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Special Ingredient Hunt 1: "Bottle Peppers" [Tetsu]
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Post by Max on Mar 1, 2020 11:49:11 GMT
Max was delighted to see that Tetsu had prepared enough in advance to have already ground and jarred the spice in question. "Well done, pal!" he praised his companion in this competition, as he added the pasted spice to the recipe. "You know, I'm really glad that you answered my initial message on the Tamernet, so, thanks." he finished. At this point, even if he lost this cooking battle, the Impmon-X was determined in thinking that Tetsu and Gryz were his friends now.
And Tetsu's little sister wouldn't be born for a few months now. "Well, pal, if there's anything I can do for her, let me know... although from what I hear of baby humans, they usually eat mother's milk instead of the feasts I can conjure, so, probably a bit limited in what I can offer, but, you're still my friend so I can try my best!"
As Tetsu and Gryz agreed to crush the sauce ingredients, Max would confer with them about his plan. "It'll be fine, really. I'm gonna cut the worst out of the catfish fillets before we cook 'em, and once that's gone, it's gonna be fantastic!" he told them. "But it by itself won't be enough, so, I'm really relying on your sauce for all this."
He said no more, then paid attention to the catfish. Max would then cut out the spine, bones and undesirable culinary pieces of flesh, leaving only behind the tasty fillets that he hoped would win then the contest.
On the other team, meanwhile, BlackGabumon was nearing his recipe of deep fried seasoned catfish to completion. From the smell he could sense from their side, it would be a close competition, there was no mistake about that. So Max hoped that Tetsu and Gryz could help prepare his own recipe to victory.
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Post by tetsushi on Mar 7, 2020 0:46:16 GMT
"Heh, well, it's a 'I scratch your back you scratch mine' situation. We happened to need help of chefs," Gryz answered. "There's little that we can do alone when it comes to improving quality of life of people in various secluded tribes in Digital World. I was actually hoping for you to help us down the road. it's of course not a free one. There's experience, there's also new ingredients to find, and plus we'll pay you. If we happened to be successful to improve the life of the people of such settlements, we'll of course pay you extra."
But this is not the time to talk about that sort of thing just yet. Gryz gave Max the crushed ingredients he asked. Meanwhile, Tetsu's eyes still affixed to the opposite team.
"Oh, what? Oh no, I'm not talking about our dish. I'm talking about theirs. I'm just not sure that catfish is all that nice when fried, considering this one seem to be the type that lives in the mud. So I wonder if they'll taste muddy," he corrected. "...Granted, I don't really ate catfishes all that much."
At any rate, here hoping that what they prepared is enough. That's quite the enticing smell after all...
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Post by Max on Mar 7, 2020 11:42:35 GMT
Max then realized in his excitement that Tetsu wasn't just doing this for his baby sister, but for more establishing a mutual friendship. Max chuckled a little sheepishly as he realized this. "Ah, yeah, of course! I'm happy to be your friend that can do that." he said, agreeing with the idea of teaching other digimon how to cook properly and make better lives for themselves.
So Tetsu was offering continued employment? Max was really tempted. Not breaking his concentration of preparing the catfish fillets, he steadily begun to imagine his position - instead of a famous chef with the best restaurant in the world, he thought more to what Tetsu was saying - a famous chef that could inspire others to cook good, delicious, healthy recipes. He thought the latter choice would be better for the world.
While he pondered this, Max remained silent, not wanting to be distracted in this critical moment. He had to cook the catfish fillets just right, or else they'd either be too raw and dangerous, or too overcooked and dry. While his catfish fillets were being cooked in their skillet, Max turned to Tetsu as he realized what he was saying.
"Ahh, their gameplan." the Impmon-X replied. He added the sauce that was given to him and was careful to spread it to ensure it would achieve the maximum covering over the fish. "I think they intend to try and hide the muddiness of the fish by overpowering it by frying and adding a spicy sauce. I admit, it could work, it all depends on our audience here."
With that, both teams had finished their recipes. They would then cut small portions of it - enough for the whole crowd, who would taste both recipes and decide which was better. To make it fair, BlackGabumon provided some gari to cleanse the palette of each taster to ensure their opinions would not change depending on the lingering tastes of their first choice.
The chefs and their teams were also invited to taste both recipes. Max was totally satisfied with what he, Tetsu and Gryz had cooked up. Max couldn't taste the muddiness at all, and he was proud of the tasty melody that was happening in his mouth before he swallowed.
After cleansing his palette with some gari, he tasted BlackGabumon's recipe, and at first was almost blown back with its wonderful texture and powerful first taste. The batter had been prepared expertly. And the fish fillet beneath was wonderful. But, after he swallowed, he could detect the muddy aftertaste of the fish. He wondered if the audience would share his opinion.
Max watched with hesitation as the audience made their deliberations. They seemed to like both recipes quite a lot, but, his green eye widened as he realized that most of them had a more positive reaction from his dish.
