Food Wars!: Delicious Food of the Heavens

As the air filled with the strong aroma of soy sauce and the rich fragrance of grains released from the caramelized starch, Lin Yu breathed a sigh of relief and placed the baked rice balls on a plate.

At this moment, the outermost layer of rice in the rice ball has been baked into a brownish-brown crust, which looks very tempting.

"Wow, it smells so good! It has such a rich fragrance!"

Megumi Tadokoro raised her nose, inhaling the aroma in the air. "Unlike the gentle aroma before, after being brushed with soy sauce and grilled, the aroma is now incredibly strong."

"Yes, that's the charm of baking!"

Lin explained with a smile:

"Compared to steaming, boiling, or even frying, roasting, due to its temperature, can produce a strong Maillard reaction, which can maximize the release of the aroma of the ingredients."

"In terms of the impact upon first bite, roasting is arguably the most impactful of all cooking methods."

"Want to try a piece?"

"OK!"

Lin Yu held the rice ball in both hands and broke it in half.

When the rice ball was broken apart, it even made a crisp "crack" sound, which shows how crispy the rice ball's exterior was after baking.

Lin Yu handed half a rice ball to Tadokoro Megumi.

Megumi Tadokoro took a bite of the rice ball and was so surprised by the rich and delicious flavor that she was speechless.

"So delicious!"

"This fragrance is so wonderful! It seems quite complex?"

Seeing Tadokoro Megumi's surprised expression, Lin Yu felt quite pleased with himself.

"It's actually not that complicated. It's just that the flavor of the ingredients is brought out through smoking and grilling."

Lin Yu held up two fingers.

"As a grain, rice is rich in starch. When roasted over a fire, it caramelizes and releases a delightful grain aroma."

"Soy sauce is also brewed from soybeans. It is rich in amino acids that give it umami flavor. Through fermentation and a long period of aging, the delicious flavor of soy sauce is further concentrated."

"Finally, these two flavors are combined into one by roasting over an open flame."

"The umami essence it contains is something that those who haven't tasted it themselves cannot imagine!"

Looking at Lin Yu, who was speaking eloquently, Tadokoro Megumi showed an expression of admiration.

"Although I think it smells nice, that's all I think about it."

"I never expected Lin Yujun to say so much about such a simple baked rice ball. If it were me, I definitely wouldn't be able to say so much."

When Tadokoro Megumi revealed her true feelings, her expression was very serious.

Hearing the girl's sincere praise, Lin Yu was also moved. His mood improved considerably, and he became interested, so he couldn't help but say a few more words.

"Actually, it's not just open-flame grilling; there are many other ways to give food a strong, sharp impact."

"For example, there's a method I can show you right now."

Tadokoro Megumi looked curious. "What is it?"

Lin Yu snapped his fingers and uttered two words.

"smoked!"

"Smoked?"

Tadokoro Megumi recognized the term. "Is it what Ibu-kun is good at? Using the smoke from burning wood to smoke food?"

"That's right."

Lin Yu nodded and began to elaborate:

Smoking, in essence, is a cooking technique that uses the incomplete combustion of materials to produce dense smoke, which then adheres to the surface of the food, imparting a unique flavor to it.

"Smoking is divided into deep smoking and light smoking, mainly depending on the smoking time, to adjust the intensity of the smoking flavor of the ingredients."

"It depends on the type of ingredients, their condition, the preparation method, and the overall flavor of the dish."

"To achieve sufficient flavor, in addition to the smoking time, the burning materials used to produce smoke during smoking are also very important."

"Different countries and regions around the world have their own smoked dishes, with different regional flavors and different burning materials used."

"In some places, cypress or fresh pine is used, which produces very thick smoke when burned, with a strong smoky flavor and a hint of herbal fragrance."

"In some places, people prefer to use wood from fruit trees such as apple or jujube as fuel, as this produces less smoke and a milder smoky flavor."

"In addition, things like orange peel, sugarcane, tea leaves, sugar, and various nuts and spices, although not common, can indeed be used as fuel for smoking."

"If special combustion materials are used, their incomplete combustion will not only produce more smoke, making the smoky aroma of food stronger, but the special flavor contained in the smoke will also make the flavor of the dish stronger and the taste more diverse."

"Lin Yujun is amazing, she knows so much!"

