Chapter 127 - Chapter 127: Royal Palace (2)

“Of course. We’ll make sure we can make it. You know very well how many people in this world want to taste the real Rose Island, Rachel.”

The king spoke with a smile. Rachel smiled back and looked back at Martin. Martin thought for a moment and then nodded. Rachel Rose would show off her cooking for the king. Nothing could be more impactful than this. He had no reason to stop it.

“Luckily, the PD seems to be okay with it, too. Shall we do it tonight for dinner?”

“We’re always ready. We’ll let the kitchen know right now.”

“No need to rush. I don’t know whose it is, but look how carefully the desserts were made. Let’s enjoy this first.”

“Oh no… I must’ve been too rushed.”

It was unlike the king to be so impatient, as he had the reputation for being calm. But he couldn’t help it. It had already been 10 years since he tasted Rachel Rose’s cooking. To be more exact, it was a meal cooked by Rachel Rose and her husband, Daniel Rose, but even if Daniel wasn’t around anymore, Rachel was capable enough on her own.

Anderson took a bite of the crepe in front of him and opened his mouth cautiously.

“Rachel. May I assist you?”

“Thanks, Anderson. You’re so kind.”

Rachel looked at Anderson proudly. Anderson smiled and then continued to eat the crepe with a straight face. The crepe, which had cream on top, was surprisingly sweet and soft. It was as if he put the sweetest and coldest meringue in his mouth. He couldn’t tell if that was because of the chef or what Rachel said. Cho Min Joon opened his mouth.

“I’ll help, too.”

“Me too.”

Sarah immediately joined in after Cho Min Joon. After that, Jeremy and Emily couldn’t just sit back either. Jeremy coughed and said, “Jeez, I thought I wouldn’t have to enter a kitchen on this show.”

“I never asked you to help.”

“You have such a temper, Rachel. I know you don’t like me, but remember this, we’re filming right now.”

“I know. That’s why I’m speaking with manners.”

“Ha!”

Jeremy laughed and shook his head. He didn’t want to fight anymore. He didn’t want to think about anything except for the Thom Yam Thai.

Emily hesitated before looking at Rachel with an awkward face.

“I’m really bad at this stuff… But can I help you?”

“That’d be lovely. Just think of it as practice for when you get married. It’ll be fun.”

“M-married? I’m not even dating anyone…!”

“Who knows? From what I’ve heard… N-never mind.”

Rachel stared at Emily before shutting her mouth in front of the king. She asked the king,

“Is there a dish you’d like to eat?”

“To be honest, there’s a dish that I miss from 10 years ago.”

“What is it?”

“The two-course meal you made me and my wife.”

“… Oh, that.”

Rachel traced back her memory and then nodded. Her eyes were twinkling with sincerity. Cho Min Joon took a look at Rachel’s window.

[Rachel Rose]

Cooking Level: 9

Baking Level: 8

Tasting Level: 9

Decoration Level: 10

‘… Impressive.’

He was in awe of her scores. Cooking score of 9. When he first saw that, he thought it was a given because she was famous. So he thought it was possible for her to be that skilled, and he wasn’t surprised by her level 8 baking score either. Since she was older, she probably had enough time to polish her baking skills.

But he was surprised by her level 9 in tasting skill. Compared to when she was younger, her tastebuds were less sensitive. So the fact that she was still a level 9… meant one of two things. That she maintained her tongue well, or that her tasting level was so outstanding that not even her palate could bring her down.

It was possible that she was a level 10 in tasting at one point.

The same went for her decoration level—10. This was the first time he saw a 10 after Kaya’s 10 in tasting. How talented was she? Even Anderson, who was a level 7 in decoration, was surprised by her fancy designs. Kangaroos made of lemon, turtles made of olives. They were in awe quite a few times.

What kind of extraordinary dishes would Rachel make? He was excited. On the other hand…

[Jeremy Bennett]

Cooking Level 6

Baking Level: 5

Tasting Level:9

Decoration Level: 4

Besides his tasting level, Jeremy wasn’t that impressive. He said he was a chef once, but he probably wasn’t very talented. It was also possible he became rusty over the years…

But when it came to food critics they just had to be good at tasting. And his tasting level was 9. Considering the fact that he was older than Rachel, that was impressive. Even the tip he gave him this morning. He transformed his Pad Thai from a 6-pointer to a 7 just by adding pepper oil and Thai vinegar. He had much to learn from him.

‘I’ll have to take it all.’

That was why he came on the tasting tour. Of course, it paid well, but the biggest reason why Cho Min Joon joined the show was to learn. And right now, Rachel was in front of him.

He was hungry, and his greed was a bit much to satisfy his appetite.

***

“Wow, that was delicious.”

Inside the kitchen, they thanked all of the chefs with respect. Unfortunately, none of them could speak English, but when they told them it was delicious in Thai, they said thank you with a smile.

While the chefs left the kitchen, Cho Min Joon noticed the backside of someone of a bigger stature. She had just turned 50, and her cooking level wasn’t very high. 8. But it wasn’t because she worked in the royal kitchen as a level 8. Seeing from the king’s attitude, she appeared to have always made the Thom Yam Thai of the same high quality.

How could a level 8 make level 10 dishes so consistently? He couldn’t help but question it. Of course, she probably practiced the same 10-point recipe numerous times… But it was still fascinating.

