I Got the Almighty Tongue - Chapter 47



Only Noblemtl

The Maestro of the Kitchen

The staff clap and hug each other.

It seems like today’s broadcast was a success in their eyes too.

Jimmy also shakes hands with Robert. The writers and producers are also giving each other high fives here and there.

I had a brief discussion with Jimmy about what to do next. He wanted me to do more, but I couldn’t do more. I politely declined the request and thanked Robert.

I leave the studio and walk into the lobby. As I walk through Rockefeller Plaza at night with the lights off, I am reminded of a time in my past life when I went shopping at a department store that had closed down.

As I opened the door and went out, Joo-hee was shivering and waiting for me to come out. After the store closed, only the staff were allowed to enter Rockefeller Plaza. It seemed like she couldn’t stay at home because she was worried about me.

“Joohee!”

When I call her, Joohee looks up and looks at me. Her face is frozen blue.

“Brother. Are you done?”

“Yeah. I finished and came out. Did you watch the broadcast?”

“I saw it. I caught a taxi and came right after it was over. I’ve never been this nervous while watching TV.”

“I’m sorry for worrying you. I was worried a lot.”

“No. I wasn’t worried too much.”

Joohee’s eyes are red as she says that. She may not have said anything to me, but I can tell how worried she is without even looking at her.

“Okay! Let’s go.”

I put Joohee in the car and drove out of the parking lot.

“Brother. Have you eaten?”

Come to think of it, I haven’t had an appetite since lunch, so I haven’t eaten anything but water. I’m suddenly feeling hungry.

“No. I’m hungry just hearing you say that.”

“Then should I cook for you?

“Korean Mart sign?”

“No, no. Do you think I always do that? I’ve seen and heard things from my brother’s side over the years, and I’m a person who develops.”

Joohee makes a pointed expression.

“Okay. Then let’s eat the food you made today.”

I ran a short distance and arrived home. When I got home, dinner was already somewhat prepared. It seemed like they knew I hadn’t eaten and had been preparing it for a while.

“Wait there a minute. I’ll do it right away. It’ll take 20 minutes.”

“Okay. Can I watch?”

“then.”

Joohee starts cooking.

Looking at the pork front leg meat taken out, it looks like a meat dish. They make a seasoning sauce by mixing gochujang, soy sauce, garlic, honey, red pepper powder, and plum extract. It looks like they are going to make stir-fried pork.

She marinates the meat in the sauce and starts making soybean paste stew. Judging from the way she wraps the anchovies in a net and makes anchovy stock, it seems like she has done this more than once or twice. Joo-hee probably doesn’t know much about cooking… but it seems like she practiced on her own while living alone at Harvard.

Dissolve commercially available soybean paste in anchovy stock, add onions, garlic, potatoes, mushrooms, tofu, and zucchini, and boil. Season well with soy sauce and red pepper powder. It feels amazing.

We lived together in our previous lives, but I rarely saw Joo-hee cook. It was partly because my aunt, who was very good at cooking, did all the cooking, but the Joo-hee I knew didn’t enjoy cooking.

“The food is ready, oppa.”

On the table were glossy stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew. Simple side dishes from a Korean supermarket, such as seasoned seaweed, braised short ribs, and salted seafood, were also brought out.

“My brother works at an Italian restaurant, so he always eats Western food. I thought he might miss Korean food, so I made this.”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had Korean food. I’ll enjoy it, Joohee.”

After taking a sip of soybean paste stew, I also tried the stir-fried pork. I couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion. Why is that?

“How does it taste? My second eldest brother said that there is no man who dislikes stir-fried pork.”

Joohee started talking a lot, perhaps embarrassed by the fact that she cooked something she never cooked before. When I looked up, she was looking at me with a nervous expression.

I moved my chopsticks once more to taste it. The sweet and spicy seasoning and the saltiness of the soy sauce whet my appetite. Perhaps they had tried to find the right combination of seasonings by making it repeatedly.

“It’s so delicious. I want to keep eating it.”

“Really? That’s fortunate.”

“So when did you start cooking?”

“I started doing it little by little after I moved to Boston.”

“Why? Did the food not suit your taste?”

I remember saying that I didn’t like the dorm food.

“No, that’s not it. I just wanted to cook for you. I’ll be cooking all day long at work, so I don’t want you to cook for me after work. And when you get home from work, I’ll have a meal ready for you. What do you think? You’ll eat it even if it doesn’t taste good, right?”

My heart aches so much. What on earth have I done? I have to fight back the tears that are welling up. Joohee hasn’t changed.

I am a person who is twisted inside and cannot easily open my heart to others. It was the same in my past life and it is no different in this life. However, for some reason, Seo Ju-hee walks into the deep part of my heart at the end of the winding road, finds me, and reaches out to me.

“Yeah. It’s so delicious.”

While we were eating, Joohee talked to me about various topics.

