Chapter 22: Three Dishes and One Meal (1)
Chapter 22: Three Dishes and One Meal (1)
“The mission this time will be a team challenge.”
Whispers immediately spread among the participants as Joseph’s voice echoed through the room. Jo Minjoon closed his mouth and focused on what Joseph was saying. He already knew this would be a team mission. He even knew what the theme would be.
“The theme is simple. Form teams of three. You will need to prepare an appetiser, a main course, and a dessert. Decide amongst yourselves who will cook which dish. You should choose according to your individual specialities, but remember—this is a team mission.”
A course meal.
It was only the simplest kind, a three-course meal, but balancing all three dishes as a whole would be difficult.
Even more so when they had to cook alongside people they had never worked with before. Jo Minjoon clicked his tongue. A team mission, just after he had landed himself in everyone’s bad books. He had already known this was coming, but that did not make the situation any better.
“You will choose your own teammates. However, there is one thing you must remember. Each of you may take responsibility for only one course. I recommend forming your teams according to how you intend to divide the roles.”
As soon as Joseph finished speaking, the participants began looking around at one another.
The first person Jo Minjoon searched for was Marco. Marco had not shown it yet, but his baking level was 7. If he took charge of dessert, he could probably produce something better than almost anyone else here.
With that thought, Jo Minjoon started towards Marco, only to notice that someone was already standing beside him. The moment he saw who it was, he could not help being surprised.
It was someone he had not expected.
Chloe Jung.
“Ah, Minjoon!”
Marco smiled brightly and called him over. Jo Minjoon approached at a slower pace, glancing towards Chloe. Marco spoke first.
“You saw yesterday’s broadcast, right? This is Chloe Jung. Chloe, this is Jo Minjoon.”
“Hello, Mr. Famous.”
“...Hello.”
Jo Minjoon answered awkwardly. Marco smiled and continued, “I was just talking to Chloe about forming a team. What about you, Minjoon? I’d like to team up with you.”
“That’s fine with me, but...”
Jo Minjoon trailed off and looked at Chloe.
She smiled. “I’m fine with it too. I saw you cooking the bream on yesterday’s broadcast. It was quite interesting.”
“If you enjoyed it, then thanks. Your dish looked good too. The tangsuyuk.”
Chloe merely smiled brightly in response. Even though she had watched yesterday’s broadcast, she did not seem inclined to judge him because of it, and Jo Minjoon relaxed a little.
“Then are we a team?” Chloe asked softly.
“I suppose so. Have either of you decided which course you want? Hopefully, we’re not all thinking of the same thing.”
As he spoke, Jo Minjoon looked at Marco. To be honest, it was obvious what Marco would choose. His baking skill was an astonishing level 7, a level impossible to reach without considerable effort and dedication.
Sure enough, Marco gave exactly the answer Jo Minjoon expected.
“I want to handle dessert. Bread and cakes are my speciality.”
“Okay. Minjoon, what about you?”
“I’d like to make the appetiser.”
“Then I’ll take the main course.”
“Is that what you wanted?”
“I can do either an appetiser or a main course. As long as it isn’t dessert.”
Hearing Chloe’s answer, Jo Minjoon glanced around the room.
He spotted Kaya. She was talking with Anderson.
Were those two going to form a team? He could not quite remember.
Jo Minjoon turned away. This was not the time to worry about them.
“What kind of theme should we go for?”
“Well...” Chloe hesitated. “It’s actually harder when there are only three courses.”
Jo Minjoon understood what she meant. In some ways, it was easier when there were precise instructions to follow. Having to consider the harmony of all three dishes and construct an entire menu around them was surprisingly difficult.
If my cooking level goes up, will I eventually be able to see the composition score of an entire course?
He did not know.
Then again, once his cooking level reached 8, he wondered whether he would even need the system’s advice anymore. Of course, reaching that level would require an amount of effort and experience that could hardly be compared with where he was now.
Jo Minjoon spoke.
“The way I see it, we should focus on quality rather than trying to be flashy. This isn’t the time to experiment.”
“Mm. I think so too.”
“First, let’s go to the pantry.”
