Food Wars!: Delicious Food of the Heavens

Tadokoro Megumi had a look of reminiscence on her face. After thinking for a long time, she slowly spoke.

"I think I've heard this name before..."

Megumi Tadokoro, relying on her memory, rummaged through the cupboard.

Finally, she even crouched down, practically crawling inside the cupboard, and searched for a long time among a pile of clutter before finally finding a small jar.

"Lin Yujun, is this what you see?"

Lin Yu took the small jar from Tadokoro Megumi and shook the brownish-red granules inside.

"That's right, that's it!"

Lin Yu twisted open the jar, brought it close to his nose, and took a deep breath.

The strong and peculiar aroma of Sichuan peppercorns, carrying a numbing sensation that made one's nose tingle, aggressively entered Lin Yu's nasal cavity.

Lin Yu couldn't help but wrinkle his nose.

That tangy, refreshing sensation sent inspiration soaring to the heavens!

Very good!

The numbing flavor is still quite strong, so it probably hasn't been sitting for too long.

The Sichuan peppercorns were of very high quality, which gave Lin Yu a pleasant surprise.

For a moment, Lin Yu was somewhat dazed.

In his previous life, his hometown was located in the fertile land of Sichuan and Chongqing.

Sichuan peppercorns, a common and distinctive spice in that region, have a unique aroma, a stimulating numbing sensation, and a peculiar fragrance that leaves a lasting impression once you've experienced them.

It wasn't until today, when he smelled the numbing aroma of Sichuan peppercorns again, that Lin Yu suddenly realized something in a daze...

He hadn't smelled that numb scent, which he should have been so familiar with, for a long time.

Memories of past lives are like frozen ice and snow; they appear to be indestructible.

But the power of time is like the warm sun of early spring; it doesn't seem scorching or particularly powerful.

But by the time you realize it, it has already silently released its warmth, making you willingly walk into its trap.

The sun shines brightly on the earth, the snow melts, and the water seeps deep into the earth, never to be seen again.

"Eh..."

Lin Yu sighed. He realized that perhaps... it was time for him to let go of his past life...

"Lin Yujun, what's wrong?"

Tadokoro Megumi's voice startled Lin Yu from his reverie.

Lin Yu subconsciously looked up and met the girl's concerned gaze.

"I suddenly heard Lin Yujun sigh. What happened?"

Megumi Tadokoro's gentle gaze was full of worry and concern.

"It's nothing."

Lin Yu raised his hand and wiped away non-existent tears from his eyes. "I just suddenly remembered some... things from the past."

"That's good."

Tadokoro Megumi breathed a sigh of relief, then pointed to the small jar of Sichuan peppercorns in Lin Yu's hand, "Can these Sichuan peppercorns still be used?"

Lin Yu nodded and smiled, "It works, and the quality is pretty good."

Suddenly, Lin Yu seemed to have thought of something interesting, and a mischievous smile appeared in his eyes.

"Xiaohui, do you want to smell it? The fragrance is very strong!"

Megumi Tadokoro nodded happily, "Okay."

At this moment, Lin Yu was like a big bad wolf luring a little girl, with an undisguised wicked smile in his eyes.

He reminded everyone again, "Pay attention, you must take a deep breath. Only in this way can you truly appreciate the charm of Sichuan peppercorns."

"Oh well."

Megumi Tadokoro came from a small seaside town in northern Japan and had limited experience; she had never been exposed to Sichuan peppercorns before.

So she didn't know what Sichuan peppercorns tasted like, nor did she know what she was about to face.

Seeing Lin Yu's earnest search and his seemingly solemn expression, she couldn't help but feel a strong curiosity about the taste of Sichuan peppercorns.

Although Lin Yu had just mentioned that Sichuan peppercorns could cause a numbing sensation, the honest-natured Tadokoro Megumi still listened to Lin Yu's advice, brought her nose close to the jar, and took a big gulp.

"what!"

Tadokoro Megumi screamed, her nose went numb, and the strange, tingling sensation almost brought tears to her eyes.

"Lin Yujun! You're playing a trick on me!"

"Hahaha!"

Tadokoro had to wrinkle her nose very hard to slightly relieve the numb feeling.

Seeing Lin Yu laughing heartily, she angrily raised her arm and hit Lin Qi on the shoulder.

Although her expression was angry, the girl's blows were not very forceful.

Seeing Tadokoro Megumi's embarrassed state, Lin Yu laughed even louder, and the melancholy that had risen in his heart when he missed his hometown earlier dissipated considerably.

"Lin Yujun! You're still laughing?"

"Stop laughing!"

Tadokoro Megumi stood there, jumping up and down in a panic, her face almost breaking into tears.

"Okay, okay, stop laughing, stop laughing."

Lin Yu finally stopped laughing.

"Lin Yujun, it's rare to see you being so unserious."

Tadokoro Megumi pouted and complained to him angrily.

"I apologize to you!"

