonder what kind of questions Saya will ask in class today?"

Tadokoro Megumi thought to herself.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm her inner turmoil.

Last night, despite being exhausted from studying late into the night, she persevered and finished reviewing all the information about the ingredients and cooking skills that might be covered in today's lesson.

Sigh, I hope I can perform well in class today, at least...

Don't let yourself fall too far behind!

……

Jingle bell, jingle bell.

The school bell finally rang loudly.

The door to the cooking classroom was gently pushed open under the watchful eyes of everyone present.

In an instant, a gentle breeze swept by, carrying the fresh scent of flowers and plants outside the window, making the atmosphere in the classroom cheerful.

behind the door.

Slowly entering was a young man dressed in a neat chef's uniform.

His appearance quickly became the focus of attention.

Lin Xu, this young and talented culinary instructor, instantly attracted everyone's attention with his extraordinary temperament and handsome appearance.

With his tall and upright posture and steady gait, every step exuded composure and confidence. The chef's uniform he wore didn't appear stiff or restrained at all; instead, it conveyed style and elegance.

"Wow! So handsome!"

Some students murmured in surprise, which was not unexpected.

After all, in this visually-oriented era, Lin Xu's appearance and temperament, while only slightly inferior to those of the "readers" of this book, undoubtedly added a lot to his appeal.

……

The appearance of Lin Xu.

It was quite a surprise to the students.

According to the course schedule, this lesson in the third cooking classroom should have been taught by Saya, an instructor from the Japanese cuisine department.

But undoubtedly, he was like a breath of fresh air, immediately dispelling the fog in the students' hearts.

"what?"

"A new lecturer?"

Looking at the handsome Lin Xu, Tadokoro Megumi was completely dumbfounded.

Chapter 6 Onion Soup

look.

I slowly scanned the entire cooking classroom.