Who Is the World’s Strongest Appraiser? ~Living in Another World With Satisfying Meals~

Let’s Make Mirin-Based Men-Tsuyu And White Dashi

Halos smoothly inserted himself into the conversation between Yuuri and Ali. Always cheerful, he has a way of casually extracting information and slipping away. That’s just how merchants are. They blend into the group without raising suspicion, take what they need, and leave. ……What’s the difference between a merchant and a ninja? Merchants don’t hide.

In fact, men-tsuyu has a wide range of uses. The same goes for white dashi—they’re easy to adapt and bring hope to those who struggle with cooking.

Think about it. A seasoning that already has various flavors mixed in the right proportions, allowing you to achieve a certain taste just by using it, is a godsend for those who aren’t good at cooking. Not to mention, it’s a boon for busy homemakers. Mixing multiple seasonings in the right amounts is surprisingly tedious. Both men-tsuyu and white dashi can be used to make a variety of dishes.

Of course, Yuuri also uses them as handy accompaniments for easy recipes. In this world, they haven’t discovered udon, somen, or soba yet, so the traditional uses are out of the question. But even so, you can easily make dishes like ohitashi or nimono with men-tsuyu, and white dashi makes it simple to prepare clear soup.

Far from regretting making them, Yuuri is already thinking about what dishes to make next with these seasonings. ……He’s just operating on the usual level of “I made this because it’s necessary for delicious food.” That’s Yuuri’s quality. You might think he’s oblivious or needs to think things through, but that’s just how he is as a natural airhead.

“With white dashi, you can just dilute it to make clear soup, so it makes preparing soup easier. You can also use it to season stir-fried vegetables.”

“Hmm, hmm. ……Yuuri, can I ask you to help with taste-testing again?”

“Got it.”

Yuuri responded to Halos’s request with his usual carefree smile. Yuuri thinks it’s great to be of help to Halos. Of course, he’s happy to help anyone, but since Halos has always looked out for him, he’s excited to return the favor.

……By the way, thanks to Yuuri’s ideas, a lot of new products have been added, so Halos is quietly benefiting. It’s become a daily occurrence for items he didn’t know how to use to turn into ingredients for delicious meals.

The relationship between Yuuri and Halos is great, with both sides benefiting. Wonderful.

……Huh? Other people are troubled by the commotion this causes? No, it’s fine. It creates demand elsewhere and benefits others. The only one really troubled is Ali, the guardian, and his stomach is tough, so it’s fine.

“Ah, Halos, I think it’d be good to have variations of men-tsuyu and white dashi with different ingredient ratios.”

“Huh?”

“For men-tsuyu, you could make a sweeter version with more mirin, or a less sweet one with more dashi. The same goes for white dashi. Instead of limiting it to one type, it’d be fun to make slightly different flavors.”

“I see. So, you’re saying it’s possible to tweak the flavors?”

“Yes. People have different preferences, so I think it’d be good to have various types of men-tsuyu and white dashi.”

As Yuuri explained with a smile, Halos’s face lit up. The capable merchant’s mind was already calculating how to adjust the flavors to suit different regions. By tailoring the taste of men-tsuyu and white dashi to match local cuisines, they’d be more readily accepted.

Incidentally, Yuuri only suggested this because he’s seen various types of men-tsuyu and white dashi in stores. He hasn’t thought about sales at all. Having grown up in Japan, where there are countless varieties of miso—red, white, blended—he simply thinks it’s normal for seasonings to have variety. To him, the variety of seasonings is as natural as the variety of dishes.

“……Yuuri.”

“Yes? Ali, what’s wrong?”

“Don’t get Halos all fired up.”

“Huh?”

Yuuri tilted his head at Ali’s words, accompanied by a heavy sigh. But when he looked over, Halos was clearly in an unusual state of excitement, brainstorming what to do and which ingredients to use at full throttle. ……Yuuri, without realizing it, had sparked something in Halos. Today, too, the natural-born modern Japanese was in full swing, completely oblivious.

Seeing Halos getting all worked up, Yuuri finally caught on. But he figured it was fine. If it meant getting various types of men-tsuyu and white dashi, the details didn’t matter. He was unwavering. Too stable.

By the way, since soy sauce already exists in this world, men-tsuyu and white dashi were easily accepted and became staple seasonings.