‘Would it be possible if I practiced the perfect recipe?’

It wouldn’t be easy. The sons and daughters who inherited their parents’ restaurant tried to do that over the decades. It was possible that the chefs of the royal palace invested many years into making the Thom Yam Thai perfect.

“Today, we’re going to make a two-course meal. A starter and a main. Just those two.”

“I was curious about that. Why a two-course?”

Emily asked curiously. Rachel calmly answered, “When the king first visited my restaurant, he was tired of the course culture. It was understandable. In Thailand, they don’t invest so much time into just one meal. So I thought I’d give him a shorter meal.”

“What was it?”

“It’s simple. An avocado soup as the starter… And for the main, I’ll cook back ribs in Thom Yam, put ripped up crab meat on top… and cover the back ribs with it along with breadcrumbs before frying it again.”

“… That’s so complicated.”

“That’s not all. I’ll also mix apple cider with white wine, and pickled cabbage, onions, and cucumber. I’ll also cut potatoes to fry…”

Rachel rambled on with excitement before realizing the gazes around her.

“I’m sorry. I’m scared but also excited to be in the kitchen again.”

“I understand.”

“Shall we practice? We should serve the king with the best meal possible. Shall we begin?”

The cooking began. Since it was the royal kitchen, there was an abundance of ingredients. Rachel didn’t rest and took a look around. She taught Sarah how to make the avocado soup, while she also talked to Cho Min Joon, who was boiling the back rips in Thom Yam broth.

“Do you know why we have to boil the back ribs for a short time rather than marinate it?”

“Hm… Is it because the Thom Yam is too strong? Because the flavor will be there even if it’s not marinated for long.”

“That too, but it’s so that we achieve softer meat. Of course, some people might like a bit more chew to their meat, but you know the age of our customer. His teeth are not as healthy as that of young people. And that kind of small consideration makes all the difference. You may think it’s unnecessary for a chef, but to the customer, they become touched to tears by it. The difference between first-rate and third-rate chefs are not the skills. It’s how they treat their customers.”

Rachel stared right into Cho Min Joon’s eyes.

“Chefs exist to serve the customers. Chefs who don’t consider customers are just people who cook, not chefs. Remember that. Chefs who ignore customers don’t last long. That’s what I’ve seen in my 60 years of life.”

“I’ll remember that.”

“Good.”

Rachel showed a soft smile. Anderson had cut up the crab meat and brought it mixed with starch. Rachel nodded and said, “Now batter it and fry it. I’ll work on the potatoes.”

The batter stuck onto the back ribs. They put bread crumbs on top of that, and as soon as they put it into the oil, the bubbles looked like lotus flowers. Cho Min Joon saw that and it reminded him of Kaya. Kaya Reuters.

‘… This is a disease.’

By the time the back ribs were cooked, Rachel appeared. At that moment, Cho Min Joon was shocked. The potatoes in Rachels hands all looked different. Some looked like eagles while others looked like tigers. What was impressive was that the eagle showed distinct feathers while the tiger showed off its stripes, and she only took a few minutes to create them. Cho Min Joon spoke with a possessed voice, “You’re amazing at carving…”

“To be honest, my husband was a better chef than me. But I didn’t want to always rely on him, so I decided that if my husband took care of flavors, I would take care of the visuals. After practicing with that mindset, making art with food became easy.”

She spoke as if it was no big deal, but it must’ve taken a long time to master. Married couples. Dating couples. They treasured each other the most, but they also didn’t want to be the one who was lacking in the relationship. It was horrible to feel inferior to the person one loved.

The potatoes began to fry. By the time they took out the back ribs, Sarah approached with the cabbage, onion, and cucumbers that were pickled in apple cider and white wine. She wasn’t lying when she said she liked cooking. Her smile said it all.

“I pickled it. What do I do now?”

“One moment. This pickle… doesn’t smell right. Were the apple cider and white wine stored at room temperature?”

“Yes, I think so.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. You have to start over. You have to pickle it when it’s cold. Can you please do that again?”

“Of course. I’ll be right back.”

She had to start over, but Sarah didn’t look upset about it. She nodded and walked off. She then paused for a second and looked back.

“Then what about this? Can I eat it?”

“Of course. But don’t get too full… because I’ll give you something more delicious.”

“Yes!”

Sarah hugged her pickles and pumped her other fist. Cho Min Joon smirked. She was full of life. Anderson opened his mouth.

“I’m going to take it out.”

“Oh, okay.”

The strainer lifted the back ribs. Thanks to the crab meat, back ribs, and Thom Yam, the white batter was sparkling all over it with bread crumbs on top. On top of that, they placed Sarah’s pickles on top, and Rachel decorated it with her potatoes.

Cho Min Joon looked at the status window with proud eyes.

[Back Ribs in Thom Yam Sauce and Fried Crab]

Freshness: 97%

Origin: (Too many ingredients for an accurate calculation)

Quality: High

Cooking Score: 9/10

9 points. He wasn’t the one who made it, and he only helped out… But thanks to Rachel’s direction, it was a 9. He realized how important head chefs were. They created dishes that were completely different with chefs of the same skill level. He realized what that was like. He couldn’t help but respect her. But at the end of that respect, Rachel took a bite of the back rib and shook her head. She spoke in a stern voice, “Let’s do that again.”