Putting Aside Nationalistic Bias, It’s Really Delicious

30 – The deeper the scent of soybean paste, the deeper the taste of soybean paste stew.

“Soft tofu?”

“Yes. It was Kobi’s favorite menu item.”

Camilla still showed dissatisfaction on her face, having to eat another dish instead of the soybean paste stew.

However, Lord and Lady Jasper seemed rather relieved that there were other dishes besides the soybean paste stew.

“You ate some without telling me again…”

“We have to taste it before serving it to the guests.”

I scooped soft tofu into a small rice bowl and handed it over to Camilla, who was glaring at Kobi in silence, and to the relieved couple of magpies.

A little soy sauce on top of the soft tofu.

Camilla watched the glistening white gems being defiled by the black soy sauce that Lucas sprinkled.

The gradual transformation of the tingly white body was a strangely satisfying spectacle.

It was like the innocent saintess the world’s filth and suffering.

“You can mix it and eat it.”

“…That’s all?”

“Yes.”

Unlike before, Camilla didn’t act out.

She had already tried tofu kimchi and knew.

There was no need to add fancy cooking to the tofu.

“Okay.”

Camilla scooped up a spoonful of warm soft tofu mixed with soy sauce.

She didn’t waste any time.

The sooner she ate this, the sooner she could eat doenjang-jjigae.

The soft tofu went down without resistance, disappearing in her mouth even before she could chew.

Smooth, melting.

She was amazed the texture was just as it appeared.

She was surprised again by the rich and savory aftertaste left by the soft tofu and soy sauce.

Hadn’t they said there was purity in the pilgrimage of the saintess who continued her ordeal?

The soft tofu was the same.

Though it had an extremely delicate and tender texture, the taste it contained was never weak.

The nutty flavor of beans spread in her mouth, followed by the savory taste of soy sauce.

What remained in her mouth afterward were.

Crisp, crisp.

Toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onions that had been sprinkled with soy sauce.

The torment that had sullied the purity of the tofu, or rather the saint, lingered in her mouth, expressing its presence until the very end.

How beautiful is the back view of one who sacrifices and suffers for others.

In the subtle aroma of tofu spreading in her mouth, she took another spoonful.

Slurp!

Gulp.

Only then did Camilla realize that Lucas was smiling and looking at her.

“Is it delicious?”

“C-Cough! Y-yes, it’s delicious. Um….”

Avoiding Lucas’s gaze, Camilla took another spoonful.

“This is really smooth.”

“It’s truly delicious. It goes down smoothly, and the taste is not too stimulating. Older people would probably like it too, right?”

Briton, the novelist, and his wife also ate the tofu in surprise.

“In fact, in our hometown, this is a dish that many elders love.”

“As expected.”

“There are many interesting dishes in Lucas’s hometown.”

“Haha, no, not really.”

Camilla couldn’t help but feel annoyed by Lucas, who was smiling and talking with Briton’s wife.

‘Lucas is the one who cooks for me.’

He wasn’t her personal chef right now, but in the not-too-distant future, he would be her exclusive chef.

And yet, he was receiving taste evaluations from someone else.

Her pride did not allow it.

“Young kids would like it too. The texture might be a matter of preference, but it’s definitely commercial enough. Hm, I like it.”

As he scooped another spoonful, he spoken.

He enjoyed the crunch of the green onions and the late, bursting sesame seeds’ savory taste.

“Now, is it the turn for doenjang jjigae (soybean paste soup)?”

“Yes, please take your time.”

Finally.

Finally!

Camilla bit her lips tightly, holding back to not let her emotions show.

Don’t give away too much here.

It might be difficult later to take him with her if she shows too much.

The employer should always be the boss to the employee.

She believed that an employer who is controlled by a servant is not qualified.

But Camilla didn’t realize.

The corners of her mouth were already sneaking up.

The light brown broth was boiling inside the ttukbaegi (earthen pot).

Sliced white tofu, zucchini, green onions, and mushrooms.

