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

Page 7

"What are you doing standing still?"

Lin Xu, sitting on top, broke the tranquility.

With a hint of reproach and urging, he said, "Hurry up and bring the onion soup up; you're almost past the allotted time."

"Okay, Instructor Lin."

Tadokoro Megumi snapped back to reality, a hint of panic flashing across her face.

She quickly and carefully placed a bowl of freshly made onion soup in front of Lin Xu, her hands trembling slightly.

It was as if what they were holding was not a bowl of soup, but all their efforts and expectations.

"Lecturer..."

She whispered, clearly nervous again.

After all, she didn't know if her onion soup would be approved by Lin Xu, nor did she know how she would perform in this practical assessment.

……

There are many varieties of onions.

So what kind of onions are suitable for making Parisian onion soup?

Actually, there is no answer to this question. As long as the quality is good, all onions are fine.

However, different varieties of onions vary in sweetness and spiciness, and because yellow onions have a better balance of sweetness and spiciness, they are generally considered the best for making onion soup.

Of course, the "caramelized onion" is the most crucial ingredient.

Caramelized onions are products of onions that undergo caramelization and Maillard browning.

Simply put.

Make caramelized onions.

This involves heating onions, causing the proteins and sugars within them to slowly transform into a brown substance.

This process involves two stages:

Watery and browned.

Because onions have a water content of over 70%, they will "sweat" first.

After the cells rupture, they release water and become soft. If heated continuously, the sugars and proteins inside the cells begin to decompose and produce a dark brown substance.

Therefore, the richness, depth, and complexity of the onion soup all depend on these caramelized onions.

……

"The success of onion soup depends on the cooking time and temperature."

Lin Xu took the onion soup, examined it carefully, and then stirred the thick soup with a silver spoon, creating an amber swirl: "Did you use a different cooking method?"

"Yes, it is."

Tadokoro Megumi's fingernails dug into her palm as she continued, "First, we use kelp to extract the umami flavor, then we simmer it in beef bone broth, and finally, we use chicken oil..."

"Stop! You don't need to explain further."

The sound suddenly stopped.

Lin Xu scooped up a spoonful and put it in his mouth; the swallowing sound as his Adam's apple bobbed was clearly audible.

Tadokoro Megumi stared at his right hand holding the silver spoon. After a brief ten seconds or so, Lin Xu leaned forward like a snow leopard spotting its prey: "What did you put in the soup?"

"Following the recipe information written on the whiteboard, I added rosemary and bay leaves..."

The girl's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.

"anything else?"

"Potato!"

Lin Xu suddenly stood up, the chair legs screeching as they scraped against the ground.

Then, under Tadokoro Megumi's horrified gaze, they slowly approached each other until their noses were almost touching before they stopped.

"Lecturer..."

Tadokoro Megumi gazed at Hayashi Asahi, who was standing very close to her.

Sensing his fragrant masculine scent again, she became even more flustered.

"I don't recall potatoes being an ingredient on the recipe, do I?" Lin Xu said with a gloomy expression.

"This... Instructor Lin, I'm so sorry."

"I accidentally added too much salt while cooking the onion soup, so I had to use potatoes to reduce the saltiness of the soup."

Megumi Tadokoro was so scared she was about to cry!

Chapter 9 Binding a New Role

anxious.

Her delicate hands gripped the edge of her school uniform tightly.

Those beautiful eyes would occasionally linger on the pot of onion soup that had made some terrible mistake, and then stealthily glance at Lin Xu in front of him.

Upon closer inspection, there was a hint of expectation in her eyes, but more than that...

fear!

Gradually, a thin mist clouded over those bright, lively eyes, as if they might turn into broken pearls and roll down at any moment.

Lin Xu could clearly see her biting her lower lip tightly.

Her thin shoulders drooped slightly, a posture that undoubtedly made her look pitiful!

So, the urge to continue teasing her began to dissipate, and he could only clear his throat and say in a gentle tone, "You are quite clever."

"Hey?"

Tadokoro Megumi was stunned when she heard this.

