Chapter 678

Light, refreshing, and... energizing!
Once we entered the kitchen, we purified ourselves with cleansing magic and changed into our usual kappogi aprons.

"Alright then, shall we get started?"

"Cristea-san, you mentioned something light, but what exactly are we making?"

Mariel-chan asked as she put on the frilly apron Ruby recommended.

"Hmm... let's see."

I checked the ingredients in the fridge while thinking up a menu.

"Oh, there's some chicken breast. I’ll use that, and some vegetables..."

I quickly picked out some cucumbers, tomatoes, and aromatic herbs, and had Kurogane and the others carry them to the counter.

"Right, I also got some okra from my family's garden."

When I went home the other day, I’d completely forgotten about the okra I harvested from the garden behind the house.

I’d been thinking of simply roasting them and adding them to a summer vegetable curry, but let’s use them now.

I took out the okra and other ingredients that the head chef had shared with me from my inventory, along with freshly made noodles I’d had Shin prepare, and got to cooking!

"First, boil the chicken breast in plenty of water..."

While it cooked, I asked Mashiro to watch the pot and began chopping vegetables.

I julienned the cucumber and sliced the tomatoes into thin wedges.
Optional garnishes included shredded shiso leaves and finely chopped ginger.

"Cristea, looks like it’s done boiling!"

Mashiro, who was watching the pot, informed me.

"Thanks. Okay, let’s take the meat out. Once it’s cooled down a bit... could you shred it? Oh, and don’t throw out the broth—keep it aside."
"Leave it to me."

Mashiro deftly removed the chicken with cooking chopsticks, cooled it with magic, and began shredding it at lightning speed. Whoa, that’s fast!

I hurried to prepare the seasoning.
Mixing soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and sesame oil well, I lightly toasted sesame seeds in a frying pan and ground them in a mortar.

"I shall handle this."

Kurogane took the pestle from my hands, so I left it to him.

"Cristea, the shredding’s done~"

"Thank you."

I took the bowl of shredded chicken from Mashiro and added the julienned cucumbers to it.

Then I added the seasoning and mixed it all together, letting it sit so the flavors could blend.

In a separate pot, I boiled pho noodles made from powdered Idika rice, then cooled them in ice water and drained them in a colander.

I plated the pho on a flat dish, topped it with the chicken and cucumber mix, sprinkled ground sesame on top, and added shiso leaves and tomato wedges as garnish. For those who like it, some ginger threads on the side.

"And that’s dish number one, complete!"

"Wow! It’s refreshing and easy to eat, but the chicken makes it satisfying!"

"Right? It’s a twist on glass noodle salad, and I thought it’d work well. Now, on to the second dish!"

"Eh? I think this one is enough already."

Mariel-chan said wistfully, watching as I stored the dish away in my inventory.

"Oh, come on. The broth from boiling the chicken is packed with fatigue-fighting nutrients—we can’t waste it."

I brought the reserved broth back to a boil and seasoned it with salt, soy sauce, and sake.
At the same time, I began boiling udon noodles in another pot.

"Hmm, I want a bit of a flavor accent... Oh!"

I pulled out some umeboshi from my inventory, removed the pits, and mashed them with a knife into a paste.

Chicken salt soup and mashed umeboshi pair really well—it's a combo I’ve made often over the years.

Though I hadn’t made it often due to limited stock, I managed to get a big batch of plums this year and made plenty of umeboshi! Hehehe.

Once the udon was cooked, I poured the chicken salt broth over it.
For those who aren’t fans of umeboshi, ginger threads could be used instead.

"Whoa... Just looking at it makes my mouth water...!"

"This is great even when you don’t have an appetite—it goes down easy. Oh, and I meant to make one more dish using the okra."

"Eh? You're still making more?"

"It’s just trial cooking, so eat as much as you like."

"Cristea-san, your cooking is always so good, I want to eat it all!"

"O-oh... thanks..."

I’m happy to hear that, but... isn’t it a bit much?

Pulling myself together, I trimmed the okra stems and peeled off the dark green ridges.
Then I rubbed them with salt and tossed them straight into the boiling water.

After about two minutes, turning them occasionally, I drained them into a colander, cooled them in cold water, then sliced them thinly.

I asked Kurogane to continue while I roughly chopped other ingredients like myoga, eggplant, cucumber, and yam.

As for the yam, I’d spotted familiar leaves during herb gathering at the academy the other day, and using earth magic to remove the surrounding soil, I’d dug up a really good one.

There were lots growing nearby, so I ended up digging yam instead of gathering herbs.

I want to use it for okonomiyaki next time.

But for now, I’ll use it in a refreshing summer dish.
Even if it’s light, we still need to restore our stamina.

So, I gathered everything into a bowl, added dashi and soy sauce, mixed it all up, and it was done.
Ideally, it’d be good to add some sticky kombu, but let’s call this a pseudo-Yamagata dashi.

"This one’s great served over rice with some bonito flakes on top. It also goes well with cold udon."

All three dishes are refreshing and light, yet nourishing—perfect for preventing summer fatigue.

"Come to think of it, Sei mentioned he’s been worn out from knight training. This menu might be just right for him!"

"True. He should be back soon from his extended training, so let’s prep the dining area."

"Okay!"

"I'm home... Sorry I couldn't help..."

Speak of the devil.

Just then, Sei came staggering into the dining hall, utterly exhausted.
We exchanged amused glances and quickly got to setting the table.

What do you think about this chapter?