I Got the Almighty Tongue - Chapter 147



Only Noblemtl

147 Red Mullet with Carrots

“Is there anything else to report?”

Chairman Seo is sitting on a chair, looking out the window, looking listless. As summer approaches, the fine dust has cleared and a blue sky can be seen outside the window.

“Since the third lady started the wine distribution business, she has been rapidly increasing her market share. The industry is worried that LK is entering the liquor industry in earnest.”

“Why do we do that?”

Chairman Seo clicks his tongue and expresses his annoyance.

“I guess the young lady is at the forefront of this, so she must be worried that this might be the chairman’s intention. The market share has already exceeded 12%. Not only is the price competitive, but the offline stores have also been aggressively launched in busy areas, so accessibility is also good. It is not unreasonable for the industry to be worried.”

Director Kim flips through the files, opens the page with the diagram, and politely hands it to Chairman Seo.

“If you don’t have the ability, you’ll fail. You’ve done a lot so far, right? What else don’t you have?”

The chart printed on the page showed that Livello, the company founded by Joohee, was on a steep upward curve and was encroaching on the wine market. Chairman Seo looked at it absentmindedly and put it down on the desk.

“I think you are thinking of distributing dairy products. I understand that you are already in the process of coordinating contract terms with local companies.”

“I don’t know anything about this, so if you contact me, just tell me what you think. It’s not like I’m asking for your help anyway.”

“All right.”

The secretary bows her head and steps back. Chairman Seo hands over the chemical and fashion businesses among the affiliates to Joohee.

But the third daughter seems to have no interest in running the place, reappointing the existing management and rebuilding everything from scratch.

It was clear to Chairman Seo that Joo-hee was targeting the distribution cartel that was making huge profits.

“It seems that sending him to America to study was not in vain.”

He drinks his coffee, holding back a laugh.

* * *

“Kyle! This tastes a little weird. What else should I put in here?”

While Theo is practicing in the kitchen, he asks Kyle a question. The two, who have become much closer since the last competition, are actively giving each other feedback and cooperating despite their rivalry.

Today Theo brought us Jamaican Jerk Chicken.

“If you feel like the flavor is lacking, it’s usually because there’s not enough acidity. The sauce you made did contain vinegar, but it would have been much better if you had squeezed in something like lime. You also reduced the amount of garlic and ginger too much. The flavor will go away a lot during roasting, so don’t be afraid to add plenty.”

Kyle tastes it carefully and gives Theo some advice.

Kyle had a keen sense of taste since he was young. Naturally, he became interested in food and cooking, and majored in food science in college and joined Bimbo Bakeries USA, the largest bakery in the United States. However, the job he had to do at the company he joined with high expectations was to develop an additive that would make bread less stale at room temperature.

As he was becoming increasingly fed up and tired of his job, he learned about a chef who had an absolute sense of taste. He graduated from the CIA, worked in a Michelin restaurant, and was now the owner and chef of a famous restaurant. He also appeared actively on TV and was a famous person known nationwide.

‘You must have made a lot of money, right?’

Life feels so futile, with little savings and wasting my days doing things that aren’t even rewarding.

‘I should have aimed to become a chef like Shin Je-hee.’

It was too late to realize, but now is the time to turn back. Kyle quit his job and started preparing for the next season of Master Chef. He bought books, studied, and hired a former chef as a tutor to teach him how to cook.

It was a tough decision, but he was confident.

Absolute taste is not something special, but a sum of knowledge and experience. If you add a keen sense to it, you can identify most ingredients by eating them.

In fact, while working as a researcher, he once correctly identified all the ingredients in bread during a blind test conducted on employees. However, this was not a legendary taste, but simply because he knew all the ingredients in bread and what they did.

For example, if the bread is moist and salty, it means that propylene glycol alginate has been added. This not only gives the bread a glossy sheen, but also helps with moisture and oxidation prevention. If it tastes dense and chewy, it means that xanthan gum, which is widely used as a thickening agent, has been added.

In this way, he began to memorize recipes for food and expanded his variations. Food is a science. With the maximum use of statistics and guesswork and with experience, it is possible to become an absolute taste bud.

Since then, he started to create his own image by mentioning his absolute sense of taste in every interview. In the blind test on Master Chef, he was the best among them when he matched all the ingredients that went into the food.

‘Now that I’ve won MasterChef and am building my career, I’m knocking on the door of broadcasting…’

“Kyle!”

Kyle suddenly comes to his senses at the sound of someone calling him.

“Did you call?”

Kyle turns his head and greets Jack. At the beginning of the competition, interpersonal relationships were difficult, but now he is gradually adjusting to them. At some point, Kyle noticed that the staff’s attitude toward him had changed. His importance had increased.

‘So you’re saying I’m an important participant? I don’t feel bad about that.’

“Okay. Do you have any plans for tomorrow?”

Tomorrow is a holiday. Kyle planned to stay in his room all day and study recipes from his book.

“There’s nothing special. Why are you like that?”

“I think there will be some space for you in the next episode. Can you move in with me tonight?”

Kyle cheered inwardly. This was it. This is how you raise awareness.

“Of course!”

“Then get ready. I have to go to New York.”

