Chapter 40: The Role of a Head Chef (2)
Chapter 40: The Role of a Head Chef (2)
A small change occurred after word spread that Jo Minjoon possessed an absolute sense of taste. The other contestants began bringing the dishes they made to him.
At first, it was quite enjoyable because he got to try all sorts of food, but as time passed, it became increasingly tiring. The contestants did not simply want him to taste their dishes. He had no idea where they had heard about it, but they had somehow learned that Jo Minjoon could assign scores to food as well. The result was exactly what was happening now.
“What’s the score…?”
Chloe looked cautiously at Jo Minjoon.
The noodles were mixed with a sauce containing peanuts, pork, spring onions, and other ingredients. Dandan noodles. It was a simple Chinese dish, much like bibim guksu was in Korea. Because both the dish itself and the cooking method were relatively simple, the score could only be so high.
(Translator’s Note: Dandan noodles — A noodle dish originating in Sichuan, China, traditionally flavoured with chilli oil, preserved vegetables, minced meat, and other seasonings. Its name comes from the dandan, a shoulder pole historically used by street vendors to carry their noodles and cooking equipment. The dish is associated with Sichuan street-food culture of the late Qing period (1644–1912).)
(Translator’s Note: Bibim guksu —Korean noodles mixed with a spicy seasoning sauce, commonly containing gochujang, vinegar, sugar, and sesame oil. Bibim means “mixed”, while guksu means “noodles”.)
Six points.
Jo Minjoon wondered how he should tell her and brought a mouthful of noodles to his lips.
The peanut oil, fried with chilli, coated the noodles like a sauce, and as soon as he took a bite, his tongue became slightly numb. Yet the numbness was pleasant. After the heat came a savoury richness, while the thick noodles, somewhere between udon and ordinary Chinese wheat noodles in texture, helped cut through the oiliness.
(Translator’s Note: Udon —Thick Japanese wheat noodles characterised by their soft, chewy texture. Wheat-noodle traditions developed in Japan over many centuries, with forms recognisable as udon firmly established during the premodern period.)
The salty flavour of the pork was good as well.
But the final score was still 6 points.
Jo Minjoon put on the gentlest voice he could manage.
“It’s delicious. I’m not even Chinese, so it feels a little strange for me to say this, but I think you brought out everything dandan noodles are supposed to have.”
“Really?”
“But the score is only 6.”
At Jo Minjoon’s words, Chloe immediately became dejected. She seemed to be trying not to let it bother her too much, but 6 points was not exactly a score anyone could be pleased about.
Jo Minjoon patted her shoulder.
“I told you before. High-scoring dishes aren’t the only good dishes. The score mainly reflects the techniques used in preparing them. It might be an important standard during missions, but normally, there’s no need to obsess over it.”
“Hmm… Then if I served this in a mission, it would probably be difficult to pass, right?”
“…You probably wouldn’t receive particularly favourable comments.”
From what Jo Minjoon had observed so far, there had been cases where the judges approved and passed 6-point dishes. Those dishes probably contained something beyond pure cooking technique. A score of 6 did not automatically mean elimination.
But these dandan noodles were different. The score was one thing, but the dish itself did not seem to have enough strength to carry someone through a mission.
He could not comfort Chloe by lying to her.
Jo Minjoon remembered that Chloe had not survived particularly long in the competition before, and he suspected the reason was that she focused more on flavour than on demonstrating technique through the cooking process. Perhaps that was possible precisely because her love of cooking was so pure, but she still needed to become greedier if she wanted to survive these missions. Had he not nearly been eliminated himself after presenting that loosely composed Korean meal?
Jo Minjoon spoke seriously. “Chloe, I understand your philosophy about cooking. You care more about flavour than technique, right? I understand that too. But you can’t think that way during the missions. You saw what happened to me in the vegetarian mission. Of course, even aside from the technique, my meal wasn’t exactly that impressive…”
“Serving bibimbap that wasn’t even fried rice together with seaweed soup in a mission really was awful.” Kaya, sitting across from them, laughed as she spoke.
Jo Minjoon glared at her, but Kaya merely pursed her lips as if asking what his problem was.
