Shokuki: Start with an izakaya and make everyone cry

The moonlight is like a wash.

It is not as dazzling as the daytime, but becomes soft and clear.

Through the sparse clouds, it falls on every corner of the Totsuki Academy, adding a bit of fantasy and poetry to this school full of food atmosphere.

The windows of the teaching building.

Most of the lights have been turned off.

Only a few lonely night lights are left, flickering in the dark.

And these faint lights echo the sparse stars in the distant sky, forming a warm and slightly lonely night scene.

A certain narrow path, with trees on both sides swaying gently in the night wind.

The moonlight shines through the gaps in the leaves, casting mottled light and shadow, paving a path of light and shadow for pedestrians, and every step has a different rhythm and rhythm!

The lake in the mountains is even clearer and quieter under the moonlight.

The lake surface, with silver waves, is like a huge mirror, reflecting the stars in the sky and the bright moon.

Occasionally.

One or two night birds chirping, breaking the silence.

On the path by the lake, there may be students or teachers returning late, slowing down and enjoying this rare tranquility and beauty.

…

As we all know, udon is a Japanese noodle.

It is made from wheat, and there are special regulations on thickness and length.

Among them, there are many.

For example, Akita's Inaniwa udon, Gunma's Mizusawa udon, Saitama's Kasu udon, etc.

It is known as the three major Japanese noodles together with soba noodles and green tea noodles.

Hmm!

It is an indispensable protagonist in Japanese restaurants.

At this moment, somewhere in Totsuki Academy. Tall buildings stand tall, staggered and far and near. Against the background of blue sky and white clouds, silhouettes of various geometric patterns are depicted.

The style of the entire building is elegant and magnificent.

It is magnificent, solemn and elegant. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is exquisitely arranged and interesting.

Erina Nakiri first looked around at the chefs who were kneeling down below, then she retracted her gaze and slowly picked up a bowl of udon noodles to taste.

Although she is now the high-ranking commander of Totsuki, she still takes some free time every day to use the ability of the tongue of God to taste the dishes made by famous chefs!

The first bite, the udon slid into her mouth "whoosh"!

The next chopstick, I learned my lesson.

Chewing the udon slowly, the tongue and teeth have a soft texture like soft candy.

Unconsciously, the tense muscles after exercise also relax in the faint wheat fragrance...

This old Japanese noodle.

It was born in Sanzaki, Neon Country in the 9th century.

At that time, a monk studied Buddhism in the Celestial Empire, and then brought the method of making noodles back to Kagawa. When combined with the wheat flour produced in abundance in the local area, udon noodles were born.

What is udon?

Few people can clearly explain the answer to this question.

Udon is made of salt, flour and water. According to the standard, noodles with a width of more than 1.7 mm and a thickness of between 1 and 3.8 mm are qualified to be called udon.

At the same time, apart from the types, udon noodles also have different schools.

Udon is divided into two schools in Japan, Sanuki Udon and Inaniwa Udon. In the past, the former was a popular food, and the latter was supplied to the nobility and the emperor.

Traditional Sanuki Udon must be stepped on the dough to make it elastic and gluten-like. At that time, this practice was difficult to be accepted by the upper class, so Inaniwa Udon, which was hand-pulled noodles, was created.

Of course, considering the hygiene problem, many udon noodles are now made by machines to replace the step of stepping on the dough.

Unlike ramen with a thick soup base, udon noodles pursue simplicity and simplicity, emphasizing the aroma of wheat. Often, a bowl of elegant bonito soup with some chopped green onions is enough.

Hmm.

If you say:

If you want to eat it in a richer way, you can add a raw egg.

Especially the kind of udon noodles wrapped in oily egg juice, which is more slippery and sweet!

…

In fact.

Udon noodles can be eaten in many ways, and they are also very suitable when paired with tempura.

The taste is smooth and crispy, light and fragrant, and can be eaten separately or stored in soup.

The snow-white udon noodles are dipped in bonito soy sauce. In the eyes of Erina Nakiri, this way of eating can taste the flour fragrance and toughness of udon noodles to the greatest extent.

However, it is far from enough.

Erina is still chewing the udon noodles in her mouth.

With her eyes closed, her serious and thoughtful look makes the chefs below tremble with fear.

…

Although it uses the same ingredients as ordinary hand-rolled noodles, the taste of udon has its own special features.

