Serenedipity

Chapter - 22

"All right! It's done!" Soma handed the dish to Hinako ready to be judged. "Here you go, Inui-senpai. Please have it before it grows cold." Soma motioned the female who looked down onto the dish that Megumi and he made.

"All right, I'll have a taste. Oh, my. My kaki no tane have become such a lovely deep-fried dish!" she smiled and used the chopsticks to pick up the deep fried fish. Hinako took a bite and started chewing on the fish. The students glanced at the chef with wide eyes, they weren't even able to focus on their own work due to the sound of crunching. Just by hearing the noises, they were able to tell that the dish was crunchy and crispy. Hana pouted as she could feel herself drool at the dish, Soma looked at her to see if she approves only to see  and feels prideful to see her looking at the dish he had made pouting at not getting any, unknown to her that he had saved some for her.

"What wonderful texture! So crunchy! Yet inside, the fish is so tender! Protected by the breading, the fish's umami has been concentrated within! And thanks to the flavour of the kaki no tane themselves, the breading has its own assertive flavour. The accompanying sauce is light as air, made from tamago no moto and kinome!" Just from one bite, she was able to identify all the methods and things you did.

"By mixing chopped kinome, the shoots of the Japanese pepper tree, into the tamago no moto with salt, he created a refreshing flavour that cuts the oiliness of the fried fish and makes the dish more refined. The creaminess that you can taste between the crunchiness of the breading whets the appetite. The accompaniment made from fried mountain vegetables is excellent, as well. The visual contrast with the char is superb." The female smiled and dipped the fish into the tamago no moto.

'I've assigned this task many times in the past, but none of the students has ever accomplished a deep-fried dish with breading.' Hinako thought to herself as she took another bite of the deep-fried fish. Yet again, the sound of crunching was heard she wiped her lips with a napkin.

"Where'd you come up with this idea, Soma-Kun?" Megumi turned towards the red-haired chef for answers.

"You know how there's a dish called okaki age in Japanese cuisine? It's a deep-fried dish made using okaki crackers as the breading. Its purpose is to improve the texture or to introduce a surprising flavour. Hana had made that at home before." Soma explained, his yellow irises glanced off towards Hana who was now standing beside him true to her words, she was beside him no matter what the results were for this challenge.

"So that inspire you to adapt the recipe for kaki no tane?" Takumi questioned with his arms crossed over his chest.

"That's right! I'm calling it the Yukihira style Char Okaki A—" he paused as an idea struck his head.

"Yukihira style Char O-kaki Age!" he said while proudly holding up the kaki no tane. Hana burst out laughing, there is no way she is letting him name the dishes of their diner in the future.

"You just thought of that now, didn't you?!" Takumi argued.

"It's all according to plan!" Soma grinned.

"You just went with the flow!" the blonde argued.

"I haven't strayed from my path!" the yellow-eyed chef retorted.

"That was just chance. It was blind luck! You were just damn lucky!" Takumi retorted in an angry tone.

"It's actually a menu item that's pretty common at Yukihira, too," Soma smirked.

'Aldini-Kun kept an open mind and did not overlook duck as a possible ingredient.' Hinako thought to herself, her eyes directed towards the blonde who was bickering with Soma.