After spending these days with Lin Yu, Tadokoro Megumi genuinely felt that Lin Yu knew a lot and could talk about cuisines from all over the world.

"Nothing much, just some random anecdotes."

Lin Yu smiled and waved his hand, "I heard it from someone else when I was traveling before. I thought it was quite interesting, so I wrote it down. Just listen to it as a story."

"But Lin Yujun is right."

Tadokoro Megumi seemed to recall something.

"In the past, when Ibu was making smoked food, he would use a chainsaw to cut applewood into small pieces to use as fuel."

"I've also tried the beef jerky that Yiwu smoked with applewood. It's just like Lin Yujun said. It's salty, fragrant and delicious, with a hint of fruitiness. The flavor is quite strong, but the unique smoky flavor is very mild."

Whether it was because she was thinking of the smoked dishes she had eaten before, or because Lin Yu's words had whetted her appetite, Tadokoro Megumi's face inadvertently revealed an expectant expression as she spoke.

"I just wonder what the dishes smoked with cypress wood, which Lin Yujun mentioned, and the dishes smoked with those special smoking materials taste like."

"Haha, Xiaohui is such a little glutton!"

Lin Yu was amused by Tadokoro Megumi's expression.

"As for the former, we don't have the materials on hand right now."

Lin Yu looked out the kitchen window and pointed to the forest surrounding Polaris Lodge not far away.

"As for the forests surrounding Polar Star Dormitory, let's not even talk about whether the academy allows logging at will. Even if logging is allowed, it's not certain that you can find fresh cypress trees."

"Moreover, using cypress wood as a fuel often takes a very long time, requiring dozens of hours or even longer to smoke it. We also have to cook for everyone now, so we simply can't afford to waste any more time."

"Furthermore, cypress wood produces a lot of smoke when burned, requiring a special fumigation room or furnace, otherwise..."

Lin Yu raised his finger and pointed to the ceiling above his head, then to the surrounding walls and furniture.

"If we smoke it directly in the kitchen, not to mention that the lack of airtightness will affect the taste of the finished product, just the fact that the kitchen walls will be completely blackened by the smoke would make Grandma Fumio kick us out of the Polar Star Dormitory."

"Being kicked out of Polaris Dormitory? How terrifying!"

Tadokoro Megumi wasn't sure if Lin Yu was joking, and she was immediately startled by his words.

"Haha, don't panic so much. Although Xiaohui looks quite cute when she's flustered."

"As for the latter, it is smoked using unconventional and special materials..."

Now that so much about smoking had been discussed, Lin Yu's interest was piqued.

He looked around the kitchen, then looked down at the ceramic stove at his feet where rice balls were being baked.

"Although I don't have a dedicated smoking stove right now, I can use this ceramic stove to give you a simple demonstration."

Without further ado, Lin Yu found a piece of aluminum foil and folded it into the shape of a shallow tray.

Afterwards, Lin Yu rummaged through the cupboard again and came back with several jars.

"This is a simple demonstration, so I won't make my smoking materials too complicated."

Lin Yu opened the jar and showed Tadokoro Megumi the materials he had found: tea leaves, white sugar, and a small amount of cinnamon and bay leaves.

Lin Yu placed the white sugar on a tray made of folded tin foil, sprinkling a thick layer on top, and then placed the tea leaves, bay leaves, and cinnamon on the sugar.

Next, he removed the grill rack from the ceramic stove, placed the tin foil inside the stove, and put it directly over the glowing red charcoal.

"No cigarettes yet?"

Tadokoro Megumi looked at the still motionless pottery furnace with a puzzled expression.

"Haha! Don't rush, it takes time and more heat to heat the sugar until it caramelizes, and the current heat is not enough."

Lin Yu bent down and gently blew air into the gap between the ceramic stove and the tin foil.

The flowing air swept quickly across the burning charcoal, turning the already reddish charcoal into a bright red color, almost igniting into flames.

The temperature at the bottom suddenly rose, and the previously calm scene inside the foil tray above immediately changed.

The snow-white sugar began to change color, its original whiteness turning dull.

After heating for a while longer, parts of the sugar began to turn a faint brownish-yellow color.

coming!

Lin Yu's eyes lit up with joy, and he continued to blow on the fire.

As the temperature inside the foil tray continued to rise, the sugar began to change more and more dramatically, and the caramelized brownish-yellow color quickly permeated the original white.

