NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 133.2
A Quick And Easy Seafood Marinated Bowl Using Men-Tsuyu
Seeing Ireissia’s shoulders slump dejectedly, Yuuri understood. She was in the same situation as him. Fresh fish is available, but in this area, where eating it raw isn’t common, such dishes aren’t served. Unlike Yuuri, who nostalgically makes it himself, Ireissia isn’t currently on cooking duty, so she can’t do the same.
Yuuri’s face lit up. He had found a kindred spirit. Telling her to wait a moment, he cheerfully started making another marinated seafood bowl. Discovering someone who would enjoy the same dish as him made him incredibly happy.
“Here, Ireis’s portion. Shall we eat together?”
“Thank you.”
“No problem. I didn’t think I’d find someone to eat raw fish with, so I’m really happy.”
Yuuri grinned, and Ireissia smiled back. Carrying the marinated seafood bowls, soup, and salad to the dining area, the two sat facing each other. Though it was a simple marinated bowl made with men-tsuyu, for the two of them, that didn’t matter. What mattered wasn’t the effort—it was the taste.
The salmon was cut into bite-sized pieces, so both Yuuri and Ireissia faced their bowls with spoons in hand. They scooped up the salmon, now thoroughly infused with the marinade, along with the garnishes—shiso, myoga, and green onions—and rice. As they brought it to their mouths, the men-tsuyu-based flavor spread, deepened by the ginger juice and sesame oil, making it delicious on its own.
The trio of garnishes—shiso, myoga, and green onions—added a refreshing accent. While the marinated salmon alone might have been too rich, the garnishes balanced it out. Hooray for garnishes. Also, the rice had absorbed the marinade from the salmon, making it incredibly tasty.
“It’s delicious, isn’t it?”
“It’s really good.”
Being able to eat what they loved, to their heart’s content, made both Ireissia and Yuuri happy. Delicious food is justice. Being able to eat the dishes you crave is a truly blissful thing.
“Ah, I never thought I’d get to eat such delicious fish…”
“I didn’t expect you to eat raw fish either, Ireis.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”
When Yuuri shared his honest thoughts with Ireissia, who had been murmuring nostalgically, she tilted her head in confusion. Her long, aqua-blue hair swayed gently with her movement, creating an indescribably beautiful sight. However, Yuuri, with his emotionally stunted circuitry, felt nothing and continued the conversation as usual. …As always, even with a beautiful girl by his side, there was no spark.
“Well, not many people eat raw fish, right?”
“Fresh fish is delicious even when eaten raw. Besides, we mermaids live near the sea, so we often eat freshly caught fish as is.”
“I see. …You clean it before eating, right?”
“Of course. We don’t eat the bones or innards.”
Ireissia opened her mouth in surprise, as if offended, and Yuuri chuckled softly. …While laughing, he thought, “Ah, so eating innards and such is considered weird after all”. Yuuri doesn’t particularly enjoy eating them, but Japanese cuisine includes various dishes using fish innards, like ankimo (monkfish liver). In this other world, Yuuri felt he understood the Japanese people’s peculiar obsession with food. When you think about it, the Japanese, who eat almost anything, might be a bit extreme.
How extreme? Well, if aliens invaded and they turned out to be edible and delicious, the Japanese would probably hunt them down gleefully. From a foreign perspective, they eat things that others wouldn’t consider food, so it’s hard to deny that.
“Oh, what about fish roe?”
“We eat that.”
“Got it. Then next time, let’s buy some salmon roe and make a salmon and roe bowl, okay?”
“That sounds delicious.”
At Yuuri’s suggestion, Ireissia’s face lit up with excitement. Even now, just being able to eat this marinated seafood bowl made her happy. But with the promise of an even tastier dish next time, she couldn’t help but be delighted. Though usually a light eater, Ireissia has her favorites, and raw fish reminds her of her hometown. Being able to eat it in the inland royal capital of Draheln was something she never expected, so she must have felt incredibly fortunate.
Having raw fish after so long, the usually light-eating Ireissia went for seconds. Yuuri, who had prepared extra marinated salmon, smiled and served her more. Seeing someone enjoy his cooking was the greatest joy for Yuuri.
Later, after checking with the clan members, Yuuri found that a few of them could eat raw fish, so he decided to serve them marinated seafood bowls another day. Delicious food is best enjoyed together.