At the end of the scent, the subtle garlic was trying to assert its presence.

It would have been the pork doenjang jjigae she wanted if the scent of meat and the taste of oil were mixed, but she liked this kind of doenjang jjigae too.

“Since the beef brisket doenjang jjigae is cooking, I’ll bear with this for the first bite.”

“Can I serve you?”

“No need. I only asked you to help with the tofu because I wasn’t familiar with it, but I know how to eat this.”

Camilla scooped the doenjang jjigae into her own bowl with a ladle and swallowed a deep breath.

“Ahem…”

“…”.

The couple, different from when they ate the tofu, both followed her with worried faces as they scooped the doenjang jjigae.

‘People who don’t even know the taste.’

Regardless, she took a deep breath and fully enjoyed the smell of the Doenjang-jjigae.

Was it because she hadn’t smelled it in a while?

The Doenjang smell was much stronger than usual.

She used to hate this smell in the past.

But now it’s different.

She liked it enough to want to smell it every day.

“It’s been so long since I had Doenjang-jjigae.”

Her mouth was watering.

Her appetite, already warmed up by dubu-kimchi and soft tofu, was clamoring for the main dish.

She scooped the steaming hot Doenjang broth with a spoon and placed it on top of the white rice.

The neglected rice, only eaten with tofu, quickly absorbed the Doenjang broth as if to make up for the lost time.

On top of the moist rice, she placed slices of zucchini and tofu.

She cooled down the steamy tofu, rice, and zucchini by blowing on them.

And then, the first bite.

“Yum.”

Whoa! Whoa!

It’s hot.

The tofu, filled with heat, is too hot.

Despite Camilla blowing on it to cool it down, it was still scorching.

She quickly picked up her chopsticks and ate some cold kimchi.

Thanks to the cold kimchi cooling down the tofu, Camilla struggled but managed to swallow her first bite.

“Ah!”

Delicious!

Really delicious.

“This… It’s so much more delicious than when I ate it at the cafeteria last time! How is that possible?”

Ordinarily, the tofu was a bit bland because there wasn’t enough seasoning.

They filled the gap in the seasoning by eating it with kimchi.

But today, the tofu was seasoned perfectly.

No, even if it wasn’t soaked in soybean paste, it would have been delicious.

That’s because the natural taste of the tofu was more than enough.

“It’s like that because it’s freshly made tofu. In the cafeteria, we had used slightly old tofu that was refrigerated in order to deal with the daily supply.”

“Can the taste change so much because of the ingredient differences?”

“Of course.”

Camilla’s eyes sparkled.

She thought she had seen the peak of doenjang jjigae, but there was another step beyond.

“Heeheehee.”

She couldn’t help but smile.

Wasn’t it said that eating something delicious brings a sense of happiness?

She was very pleased.

She grew even more fond of Lucas.

Truly, this man was one of the best talents she should have in her care.

“It’s delicious. Mmm!”

She ate the doenjang jjigae’s tofu and soup mixed with rice again.

It was really delicious.

There was no other way to describe it.

“It’s tasty. But personally, I prefer this one. Hehe.”

“Thank you for the meal.”

The couple preferred the tofu kimchi and kept reaching for more of that dish.

She didn’t pay any attention to them.

Since they had more to eat now.

“Ahem, I’ve already finished one bowl…”

Camilla glanced at Lucas.

It was a signal to hurry up with the bulgogi soybean paste.

“Isn’t it time for it to come out now?”

“Understood.”

Finally, Lucas brought out a new earthen pot from the kitchen.

Simmering.

The soybean paste stew was boiling in the earthen pot.

It wasn’t much different from before, but there was meat floating in the bubbling stew.

Along with the meat, the oil shimmered as it refracted light.

This is it.

This is the proper soybean paste stew.

“This is a Tuo bull’s brisket soybean paste stew, made using Tuo bull’s brisket.”

“…Wait, Tuo bull’s brisket?”

