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“She's using it just like Kapi, a fermented shrimp paste!
By substituting Kusaya- which has a smell several times stronger- for the Kapi, the flavor of the curry becomes that much richer. And since Kusaya is made from fish, it makes sense that it would perfectly complement the fish stock traditionally used in Laksa!
"What a robust flavor! My mouth is overflowing with the savory taste of seafood! Strangely, the more I chew, the better the smell becomes!"
"She used seasonings like lemongrass along with coconut milk to give it a more expansive flavor."”
― Yuto Tsukuda, ʳꪤΥ½©`¥Þ 7 [Shokugeki no Souma 7]

“Breakfast in bed is an act of love and appreciation. However, it is also an act of filth. It's either you eat with fermented mouth or you wash your mouth in bed. Either way, it's filthy.”
― Vincent Okay Nwachukwu

“Seafood is also something we cannot do without as a country surrounded by sea. And the rich variety of seafood is often used in rice balls.
The first one is a classic rice ball, with salted salmon. It's slightly different since the grilled salted salmon is broken down into flakes...
... and mixed into the rice together with chopped green onion...
...then made into a rice ball and wrapped in roasted dried seaweed."
"Ah, the salmon has been mixed nicely into the rice, so it has a very rich taste."
"And the flavor of the green onion gets rid of the fishy scent of the salmon, making the rice ball taste even better."
"This will be great to have in a lunch box."
"The next rice ball is coated with shredded dried seaweed just like the last one, but the filling is different. It's sea urchin, but it's not raw sea urchin or the typical bottled sea urchin. It's sea urchin shiokara."
"Sea urchin shiokara?"
"Most of the typical bottled sea urchins have been steeped in alcohol. It's probably because they're easier to make and easier to eat.
But in the old days, sea urchin was often made into shiokara. If you salt the sea urchin and let it age and ferment, it becomes far richer tasting compared to a raw sea urchin or the alcohol-macerated sea urchin.
Nowadays, that sea urchin shiokara has become very rare, and many people don't even know what it tastes like. So I've decided to use it as a filling for the rice ball."
"Ooh, it has such a rich taste."
"By being fermented, the sea urchin has developed a completely different flavor along with the original flavor it had.”
― Tetsu Kariya, The Joy of Rice

“Hm. A dal bean curry, eh? It looks similar to Chana Masala, a Punjabi dish that uses chickpeas...
!
This viscous stickiness...!"
"It's Natto!"
Gooey texture and savory flavor are melding together inside my mouth! Was natto ever this delicious?
"Wait... this is no normal natto! Could it be..."
"Yes, sir. This natto I made by hand using charcoal smoke. It's charcoal-aged natto.
After I added the natto spores to a batch of soybeans, I stored them in an underground room. There I lit a charcoal fire and then kept the room at just the right temperature and humidity to ferment the soybeans.
As this process takes several days to complete, I prepared it ahead of time, over my summer break."
"The carbon dioxide generated by the charcoal fire impacts the maturation of the soy proteins. It gives the natto a richer flavor. It also halts bacteria death in the beans, preventing the typical smell of ammonia from developing!"
"Did you know all that?"
"I heard a little about it once. It's supposed to be a really hard process that takes loads of time to finish!"
"And she made it by herself?!"
"But that isn't all.
There's another flavor--- a deeper, more savory one that resonates across the tongue like a deep bass chord."
"Oh, that?
As a special hidden seasoning, I added shoyu koji."

SHOYU KOJI
Instead of salt, soy sauce is added to the koji bacteria and mixed with the rice until thick. Then it is left to ferment at a constant temperature for several weeks.

So that's the black stuff that was in that jar!
Shoyu koji has over ten times glutamic acid---an umami component--- than shio koji does.
I see. While the strong flavor of curry spices drowns out most other seasonings, shoyu koji's flavor is powerful enough to that it is instead a savory magnifier!
Her curry takes full advantage of her detailed knowledge of fermentation techniques! It is truly a magnificent dish!
"The creamy Japanese-style curry roux has blended in with the natto's gooeyness beautifully!"
"The mound of crisp, minced green onion on top is hard to resist as well!"”
― Y¨±to Tsukuda, ʳꪤΥ½©`¥Þ 7 [Shokugeki no Souma 7]

“The best cheeses taste like poop!”
― Steven Magee