Food Wars!: I Became a Fantasy Ingredient Supplier

"Yume-o" eggs from Ibaraki Prefecture are considered the Hermes of the egg world. Their yolks are almost orange-red, with a consistency so thick they can be stretched into strings, even stickier than pudding. Their most distinctive features are their richness, sweetness, and complete absence of any fishy smell!

The finest Koshihikari rice from Niigata produces perfectly separated grains when cooked.

Its surface has a natural sheen, a rich aroma, and just the right consistency; it seems as if it was born to be used for fried rice.

Hot food.

Add eggs.

It's a perfect match.

Oh, and the soy sauce is slightly sweeter than regular soy sauce.

With a hint of bonito and kelp umami flavor and a moderate saltiness, just a few drops are enough to awaken the whole bowl of fried rice!

……

"Neither dry nor greasy."

Swallowing hard, Soma looked up at Joichiro with an incredulous expression: "Dad, it's the same fried rice, how do you solve the problem of it being dry and greasy?"

“Simple, raw cucumber can solve this problem.” Upon hearing this, Ichiro said without hesitation, “It can exist in the rice in the form of crystal water, while bringing a refreshing taste.”

"But……"

"There aren't any cucumber shreds in your egg fried rice!"

Soma, puzzled, replied.

"Since we don't have cucumbers right now, we can only add mung bean sprouts and a little bit of bok choy."

After a moment's thought, Ichiro quickly added, "I heard that corn kernels can also be used, but I tried it before and found that the water content and crispness are not as good as cucumbers, and it also introduces a hint of sweetness, which ruins the overall flavor of the fried rice."

"I see."

Upon hearing this, Soma said dejectedly, "It seems I've lost again!"

"The quality of fried rice."

"Although it is related to the quality of ingredients such as rice, eggs, soy sauce, and scallions."

"But these ingredients are all quite common and ordinary, so the differences are not significant. Therefore, the only real difference lies in the chef's precise control of the heat and his deep understanding of the ingredients."

After saying that, Joichiro reached out and patted Soma on the shoulder: "You've lost to me 500 times in your life, considering this cooking duel."

"Dad, is it 499 times?"

Soma quickly corrected his father, Joichiro, and then felt even more upset.

……

From the moment I began to have memories.

At the Yukihira diner, that small wooden stool at the counter became Soma's exclusive territory.

Whenever he saw his father, Joichiro, making customers happy with his cooking at the diner, he couldn't help but admire him. So while his peers were urinating in the sandpit, Soma was already standing on tiptoe in front of the iron wok, stirring the food!

Even when a kitchen knife makes a cut on his left eyebrow and draws blood, he is completely unaware.

Whenever I have free time.

Soma always has cooking duels with Joichiro.

And each time, he suffered a crushing defeat.

499 failures in a lifetime would have caused most people to have a mental breakdown, but for Soma, it only made him more courageous and determined.

And every setback makes him seriously reflect on it and try to improve!

……

In fact.

Even if it has the "protagonist halo" from the original work.

Soma Yukihira is not like the overpowered protagonist characters in online novels; he is actually quite mediocre in talent.

In the early stages, he was consistently outmatched by his father, Joichiro; otherwise, he wouldn't have lost 499 times in a row. In the mid-stages at Totsuki Academy, he was also constantly suppressed by the Elite Ten. He finally managed to defeat Tsukasa Eishi and the others in the Joint Food Wars, standing at the pinnacle of the academy!

But never thought.

His brother is even more exceptionally gifted.

Finally, by awakening the "Saiba bloodline," he was able to slightly surpass Saiba Asahi.

However, at THE BLUE World Cooking Competition, he was mercilessly shaved "bald" by Erina Nakiri.

of course.

in his body.

Indeed, terrifying weapons exist.

That is, the courage to fight harder and harder, as well as the ability to summarize problems and the extraordinary ability to adapt to changing circumstances.

……

She may have been running this diner alongside Joichiro.

Therefore, Soma's vision is actually very narrow. From beginning to end, he has always advocated very common people's cuisine, and he has always had very little understanding of some phenomena and knowledge points in cuisine.

at this point.

The breakfast topic he discussed during his residential training program.

Making a soufflé omelet almost backfired because I didn't know that these omelets wouldn't collapse if left out for too long, which gives you a glimpse into the process.

and.

I just took the assessment for transfer students.

I learned from a casual conversation with a rich kid that Totsuki Academy only admits children from wealthy families.

Therefore, knowing that he had no background or achievements, Soma Yukihira was foolish enough not to be humble and openly dissed all the new students at the opening ceremony on the first day of school.

You can tell.

He was too self-important, thinking everyone else was just a kitchen theory apprentice.

Only I have extensive experience because I have been running the Yukihira diner with my father since I was a child.

In fact, people like Mito Ikumi, Hojo Miyoko, Takumi, and even Saito Somei, the fifth seat of the Elite Ten, and graduate Shinomiya Kojiro... didn't they all grow up working in shops from a young age?

Therefore, his behavior and arrogance are no different from those of a frog in a well!

……

He saw the true nature of creation in deep thought.

Over here, Joichiro didn't make a sound to disturb them, but simply closed his eyes and pondered something.

After a long while, Chuangzhen suddenly realized: "Dad, if we add high-fiber ingredients like diced shiitake mushrooms and celery, stir-fry them to remove moisture, and then stir-fry them with rice, wouldn't that absorb the oil?"

"Heh, you've learned to apply what you've learned to other situations."

Upon hearing this, Shiro opened his eyes and replied with a smile, "That's right, diced shiitake mushrooms and celery can help control oil production, and they can also enhance the aroma without being greasy."

"Then...then using sausages is the same principle?"

"Ok!"

"the same."

Upon hearing this, Soma excitedly stood up: "Okay, then starting tomorrow, whenever a customer comes in to eat fried rice, I'll use this method."

Jōichirō shook his head and replied, "You don't have a chance."

"Hey?"

Soma was stunned for a moment.

"I have decided that starting tomorrow, this set meal restaurant will be temporarily closed for renovations and will no longer serve customers!"

Helpless, Shiro could only sigh and tell the truth.

"No way? Dad, I just beat Yaeko in a cooking duel, and you sold the diner to a developer right after that?"

Soma felt like the sky had fallen, and said indignantly, "My dream in this life was to run this diner well, just like you, and now... now it's all gone?"

"Who told you I sold it?"

Upon hearing this, Ichiro rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

"Then why..."

Soma was both anxious and confused.

"After this incident with the developer, I started to seriously consider that if you keep staying in a diner, it will be difficult for you to achieve anything in your life."

Joichiro's gaze was deep, as if he were reminiscing about the past: "That's why I signed you up for the transfer student exam at Totsuki Culinary Academy. I think only there can you see a broader world of cooking!"

"Totsuki?"

Soma's brow was furrowed.

"The world of Totsuki is much larger than this diner, and you are not something that this small place can contain."

Yukihira Joichiro paused for a moment, then said, "Anyway, you should make some preparations in advance."