A wisp of smoke began to rise, carrying a slightly sweet scent as it drifted through the air.

As the charcoal at the bottom of the stove continued to heat the food, the temperature inside the foil tray rose higher and higher, and the sugar began to liquefy, almost turning into a boiling, dark brown syrup.

However, because there was always a layer of aluminum foil between the sugar, tea leaves, and cinnamon leaves and charcoal, neither could directly contact the flame. The incomplete combustion produced a huge amount of thick smoke that rose from a small aluminum foil tray, quickly spreading and covering most of the kitchen.

"Lin Yujun, are you alright?"

The thick smoke that spread made visibility in the kitchen visibly decrease, which made Tadokoro Megumi both incredibly curious and somewhat worried.

Compared to Tadokoro Megumi's nervousness, Lin Yu was quite calm.

He even leaned closer to the smoke and sniffed it. Only when he smelled the strong sweetness, the faint aroma of tea, and the fragrance of bay leaves and cinnamon did a satisfied expression finally appear on his face.

"Don't be afraid."

Lin Yu spoke up to comfort Tadokoro Megumi and help her calm down.

"We only smoke for a short time, so we need to use a lot of smoke."

"While ensuring the smoky flavor of the rice ball is strong enough, it won't ruin the original taste of the food."

Lin Yu suddenly looked up at Tadokoro Megumi.

"More importantly, the fumigation time is short, so even if there's a lot of smoke, it won't easily blacken the ceiling. No need to worry about Grandma Wenxu kicking me out, haha!"

"Lin Yujun, could you please stop bringing this up repeatedly?"

Tadokoro Megumi pretended to be angry after being teased, but then burst into laughter the next second.

"Okay, I'm not teasing you anymore."

Lin Yu placed a grill rack on the ceramic stove, picked out some uncooked rice balls, brushed them with a thin layer of soy sauce, and then put the rice balls into the billowing smoke.

"Xiao Hui, find a pot lid, big and wide enough to completely cover the ceramic stove."

"The smoking time is already short, so we must not let the smoke escape, otherwise the smoky flavor will not be strong enough."

"Oh, I'll go find it right away."

Tadokoro Megumi put aside her curiosity and hurriedly ran to find a pot lid, handing it to Lin Yu.

"Lin Yujun, here, this should cover all the smoke."

"Yes, well done, Xiaohui."

Lin Yu took the pot lid.

Just as Tadokoro Megumi had said, the size of the pot lid was just right.

The thick, billowing smoke was immediately sealed inside the pot lid once it was placed on top, without leaking out at all.

Lin Yu and Tadokoro Megumi squatted by the pottery stove, waiting patiently, with Lin Yu paying close attention to the smoking time.

Because the ingredient being smoked was rice balls, Lin Yu used a light smoking method. After waiting for only a minute or two, Lin Yu lifted the lid of the pot.

Above the ceramic stove, a pile of originally white and plump rice balls has now turned into an enticing amber color after being smoked.

Smelling the smoke in the air, Lin Yu revealed a satisfied expression.

"The condition is not bad."

Lin Yu picked up a rice ball that was still a little hot, tossed it back and forth between his hands, blew on it, and then took a bite.

The already delicious rice balls become even more exquisite after being smoked and absorbing the unique smoky flavor of smoked food.

It has a rich and complex flavor.

As you chew, the sweetness of the white sugar, the fragrance of the tea, and the rich aroma of the cinnamon and bay leaves act like three supports, elevating the flavor of the rice and filling in the rice ball to a higher level.

"Incredible!"

"Xiao Hui, would you like another one?"

Lin Yu held a smoked rice ball in front of Tadokoro Megumi's nose and waved it repeatedly, tempting her.

Although she really wanted to eat it, Tadokoro Megumi was still a little embarrassed and reluctantly said something against her will.

"Lin Yujun, although I'm very curious about the taste, I'm really too embarrassed to eat it anymore."

"After all, everyone in the fields hasn't eaten anything yet, and I'm almost full. I feel like this isn't quite right."

Tadokoro Megumi withdrew her longing gaze and waved her hand in refusal.

"Why don't we take it to the farmland and share it with everyone?"

Tadokoro Megumi said this, but her eyes couldn't help but dart towards Lin Yu's hands...