Marco spoke up. “Even so… I thought it was a good attempt.”
“What? That meal?”
“No. Challenging the mission with a relatively familiar, home-style meal. Of course, the result wasn’t good… but chefs do sometimes want to make warm, comforting food.”
“If you want something warm, just fry it in a pan.” Kaya grumbled.
Jo Minjoon sighed. “Anyway, what I’m trying to say is this. It’s good to make food that tastes delicious for a mission, but fundamentally, you also need to show your skill and experience through the dish, because that’s what the judges are evaluating. I don’t want to see you eliminated just because you weren’t ambitious enough.”
Jo Minjoon did not think he had said anything particularly remarkable, but silence suddenly fell over the table.
He looked around in confusion.
Chloe had a deeply moved expression on her face, while Kaya looked openly disgusted. Marco appeared normal, though with his round face, it was difficult to tell much from his expression in the first place.
Jo Minjoon spoke uncertainly. “What’s with those expressions?”
“…Putting aside the fact that you’re saying that to a competitor, aren’t those some pretty romantic words? This is a cooking programme, not a dating show.”
Kaya frowned as though something about the situation displeased her.
Jo Minjoon hurriedly replied, “Don’t twist it in a weird direction. It’s nothing like that.”
“Enough. I’m leaving first. I’m getting goosebumps. Who’s washing the dishes today?”
“You are. Don’t try to escape. Sit back down.” At Jo Minjoon’s words, Kaya clicked her tongue and sat back in her chair.
Jo Minjoon continued, “The other night, when I was talking with Mr. A…”
“Who’s Mr. A?”
“You know. Anderson. I was talking with Anderson…”
“You talked to him? Weren’t you two on bad terms?”
“We were, but that doesn’t mean we’re forbidden from talking. If I have to explain it, I was hungry that night and couldn’t sleep, so I went to the kitchen.”
“And then?”
“…”
Jo Minjoon stopped talking.
His knitted brows made his irritation perfectly clear.
Kaya leaned back in her chair, laughing as though she understood exactly what she was doing.
After feeling as though he had finally overcome some unnecessary obstacle, Jo Minjoon continued.
“Anyway, I happened to talk with Anderson, and something came up during that conversation. Good food and well-made food are different things, and what we need to show the judges is well-made food.”
“But even after realising that, you still made that Korean meal?”
At Kaya’s question, Jo Minjoon had nothing particularly convincing to say.
When he closed his mouth, Chloe patted him on the back and spoke sternly.
“Kaya. Stop bullying him.”
“…I wasn’t.” Kaya pouted and muttered under her breath.
Only then did Marco, who had been eating the crêpe he had made, finally speak.
“Minjoon. It’s my turn.”
Marco placed the crêpe onto Jo Minjoon’s plate and looked at him expectantly.
“Tell me the score of my dish!”
The days in the Grand Chef house passed surprisingly quickly. Spending every day surrounded by people who all loved cooking made the whole experience feel almost like being at camp.
Before long, the third episode had finished airing as well. Everything shown so far had dealt with the qualifying rounds. Starting with the next broadcast, the main competition would finally begin airing. The contestants waited eagerly for each episode, and for the moment, their days were relatively peaceful and comfortable.
Jo Minjoon, however, could not spend his time quite so leisurely.
That was why he was making this call now.
“Yes. I think I’ll go back after a while. Travel expenses? I have enough. Yes, don’t worry. Yes. I’ll call you again.”
It was the day the next mission would be announced. While Jo Minjoon was in the kitchen waiting for the judges to enter the filming area, he unexpectedly received a call from Lee Hyeseon. Apparently, she was worried about her son being so far away.
When the call ended, Jo Minjoon let out a long sigh.
It was about time he told her about Grand Chef, but he still could not bring himself to say it.
Marco, standing beside him, looked impressed. “You speak Korean really well.”
“…I’m Korean.”
“Oh, right. I keep forgetting because your English sounds so natural.”
“Thanks.” Jo Minjoon laughed.
Chloe, beside him, asked with concern, “You still haven’t told your parents?”