Jack and Kyle shook hands and smiled contentedly at each other.

* * *

[Gordon Ramsay, judge, Michelin 3-star chef]

“Taste is very important in cooking. It is divided into innate and acquired parts, and even if the senses are not very sensitive, they can be improved to some extent through training. Most chefs fall into this category.”

[Do you think Kyle has no taste?]

“I never thought there was such a thing as absolute taste until I met Chef Shin Je-hee. Chef Shin himself has said many times that he has no absolute taste.

But his tongue is definitely special. No one can eat pasta like he can and figure out where the wheat came from. There’s still a lot we don’t know about Kyle. I hope we find out today.”

[Welcome to MasterChef. Today we have a special event prepared for you.]

“My mother was not a good cook. Our family ate the same thing every day. It was usually chicken pot pie or mac and cheese.

Then one day, I ate mac and cheese and noticed that it tasted different than usual. When I asked my mom, she said that they ran out of cheddar cheese that day and had used sliced ​​cheese. That was when I became convinced that I had a different taste.”

Kyle is shown in close-up on the screen, calmly giving an interview.

“Salt, pepper, olive oil, chili, tomato, garlic, basil, oregano, bacon, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, parsley···.”

There’s a scene where he tastes the pasta and then matches the ingredients.

[Is Kyle really a total taste bud? We decided to find out. We went to the most sophisticated chef we know. Chef Shin Je-hee.]

[Shin Je-hee, Chef]

“I refuse to deliberately add unnecessary ingredients to a dish. We are about to launch a new course in our restaurant. The Secondo Piatto (main dish) has just been completed. Would you like to try it?”

The screen shows a scene of Jehee cooking in the kitchen. He diligently prepares ingredients and boils them. And each time a new ingredient is added, subtitles begin to indicate it.

[Floundfish bone]

[White Wine Vinegar]

[saffron]

[Coriander Seed]

[Fennel Seed]

[Star Anise]

.

.

.

All the cooking process is vividly relayed. And finally, he puts the finishing touch on the red mullet with a torch and places it on the plate. In his hands, the colorful carrots turn into beautiful flower shapes and the basil becomes green leaves. He draws geometric patterns with a bright yellow sauce and finishes the dish with espuma.

“It’s complete.”

[Red Mullet with Carrots]

The camera rotates 360 degrees to show the dish from all angles. With Jehee’s outstanding aesthetic sense and sensational plating, it was as beautiful as looking at a painting.

“It takes three days to make this dish. There are 37 ingredients in total. But it’s impossible for him to get them all right. I think he would be praised for his great taste if he could get more than half of them right.”

The screen changes to show Kyle sitting at the table, and the hall staff comes serving him food.

Kyle brought his face close to the dish and examined it closely. The perfectly formed fish, the colorful flowers made of carrots and basil, and the beautifully patterned sauce.

“What an amazing dish. I’m going to be overwhelmed just looking at it.”

[Is Kyle really the possessor of absolute taste as he claims? You’ll soon find out.]

He scoops up a little sauce with a fork and puts it in his mouth. Then he closes his eyes.

“It’s a really thick sauce. It’s rich and thick, but the aftertaste is soft and refreshing. How did they manage to match the conflicting flavors so naturally? But I guess I’ll have to try matching the ingredients.”

Kyle cuts the fish flesh with a knife, coats it generously with sauce, and brings it to his mouth.

“Red mullet, salt, pepper, butter, white wine, vinegar, basil, carrots, sugar, tomatoes, saffron, dill…”

As Kyle answers one correct answer, a red line is drawn around the ingredients on the screen along with a sound effect. However, after he names the visible ingredients and the basic spices used in cooking, Kyle’s answering speed starts to slow down noticeably.

“parsley?”

wealth.

A buzzer sounds to indicate an incorrect answer.

“Eggs, onions, celery.”

wealth.

The buzzer rings again. Kyle’s face darkens.

“I give up. I can’t get it right. This sauce has a very complex flavor. There’s something about the fish itself that I don’t know about.”

When he declares he has given up, the staff shows him the answer sheet with all the ingredients written on it. It has twice as many ingredients as he had guessed correctly.

“I guess I have no choice but to accept the fact that I have absolutely no sense of taste.

But at the same time, it is true that I feel a little resentful. It is almost impossible to match the ingredients in soups or sauces. If you add a small amount while boiling, almost all of it evaporates, leaving no trace of flavor.

I can’t help but think that this is a test designed to fool me. I don’t think even Chef Shin Je-hee, who is widely known for her exquisite taste, could possibly match the ingredients of the sauce or soup I make.”

He bites Je-hee and hangs on, perhaps feeling resentful for not getting the right answer.

[Shin Je-hee, Chef]

“Sauce is the heart of European cuisine. If he says he can’t figure out what it is, then what on earth was he trying to match?”

Jehee shakes his head and says.

[Does this mean you disagree with Kyle’s opinion?]

“I personally don’t like these shows. What’s the big deal about matching ingredients in a dish? Taste and chef skills are two completely different things. But if Kyle says so, I can’t help but accept it. I just put out the best dish I can.”

A jackpot that even the production team did not expect hit.