Who Is the World’s Strongest Appraiser? ~Living in Another World With Satisfying Meals~

Mayonnaise And Potato Salad

Yuuri was making mayonnaise from scratch that day.

Mayonnaise, as a seasoning, is very familiar to Japanese people. To what extent, you ask? Even children who dislike raw vegetables can eat them if they have mayonnaise on them. There are even people called ‘mayo lovers’, who put mayonnaise on everything. It’s that familiar to the Japanese people. That’s what mayonnaise is.

Sugar and soy sauce exist, but mayonnaise doesn’t exist in this alternate world. It’s a Western-style world, so Yuuri assumed there would be mayonnaise, but there wasn’t.

Ordinarily, one might give up at that point. They might not have eaten the flavors of their homeland. However, Yuuri was a girly boy. Thanks to his mother being obsessed with making various things from scratch, making mayonnaise by hand was quite easy for him.

When you look at the ingredients alone, this mayonnaise is quite simple to make. Egg yolks, salt, oil, and vinegar. You might also add pepper or herbs to taste, but those are the basic ingredients. And considering Scarlett Lynx’s kitchen situation, these ingredients were relatively easy to obtain.

“Yuuri, are you only using the egg yolks?”

“Yeah.”

“What about the egg whites?”

“I’ll use them for soup later, so I’ll put them all in the bowl for now.”

“Got it!”

Today, as always, Yak was by Yuuri’s side.

It’s not like Yak got ordered to always be by Yuuri’s side. He voluntarily stays close to Yuuri, and whenever Yuuri starts something new, he eagerly gets involved. Also, there’s another person today, Magg, who’s helping with the cooking duty, but he’s extremely quiet and hard to notice, so he’s almost forgotten.

There are two patterns for making mayonnaise: using whole eggs or using only egg yolks. In the West, it’s mainly whole eggs. In Japan, the mayonnaise from a national brand is made using only egg yolks. So, Yuuri knows how to make it, but with egg yolks. Maybe he thinks that version tastes better. After all, his country’s national brand of mayonnaise is highly acclaimed even abroad.

Making mayonnaise is relatively simple. It just takes time. Since there’s no mixer, you need to mix it with a whisk, which is tough. However, Yuuri thinks it’ll be okay since three people are working on it, and considering the number of people eating, they’ll need a lot of mayonnaise.

The three of them continue the task of separating egg yolks from cracked eggs. Well, Yak and Magg are cracking the eggs into a bowl and then using their hands to scoop out the egg yolks and transfer them. Meanwhile, while cracking eggs, Yuuri deftly separates the yolks into one shell, alternately transferring the whites into the bowl, leaving only the yolks. Yak and Magg are both amazed by Yuuri’s dexterity.

“Yuuri, what are you doing?”

“Huh? I’m just separating the egg whites since I’m only using the yolks.”

“Is that a thing?! And how are you even doing it?! Won’t the yolks break?!”

“As long as you don’t hit the eggshells, they won’t break~”

Yuuri says, but that’s the statement of someone accustomed to it. In Yuuri’s family, everyone can separate eggs into yolks and whites like this. Using your hands is one way, but in that case, if you accidentally hit the yolk, it’ll break. Plus, your hands get dirty.

While having a leisurely conversation, the work continues. Two bowls, one with whites and one with yolks, cleanly separated. The one with whites gets placed in the refrigerator. Yuuri intends to use it for soup later. Egg whites make excellent ingredients, too.

Once they’ve successfully extracted only the egg yolks, the next step is to mix them. After adding a suitable amount of salt, Magg vigorously mixes the egg yolks with a whisk. As today’s chef, he seems determined to do a good job. He’s still quiet, but his artisanal nature occasionally shows. He’s supposed to be from an ordinary bourgeois family.

“After the egg yolks and salt get mixed. You add the oil but don’t pour it directly. Drizzle it around the edge of the bowl like this.”

“Why not pour it directly?”

“I heard that if you pour it directly, it won’t mix well.”

Saying so, Yuuri slowly drizzles oil from the bottle onto the edge of the bowl and swirls it in. After adding olive oil, he mixes it with the egg yolks using a whisk. Once combined, he adds more olive oil. They repeat this simple process, waiting for it to emulsify into mayonnaise.

They confirm that the egg yolks and oil are thoroughly mixed and it’s getting firmer than mayonnaise. When it becomes difficult to mix, Yuuri takes vinegar in hand. It’s grain vinegar. He wanted rice vinegar, but it doesn’t exist here. He thought someone should make it. He chose grain vinegar because fruit vinegar would affect the taste, but taste-wise, rice vinegar would be better for Japanese palates. Well, since there’s no mayonnaise in this world, no matter which vinegar they use, it’ll be an unknown taste.

There’s also a method to mix salt, oil, and vinegar together with the egg yolks from the beginning. However, unless it’s vigorously mixed with the power of a machine, oil and vinegar don’t mix well and separate. Since there’s no hand mixer in this world, and Yuuri wanted delicious mayonnaise even if it took time and effort, he saved the vinegar for last.

“When you add vinegar, it softens, so mix it again.”

“Got it!”

