Chapter 128 - Royal Palace (3)

“Again…?”

“What? Is there a problem?”

“No. It’s not that…”

Cho Min Joon hesitated and then took a piece of the back rib. His entire body trembled, and then he let out a sigh. The back rib was so delicious he got shivers up his spine. His mouth was filled with the flavors of Thom Yam, crab meat, and back ribs. Not a single thing was lacking. Cho Min Joon knitted his brows. He couldn’t understand why such a perfect dish had to be redone.

“It’s delicious. I want to steal this recipe.”

“That’s true if we were average people, but we’re chefs.”

Rachel responded in a wiry voice as if it was a fact that would never change.

“Chefs must go beyond the limits. I’m sure Min Joon would understand what I’m saying.”

Cho Min Joon smacked his lips and then shut his mouth. He remembered making a risotto back in the day. Pear risotto. The predicted cooking score was 6, but He didn’t leave out a single process and stayed focused. As a result, he created an 8-point risotto.

So he had an idea what Rachel meant but not completely. If it was 9 points, it did the recipe justice, and it contained both sincerity and skill. What else could be changed about it?

Of course, it might’ve been different from Rachel’s touch. Perhaps, she could change that subtle part, but could that change bring the 9 points up to 10 points?

At that moment, Jeremy carried over a pot of avocado soup and approached them.

“Taste this first.”

“Oh, is it finished already?”

Cho Min Joon walked toward the avocado soup. Jeremy poured a bit of it on top of Cho Min Joon’s spoon. He slurped it up and nodded.

“It’s delicious. I love clean flavors like this. Of course, it kind of tastes a little heavy because of the avocado… But that’s the essence of avocados.”

“Didn’t you say you liked stronger flavors last time?”

“Flavors and scents are different. It’s like liking tea. The scent is strong while the flavor is bland, but that doesn’t mean I like bland flavors either.”

Cho Min Joon calmly answered Emily’s question. The cooking score for the avocado soup was also 8, but that was impressive because Sarah and Jeremy made it. Both of them had cooking levels of 5 or 6.

But he had a feeling it was actually Rachel who cooked. It appeared that she stepped outside her boundaries as the head chef and made the dish herself. If she could control all of the situations in the kitchen, it wasn’t particularly important who was holding the knife and pan.

‘This is why she’s a legend.’

Cho Min Joon stared at Rachel strangely. As a result, Anderson looked at Cho Min Joon with his guard up and jabbed him with his elbow.

“Why do you look so blank?”

“Oh, I just… think Rachel is impressive.”

“… Since when do you address her so formally?”

“I don’t know. I can’t help it.”

Anderson showed a vague face. He liked that Rachel was being respected, but he didn’t want her stolen away either. It was as if they were brothers craving their mother’s attention.

On the other hand, Rachel wasn’t so laid back. She was staring at the back ribs on the plate. She looked at it as if she was a mother looking at an incompetent child. She looked guilty that she didn’t cook a perfect dish.

‘Daniel. What did I leave out?’

She hoped to hear a voice, but nothing could be heard. Rachel then realized that she had returned to the kitchen after a really long time. She also remembered that she wasn’t keen on returning and that she was afraid.

She suddenly had a hard time breathing. She remembered the scenery of that day. California, Venice Beach. The ocean, sand, and her pupil, who were sweating away in the kitchen. And her husband, who had collapsed on the ground.

“Rachel. Are you okay?”

Emily was looking at her in worry. Rachel stared back at Emily with a blank face and immediately shook her head.

“Oh, I just blanked out.”

“You don’t look so good… Are you sure you’re not pushing yourself too hard?”

“I’m simply a chef inside a kitchen.”

“But you took 10 years off.”

“That’s why I can’t rest. I took enough time off.”

Rachel answered stubbornly and smiled to reassure her. Emily was still not relieved.

“Give yourself a break. There’s lots of time.”

“Yes, I know. I won’t…”

Rachel stopped talking. She stared at the back ribs with a blank face before a bright smile washed over her face.

“Yes. A break. I didn’t give myself a break.”

“Sorry?”

“Anderson, Min Joon. I’m sorry. I made a big mistake. Don’t immediately batter the boiled back ribs and wait a little after you fish it out.”

“Okay.”

Cho Min Joon immediately took out some back ribs. Just watching the back ribs sitting there made him feel itchy. He felt like he had to do something, but Rachel didn’t give him any cues. The water had already dripped off of the back ribs.

Once the back ribs were dry and cold, Rachel instructed, “Now apply the batter and fry it.” Anderson quickly took out his batter. After rubbing the crab meat batter and bread crumbs all over it, he placed it into the boiling oil.

‘Will this make a difference?’

