Chapter 277

The unexpected commotion with the Abnormal Bird had finally settled down.

After the series of events that unfolded after lunch, time had flown by in a blur, and the sky was now painted with the red hues of sunset.

Count Astram was the first to react to the passage of time.

“My, my, look at the time. The sun is setting already. Come to think of it, I invited you for dinner, but I haven’t even started preparing it yet. I’ll immediately instruct the servants to prepare the meal.”

“Eh…! Dinner?”

“Yes. You’re not just any guest—you saved my daughter’s life. I must treat you to a grand feast. And for tonight, I’ll instruct the chef to use even more precious and expensive spices than at lunch.”

Count Astram spoke with confidence, as if to say it was okay to look forward to it.

In truth, whether it was out of gratitude for saving Rosemary’s life or to avenge the humiliation at lunch, he intended to put more effort into the dinner than he had for lunch.

“Ugh…”

“Ahem…”

“Eek…”

Of course, Mari, Karina, and Serena, who had been listening to Count Astram, could only respond with expressions of subtle discomfort.

Fortunately, they were spared from having to eat a spicy pile of dirt-like roast pork, upgraded with even more pepper and salt.

“I’d like to handle dinner, if you don’t mind.”

That was because Kurt, who had been quietly listening, stepped in and offered to cook.

…

And so, I entered the Count’s Mansion Kitchen and looked around.

So this is the Count’s kitchen.

Even though he appears modest, a noble is still a noble. The kitchen facilities here are on a completely different level compared to the Adventurer Guild’s.

“Well, I don’t plan on using this kitchen’s facilities today.”

In fact, I had already decided what to cook before entering the kitchen.

The main ingredient for the dish would, of course, be the fresh Abnormal Bird meat, hunted just a few hours ago.

Normally, I would have asked the dismantling staff at the Adventurer Guild to handle it, but back in Lizardman Village, dismantling was the hunter’s job.

I lifted the pre-prepared Abnormal Bird meat.

The dish I was going to make was Chicken Dish.

But since it’s the Abnormal Bird version, could I call it Abnormal Bird Dish?

Chicken Dish isn’t called that because it uses one chicken; it’s a dish with its own proper noun, Chicken Dish.

So, not one chicken, but Chicken Dish.

The name doesn’t immediately suggest what kind of dish it is, but to put it simply, it’s a type of pot dish made with chicken.

It’s similar to Samgyetang or Baekjuk, but unlike those, it doesn’t use medicinal herbs. Instead, it relies on chicken broth, green onions, and potatoes for flavor.

So, unlike Samgyetang or Baekjuk, which are associated with summer health food, Chicken Dish feels more like a winter hot pot dish.

Given that, it’s the perfect dish for the chilly early winter weather we’re experiencing now.

And since the meat is all cut into pieces, you could also call it a clear broth version of Dakdoritang.

To sum it up, it’s an ambiguous dish somewhere between Samgyetang and Dakdoritang.

In my past life, perhaps because of its ambiguous position, it was far less well-known compared to similar dishes like Samgyetang, Baekjuk, and Dakdoritang.

So, Chicken Dish, with its middling position, was actually more popular among foreigners than Koreans.

For foreigners unfamiliar with Korean cuisine, a chicken hot pot dish was a safe, non-polarizing option that still felt distinctly Korean. But for Koreans, without the medicinal herbs, the broth’s complexity fell short of Samgyetang, and its lack of spiciness made it pale in comparison to Dakdoritang. Many saw it as neither here nor there.

But the reason I chose to cook Chicken Dish today was precisely because of its simplicity.

Honestly, the roast pork we had for lunch was disappointing.

The excellent quality of the meat and the skill in cooking were buried under an excessive amount of spices and seasonings.

It wasn’t using spices to enhance the dish’s flavor; rather, the dish was being used as a vehicle for the spices’ flavor.

Of course, there might be people out there who enjoy that kind of cooking…

But for me, it was utterly unacceptable.

Count Astram didn’t have any ill intentions when serving that dish, but I couldn’t understand his complacency in thinking that slathering expensive spices all over a dish would automatically elevate its quality.

That’s why I decided to use Abnormal Bird meat to make Chicken Dish.

Not Samgyetang, which uses various medicinal herbs to draw out flavor, nor Dakdoritang, which relies on chili powder, salt, sugar, and soy sauce for a spicy, intense taste.

But Chicken Dish, which uses only vegetables and chicken broth to bring out the natural flavors of the ingredients, would stand in stark contrast to the roast pork we had for lunch. It would be an opportunity to show Count Astram the beauty of the ingredients’ natural taste.

Like most hot pot dishes, Chicken Dish isn’t particularly difficult to make.

First, I chopped green onions, onions, ginger, and detox herbs and placed them in the pot.

These vegetables are used to draw out the broth, so the vegetables meant for eating later are set aside and not added to the pot.

The vegetables used for the broth become too soft and lose their flavor during the boiling process.

Then, I added the Abnormal Bird meat, cut into bite-sized pieces.

It’s ironic that the dish is called Chicken Dish, but the Abnormal Bird is so large that only parts of its legs and breast are used, not even a whole bird.

For a regular Chicken Dish, you’d boil the meat until cooked, remove the meat and broth, add fresh vegetables, and boil again to finish.

But today, I’m making an Abnormal Bird version of Chicken Dish.

I added one more ingredient.

Over the past few days, while cooking with the Demon’s Hand I had hunted, I realized something.

The Abnormal Bird doesn’t fly by generating lift with its feathers; it manipulates the wind around its body to create lift artificially.

That’s why the Abnormal Bird can fly without feathers.

Not only that.

Other birds need to maintain an aerodynamic shape and as light a body as possible to fly, but the Abnormal Bird is free from such physical constraints.

Like ostriches, which have given up flight for a terrestrial lifestyle—no, even more so.

Its muscle mass is several times that of a regular bird, and even its bone structure is denser and heavier.

The key point here is that the Abnormal Bird’s bones are extremely dense.

Comparable to cows or pigs, not just typical birds.

And inevitably, dense bones yield a rich broth.

So, I added a piece of the Abnormal Bird’s wing bone to the pot.

The Abnormal Bird’s wings are covered in a membrane like a bat’s, making them tricky to cook with, but the wing bone alone was perfect for drawing out a rich broth.

After adding the wing bone as the final secret ingredient, I waited for the Abnormal Bird meat to cook.

Before long, the meat started to cook, and I opened the pot to check.

The broth, though not simmered for long, looked deep and rich, almost as if it had been boiling for hours.

“Mmm… Nice.”

Even without tasting it, the richness of the broth and the deep, clean aroma hitting my face spoke volumes about its flavor.

Satisfied, I confirmed the Abnormal Bird meat was properly cooked and transferred only the meat and broth to another pot.

In the new pot, I added fresh green onions and potatoes, seasoned with a bit of salt and pepper, and brought it to a boil one last time.

Unlike the roast pork at lunch, which was overloaded with spices, a moderate amount of seasoning enhances the dish’s flavor, adding depth and complexity.

Finally, I added soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar, mixed well, and tossed it with shredded cabbage to complete the seasoned cabbage side dish for the Chicken Dish.

Tonight’s menu.

Chicken Dish.

Or rather, Abnormal Bird Dish—since not even a whole Abnormal Bird could fit in it.