As they headed towards the pantry, Jo Minjoon asked, “What are you thinking of making for the main course?”
The appetiser and dessert would inevitably have to be adjusted depending on the main dish. Chloe thought for a moment before answering.
“I want to make pan-fried scallops.”
Pan-fried scallops.
It was a dish in which scallops took the place normally occupied by meat. It was slightly different from what Jo Minjoon had imagined, but he did not object. For now, he could only trust Chloe’s cooking ability.
Chloe looked at him.
“What are you going to make for the appetiser?”
“Soft fried tofu. Do you think it’ll work before the scallops?”
“Mm. I think it’ll be fine. What about you, Marco?”
At Chloe’s question, Marco looked flustered. The way his eyes darted about suggested that he had too many possibilities in mind rather than too few. After a while, he finally answered.
“A mocha biscuit. I was thinking of putting whipped cream on top... but would that be too heavy?”
“Yeah, a little. Wouldn’t plain yoghurt or something similar be better than whipped cream? Something lighter and more refreshing.”
“Okay. I’ll do that.”
Marco smiled somewhat sheepishly and nodded. Chloe lightly clapped her hands together.
“Now that we’ve decided on the menu... all that’s left is to cook.”
“How did you end up talking to Chloe?”
“Nothing special happened. When they told us to form teams, she came over to me first.”
“Really? Hmm.”
Jo Minjoon and Marco spoke quietly in front of their worktop.
Meeting Chloe so suddenly was pleasant, but at the same time unexpected. They had never really interacted before. Still, it was hardly strange enough to call suspicious. There were only twenty-seven participants, after all, and Chloe approaching Marco was not particularly remarkable.
It was simply unexpected that one of the three contestants with the highest cooking levels had ended up on a team with the two of them.
Who had Chloe originally teamed up with on Grand Chef?
Jo Minjoon could not help wondering.
But he could not remember. In the Grand Chef he knew from the past, Chloe had not been a contestant who received a great deal of attention.
“By the way, they got really strict with the rules.”
Before the cooking began, the judges had explained the conditions of the challenge. Each participant was allowed to work only on their own assigned dish.
To be honest, this so-called team mission was almost an individual mission in disguise.
There were currently three worktops set up in the room. With nine teams competing, there was no other choice. Three teams would cook at a time, while the remaining six teams went up to the second floor to observe the others.
Jo Minjoon’s team had been placed in the first group.
He was not sure whether that was lucky or unlucky, but personally, he preferred it this way. At least he would not have to become increasingly nervous while watching the other teams cook first.
Jo Minjoon glanced towards the neighbouring worktop.
Kaya and Anderson were standing there, calmly preparing to begin.
Remembering how angry Kaya had been with him left a bitter taste in his mouth.
Focus on cooking.
Jo Minjoon brought the recipe for soft fried tofu to mind.
[Estimated cooking score: 7.]
The recipe was perfect.
At least, it was perfect for Jo Minjoon’s current level.
It was also a dish he had made many times before. Of all tofu dishes, ordinary tofu was his favourite, with soft tofu coming second. His favourite of all was tofu from kimchi jjigae that had been left to sit overnight.
(Translator’s Note: Kimchi jjigae —A Korean stew made primarily from kimchi, usually with ingredients such as pork, tofu, onions, and seasonings. Well-fermented or aged kimchi is particularly valued for stews because its acidity and fermented flavour deepen during simmering. Kimchi itself has a history extending back many centuries in Korea, while the modern red, chilli-seasoned form developed after chilli peppers entered Korea during the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.)
In truth, this particular dish was not something that could easily be made properly at home. If the pan was merely coated with a thin layer of oil before adding the soft tofu, its flavour would not come through properly. Instead, the moisture first had to be drained from the tofu, then it had to be coated in batter and submerged in hot oil. Fried that way, the exterior became paler and more attractive.
Here, however, he could use as much oil as he wanted.
The thought that he could finally cook it properly made excitement rise inside him despite the pressure of the test.
Jo Minjoon looked towards the judges.
One of them slowly opened his mouth.
It was Joseph.
“Start cooking!”