Lin Yu, as usual, patted Tadokoro Megumi's head and smoothed her hair.

Tadokoro Megumi still harbored some resentment, but she did not dodge Lin Yu's hand.

"But I still have to thank you, Xiaohui. I feel much better now."

Hearing Lin Yu say that, Tadokoro Megumi stopped being angry with him and changed the subject, looking at the bottle of peppercorns.

"Does this really need to be used in rice balls?"

"Won't everyone find that unbearable?"

Recalling the tingling sensation she had just experienced, Tadokoro Megumi couldn't help but tremble.

"Don't worry, I only need a little bit, and I'll take care of it."

Hearing Lin Yu say this, Tadokoro Megumi became somewhat curious.

"So, what does Lin Yujun plan to do?"

"I plan to stir-fry some salt and pepper sauce and add it to the salt and green onion sauce."

"Salt and pepper?"

"Yes, salt and pepper, that's a seasoning made with Sichuan peppercorns and salt."

"Stir-fry the Sichuan peppercorns until fragrant, dry them, then grind them into Sichuan peppercorn powder. Stir-fry the powder with salt. The final product will be very fragrant, with a complex aroma of salt and Sichuan peppercorns, and the pungent taste will not be too strong."

Without further ado, Lin Yu took out a frying pan, placed it on the stove, first turned on the high heat to heat the pan, and then turned it down to the low heat.

Lynch took out some Sichuan peppercorns and put them into the frying pan.

"No oil?" Tadokoro asked.

Lin Yu shook his head, "No oil needed, just use low heat to slowly roast the peppercorns until fragrant."

"You have to be patient, the heat has to be on the lowest setting, and you have to keep stirring and turning it."

Lin Yu gently stirred the Sichuan peppercorns in the pan.

Under continuous low heat, the Sichuan peppercorns in the pot quickly released a strong and unique aroma.

When the Sichuan peppercorns in the pan were roasted until they were dry, fragrant, and crispy, Lin Yu removed the pan and poured all the peppercorns onto the cutting board.

"Xiaohui, is there a rolling pin in the kitchen? I need to use that to grind the peppercorns into powder."

"If you really don't have any, a glass bottle will do."

"Yes, Lin Yujun, wait a moment, I'll find it for you right away."

Megumi Tadokoro began opening the cupboard and rummaging around.

A moment later, she took out a rolling pin and placed it in Lin Yu's hand.

"Well done, Xiaohui is awesome."

Hearing Lin Yu's praise, Tadokoro Megumi smiled and her eyes narrowed. "You're welcome, Lin Yu-kun, it's what I should do."

Lin Yu looked at the cutting board and began to grind Sichuan peppercorns into powder.

The moisture inside the Sichuan peppercorns had long been forced out due to the continuous roasting, making them dry and brittle.

Under the rolling pin, a small pile of peppercorns quickly turned into a pile of warm peppercorn powder.

Lin Yu ground the peppercorns very carefully and with enough strength. The resulting peppercorn powder was as fine as flour, still steaming and releasing its aroma.

After grinding the Sichuan peppercorns, Lin Yu put a spoonful of salt into an oil-free frying pan, added the ground Sichuan peppercorns, and stirred the salt continuously over the lowest heat.

Lin Yu only removed the pot from the stove when the salt emitted a mellow, slightly charred aroma, and added the sautéed salt to the chopped scallions.

But that wasn't all. Lin Yu turned up the heat and poured a spoonful of oil into the pan.

Lin Yu only picked up the pan when the oil in it was smoking hot, and then poured the hot oil onto the scallions in several batches.

With a sizzling sound, a strong, fresh aroma wafted through the kitchen.

"How is it?"

Lin Yu placed the prepared salt and scallion sauce in front of Tadokoro Megumi.

Thinking about what had happened to the peppercorns earlier, Tadokoro Megumi hesitated at first, but smelling the delicious aroma of scallions, she couldn't resist and took a little bit of the salt and scallion sauce with a spoon, putting it in her mouth.

"It smells so good!"

Tadokoro Megumi's eyes lit up immediately.

"The numbing sensation of Sichuan peppercorns is not as stimulating anymore; it has become much milder."

"Not only that, the unique aroma of the Sichuan peppercorns became even stronger, mixing with the fried salt and the chopped scallions drizzled with hot oil—what a refreshing fragrance!"

Lin Yu stirred the prepared salt and scallion sauce with chopsticks, smelling the fresh scallion aroma wafting in the air. He couldn't help but feel happy, and a smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.

Tadokoro Megumi had been silently observing Lin Yu's movements and noticed the barely perceptible smile on his lips.

"Is this also the little trick Lin Yu-jun mentioned before?" Tadokoro Megumi asked with a smile.

"Of course! Although it's not complicated, the ingenuity in cooking is everywhere."

After saying that, he looked at the rice balls that Tadokoro Megumi had wrapped. They were round and plump, and looked full of filling, which would easily make people's appetite increase.

