The children waited for Gus to arrive at Forest Kitchen Number One. Sarah, Nico, and Rhoanne watched the children play a game as they wait. They simply used their sticks as a pen, and write on soil like its paper. Griffin and Cindy were writing X"s and O"s alternately, as the other kids spectate their match with great intensity. The game they were playing is none other than the popular,Tic-Tac-Toe! Gus wanted to get acquainted with the children better, so he taught them how to play the other night.
To make the game even more exciting, the children started betting with their potato chips.
"Urk... Fine! take three pieces!" said Griffin.
"Hahaha! Who"s next?! How about you, Ray?" said Cindy as she pointed her finger at her next challenger.
"Mm..." The ever silent Ray simply gave a nod. Their match is intense! Each match is always a draw since neither can line their X and their O. After a few more matches, Cindy eventually won.
"I won! Now give me your Potato chip!" Cindy placed her empty steel can in front of Ray.
Gretel just pouted as she watched everybody play. Her potato chips were already long gone since she keeps losing to everybody. Sarah, Nico, and Rhoanne have also started to take interest in the game the children were playing.
"Such a fun and simple game! The mechanics are simple for anybody to understand, and you can play this, using just about anything!" Nico praised the game for its ingenuity. As he was about to ask the children who came up with this game, he stopped himself as he already imagined the Walking Suit of Armour being humble and talk about how he "simply" made a children"s game. Nico loved and hated this trait about Gus. As much as he admired the person, he can"t seem to get over the fact that a humanoid creature is more talented than he is.
Sarah interrupted the older kids playing.
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"Why aren"t you guys letting poor little Sage play? Is it because she is too young or too easy? You should be ashamed of yourselves! And you all call yourselves her elder brother and sister!"
Sarah noticed Little Sage just playing with her cast iron toys by herself, so she can"t help herself but reprimand her older siblings.
Sarah suddenly noticed that Little Sage is grabbing her attention, by pulling the hem of her sleeve.
"Big Sister Sarah, It"s not their fault! I stopped playing because I want to enjoy my lunch!" said Little Sage.
"Little Sage, tell me the truth, are they letting you play or not?" Sarah asked one more time because she got confused with Little Sage"s answer.
"Big Sister Sarah, I always win at tic-tac-toe! So that means, I always eat their potato chips! If I don"t stop winning, then Little Sage will eat too many potato chips! Papa said, not to eat too many chips or else I will ruin my Lunch! So no more Potato chips for Little Sage!" said the little girl as she fixed her loose gla.s.ses back into place, and continued playing with her toys.
After hearing this, Sarah turned red from embarra.s.sment and apologized to the children. Nico and Rhoanne laughed, and eventually joined the children play tic-tac-toe.
"Sorry, I"m late everybody!" A Familiar voice was heard.
"Papa!" Little Sage immediately put down her toys and jumped towards her father.
"Oof... Oh my! You are getting heavy little Sage!" said Gus.
"Don"t be silly Papa! No one can get heavy that fast!" said little Sage as she giggled.
"Actually Dear User, Little Sage did get Heavy. The food from your System has potent, positive effects since it receives only the purest Mana from Earth. The System can approve that if they continue to eat such nutritious food, they will not succ.u.mb to any major illnesses anymore! Just don"t tell the same thing to Ms. Stillwater, or else she won"t take that comment lightly." said the System proudly.
Gus was even more amazed by his ability after witnessing its effect for himself! his support abilities is simply a G.o.dsend.
"Papa! you"re late! Little Sage won"t grow properly if you make Little Sage Hungry!" said Little Sage as she draws a mud mustache on her Papa"s face.
"Mister Gus, you better have something good for us!" said Gretel
"Um... you owe us something sweet again!" said Cindy.
"Can we have more meat Please?" asked Griffin.
"Yes! Meat is a must!" followed Rhoanne.
"I and the Kids will prepare lunch. Please wait for a while," said Gus as he looked at Sarah and their guests.
"Oh! This is the second time I see them cook!" said Rhoanne. She can"t but help drool as she thinks of the bacon the children made.
"Alright Kitchen Brigade! Take your Gusfords and get ready to cook!" said Gus, as he broke down into pieces and turned into mini Gusfords.
"Meat Station! Are you ready?" Asked a Gusford jr.
"YES!" shouted Gretel and Cindy as they raised their hands in the air.
"Prep Station! Are you ready?" Asked another Gusford jr.
"YES!" answered Griffin and Ray.
"Then carefully follow your Gusford Jr. as you cook! Good Luck everyone!" said the Gusford juniors.
The children and Gus decided that they would switch roles today, so the Girls can learn more about Meats while the Boys hone their cutting and chopping skills.
Gus has placed all the ingredients they needed on top of the makeshift table, to prepare for today"s lunch. Gus decided it would be nothing fancy. He wanted something simple, even the children can easily prepare. Today"s lunch menu is a j.a.panese inspired lunch set of Teriyaki c.o.c.katrice, Wild Boar Stamina Don and Miso Soup!
