Cheat day

Praise for Korean Cuisine (3)

“This participant is also quite unique. What are you making?”

Jo Wang-taek approached the sixth participant and asked.

Looking at the participant list, I saw that this 32-year-old office worker came from Incheon.

With her bobbed hair tightly tied up and a serious expression, she was finely chopping seaweed. When Jo Wang-taek approached, she appeared somewhat nervous.

“I’m making seafood japchae.”

“Seafood japchae! Participant number 6, Yook Hye-rin, is making japchae.”

The camera followed her movements, showing shrimp, squid, seaweed, hijiki, bell peppers, onions, and angel hair seaweed.

However, the sweet potato noodles, which should have been there, were nowhere to be found.

Curious, I leaned in for a better look, while the other judges squinted at the ingredients, either suspiciously or with concern.

“But I don’t see the sweet potato noodles?”

“Yes. I’m using angel hair seaweed instead, to make it a healthy dish.”

Her voice was soft, as if she was trying to muster the strength to articulate each word.

“Angel hair seaweed japchae. Chef Lee Chan-seok, what do you think?”

When asked by Jo Wang-taek, Lee Chan-seok took the microphone.

“You’ll typically see angel hair seaweed at sashimi restaurants. You might think it’s inedible, but you can consider it a low-calorie noodle made from kelp and seaweed.”

“How low-calorie are we talking?”

It seemed that even Lee Chan-seok couldn’t recall the exact calorie count.

After all, it’s not normal for someone to memorize the calorie values of both regular sweet potato noodles and angel hair seaweed.

And I’ve watched videos by those peculiar people at least ten times, so I have a lot of useless knowledge.

“Regular sweet potato noodles are about 300 kcal per 100g, while angel hair seaweed is around 6 kcal.”

As I spoke, people expressed vague amazement.

“If what Chan-yong says is true, it seems like it would really help with dieting. But honestly, I’m not sure if angel hair seaweed tastes good.”

Lee Chan-seok replied as if he’d been waiting for that comment.

“It can be bland when used as a garnish under sashimi. However, if you soak it in hot water with baking soda, it becomes similar to noodles. So, making japchae is entirely possible.”

“Wow, then it will be an incredibly healthy japchae. I’m looking forward to it.”

Upon Jo Wang-taek’s words, participant number 6, Yook Hye-rin, shyly smiled and lowered her head.

Then, as if nothing had happened, she focused back on her cooking.

Even though she wasn’t a professional chef, her hands moved quite quickly, and there was no hesitation in her actions, proving that she was indeed a skilled competitor who had made it past the preliminary rounds.

After observing everyone, I checked the time and realized that the promised hour had completely passed.

Since I had only eaten whole wheat bread with a salad and two fried eggs for breakfast to come out early, my stomach was now grumbling.

I was eager to eat.

“Time’s up!”

As Woo Wang-seon announced, all participants stepped back from their cooking stations.

Some were relaxed due to the ample time, while others were still trying to make last-minute adjustments. But the sight of everyone stepping away from their food at the end of the countdown was quite impressive.

It felt like everyone was playing fair.

“Alright, let’s begin judging in the order the dishes are completed. First up is Mr. Choi Eun-sam’s dongbaegi-jeon and dongbaegi-tang, who has come up from Yeongcheon, Gyeongbuk.”

The dishes from participant number 3, Choi Eun-sam, were presented. I was excited to try shark meat for the first time.

Mr. Choi Eun-sam personally served the food in front of the judges and the panel. On the plate was just one jeon (Korean pancake) and a soup so minimal it seemed like a mere splash.

When I looked up, Mr. Choi Eun-sam appeared flustered.

“Um.”

“Yes?”

“Could you give us a bit more?”

“Oh. Well…”

Looking around, I noticed that everyone had received only a tiny amount. I couldn’t understand how they could just sit there after such a meager serving.

“Chan-yong, we have to taste dishes from all 12 teams, so isn’t that serving size appropriate?”

“Excuse me?”

I was taken aback by Woo Wang-seon’s comment.

“You want us to judge on just this?”

“Right, for 12 teams.”

“…I’ve eaten 12 dishes at a buffet before.”