Because udon dough contains high salt and low water content, it needs to be folded and kneaded repeatedly during production, and the dough needs to be rested for a long time to fully stretch the gluten of the flour, so that the udon has a chewy, moderately soft and hard texture.

The salt content in udon noodles is about 5% of the weight of the flour, while the water content is only 43%-45% of the flour, so the dough is dry and hard when it is just mixed, and it is difficult to handle.

But chefs with slightly sophisticated cooking skills always have some simple wisdom.

Under the premise of low water content, the stretching and gluten of the dough can only be achieved by resting it for a long time.

Although it is time-consuming.

But it is not tiring to make, and it is not very complicated.

Udon has a wide range of uses. It can be made into cold noodles, soup noodles or fried noodles. You can eat it any way you want.

There is a very famous fox udon, which is actually soup udon with seasoned fried tofu added. According to legend, foxes like to eat this kind of tofu, so it is called fox udon.

Japanese ramen usually comes with rich side dishes and rich soup.

But most udon soup noodles are paired with a simple clear soup. I think it may be to highlight the taste of udon. The springy noodles made with a lot of time and effort are the protagonist of the soup noodles.

…

Japanese cuisine.

They pay special attention to a healthy diet, a combination of meat and vegetables, and very little oil.

And I like to eat seafood, especially all kinds of raw food. I don’t add too many seasonings or anything, and I like the original taste of the food.

“The taste is pretty decent.”

Finally, Erina opened her eyes and spoke to the chef below.

"Um?"

Everyone was a little confused.

Pertinent?

Can this word still describe the taste?

Involuntarily, everyone feels that Erina Nakiri is becoming increasingly invisible today.

Ever since the Nakiri Thistle coup incident, she seemed to have become a completely different person. Of course, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this dignified eldest daughter of the Nakiri family was changed by an izakaya owner named Zhang Fan.

…

"The basis of udon is a+b(z)=u."

"To put it simply, a is noodles, b is juice or soy sauce, z is tempura, medicinal flavor and other ingredients, which are not standard."

"In Japanese cuisine, among the commonly eaten noodles, udon and buckwheat, noodles are more important than ramen. When we eat ramen, we often use the soup as the standard. This one is pork bone soup, and that one is chicken white soup. , that one is clear soup soy sauce.”

Erina looked at the group of chefs below and said coldly.

Immediately afterwards, she withdrew her gaze and continued: "After making the noodles, apply flour on them and store them. The taste is the best. Because it is easy to oxidize and other reasons, it is not easy to store for a long time."

"Most udon noodles are made fresh and eaten right away. Only in this way can the flavor of udon noodles be truly brought out."

As soon as the words are finished.

Erina's eyes became as sharp as a sword.

"This kind of udon can only be regarded as so-so. It cannot conquer my God's Tongue at all."

quiet!

The atmosphere was eerily quiet.

Finally, all the chefs were so frightened that they lowered their heads and said in a panic: "You are teaching Miss Erina a lesson!"

…

According to the standards of Neon Country.

Only noodles with a width of more than 1.7 mm and a thickness between 1 and 3.8 mm are qualified to be called udon.

Anything that doesn’t meet this standard…strictly speaking, is not real udon!

at the same time.

The making of udon noodles is very unique.

In the traditional practice of Neon Country, the noodle maker uses the weight of his body to step on the hard dough in a sealed bag until it is smooth and soft. Then fold it repeatedly to help the gluten form a neat structure.

In other words: compared with kneading by hand, stepping on it saves much effort!

Moreover, it can also fully stretch the gluten of the flour, making the noodles stronger and smoother.

After reviewing this bowl of udon dish.

Erina got up and left, coming to a particularly clean cooking table.

Her eyes flickered for a moment, looking at the white flour on the chopping board. She pondered for a while, then took a deep breath.

Then, she finally took action.

…

First, boil water in a pot, pour in washed snow peas, cook for about 1 minute, take out the cold water and set aside.

Continue to add the already prepared udon noodles, stir and cook for about 1 minute, remove and set aside.

Cook the chicken breast and tear into shreds.

Put the cooked udon noodles, snow peas, shredded chicken breast, and cooked yellow peas into the bowl and set aside.

Take a separate bowl, pour appropriate amounts of light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, vinegar, sesame paste, and sugar, then stir evenly. Continue to add salt, chicken powder, appropriate amount of chili oil, and stir evenly.