"Xiaohui, could you please make the rice balls for the rest of the time? I'm planning to start baking them."

"Okay, sure!" Tadokoro Megumi happily agreed.

Looking at the gentle smile on the girl's face, Lin Yu suddenly remembered something.

Before they started cooking, he seemed to have said that Tadokoro Megumi would be the head chef for lunch, and he would be assisting her.

Logically, he should only be doing minor tasks like cutting and preparing food, and watching the fire, and he should be doing things under the chef's instructions.

As a result, during the cooking process, he unknowingly took over many steps and did even more work than Tadokoro Megumi.

He had originally planned to train Tadokoro Megumi!

Lin Yu looked at Xiao Hui, who was making rice balls, with genuine apology in his heart.

"I'm sorry, Xiaohui. We agreed from the beginning that I would be assisting you, but I subconsciously ended up ordering you around again."

"That's not true at all."

Tadokoro Megumi smiled and shook her head. "I'm very happy that Lin Yujun can give me guidance. After all, I know my own level and I also know that I still have many shortcomings."

Seeing that Tadokoro Megumi didn't seem to care, Lin Yu breathed a sigh of relief.

"Actually, as I just said, Xiaohui's performance today was already very good, at least much better than the previous times."

"Yes, it's all thanks to Lin Yujun's help."

Lin Yu gave him an encouraging look, "Keep it up! Try to do even better next time."

"Hehe, actually I'm quite satisfied with it as it is now."

Tadokoro Megumi was a little embarrassed, stroking her braids.

"In the past, when I was most nervous in class, I couldn't even move my body, and even breathing became difficult, let alone successfully complete the cooking."

"Now, although I still get nervous occasionally, I've found a way to keep going even when I'm nervous."

Lin Yu asked curiously, "What method?"

Tadokoro Megumi lowered her head and remained silent, a blush suddenly spreading across her cheeks.

Of course it is...

Empty your mind, forget your own existence...

Then recall in your mind, and even imagine Lin Yujun's voice.

Once you imagine Lin Yujun's voice giving you instructions, even if you're incredibly nervous, your body will still move involuntarily.

"No, it's nothing!"

Of course, Tadokoro Megumi didn't dare to say what was on her mind, so she could only give a vague and perfunctory answer.

Seeing that Tadokoro Megumi was unwilling to elaborate, Lin Yu didn't keep pressing her for details.

After all, everyone has their own secrets!

It is extremely rude to keep asking someone who is unwilling to talk about it.

"Whatever method you come up with, if it works, then it's a good method."

"Keep going, and one day, I believe you can completely overcome your nervousness, Xiaohui."

Lin Yu's eyes were full of anticipation. "If that day really comes, then Xiao Hui's potential might be fully unleashed."

"At that time, you will definitely undergo a complete transformation!"

Looking into Lin Yu's eyes, Tadokoro Megumi was somewhat moved.

"My potential?"

Tadokoro hesitated; she still couldn't convince herself to be confident.

"Lin Yu is saying that again. Am I really not as amazing as you say?"

Lin Yu's tone was incredibly firm, "Just trust me!"

"Alright, since Lin Yujun says so, then I believe you!"

"If that day ever comes, I will definitely not let Lin Yujun down."

Tadokoro Megumi clenched her fists and waved her arms to encourage herself.

Lin Yu smiled and shook his head, saying nothing more, and began preparing the baked rice balls.

Lin Yu found a ceramic stove that could hold charcoal in a cabinet in the corner of the kitchen, and also found a pile of charcoal. He lit the charcoal and put it into the ceramic stove.

Lin Yu took the rice ball that Tadokoro Megumi had wrapped, brushed a thin layer of soy sauce on the surface of the rice ball with a small brush, then placed a grill rack on the earthenware stove, put the rice ball on the grill rack, and started grilling.

At first, Lin Yu used not much charcoal, and the fire was not strong, even weak.

He patiently used medium to low heat to dry the soy sauce on the surface of the rice balls, using the heat to encourage the flavor of the soy sauce to penetrate into the rice balls.

After the rice ball was baked until dry and all the soy sauce was absorbed by the rice, Lin Yu brushed another layer of soy sauce onto the rice ball.

He then added a few more pieces of charcoal to the pottery stove, increasing the heat.

This time, the soy sauce on the surface of the rice ball was quickly baked dry, and slight charred marks began to appear on the surface of the rice ball.

Lin Yu kept turning the rice ball, trying to make sure the surface was browned and tempting, but not burnt and bitter. He had to be very careful.

Tadokoro Megumi silently watched Lin Yu. She felt that Lin Yu's expression was extremely serious at this moment, as if the piece of rice in his hands was not a ball of rice, but a piece of jade that needed to be carefully carved by a top craftsman.

Seeing Lin Yu's focused expression, Tadokoro Megumi became somewhat engrossed...