173-Rice disappears like magic




 
 There was a dispute over the seasoning of the miso soup, but Bartolo and I were able to make breakfast without a hitch.

 We cooked up a batch of egg rolls for the last few people, and then left it to Sarra and Meena to serve.

 Bartolo did the seasoning for the miso soup, and I sat down in the dining room.

 The rest of the family is already seated in the dining room.

 I'm hungry. Can't we hurry up and get our food brought to us? I'm terribly hungry because I've been moving since this morning, smelling and tasting breakfast.

 Father Nord, Mother Erna, and Brother Silvio also seem hungrier than usual today, probably because they have tasted the food.

 All three of them talk casually, but their eyes keep on looking towards the kitchen.

 I felt the same way, so I kept staring at the kitchen while we talked.

 It takes a while to do so. Meena and Saara brought our food.

'Sorry for the wait!

 Rice, fried eggs, salted salmon, miso soup with nameko mushrooms, and boiled spinach are all lined up in front of us.

 I never thought there would be a time when there would be so many Japanese dishes lined up in this house. I'm very happy because I'm a person who prefers Japanese food in the morning. Western food is good, but I want to eat Japanese food once in a while, because I was Japanese in my previous life.

The colors in the line up are so beautiful.

They all look like they would go with rice.

'I've made something on the menu today that goes well with rice,'

 First of all, we want you to enjoy the taste of the side dish that goes with the rice.

 We already know the taste of rice, so we wanted them to feel it again.

In that case, let's get on with it.

 As we exchange our thoughts, Father Nord says, hurrying us up a bit.

 We are all hungry. We don't argue with his suggestion and we quietly start to eat.

 First up was the hot, steaming miso soup. Hot miso soup is better than lukewarm, you know. First, he tilted the bowl to slowly take it into his mouth.

 Then the slippery little nameko mushrooms smoothly entered my mouth. At the same time, the taste of the nameko mushroom and the soup, which is richly flavored with miso, starts to spread on the tongue.

 The sticky nameko mushroom danced in the mouth, giving it an interesting texture.

 Chewing the lumpy nameko mushroom, I swallowed it with the miso soup.

 Oh, the taste of the miso is unbearable. After all, drinking warm miso soup soothes my soul.

"...........

Huh.

 When I glanced at them, I saw that Father Nord, Brother Silvio and Mother Erna were also drinking miso soup and were relieved.

 It's nice to drink miso soup and relax in a daze. I think it's just as soothing as green tea.

 Then I take a sip or two of the miso soup and I get to work on my rice.

 The white rice Bartolo cooked in the cooker.

 It's not too runny and it's cooked fluffy.

 When I scooped up a bowl of rice and ate it, I could feel the subtle sweetness of the rice's original flavor. The more you chew, the more you chew, the more you can enjoy the rice without any side dishes.

 I savored the taste of the rice alone and took a bite of the rice and sipped the miso soup.

 The miso soup and the rice mingled together and the rice melted in my mouth.

 It's unbearably delicious.



I could eat as much rice as I want with just miso soup.

 I muttered as if impressed that mother Erna was also imitating me.

 Miso and rice are the best together. It's not an exaggeration to say so.

Even in the summer when the heat makes you lose your appetite, drinking miso soup cold makes it easier to eat.

'That sounds good. I'd like to have a second cup of cold miso soup.

 It seems that Erna's mother immediately noticed this tasty way of eating miso soup and rice.

 It's the summer season now, you know. I don't understand why you want to eat cold food.

I'll chill the miso soup for later, but if that's the case, I recommend the spinach stew. It's cold and delicious.

 As I said this, I suggested the spinach, and the three of them worked on the boiled spinach in silence.

''Oh my, it's so cold and delicious,''

It's crisp and moist and nice.

The spinach and soy sauce go well together.

 Brother Silvio and Father Nord seemed to like this.

 They put the boiled spinach on a bed of rice and eat it with relish.

 It's good to have miso soup cold, but this is the time of year when fresh vegetables are delicious. Vegetables aren't lost yet, right?

'Huh? We're running out of food.

The other egg rolls and the salted salmon, they go so well with rice that they disappear quickly.

 Looking at Mother Erna and Father Nord's bowls, the rice was gone.

 It's the proof that they liked the combination of the side dishes and rice.

'.........So this is the essence of Kagura cuisine. The rice disappeared like magic.

 Wananing Mother Erna, staring at the empty bowl.

 No, no, it all just went into Mother Erna's stomach.

''It's nice to eat it with meat, but I prefer to eat it with this kind of gentle tasting side dish.

Me too!

 It's not just Father Nord, but also Brother Silvio, who shows a strong reaction.

 This is a rare sight for two people who don't usually show a strong reaction to food. They seemed to like the taste of Kagura's food more than they expected. Especially Silvio's brother seems to like the spinach stew. He's been crunching it with rice since a while ago.

''........I prefer to eat rice with something that has a strong flavor, but eating rice with a side dish like this isn't bad either.

 The kagura dish and rice went so well together that even Erna's mother, who was a strong flavored person, seemed to admit to being a light flavored person.

''Oh, by the way, Meena, please have a refill.

Me too, please.

Yes, sir.

 Father Nord called me over and Meena, who was waiting for me, came over and received the empty bowl.

 Me and brother Silvio also noticed that the rice was running low, so we hurriedly put the rest in our mouths and asked for a refill.

''........Ah, Saara. It's hard for me to serve you while holding back my hunger.''

'Good luck, Meena. It's because you work here that we get good food too.

 Meena goes to pour our food while her stomach growls.

 Meena and Saara have work to do as maids, so they'll be eating breakfast after us.

 From the way Mother Erna and Father Nord are eating, I'm sure they'll have more rice as well as more side dishes.

 I can't bear to keep a hungry Meena and Saara waiting, but it's going to take a little longer for them to eat their breakfast.