Yak, who has taken over from Magg, enthusiastically starts mixing with the whisk. By adding vinegar, the mass that was once only egg yolks gradually turns white. The two boys watch with wide eyes as the contents of the bowl change to pure white. Yuuri, unperturbed, adds vinegar and oil, loosening it up. Since it’s mayonnaise, it must maintain the perfect balance between firmness and softness.

Once Yuuri determines the firmness of the mayonnaise, he stops adding ingredients. After tasting it, he finds it lacks saltiness, so he adjusts it by sprinkling in salt and pepper. It would also be delicious with herbs or lemon, but he’ll keep it classic. He plans to try fancier versions with herbs or lemon once everyone gets used to mayonnaise.

“Give it a taste.”

“Wow?! What is this?! It’s delicious. It’s tangy but not overly sour, salty but different!”

“…Delicious. Vegetables…”

“Yes, yes, Yak, calm down. And Magg, I think cucumbers would taste great with it.”

“…Understood.”

Jumping for joy and frolicking, Yak was left behind, while Magg was earnestly searching for vegetables. He seemed to instinctively sense vegetables would taste delicious with mayonnaise. Wonderful. So Yuuri recommended cucumbers, the easiest and most delicious way to enjoy mayonnaise.

As Magg nodded solemnly, he took a cucumber in hand, quickly washed it, removed the stem, and carefully cut it into stick shapes. Even here, his artisanal nature was evident. If it were Ulgu, he’d probably just bite into it after washing it, while Camille would cut it roughly and eat it. If it were Yak, he’d probably ask Yuuri how to cut it before eating. Their personalities were showing.

And as for Magg, who ate the cucumber with mayonnaise.

He silently consumed several cucumbers alone.

“Um, Magg? If you eat just cucumbers like that, you’ll upset your stomach with all the water. Also, we’re preparing dinner, so could you stop eating for a bit…”

“Magg, is it good? Hey, is it good?!”

“Good.”

“Me too, me too!”

“Hey, Yak. Don’t get too absorbed in cucumbers! Prepare dinner!”

Feeling anxious as the freshly made mayonnaise was eaten in large quantities with cucumbers, Yuuri took the bowl of mayonnaise from the two. There was some booing, but he ignored it. Dinner preparation! Once scolded for it, the two couldn’t argue back.

“Okay, I’ll use this mayonnaise to make potato salad today! You two, please peel the potatoes. I’ll prepare the other vegetables.”

“…Understood.”

“Got it!”

Assigning the task of peeling potatoes to the two served both to familiarize them with using knives and to save time. Kagami’s potato salad was simple, with diced cucumbers, carrots, and boiled eggs. Depending on the household, they might add ham, tomatoes, green peas, etc., but Yuuri’s version was a simple potato salad without ham since it was a side dish, not a main dish.

The cucumbers were quickly diced, lightly salted, and drained. Before mixing, they would be squeezed again with a cloth to remove excess water. The carrots were diced similarly and blanched quickly to soften them. The boiled eggs were already done, so they were quickly diced with a knife.

By the time the preparations were complete, the potatoes boiled by Yak and Magg were also done. The two mashed them with a clean rolling pin. Watching them, Yuuri thought he wanted a masher. There was a whisk but no masher. Yuuri didn’t understand the cooking utensil situation in this world well. He thought he’d consult Ali next time.

It was a given in Yuuri’s mind that when in trouble, you consult Ali. Also, he’s constantly reminded not to act on his own and to consult, which is true. Being a guardian is tough.

“Yuuri, what will you do after mashing the potatoes?”

“Hm? I’ll make a salad by mixing these ingredients and mayonnaise.”

“…Is it good?”

“In my hometown, it’s a popular dish among kids.”

“Got it! I’ll do my best!”

It was a simple and straightforward response from Yak. Since Magg already knew how delicious mayonnaise was, he silently worked. He mixed the mashed potatoes with the ingredients and carefully mixed them with a spatula. Very carefully. He was so meticulous that Yuuri wondered if he was using magic. Magg’s artisanal nature was evident once again.

Once the ingredients were mixed, the mayonnaise was added. After adding plenty of mayonnaise, salt and pepper were added and mixed further. By deliberately mixing the mayonnaise in, it allowed the flavors to penetrate evenly, a housewife’s wisdom. Once combined, the potato salad was easily complete. All that was left was to serve it in a bowl.

“Okay, it’s done.”

“…Vegetable mash potato.”

“Well, yes, but it’s a proper salad since it’s been made creamy with mayonnaise and has flavor. For example, if you lay lettuce leaves at the bottom of the bowl and serve it on top, it’ll look even nicer.”

“Oh, I see! So, if you eat it together, the lettuce will taste good too, right?!”

“Yak’s correct~”

Children in any world dislike bland raw vegetables. Yak seemed pleased that lettuce would taste good. Also, Magg was earnestly choosing which bowl to serve it in. There were so many bowls because they bought inexpensive works from blacksmiths like Kagami’s workshop. They also entrust collecting requests to apprentices, so it’s give-and-take.

As for the taste test leading to the potato salad being in danger of being consumed in large quantities, Yuuri isolated the bowl in the refrigerator and kept watch, ending the story with a laughter-inducing punchline.