Oysters (Part 2)The way Taisho removed the sh.e.l.l of the gun sh.e.l.lfish reflected his expertise.
Berthold had went to stores that were designed to have the customer grill the seafood by themselves on a net, but it had been difficult to remove the sh.e.l.l until they got the hang of it.
The sh.e.l.l of the gun sh.e.l.lfish was peeled off one after another, just like magic.
Berthold had promised not to eat the gun sh.e.l.lfish raw, but he didn"t look very convincing. It was tempting. Helmina pouted slightly and tugged on Berthold"s sleeve again when he unconsciously gulped his saliva.
「s.h.i.+n.o.bu, please prepare the tartar sauce.」
「Y~es. Oh, the pickles are perfect today.」
「They are such good oysters. I can’t help but be serious with them.」
While Taisho was preparing the gun sh.e.l.lfish, s.h.i.+n.o.bu, who was beside him, was chopping up boiled eggs into fine pieces. He had seen her do that when they made chicken nanban!
「Are you going to deep-fry the gun sh.e.l.lfish?」
「Yes, you are correct, Berthold-san!」
s.h.i.+n.o.bu smiled while skillfully using the egg"s sh.e.l.l to separate the egg yolks. In addition to the chopped boiled egg and pickles, they seemed to be making a sauce.
He had only been concerned about the taste when he had eaten chicken nanban previously, but it seemed that it took a lot of time and effort to make the sauce.
While he was feeling impressed, Eva was diligently carrying something towards the gla.s.s door.
If Berthold had still been a mercenary, the war band would have wanted something like this for long winters.
「Taisho, is that…」
「I stocked up on too many oysters today. Shouldn’t we share the fragrance with the customers of Inns & Stables Street?」
Taisho grinned while saying that, but he didn"t just intend to share the fragrance.
If one saw the gun sh.e.l.lfish grilling in front of the store, even those who did not know how it tasted would stop moving. After that, they would be enticed into entering n.o.bu.
After Taisho finished coating the gun sh.e.l.lfish with a fluffy coating, he slid them into oil, just like the chicken karaage.
The small bubbles and popping sounds entered Berthold"s ears and stimulated his stomach.
「Is Helmina eating too?」
「Yes, I guess I should try some.」
When he saw what Helmina was holding in her hands as he questioned her, Berthold was almost taken aback.
It was a lemon wedge from the pile s.h.i.+n.o.bu had cut earlier.
「H-hey, Helmina…」
「When I’m like this, sour things seem delicious to me.」
When she caressed her belly while saying so, Berthold could only groan.
He had tasted the bitterness and the sweetness of the battlefield, but he was completely inexperienced when it came to family. Not to mention, he did not understand pregnancy.
「There are a lot of things to think about, but please fully support Helmina-san.」
「If you say so, s.h.i.+n.o.bu-chan. I have no idea what to do for the time being.」
「Shouldn’t you think of a name for the baby?」
A name. It was certainly as she said.
It might be a bit hasty, but in a battle, it was appropriate to do what you could do first.
「That’s true, a name. A strong sounding one is good. Georg or Arthur, maybe?」
「Please wait a moment, Berthold-san. It’s not yet decided that the child will be a boy.」
「Yeah, that’s right. It could be a girl too, right?」
A gallant name and a pretty name.
He wanted to name the child after a respected person if possible, but since it had taken great effort to bring the child into this world, he also wanted to think of the child"s name by himself.
While he was thinking about various things, the crackling and popping sounds coming from the gun sh.e.l.lfish swimming in the pot of oil had changed.
「Oh Taisho, is it going to be ready soon?」
「Yeah, it’s almost time.」
Taisho said as he drained the oil from the gun sh.e.l.lfish and started piling them up onto a plate.
「Hm? Why did you not fry it twice like the chicken?」
「Chicken and pork taste good when they are fried twice, but sh.e.l.lfish can only withstand fire for so long.」
「Heeh」Berthold interjected as he refreshed his mouth with "Toriaezu Nama".
How would it taste?
Berthold swallowed his saliva again as s.h.i.+n.o.bu placed the plate in front of him. The sound of the plate being served on his table also stimulated his appet.i.te.
「Well, please enjoy. This is fried oyster. Please eat it with the tartar sauce.」
~Fried Oysters~
Even though a knife and fork were provided, Berthold didn"t use the knife.
Instead, he ate it in one mouthful. That was the proper way of eating it. He understood it intuitively.
Crunch.
He had believed that eating gun sh.e.l.lfish raw was the best until now, but this was also wonderful. Even though it was a completely different flavour from eating it raw, it wasn"t a matter of which was better.
The two couldn"t be compared to each other.
He vigorously returned a nod to Helmina, who was watching anxiously, and dipped the next one into the tartar sauce.
It was delicious with the chicken nanban, but it was suitable for this fried oyster too.
Taisho opened the gla.s.s door. Cool air suddenly blew into the warm room.
The grilled gun sh.e.l.lfish on the table, were making crackling sounds.
The store would probably soon become full of customers enticed by the smell.
While filling his mouth with the third piece of fried oyster, Berhold looked at Helmina and smiled.