“It’s probably about time I did. But I think they’ll worry if I tell them now. I feel like they’d worry less if I told them after I had a good result… It’s complicated.”
“Fine. How about this? Tell them if you pass this mission.”
“What if I don’t?”
“Then I’ll tell them! I’ll say Jo Minjoon loves cooking more than anything in the world, and that he’s sexiest when he’s cooking. That this is Jo Minjoon’s path, and if they let him follow it, he’ll definitely become a great chef. How about that?”
“…I only heard the part about me being sexy.”
“Ugh. Forget it.” Chloe turned her head away.
Jo Minjoon was still laughing when the doors opened and the judges entered. The contestants began applauding. It was not because they particularly wanted to, but because the director had signalled for them to do so.
After walking past the contestants, the judges took their usual places with expressions that revealed nothing. Joseph was carrying a large box. Even at a glance, it looked like something used for drawing lots.
Was it related to the mission?
As everyone tilted their heads curiously, Emily spoke. “It’s been a while. Before we announce the mission, I want to congratulate all of you. You’ve done well. Out of thousands of participants from around the world, you are the eighteen who have distinguished yourselves the most.”
Cheers erupted as soon as she finished.
Of course, about half of the cheering came because the contestants had been prompted to react, but even as Jo Minjoon applauded, he could feel warmth spreading through his chest.
The top eighteen.
It would have been a lie to say those words did not make him happy.
Alan stepped forward. “The fact that you can prepare dishes at this level means you are all talented cooks. However, a chef is not complete simply because they know how to handle a knife and a pan. The life of a chef revolves around teamwork. There is a limit to what one person can accomplish alone. I believe you already experienced that during the previous team mission.”
At that moment, every contestant understood what was coming.
It could hardly even be called intuition. Alan was practically giving away the answer.
The next mission would be another team challenge.
And their guess was correct.
“This mission will be a team mission. You will divide into two teams of nine. And just like in a real restaurant, each team will need a head chef.”
Everyone swallowed.
Their expressions made their thoughts obvious.
Please, not me.
Being head chef came with more disadvantages than advantages. The head chef had to take responsibility for everything. For amateurs like them, it was an exhausting and troublesome role more than anything else.
Joseph stepped forward with a bright smile, still holding the box.
“There are eighteen balls inside this box. One is red, one is blue, and the rest are white. Whoever draws one of the coloured balls will become a head chef.”
I just need to draw a white one.
Jo Minjoon thought this and nodded to himself.
Alan raised his voice.
“Come forward and pick a ball. You’ll probably feel more comfortable the sooner you get it over with.”
Perhaps those words encouraged him, because a red-haired young man immediately rushed towards the box.
It was Jacob.
With a nervous expression, he reached inside and pulled out a ball.
Alan laughed.
“A head chef right from the start.”
“Ah…” Jacob stared blankly at his hand.
He was holding a red ball about the size of his fist.
The other contestants could not help feeling relieved. The probability of becoming head chef had just been cut in half.
Jo Minjoon looked at Kaya, who was standing beside him.
“What about you?”
“What?”
“Head chef. Do you want to do it?”
“…You know what my personality is like.”
“That you’re fierce?” Jo Minjoon asked jokingly.
Kaya frowned and shut her mouth. The fact that she did not argue probably meant she was aware of her temperament herself.
She looked at him. “And you?”
“I don’t know. Half and half? Honestly, when else would you get the chance to be a head chef if not in a situation like this?”
“That’s… true. But I still don’t want to do it. I’d definitely get cursed at.”
Jo Minjoon felt slightly sorry for her when he heard that. It seemed the recent broadcast and the reactions to it had affected her more than she let on.
The line gradually shortened.
There were perhaps five people left who had not drawn a ball, yet the blue one still had not appeared.
Kaya looked anxiously at Jo Minjoon. “You go first.”
“But I might just draw a white ball.”
“But… ah, I don’t know. I’ll go.” In the end, Kaya stepped forward first.
A moment later, a blue ball was sitting in her hand.
Kaya turned and glared resentfully at Jo Minjoon. “I told you to go first.”