With the competition completed, Max and BlackGabumon stood in front of the audience, waiting to see who was the winner here.
"Whatever happens, Impmon, thank you for this competition." BlackGabumon said quietly. "I apologize if I disrespected you earlier. I tasted your recipe too, it's brilliant."
"Heh, thanks BlackGabumon. Yours is excellent too, you fry like an artist, and I mean that as a compliment." Max replied. Thankfully it was accepted as such, and BlackGabumon was smiling as they turned to the unofficial master of ceremonies for this rather sudden cooking contest in the middle of the bayou - a flamboyantly dressed Tentomon wearing a top hat and sparkling gold cape.
"Ladies and gentlemons...!" he began. "This competition was to determine which of BlackGabumon and Impmon-X was more qualified to cook the legendary ingredients of Bottle Peppers and Digi Arowana. Both prepared dishes based on digi-catfish and local peppers to show how well they would do so. BlackGabumon prepared delicious Bayou-style fried fish with a brilliant sauce that most of us appreciated. Impmon meanwhile prepared an exquisite pan-seared recipe. I have surveyed our audience, and we have determined a winner."
There was a pause here. Max and BlackGabumon held their breaths.
"The winner is... Impmon!" Tentomon declared. Max exhaled with near disbelief. "While both dishes were excellent, it is the shared opinion that he's the one that truly understands the relationship between fish and spices!"
"I accept this defeat. Well done." BlackGabumon complimented him, being a surprisingly good sport. But shortly after, he and his companions quietly left, leaving only behind the bottle peppers that they had used to bet on this contest. Max gladly picked them up, satisfied.
"Well then. Looks like we got what we came here for." Max said to Tetsu and Gryz. "Also, thank you guys so much. You're both wonderful, I'm glad I have you as my friends." he was positively beaming here.
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Post by tetsushi on Mar 14, 2020 16:44:25 GMT
"Hmmm, not sure that would work that well," Tetsu admitted. "Frying is reducing the excess moisture in the fish, so I think you'll instead strengthen that muddy taste if you're not careful... Spicy sauce might give them an edge though if that muddy taste actually works well with the spicy sauce..."
And true to his fear... the muddy aftertaste is there. Tetsu made a slightly displeased face, while Gryz seem to mutter simple "hmm, I see" without making any noticeable expression. However, he definitely felt that they chose wrong seasoning method. Perhaps they should have used acid to wash away the muddy taste instead. It's brilliant if it's normal fish, but as it's a muddy fish, it instead becomes slightly compromised when fried.
And thankfully it looked like they won! Both Tetsu and Gryz sighed, glad that they won. They really don't want to share that Pirarucu if they can honestly, considering how rare that digital fish was. But either way, both Tetsu and Gryz offered Max a high five. Once they done, Tetsu looked at the Bottle Pepper and took out the planters that he have readied.
"Alright, for the meantime, let's see... give me some of the peppers. We have to wash them a bit... pick the viable seeds, and afterward we should plant them in these planters."
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Post by Max on Mar 18, 2020 12:22:00 GMT
Max agreed with Tetsu's logic. "That's true, but, I think they're playing to the crowd here. They might actually enjoy the muddy taste, as long as the hotsauce is good, and that hotsauce is good..." he admitted.
Still, his cooking instincts to prepare the catfish properly, to remove the muddy taste entirely instead of disguising it, well, that seemed to be the clincher of his winning the dish. As BlackGabumon retreated, they exchanged one last look, understanding each other as cooks. It seemed BlackGabumon's style was to hide away the downsides of a recipe by overwhelming with flavour, while Max's style was to bring out the good tastes of it while cutting away the bad.
Max gladly exchanged the hi-five, totally delighted at the prize of both the Pirarucu and the Bottle Peppers. Max picked up the packet from the ground. As Tetsu asked to get some of them to learn how to cultivate them, Max nodded. "Alrighty, here ya go. Hope you can grow more of 'em." he said, but picked out a single small pepper for himself, then nibbled the end of it, contemplating its taste.
"Oh... cripes, this is brilliant!" he exclaimed. "It's not hot, but it... it amplifies the taste of whatever it's added to! It's made the aftertaste of what I just ate simply perfect!"
With that, Max excitedly turned back to Tetsu. "Are... you sure you can cultivate these?! If you can... I'll pay you guys so well. I'll also cook for you for free. These peppers are the real deal."
Max hoped this could be a lasting business partnership, and indeed, friendship with these guys. They had helped him out amazingly today. And he would be delighted if they could continue this friendship.
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Post by tetsushi on Apr 6, 2020 7:27:45 GMT
"I'll try," Tetsu answered. He nimbly cuts the pepper and opened it up. He then collected the seeds and rinsed it. Several times, then watches as some of them floats and most of them staying at the bottom. He then tossed away those that floats and kept those that sinks. He put it on the planters and activate a button. Soon enough, the seeds sprouted.