Cho Min Joon stared at the frying batter with both anticipation and doubt. Jeremy took a bite out of the back ribs that were already cooked and asked, “This is really good. It can be even better than this?”

“Yeah. It’ll be beyond your imagination.”

Rachel answered in a confident voice. Jeremy took turns looking at the fried back ribs and the avocado soup. Rachel frowned and said, “No. Don’t even think about playing with food.”

“… What do you think I was going to do?”

“You were… Jeez.”

He had dipped the back ribs in the green soup. Jeremy took a bite of the back ribs and grimaced. Rachel sighed and shook her head.

“Just listen to the chef.”

“… Sorry.”

The combination must’ve been so shocking that Jeremy immediately nodded without a word. At that moment, the back ribs finished frying. Cho Min Joon took it out. He shook out the oil and put it on the plate. He then looked at the back ribs with surprised eyes. After staring at it, Sarah opened her mouth.

“The color looks a little different.”

“… Yeah.”

The last back ribs were a little spotty while the color on this one was more consistent. Just like before, he added the potatoes Rachel carved on top as well as the pickles and vegetables.

[Back Ribs in Thom Yam Sauce and Fried Crab]

Freshness: 97%

Origin: (Too many ingredients for an accurate calculation)

Quality: High

Cooking Score: 10/10

[You’ve contributed to making a 10-point dish.]

[Your experience with the skill ‘Understanding Head Chef’ has increased!]

[Your experience with the ‘Standards of Aides’ has increased!]

[Your cooking experience has increased!]

Multiple windows popped up at once, but the only number Cho Min Joon was focused on was the 10 points. He was shocked that simply waiting for a little while made such a huge difference. Rachel calmly sliced the back ribs. She put it in her mouth and trembled. It was perfect. She wanted to show off this difference as soon as possible. She wanted to see what Cho Min Joon thought about it, but as soon as Rachel glanced at Cho Min Joon’s face, she smirked.

“Why are you in awe if you haven’t even tried it? Here, try some.”

Cho Min Joon accepted the back ribs without a word. He slowly put it into his mouth. The first taste was similar to before. The breadcrumbs melted on this tongue, and as soon as he bit into the crispy batter, the flavor of crab spread throughout his mouth.

But it was after that. While the scent of Thom Yam exploded when he tried the back ribs the first time, this time, it simply brushed up against his mouth. But he liked that better. It was subtle. That flavor seduced him like a dressed-up lady.

Cho Min Joon burst into laughter. And after a few more bites, his face turned into one that looked like he was crying. He ate the back ribs with tears in his eyes.

It wasn’t because it was delicious. It was intense and delicious, but what shook him up were various emotions, thoughts, and memories. He only thought in the far future. That it was the end of cooking and that the dish was perfect. Although he had only followed Rachel’s orders, he made a perfect dish on his own.

But what touched him the most was the power of time. The fact that a dish changed just by waiting… was so beautiful to him. He was touched by the mysteries of cooking. But at the same time, he was angry because it seemed to be right in front of him. A dish that was near its end was made in his hands, but that wasn’t his. That made him feel thirsty.

No one looked at him strangely. They actually saw him as a genius since they knew he had the perfect palate. Martin smirked. With this scene, he could make viewers feel even more touched than ever, and he was confident he could do it.

‘Bringing him here was the right decision.’

His perfect palate had yet to make an appearance on the show, but it would shine soon enough. And Martin was determined to not miss it.

***

The dishes were complete. The two-course dishes were placed in front of the Thai King… And the king let out multiple exclamations during his meal. Upon finishing, he spoke in an emotional voice, “That meal made the wait worthwhile, and I feel like I’ll continue to miss it after this.”

“It won’t be a long wait. I’ll make sure your memories will come back to life. I promise.”

The king held Rachel’s hands and thanked her, and the cameras caught it all. Everyone felt Rachel’s power. It was impressive that she made such a meal using other people’s hands.

It was time for them to leave the palace. Inside the car, Cho Min Joon was enjoying the night scenery when he opened his mouth.

“Rachel, are you sleeping?”

“No. What is it?”

“I’ve always wondered what I should set as my goal as a chef. ‘Should I make delicious food?’ But what’s the standard?’ Thoughts like that.”

“And…?”

“You’re my goal now. I want to become a chef who can make a dish that seems impossible without much effort.”

He spoke in a calmer voice than before, but it contained passion and ambition. She looked at Cho Min Joon with a smile because the more greed he had for cooking, the better. She answered, “I’ll cheer you on, but there’s something you’re misunderstanding.”

“Really?”

Rachel answered, “Cooking is still hard for me. No matter how experienced and skilled I am…”

The old woman uttered words that summarized her life.

“It doesn’t become effortless.”