NOVEL NEXT chapter 4
4 – In a barbecue house, fried rice is not a meal but a dessert, right?
*Whoosh!*
Flames rose, and the sizzling sound of the leftover seasoning and oil boiling was heard.
*Sizzle*
An amazing smell filled my nostrils.
Unconsciously, my mouth filled with saliva.
‘Delicious.’
The sounds and the sizzling appearance of the meat oil were all satisfying.
‘The smell is great, too.’
I picked up a large piece of meat with tongs, too big for a spoon, and cut it into smaller pieces with scissors.
The key to making fried rice with leftover meat on a hot plate was to keep the meat at a suitable size.
If the meat is too large, it’s difficult to eat and fully appreciate the flavor of the fried rice.
When you have rice soaked in oil and seasoning with adequately-sized, tender pieces of meat, biting into the slightly-crusted scorched rice is the taste that lingers in your mouth.
Maintaining that taste meant that the size of the meat was quite important as well.
If it’s too large, it won’t achieve that harmony.
Having finished preparing the meat, I held the frying pan in my left hand and the spatula in my right hand, stirring the rice with all my might.
Clink clink.
The long stir-frying spatula began to spread the red meat seasoning onto the white rice.
The rice became glossy from the oil and seasoning coating it.
To add some spice, I thinly sliced a chili pepper with a knife, and added half a spoonful of ssamjang and gochujang.
The spicy aroma tickled my nose.
It was truly beautiful to see the rice blending with the oil and absorbing the seasoning.
Sizzle!
I lightly cooked the rice until the moisture evaporated and it became fluffy, and then I pressed down on the rice in the frying pan one last time.
Then, I turned off the heat.
Now it was no longer cooking with the flame, but with the residual heat left in the frying pan.
I waited for a moment until the rice and seasoning formed a crispy crust.
Scrape scrape.
I gently pushed the fried rice, scraping it together with the crispy crust, cleaning off the pan.
The golden-brown color stimulated my appetite.
“Unbelievable.”
I muttered to myself unwittingly.
With an empty stomach like this, how could I resist such fried rice?
With this, I could eat three servings by myself.
After scraping off the sticky part of the rice, I lifted the spatula and took a bite.
I even forgot that I had a customer in front of me.
What else could be on my mind?
Right in front of my eyes was a perfectly cooked, 100-point fried rice on an iron plate.
In my mouth, the fully cooked meat, seasoning, and oil-absorbed rice grains harmoniously melded together.
The satisfying feeling that filled my mouth brought an involuntary smile to my face.
The spiciness of the gochujang seasoning and the fiery heat of the red pepper stimulated a pleasant sensation within.
The crispiness of the well-cooked nurungji provided an exceptionally satisfying texture.
Yeah. This is like sex.
“Ugh….”
As I enjoyed the finished fried rice, I felt eyes on me from somewhere.
“What’s going on?”
Turning towards the sensed direction, I found Riana staring at me intensely.
More precisely, she was fixated on my mouth and the fried rice in the pan.
With a large leaf wrapped tightly around a bite, she looked at me like a rabbit, her nose and nostrils twitching.
Squelchy, squelchy.
After chewing for a while and savoring the taste, she finally spoke.
“It looks delicious….”
Even though there was still rice and meat left in her own bowl, she was drooling at mine.
“You should try some. This is reserved for the chef.”
“If I pay more…”
“Wasn’t this originally complimentary?”
“Ugh….”
Unable to counter, Riana closed her mouth.
“Then, how about a job at the art gallery?”
“I already have my own store. Is there a need for that?”
“Ah….”
Uncertain of what to do, Riana lifted her bowl.
“Should we share this then?”
“Is there a chef who steals customers’ food?”
“Uh, oops.”
There’s a certain joy in teasing.
Their reaction is priceless.
“I’ll just give it to you. It’s a special service from the head chef. It might be spicy, so have it after you finish your meal.”
I grabbed a new spatula and scooped up the freshly cooked, steaming fried rice and handed it over.
I couldn’t serve the one that had touched my mouth to a customer.
