“You are not serious about the name, right?”
“Why? Is the name strange?”
“Uh, um, I don’t know how it sounds in English, but when it comes to Korean, it sounds a little like a curse.”
“Then recommend something else.”
“Well…” Min-joon shrugged.
To be sure, he wanted to avoid Soft Tofu Choteurs. ‘Choteurs’ really sounded like a curse in Korean, but Soft Tofu alone didn’t explain the uniqueness of their dish because it was not just the taste of the soft tofu dish that he confirmed cooking level 10 on the system window. He had to give the kind of name that would superimpose the taste of several dishes on one plate.
‘It’s more difficult to decide a name than to make a recipe.’
Usually, he didn’t even have to give a name to the dish he made because he could immediately think of one by looking at the combinations of ingredients. But it was rather complicated in this case. Perhaps, he could give a name like grilled chicken, but it was also quite far from the trait of this dish.
“Can you find any mistake here?”
Folding her arms, Kaya looked at the plate they made.
Min-joon smiled and tapped her on the shoulder.
“You know better than me that we have not made any mistake.”
“I know, but I wanted to hear from you that it’s perfect.”
“It’s perfect. If there is anything lacking in it, I would say the right name for it.”
“Stop talking about the name.”
Shaking her head, she smiled bitterly. He quietly looked into the dish. He felt like he was looking at his baby. Chicken, soft tofu, and foie gras with bubbles looked very lovely.
He was also conscious of the audience’s attention. They did not admire the looks of their dish because it wasn’t much different from what they imagined.
“Isn’t it strange?”
A young chef among the spectators uttered. She was an Asian woman in her early 20s.
A Jewish man with some wrinkles on his face looked at her and said, “What do you mean?”
“I mean the dish the pair have made. I’ve never thought about it, but I didn’t expect at all they would offer a blueprint for the change in the French cuisine world like that.”
“Actually, that’s something everyone here has never thought about. As you know, French cuisine is like a big, sturdy castle made of bricks for a long time. As it is so sturdy, it’s not easy to bring about any change.”
“I like your description of it as a castle. I think you’re right. The wall is broken by stones thrown from the outside. There is little chance that they’re going to destroy it from inside on purpose.”
“Thanks to the pair, I think I’m going to have some fun in my late life,” said the Jewish man with a smile.
The French chefs were both worried and excited about this ‘situation.’ It was clear that a change that they had never experienced in the French cuisine world would come, for people thought that the French cuisine should not be left as it was. Their consciousness itself would eventually bring about a revolution in French cuisine. The names Min-joon and Kaya would remain in the history of France as someone who triggered the revolution that shook the gastronomic world. “How can I cook like them?”
When the Asian woman asked, the Jewish man gave no reply for a moment.
Honestly, he was feeling pretty strange at that moment because he didn’t think of becoming like Kaya or Min-joon at all. Maybe it was because he didn’t want to be jealous, or because he got too old to be conscious of competition.
But was it because the Asian woman was young? She was jealous. She was admiring the pair. She recognized their talent and wanted to catch up with them. The Jewish man thought it strange that he had to discover his passion, lost a long time ago, in this Asian woman’s eyes.
“I think the pair must have done their best in this contest.”
“I agree.”
“Then you can do your best. Then, you’re going to have at least one thing in common with the pair”
“Well, your advice is not helpful at all.”
“Advice is always like that. The thing is how you can make a piece of banal advice like mine ring true and convincing.”
She shrugged at his tepid response then looked back at Min-joon and Kaya.
The pair were great. She had no choice but to admit it. Otherwise, which chefs would she call great? At that young age, when they couldn’t even get a good idea of their own culinary perspective, they shook the French cuisine world.
The pair hurt the pride and stubbornness of the French chefs. After standing tall in the French cuisine world, the pair made a new original dish.
The judges went straight to Min-joon and Kaya.
“Do you think you have done it perfectly?”
“Yeah, I think so.”
“I’ve heard what you explained about this dish. I have also sized it up because I have been watching you cooking for some time.”
“Would you like to try it now?”
Sophie almost replied in the affirmative at Min-joon’s suggestion. Actually, she wanted to put it in her mouth right now, but she could not because she was one of the judges.