This happened during her time at Totsuki Academy, when a lecturer praised her intelligence, leaving her momentarily at a loss for words.

……

Potatoes are high in starch.

"It can absorb the salt in the soup, thereby reducing the saltiness and making the onion soup taste milder."

"Furthermore, during the stewing process, the internal starch will be gradually released, making the soup thicker and the taste richer."

"And this is also a common technique used in many classic French dishes."

Lin Xu paused deliberately at this point.

His gaze returned to Tadokoro Megumi, and seeing that her tense expression had eased slightly, he continued, "But from the perspective of medicinal cuisine, we also need to consider the interactions between ingredients."

"Onions and potatoes are both common ingredients, but when they are ingested together, they may produce more gas in the stomach and intestines, commonly known as bloating."

"More serious."

"It can also cause gastrointestinal discomfort, bloating and other symptoms."

……

"Gas?"

Instructor Lin, I...I didn't know that onions and potatoes would go well together..."

Tadokoro was both surprised and delighted.

Shocked.

Lin Xu truly lives up to his reputation as a lecturer at Totsuki Academy.

Her knowledge and charm far exceeded her expectations.

What pleased her was Lin Xu's current attitude; it seemed he didn't have much of an opinion about her unauthorized alteration of the recipe.

"The soul of cuisine is the ingredients."

"Ingredients determine the essence of a dish."

"The fixed food processing procedures applied by restaurants and eateries, compared to the diversity of ingredients used by individuals or families, actually create a question of whether the dish or the ingredients come first!"

"Under normal circumstances, restaurants can only ensure the consistency of dishes by selecting ingredients based on the menu."

"This will set a strict standard for ingredients, since the ingredients will undergo unexpected changes due to the changing seasons, cultivation methods, and so on."

"For example, many restaurants today use stock to achieve umami flavor, and it is commonly used in almost every dish."

"Exclusively for use with previous stock."

"It has a clear, purposeful change."

"100 dishes, all with the same taste."

"Only by believing in this truth can large-scale production through franchising be achieved."

……

"If."

"Each of you students is bound by convention, and you all fail to think critically, boldly innovate, and make changes."

"Then what's the point of writing 'onion soup' on the whiteboard?"

"If fatty meat is greasy, then use vegetables to balance it out; if it's bland, then use flavorful vegetables to supplement it; if it's too salty, then use tomatoes and potatoes to absorb the salt... What's wrong with that?"

"no!"

After saying that, Lin Xu picked up Tadokoro Megumi's basic academic information sheet.

I glanced at it briefly at first, then picked up a pen, intending to write a "C" in the "Overall Classroom Performance" section, representing an average level.

Just as Lin Xu's pen tip was about to touch the paper, preparing to make that decisive stroke...

suddenly.

His movements stopped.

The entire cooking classroom seemed to stand still at that moment, with only the occasional birdsong from outside the window breaking the silence.

……

From beginning to end.

Lin Xu's right hand remained suspended in mid-air.

A hint of doubt flashed in his eyes, followed by indescribable shock.

Because at this very moment, in his mind, that clear yet mechanical voice suddenly rang out again:

"Ding dong!"

"Successfully linked to the new character, Megumi Tadokoro."

"From this moment on, every dish you make that receives her praise will earn you a reward."

……

Food has no fixed taste; what suits one's palate is precious.

It is precisely because everyone has different taste preferences that such a wide variety of dishes have been created.

No matter how things change, some tastes remain the same for everyone.

No matter where you come from, what your eating habits are, or how much you love or hate among the sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty flavors, there is probably a certain irresistible taste for everyone!

After all.

Whether a dish tastes good or not is the standard for judging its quality.

If a dish tastes so good that you can't help but exclaim "Wow!" even with your eyes closed, then it must be amazing.

In the world of Food Wars!, "food" is the most important thing.

Take Totsuki Academy for example. Which student isn't working day and night in a frenzied "involution" in order to gain more power, resources, status, and influence?

As for... Lin Xu.