Gus used two skill points to purchase new Grocery items in his inventory:
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Short grained j.a.panese Rice 5 coppers
Mirin (j.a.panese sweet sake) 3 silvers
Hondashi 5 silvers
Miso paste 4 silvers
Ginger 8 coppers
Cooking Sake 4 silvers
CURRENT POINTS: 7 points
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Hon Dashi is made primarily from Skipjack Tuna (also known as Bonito) that is dried into blocks and used like Parmesan Cheese. Anyone can make a beautiful clear fish stock by simply adding Hon-Dashi pellets to hot water. In addition to having a salty taste as one would expect from stock, Hon Dashi boasts a slightly sweet and uniquely smoky undertone. You can practically use it in any recipe which calls for stock since Hon Dashi stock isn"t fishy. In fact, it doesn"t even taste of fish.
Mirin is an essential condiment used in j.a.panese cuisine. It is a type of rice wine similar to sake, but with lower alcohol content and higher sugar content. The sugar content is a complex carbohydrate that forms naturally during the fermentation process; no sugars are added.
With the Guidance of Gusford Jr. The Girls took the c.o.c.katrice carca.s.ses on the table along with the Wild Boar"s Leg which Gus carefully skinned earlier. Gretel started to boil the river water in the Cauldron. As the girls wait for the water to reach its boiling temperature, they started to cut the boar leg, into thin bite-size slices. The girls needed a kilogram of sliced boar leg meat.
The water in the cauldron has started to boil. Gretel and Cindy proceeded to soak the c.o.c.katrice, and swirl it in hot, boiling water and quickly submerge it with running river water. By doing this, they can pluck the feathers off the c.o.c.katrice easier! Gretel and Cindy started to prepare the c.o.c.katrice. Using the Sharp knives Gus gave them, the girls worked on the carca.s.ses and sliced it into different cuts. They managed to present the thighs, legs, b.r.e.a.s.t.s, and wings beautifully. Gus was especially impressed at Cindy"s knife work. During the preparation for the Town feast, her hands were precise and accurate. you can stack her cut potato fries on top of each other without toppling over!
If Gus ever met someone like Cindy back on Earth, she would definitely take a position in his kitchen as a Head Garde Manger! (someone who prepares or coordinates all cold foods including salads, cold meats, pates, terrines, sausages, hors d"oeurves, decorative carving garnishes, etc.)
Surprisingly, the meat of the Snake from the c.o.c.katrice is strikingly similar to a chicken. After a careful inspection, Gus told them to chop the snake meat and place it along with the other chicken pieces as well.
"Griffin, Ray! Are the Onions and Ginger ready?" asked Cindy.
"Yeah! I"m coming over!" Griffin took the tray of cut Onion slices and ginger.
"Sharp knife, Pa.s.sing by!" said Griffin as he pa.s.sed by his fellow kitchen members.
Gus also taught the children about kitchen safety. One needs to warn others if they are pa.s.sing by with a knife in hand or holding something hot.
Since the boys are done with cutting vegetables, they jumped right in to help the girls. Gretel and Cindy are now responsible for making Boar Stamina Don, while the boys cook Teriyaki c.o.c.katrice.
Gus never forgot to give Little Sage a task as well. A Gusford junior is helping her cook white j.a.panese rice! Little Sage had fun washing the rice and carefully measuring the rice and water to be put in another cauldron. Little Sage is holding on to her iron spoon as she waits in antic.i.p.ation for the rice to cook.
For the final step, Griffin and Ray simply simmered the chicken pieces with Soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, onions, and Mirin. Meanwhile, the girls also simmered their boar slices with Hondashi, Mirin, Cooking sake, Soy sauce, ginger and onions in a separate pot. Little Sage and Gus simply boiled Miso paste, water, and a dash of hondashi to make his version of Miso soup.
Since the children have around 20 minutes before the rice, boar and chicken cooks, they cleaned their knives and their stations.
Twenty minutes have pa.s.sed and its time to reveal the dishes. One by one the children removed the lid off the cauldron. A sweet and salty aroma they have never smelled before has fused with the air around them. They can whiff the sweet caramelized onions.
Ms. Sarah led a prayer of thanks before everyone ate a hearty lunch once more.
"OH! Is this a c.o.c.katrice Mr. Gus?" Nico is familiar with the meat as he tasted this before.
"What is this white thing?! It"s bland!" said Rhoanne.
"That White thing is called Rice. It"s a tad similar to wheat and barley but their taste is incomparable. Everyone, you are supposed to eat the rice, together with the meat." said Gus.
"Oh! Meat is a little salty, and the rice is a bit bland. But if you eat them together, it"s really delicious!" said Rhoanne.
"It is indeed miraculous. I could never the same meat can taste entirely different because of those peculiar ingredients," said Sarah as she studies the flavors that are permeating in her tongue.
"Isn"t it like Magic, little Sage? Mr. Gus can make this food taste salty without salt!" said Gretel. She helps feed Little Sage from time to time.
"No and no! Papa"s cooking is way better than Magic! Magic can never taste this good!" Said little Sage as she enjoys her pork rice bowl.
The Boar Stamina Don is a filling dish with a strong flavor. It is their first time to eat something salty without the use of salt!
"Children, take out your Mugs please." Gus opened his spatial inventory and took out a PET bottle with a dark-colored drink inside it.
"Hmm? It"s cold!"
"What is this Papa?! It"s all bubbly and it keeps popping in my mouth!"
"It"s sweet!" said Cindy.
"Bubbly and sweet? What kind of drink is that?" asked Rhoanne.
Gus simply answered by giving them the cold bottle to try it out for themselves. Even Gus cannot describe what a cola tastes like anyway.