“Thank you!”
***
At that moment, Riana encountered a turning point in her culinary life.
In her own way, she considered herself a gourmand at the Breton Estate.
Although the estate was in the rural part of the empire, there were still quite a few famous eateries.
At the very least, working at the estate meant she never felt lacking in her dining experiences.
So she didn’t hold the restaurant opened by an alleged knight from the capital in particularly high esteem.
After all, how much cooking could a knight have possibly done?
She had come here more so because of the prowess Lucas held as a knight, not because of his culinary skills.
But, that changed, the moment she tasted the bulgogi.
In that instant, her world transformed.
The tender meat, mixed in with the slightly thick sauce and oil, paired perfectly with the mouthful of rice.
With each bite, the sweetness of the rice, the richness of the meat, and the hint of sweetness in the sauce combined with an incredible umami flavor.
It was finished off with just a touch of spiciness that brought the taste together.
The individual flavors of the meat and rice were impressive, but the harmony created when they came together was simply unbelievable.
‘Is this the food of the capital?’
What had she been eating here all along?
Was this the power of the high-class cuisine called “rice” even in the empire?
No.
She too had tasted rice before.
There was only one time when I went to the capital city with Count Japan and tried the rice there.
So I knew about rice.
But the taste back then was different.
How should I put it?
It was a bit stickier and heavier.
It wasn’t like this.
I thought fancy dishes were supposed to taste like that…
‘I must have eaten a fake.’
But that wasn’t the end of it.
The taste when I ate it with the side vegetables.
The bean sauce she gave me separately made me lose myself.
“This is really delicious…”
This was even tastier than the 1gold-worthy fancy food I had in the capital.
I didn’t know that fog meat could be this delicious.
Of course, fog meat was often used in fancy dishes, but it had never tasted this good.
‘Who on earth is this person…?’
I wished I could invite her to the count’s estate right away.
As I was enjoying the Bulgogi meal.
Sizzle!
Rice and meat were stir-fried right before my eyes.
The scent of the rice and meat was much stronger than that of the Bulgogi.
If the aroma of Bulgogi was 10 points, the aroma of this fried rice and meat was 12 points.
Even the spiciness sensed from the smell was 12 points.
I know it’s spicy and I’d regret it later, but I wanted to eat it.
I wanted to eat it despite knowing that.
“Eat all the meat first.”
“Is there a reason?”
“If you eat that, you won’t be able to eat the side dishes until you brush your teeth.”
“Ah… okay.”
Suppressing the immediate desire to eat, she finished all the side dishes.
Only after eating all the side dishes that came out did the seasoned rice and meat take their place in front of her.
“Captain Lucas, what’s the name of this dish?”
“It’s fried rice.”
“Fried rice…”
While she was eating the side dishes, Lucas had already finished the fried rice and responded.
She looked at the still-steaming fried rice.
Even though she had eaten so much, her mouth still watered.
It was strange.
Why did she want to eat again like this?
“Well, let’s eat.”
Putting the question aside, she picked up a spoon and took a big scoop of the fried rice.
The moment she ate the fried rice.
Chomp!
‘It seems like I now know why they said to eat it after eating all the meat.’
A deep taste was felt.
The crispy rice, the finely chopped meat, and the seasoning that permeated both the rice and meat held a slightly stronger flavor than the side dishes.
If the side dishes were like a mother’s devotion, should this fried rice be called a grandmother’s warmth?
She felt as if she might lose herself in its rich taste.
And then there was the spiciness that could be felt at the end.
“Whew! Ha! It’s spicy. So spicy!”
Although she didn’t dislike the spicy taste that made her tongue burn and her mouth numb, she couldn’t help but wonder if it was the meat or the seasoning that made it taste so good.
It was incredibly delicious, no matter what it was.
She finished an entire bowl in an instant.
Sweat poured down her face.
Heat rose to her face, flushed with red.
She couldn’t think straight due to the spiciness.
It was a peculiar feeling as if something knotted inside her was being untangled.
Could it be that all of today’s annoyances felt like they never happened?