Next, pour the sauce into the udon noodles from step 4 and mix well.

at last.

This cold udon dish is complete.

Take a sip, and the udon noodles slide into your mouth with a sizzling sound. The sauce is slightly sour and spicy, and the noodles are smooth and pliable, and they break as soon as you bite them.

The snow peas were crisp and refreshing, and the shredded chicken breast wasn't stale at all. Occasionally, I bite a pea, which is chewy and chewy, and the taste improves to several levels.

I mixed the noodles and ate it in one big bite. As soon as I finished eating, I picked up a pair of chopsticks.

Involuntarily, those who tasted this cold udon fell into a wonderful state, feeling so delicious that they were extremely excited.

"As expected of Miss Erina."

"This kind of food is like a dazzling gem. It's so noble and so delicious!"

"A bowl of ordinary cold udon noodles can be made to such an extent. It is really an example that our generation looks up to."

…

For a while.

The chefs who had just been scolded by Nakiri Erina all started shouting because of a bowl of ordinary cold udon noodles.

There is no doubt that the current Nakiri Erina is no longer the original Nakiri Erina.

Now she is even more formidable and has improved a lot in her cooking skills.

And because she was deeply influenced by Zhang Fan, her cuisine has gradually become more popular. Sometimes, a particularly inconspicuous and ordinary dish can shine in her hands.

At the same time, many people also understand that today's Totsuki Academy, under her leadership, has gradually entered a new era.

Um!

An era of strong people.

"Wow!"

"Miss Erina, your cold udon tastes very warm!"

At this time, Hisako was savoring the bowl of cold udon noodles.

warmth.

This word should not actually appear here.

Because this is a bowl of cold udon noodles, the only thing that tastes good is "cold."

However, it was such a night full of cold dishes that put Nito Hisako into a particularly warm state.

…

The spread of food culture can be said to benefit people all over the world!

It is precisely because of this increasingly diverse exchange that the food on our tables becomes richer and more diverse, and the ways of eating it become more unique and interesting.

It is also for this reason that the cuisine is more diverse.

"Ahem!"

“Udon noodles are smooth, chewy and easy to taste. They have lower calories than ordinary refined noodles. They are versatile and easy to make.”

“It’s actually very suitable for lazy people to use as a staple food instead of rice.”

At this time, Nakiri Erina looked around and found that everyone was still in silence while enjoying the delicious cold udon noodles.

So, she pretended to cough a few times and continued: "Compared to soup noodles, I prefer fried udon. Just stir-fry your favorite ingredients with udon noodles. It will satisfy your hunger and satisfy your craving."

“The eggs are smooth and tender, the vegetarian chicken is delicious, the spinach is refreshing, and the noodles are soft.”

"I took a sip, and the taste was plundered between my lips and teeth in several layers, and then merged with each other, constantly stimulating the taste buds. As soon as I took it, I picked up a chopstick immediately. Every bite I took was incomparably satisfying."

“The essence of cold salad lies in the preparation of the sauce.”

"Usually, soy sauce is used as the basic seasoning, and an appropriate amount of rice vinegar is added to enhance the freshness and relieve greasiness."

"Then, the addition of minced garlic and ginger adds a touch of spiciness and fragrance to the dish. They blend with soy sauce and rice vinegar to form a layered yet harmonious taste experience."

Suddenly, the entire atmosphere seemed particularly quiet. Everyone pricked up their ears and listened carefully.

"Water is part of the soup, so there is no need to mention it separately. But the quality of the water is also an important criterion for foodies to judge the origin of udon."

"Take Kagawa Prefecture as an example. Most of the delicious udon restaurants in Takamatsu are near Ayagawa. Because the water in Ayagawa is good, the soup and noodles cooked are more delicious."

“The quality of udon begins to decline as you go west from Zentsuji Temple, and continues to deteriorate as you reach Marugame.”

"The water quality in Marugame is not as good as Takamatsu, and there are few delicious udon restaurants. The famous product here is bone-in chicken. Marugame City once wanted to change its name to bone-in chicken market..."

Nito Hisako on the side.

Looking at Nakiri Erina who was talking endlessly, she was stunned for a moment, and then she showed a faint smile.

how to say?

She seems to have really changed a lot now! (End of chapter)