Holding back the urge to try it right away, she said, “I think your dish will change your status quite a lot. There is a big difference between the winner and runner-up. Above all, the amount of the prize money is quite different.”
“I guess so. I need some money to buy a house.”
“Haha, I really can see the value of this dish as you say that. The value of a house rests with this dish,” Sophie laughed heartily. A dish worth the value of a house? She wondered if she was now trying the most luxurious meal in her life.
But Min-joon smiled silently.
Norris opened his mouth, looking at him, “I don’t think you have devised the recipe idea easily,”
“No. It was rather an easy idea. As you see, you can enjoy the taste of wine, chicken, and foie gras, plus the taste of dipping soft tofu in the sauce. Simple.”
“But the match doesn’t look harmonious unless you properly control the taste by trial and error. Otherwise, it’s going to be a mix of everything.”
“Well, what I hate most is a dish with a mix of every ingredient.”
At that moment, Norris felt Min-joon’s voice was quite heavy and clear. Actually, he felt like the weight of the failures he had experienced for 7 years was contained in his voice.
With the judges focusing their attention on him, Min-joon said, “So I made this completely different, so all the ingredients in this dish can match with each other well.”
“Got it.”
“Why don’t you try it now? I think you can taste it best right now when it gets cold appropriately. Don’t you think it’s more important to enjoy the taste in its best condition?”
“Thanks for your suggestion! I really can’t wait to try it. Let’s try it, guys.”
After all, Sophie earnestly looked at the other judges.
Norris smiled at her gently because she looked innocent and frank like a child now.
Norris lifted a fork. The moment the other judges were about to reach for forks, Norris asked, “But what’s the name of this dish?”
“Name?”
“It doesn’t look like grilled chicken. Do you have any name in mind for this one?”
“Oh, I don’t have one…”
“Well, it’s Chicken Tofu Choteurs,’ Kaya quickly answered.
The name was now more complicated than Min-joon mentioned earlier.
With Min-joon turning to her with a dubious expression, Norris asked again curiously, “Chicken tofu… What is that thing that comes after that name?”
“Choteurs.”
“I guess you have coined it by combining your and Kaya’s last names.”
“Yeah, that’s correct.”
Norris smiled bitterly as if the name was childish or innocent.
Watching them chatting like that, Sophie put some ‘Chicken Tofu Choteurs’ in her mouth as if she could not wait to eat any longer.
“Wow!”
As if she became a fool at the moment, she just smiled broadly. Noticing her expression was funny and weird, the other judges began to try the Chicken Tofu Choteurs then understood her feelings.
It was fantastic, like magic. Like the crowds who knew there might be a trick, but still admired the miracle in front of them, the judges couldn’t believe the fantastic taste, even though they watched the pair cooking it all the way.
It was a dish that seemed to perfectly elevate the concept of harmony in food. With the delicate aroma of the wasabi bubbles spreading in their mouths, they could enjoy the chewy texture of the outer part of the properly seared chicken. The moment they felt something was lacking, the oily taste of foie gras filled it. Besides, the softness of tofu and the taste of the soy wine sauce stimulated their tongues.
It was a taste of confusion, so much so that the judges were not sure which dish they were trying now. While chewing chicken, they thought it was tofu, and while feeling the taste of wine, they thought it was the taste of soy sauce. The various tastes seemed to be completely mixed, but each ingredient tasted different.
And it was a taste that made them clearly recognize that Min-joon and Kaya were different from them. They came to realize that as genius chefs, the pair could bring out the unique taste of a dish that they could not compare with others.
“Man, I just wonder how they can bring out this taste…”
Sophie, who was smiling all along, muttered blankly. Of course, it was not an idea she had never thought about. Namely, mixing the tastes of the two dishes then bringing out the individual taste of the two while keeping their harmony. However, it was like magic without any sense of reality.
However, Min-joon and Kaya easily overcame the limits of such thought. They challenged it and succeeded. And looking at the pair, Sophie realized that she hadn’t even tried it from the beginning unless she had the confidence that she could succeed.
‘I’ve learned something new from these young chefs.’
The scale in Sophie’s mind as well as the other judges’ tilted to the Min-joon and Kaya pair’s side more heavily.
The plate that Min-joon and Kaya put down on the table was heavy enough to exceed their imagination and expectations.