Before I knew it, it was already two o’clock as I was talking about Ellis’s recent news that I would introduce to Kim Soo-ho, how difficult the exam was, the story of a genius student in the same graduate school, and my brother’s wedding story.

For the first time in a long time, I was able to sleep soundly, as if the insomnia of the past few days had been a lie.

* * *

[Chef Shin Je-hee, revealed to have an absolute taste buds on a live American talk show]

[Shin Je-hee, the Michelin Young Chef Award winner, did not commit any wrongdoing]

[Absolute Taste Certified by MIT Professor, Who is Shin Je-hee?]

[Absolute Taste Exists. Koreans Are the First People in the World to Be Recognized as Owners of Absolute Taste]

When I woke up, there were a ton of articles in Korea. I probably wouldn’t be this hot a topic, but I wondered if Chairman Seo had something to do. I clicked on the article.

[Yesterday at 11:35 PM Eastern time, on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show, there was a verification of the taste of Chef Shin Je-hee, who has recently been embroiled in a manipulation controversy. Professor Robert Miller of MIT, who raised the suspicion, participated in the verification himself, and it was revealed on the live broadcast that Chef Shin Je-hee possesses an absolute sense of taste, which is becoming a hot topic·········..]

└ It was a good thing she put the car into neutral gear. Common sense tells you why Shin Je-hee would do something like that.

└ Where did all the guys who called Shin Je-hee a fraud go?

└ Chefs blinded by jealousy

└ So the absolute sense of taste is a real thing. Does that mean Shin Je-hee can figure out recipes just by eating them?

└ Just knowing what ingredients went into it. That alone is amazing.

└ By the way, where did that guy who was complaining that there was no difference between Shin Je-hee and other chefs go?

└ They have already deleted the post and disappeared.

└ It’s causing a fuss in the US too, so I guess I won’t be coming back to Korea anymore.

The negative articles about me are going down as if they never came up. It’s not surprising, so I’m just going with it now.

“Hello, Romeo.”

Why is Romeo coming out earlier than me? Romeo, who always came out slowly because he thought it would only inconvenience the employees if his superior came in early, wondered what was going on at this hour.

“Welcome. You became the hottest person in America overnight.”

“You’re exaggerating. I just made a brief appearance on a talk show.”

“Tsk tsk.”

Romeo raises his index finger and waves it from side to side, making a no gesture.

“Why did I come out so quickly? I came out because I was getting calls from all over the place and the staff couldn’t respond.

Did you know that the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)?

Of course I know. Isn’t it the world’s largest scientific conference?

“It’s a place that publishes science magazines.”

“That’s right. They asked you to attend the conference there.”

“What about the academic conference? If you go, scientists will rush over and ask to do experiments.”

Romeo smiles and says as I shake my head.

“That’s right. No human in their right mind would ask a chef to appear at a scientific conference, unless they were planning to use him as a guinea pig.”

“Is there anything else besides that?”

“I’ve been getting a ton of requests to appear on TV. They’re calling the restaurant because they don’t know your number. I’ve gotten more calls asking for you this morning than reservations.”

“I’m sorry for causing trouble. I don’t plan on appearing on TV. I’ve done enough.”

“I thought about it carefully. The chef has to cook. But how are we going to do this?”

“What is it?”

“They’re asking you to be a judge on a cooking audition show that will start next year on FOX TV. I guess they want to increase their credibility because they trust your taste buds. They also want to take advantage of your increased popularity.”

“What is the name of the program?”

“Master Chef.”

Oh my. Master Chef, the leader of the world-famous cooking audition program. I remember that the original judges were Gordon Ramsay, Graham Elliott, and Joe Bastianich. If I get in, who will be left out?

“If it’s a program that judges cooking, I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to participate.”

It’s something I really want to try, as long as it doesn’t interfere with my main job.

“Yeah. Not a bad opportunity. Okay! Let’s get to work.”

“Yes, Chef.”

Now that my problems are solved and I’m back in the kitchen cooking with peace of mind, I feel alive.

Orders start pouring in. Romeo skillfully directs the kitchen like an orchestra conductor. The once quiet kitchen is transformed into a battlefield of fire and blades in an instant. The sizzling sound of boiling oil and meat cooking sounds like sweet music to my ears. The chefs move their hands in unison like soldiers.

“Sam! Come on! Do you want to get hurt?”

Romeo yells at Sam. In an environment where even a moment of distraction can cause someone to get hurt, teamwork is not just a choice for my own safety. For everyone in the kitchen, we have to be alert and perform to the best of our ability.

I hold the pan in front of the hot stove and cook the steak. It is winter, but even without heating, the temperature in the kitchen is starting to exceed 25 degrees. While I am wiping the sweat from the air and searing the meat, Romeo looks at me and asks.

“Why are you laughing?”

I guess I laughed without realizing it.

“I like cooking in the kitchen.”

“That crazy guy.”

Romeo says with a smirk.

I think I’ve seriously fallen in love with cooking.

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