Digital World cultivating sure is easier than real world's. Germination process can be hastened this way, but apparently not the harvesting process because the planter itself is limited in size. Tetsu looked at the resulting sprouts and jotted them down on a piece of paper. Gryz meanwhile looked at Max like telling him to please wait.
"..........Hmmm..."
After a while, Tetsu nodded. Out of twenty soil samples, eight planters each, he eliminates the ones which grew irregularly and picked ones with the best growths.
"Yes, looks like the initial phase of the experiment succeeded. I just need to plan these in our greenhouse back in Ys, to check how it works, you see. These ones," Tetsu pointed at four groups "did not pass because they grow irregularly. Which means the soil isn't good for planting the peppers. I suspect these," Tetsu pointed at another four groups "Are the best. They grew faster than the rest. They're all from the eastern soil, from Tyrant Labyrinth, here, Rosewood and the forest respectively. I'll tell you if our little experiment works, and hell, if these peppers could be grown in Rosewood, you might even have emergency stock you can grow yourself!"
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Post by Max on Apr 11, 2020 12:57:32 GMT
Max watched with astonishment as Tetsu did his thing. While the Impmon-X had done his specialty in the kitchen, it was now Tetsu doing his specialty with seed cultivation. Knowing that it was probably a very detailed process, Max said nothing while Tetsu did his work, nodding back at Gryz's look at him to encourage him to do so.
As Tetsu concluded his experiments, he pointed out which seedlings were likely to thrive and under which circumstances as well. And furthermore he promised to grow them in the greenhouses of Ys to find out the best conditions for them.
"Oh my god you guys are the best friends ever!" Max exclaimed, moving in to hug Tetsu's side in an overflow of his joy, but soon quickly realized what he was doing, then awkwardly let go and took several steps back, took a few moments to regain his streetwise composure, then simply said "Okay, that's cool."
Still though, he supposed this would be the end of their journey together here for the time being in the Bayou. While Max rather wanted to leave this particular place in the digital world, he knew that it would also be parting ways for him and Tetsu and Gryz. Still though, he hoped to remain in contact with them.
"So yeah, you've got my tamernet details from earlier, right?" he asked them. "I'd be delighted to hear how your experiments go with the peppers. You sound like you've really got the smarts to get this done, so, I trust you guys."
That said, Max honestly didn't really have a means of parting ways. What was he meant to do? Walk back to Rosewood by himself? In the end, he'd request one last favour.
"Um... if you guys have the means to do so... could you please give me a lift back to Rosewood?" he asked, a little bashfully. "I can't really fly myself and I don't have any portals, so... if you could help me out here, I'd be much obliged. Also I promised you a free meal, so, if you wanna stick around there, I'll cook you guys up something real good." he promised further.
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Post by tetsushi on Apr 11, 2020 20:21:02 GMT
"Heh heh, you're welcome," Tetsu answered to Max's enthusiasm. "I'll definitely contact you in two weeks, so about two days in real world time... If I don't give you any news then, you can contact me. Or if you want to visit, that's fine too. Just take one from Rosewood. Tell them this password:
'To find the truth, one must tread through a muddy sea of unclear information.'
They'll give you a free ride like that. It only works once though, so I suggest you take our dreamliner for maximum experience, yes?"
Either way, Tetsu doesn't seem to mind that hug from just now. As for lift to the Rosewood... "...Sure, why not? But I don't think I can call out my ride here... Gryz, what do you feel about going out as Baihumon?"
"Well, I guess that's fine. Let's go." Immediately, Gryz transformed to one of his alternate form, a massive quadruped Digimon with four eyes. His transformation was followed by sound of crackling lightning. Tetsu quickly rode the massive beast while helping Max to hop on.
"Well, then, let's go!"
Gryz immediately took off, away from the bayou, straight to Rosewood.
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Post by Max on Apr 12, 2020 13:36:16 GMT
Max took note of the password that Tetsu gave him. He was also glad that not much was made of the hug that he gave. While ordinarily Max was a fairly aloof and stoic digimon, when he was truly happy, he tended to have his excitement boil over. He supposed that this was what he inherited from his father Coronamon, who often did the same.
Then, Tetsu and Gryz consented to bring Max back to Rosewood. The Impmon-X was delighted. Interested to see how they would do this, Tetsu evolved Gryz into his Baihumon form, and Max had to step back a few steps with amazement.
"Wow... you can evolve that far...?" he asked, astonished. Still, he recovered enough to accept help onto Gryz's back and appreciated the relatively smooth ride out of the Bayou and back to Rosewood.
Eventually, upon their return, Max would thank them again for their successful assistance. And then he'd offer them their reward.
"So, I'd like to ask you two a question." he said. "What are your top one favourite meals? The markets are still open, so I can get the ingredients, just... I'd really like to make something special for you two."
If so, Max would proceed to frisk around the closing marketplace of Rosewood for the ingredients, then proceed to prepare Tetsu and Gryz's requested meals for dinner. If not, then he'd bid them farewell and promise them the meal in future.
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