The corners of her mouth curled upward.
It was fascinating.
Just eating this meal relieved her stress.
“Wow, this is really spicy.”
“Ah, that’s the Korean spiciness for you.”
“Korea? What’s that?”
“It’s a place.”
“Can I order more of this fried rice later?”
Lucas looked at her contentedly.
“If we have some spare, I’ll make it for you.”
“Thank you. You’re really talented.”
“I’m glad you’re satisfied. Please continue to promote our restaurant in the future.”
“Of course! I’ll definitely promote it!”
Still sweating from the spiciness, she was confident that this restaurant would soon become a treasure among writers.
-Eating alone isn’t the entirety of gastronomic pleasure.
The words Lucas said before cooking resonated in her head.
“Surely she wasn’t a royal chef from Hwangseong?”
I couldn’t help but wonder if someone more amazing than I expected had come to Britain.
“What’s this?”
“You need to give a star rating and write a review.”
She blinked her eyes as she looked at Lucas, who handed her a white paper and a pen.
A star rating? A review?
What is that?
***
—-
★★★★★
The bulgogi rice and fried rice are really delicious.
It’s so tasty that I ate mine and almost stole the owner’s too!
The owner is kind, and the food is delicious.
Recommended menu: Bulgogi rice – fried rice
– Liana, manager of the self-employed writer’s territory-
—-
I posted the review of my first customer, Liana, on the bulletin board in front of the store.
The corners of my mouth rose with pride.
It seemed satisfying.
It got five stars.
A large bulletin board placed in front of the Knight’s Restaurant.
From now on, the reviews of the customers will be written here one by one.
It started with Liana, the manager of the writer’s territory.
– We’re officially opening in three days, right? I’ll promote it in advance!
“I’m so relieved.”
I chose Liana as a test customer before officially opening the store.
Having gone through various procedures to settle here, she was quite confident in her taste for food.
Her palate seemed quite picky, and she was an influential manager in her own rights.
If I could satisfy her tastes, it would bring me significant benefits both short-term and long-term.
After all, she would actively spread the word.
She was the perfect test customer for me.
Both the bulgogi set meal and the fried rice received her praises.
-“How about adding the fried rice to the menu and charging extra?”
She did not hesitate to share her advice with me.
‘She’s very competent.’
Being a manager who runs her own establishment, her mind worked fast.
The fried rice was indeed a menu item I had considered offering along with the set meal.
– 4 silver for adding fried rice.
She caught on quickly.
Since the tasting had gone well, I was confident that it would sell well.
“I like it.”
It was a good start.
Now all that was left to do was to officially open the restaurant.
She promised to help promote the place, and I believed it would do well.
‘It must succeed.’
Now only smooth sailing remained.
And the next day, facing the opening in two days, I saw a stranger standing in front of the store before I arrived for work.
“Who are you?”
The man, who had been intently looking at the sign of the restaurant, noticed me.
“Are you Lukas from the capital?”
“What brings you here?”
“My name is Heimer, a knight of the British nobility. I’ve heard that the food here is truly delicious, so I’ve come to try it.”
Heimer’s eyes were drawn to the notice board in front of the restaurant.
—-
★★★★★
The Bulgogi rice and fried rice are really delicious.
It’s so good, I even tried to steal some from the owner’s plate!
The owner is friendly and the food is delicious.
Recommended menu: Bulgogi rice set – add fried rice!
– Liana, steward of the noble estate –
—-
“Liana highly recommended this place. She mentioned that there’s a restaurant just for knights.”
It’s already being advertised, so it seems they’re grateful.
The unexpected guest was welcome, but there was a problem.
“The opening is from the day after tomorrow. The preparations for opening are not yet perfect.”
“Is that so? That’s such a shame. I specifically came here after hearing that the food was really good.”
Scratching my head at the sight of Heimer, who had regained his appetite.
“I can’t just send you away, so I’ll ask for a blind test.”
I needed someone to test it just before opening.
I can’t run a restaurant with just bulgogi.
“Would that be alright?”
His eyes lit up brightly.