324-292 Party day (2)

It was Haruka who relieved me of my worries.

Nao, you want some?

"Oh, thank you.

What Haruka offered me was a plate with several dishes already prepared.

There was roast beef (made from Red Tyrant Strike Ox), hamburger steak, vegetable salad, fried eggs, and a sort of main dish, bale shaped rice balls.

I had heard that the rice mill had been completed, but to tell the truth, I had never eaten rice milled by the rice mill.

The first week I was out of town with Toya, and the second week I was out with Yuki, so the timing didn't work out.

That's great, that looks like rice.

"Yeah, it took some effort to make it rice-like.

This time, the grains of rice were smaller than the ones we had peeled by hand before.

The hulling and polishing of the rice was not too difficult, but it was the quartering of these small grains that was the hard part.

As soon as I took a bite out of the rice ball, the texture of the rice grains crumbled into pieces.

If you're going to eat it as rice, it should be like this, right?

Yes. If you want to eat it as dumplings or something, the size of the grains won't affect you, though.

This is Nao's and Yuki's work.

Oh, miso soup with mushrooms.

Natsuki handed me a bowl of miso soup filled with mushrooms.

I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.

"It's miso, but it's not the same. But now that we have rice, maybe we'll be able to eat real miso.

Can I count on ......?

I've already had a lot of complaints about my diet with the Inspir Source, but if I can have the real thing, I'd love to.

I'm sure you'll be able to find something that will work for you.

I guess it's up to you, Natsuki.　You know, Natsuki.

Yes, I will try my best. If you can isolate the koji mold, the rest should be no problem. Miso, soy sauce...

You've made them before?

In our family, making miso and soy sauce was something that had to be passed down from mother to daughter.

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That's an old family. Old-fashioned customs.

In my family, we used to buy miso from the supermarket.

So, in the Furumiya family, miso and soy sauce are homemade?

No, miso is homemade, but soy sauce is usually store-bought, though I made it once when I was taught. It's a bit time-consuming. I heard that there used to be a soy sauce presser, but not anymore.

Is that why we sometimes hear about homemade miso, but never about homemade soy sauce?

Unlike miso, which can be used as it is, soy sauce takes a lot of time and effort to press, which seems to be difficult.

--You have to heat it up, right?

Considering that they used to sell raw soy sauce.

By the way, what did you do with that one time you made it?

I pressed it myself with a sarashi. I didn't have any special tools, so I could only press it moderately, but it was very tasty.

Homemade soy sauce, ......, sounds delicious.

Considering the tastelessness of the soy sauce that came with the lunch box and the taste of fresh soy sauce, Natsuki was right, freshly pressed soy sauce must be delicious. Even the raw soy sauce you can buy at the supermarket is completely different.

Koji is essential for Japanese food, so I'd like to cultivate it well. You can also make sake and mirin. You can make sake or mirin, but you can't get the delicate flavor from substitutes.

Natsuki's cooking is good enough, though.

Thank you very much. But I don't want to compromise.

Well, when I watch cooking shows on TV, I see that many Japanese dishes are seasoned with sake, soy sauce and mirin.

If you can make it, I'd like you to make it.

...... Hmm?　I've never heard of this.

I'm sure you'll be able to figure out how to do it.

I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.

There are no regulations on sake brewing in our family.

In the event you're not sure what you're looking for, you'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.

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What, you're going to stop there?

"Well, just so you know, legally speaking, it's not a problem.　Yes, religious sake making is allowed.

It is prohibited to make sake without a license, but under certain conditions, it is not considered moonshine if it is made at a shrine.

I seem to remember hearing about a relative of mine who married into a shrine before ......?

Is this related?

I heard that you can make sake!

I don't know how long I've been listening to this, but it was a dwarf who came up to me with these words.

"There you are, the drinker.

Can you make it, Natsuki-san?　If you can make it, I'll spare no effort to help you.　Yes, I'll spare you!

Oh, oh, Tommy, calm down.　Tommy, calm down. Natsuki is pulling away.

I'm sure you'll be able to understand that I'm not the only one who has a problem with this.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I got a little excited.

No, it's fine. ...... I thought Tommy was enjoying his drink here.

I pointed to Tommy's mug as I said this.

The drink in his mug is the one Tommy and the others brought themselves.

The drinks we had prepared were mostly non-alcoholic (since we had the most underage kids), and the alcoholic ones were still unopened.

I'm not sure if it's a good idea for them to drink up what we brought as a gift, but we don't drink much, and if they're enjoying it, it's okay.

Yeah, well, it's good in its own way, but ...... it's not very sophisticated. The ale I brought this time is a bit better. It's from a brewery that's famous for its pining.

Ah, .......

Could it be that one?

The brewery that we were involved with and that Viscount Nenus now manages.

It's more affordable than you think, but the problem is that it's hard to get hold of. I'm glad I was able to get it this time through Simon's help.

Yeah, that sounds about right.

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