“Yes.”

“When did you catch it?”

“A little over a week ago.”

“You, why are you just telling me now!”

It was unfair.

If he had known earlier, he would have simply asked for the Tuo bull meat to be grilled since last night.

Only Lucas could properly cook Tuo bull meat.

A skilled person who could kill a Tuo bull in one shot could hunt it, and only a person with high knowledge of meat could handle it.

He remembered how surprised he was when he first tasted the Tuo bull dish Lucas made for him.

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“You asked for the soybean paste stew as soon as you arrived. Thanks to that, you got to enjoy some delicious tofu too. Otherwise, the tofu would be disappointed.”

“Well, it was delicious…”

There was no denying that the tofu was delicious.

It tasted better than the meat dishes made by a mediocre chef.

The taste was less stimulating, but the deep flavor of the ingredients could be felt even more intensely.

Still, it was frustrating.

“Let’s eat first and then talk.”

“The flavor needs to be as good as what you didn’t tell me.”

“You’ll find it delicious.”

As soon as the bulgogi doenjang stew was placed on the table, the savory aroma tickled their noses even more.

The husband and wife who had not been interested in doenjang stew seemed to have taken an interest in the bulgogi doenjang as their eyes sparkled.

“The smell is even better than before, isn’t it?”

“I added a little bit of gochujang (Korean red chili paste) to counteract the greasiness of the meat.”

Camilla answered the lady’s question.

“Aha, so this spicy aroma is from the gochujang… Camilla, you seem to know a lot.”

“It’s a dish I used to enjoy a lot.”

“It seems that you really like Lucas’s cooking.”

“Yes, it’s not easy to find someone who can satisfy my picky taste.”

With that, she scooped up a big spoonful of bulgogi doenjang.

” Mmm~.”

Humming, she put both the meat and tofu on top of the newly served bowl of steamed rice.

The soft tofu and chewy bulgogi came together.

The two completely different ingredients mixed with the rice, creating a mysterious and deep savory taste that she enjoyed.

She also enjoyed how the doenjang broth from the meat flowed with every bite.

A completed harmony echoed in her mouth.

There was no need for kimchi with this dish.

It was the reason she particularly liked Chadol Doenjang.

She liked the meat, the tofu was soft, and the harmony of pumpkin and vegetables was good.

Every time she ate the meat, the strong taste of the bull came alive.

It was a taste that seemed like a bull running recklessly on the cozy clouds of tofu.

Delicious!

The wild galloping of the bull penetrated deeply into the tofu.

Closing her eyes and savoring the taste, she felt regret as the food went down her throat and opened her eyes again.

“Does it suit your taste?”

At Lucas’ question, Camilla nodded her head.

“It’s much better than what I’ve had before. The combination of tofu and bull meat was beyond expectations.”

“I’m relieved that our guest likes it so much.”

Seeing Lucas’ smile, Camilla made up her mind.

“I can’t stand it any longer. Lucas, you’re going to be my exclusive chef! I’ll pay you a lot! I’ll give you a huge signing bonus!”

I don’t care how much I have to pay!

After shouting spiritedly, she looked at Lucas who was standing next to her with a smile, waiting for his answer.

***

“…The trace of the bull ends here.”

A woman in a robe near Conwell Village looked down at the place where the bull last fell.

Although time had erased it, her brow narrowed as if she recognized the faintly remaining traces and smells.

“It seems like the bull was knocked down here…”

The shiny golden hair slipped out of her robe.

She hid her beautiful golden hair, which was like gold, back inside the robe, bent her knees, and examined the traces more closely.

“Wait, did someone catch the bull in one hit?”

The long ears sticking out of the robe perked up.

“Damn. We’re late.”

Tucking her protruding ears and hair back in, she looked towards the place where the smell of the fighting bull was coming from.

That place was the crossroads where Lucas had disassembled the bull’s corpse and moved it.

“Here.”

She took a step towards the crossroads.