Chapter 71

As the dishes were brought to the dining table, a ripple of whispers spread among the guests.

"Is this a lump of salt?"

"It certainly looks like it..."

Seeing people whispering to each other, Lady Sienna spoke up.

"Big sister! Please stop this nonsense!"

After confirming that everyone's attention was on her, Lady Sienna glared at Lady Kate.

"I had heard that the relationship between you and the chefs hasn't been going well lately. Many of the chefs fled before Manila's Day, didn't they?"

Her expression, which had been one of pity for her sister, suddenly turned stern.

"However, that's no excuse to serve such ridiculous items, or something that can't even be called a dish, like a lump of salt! Are you making a fool of our father, today's guest of honor?!"

Lady Sienna shouted as if she had just cut off a demon's head. She might have thought this was a good opportunity to bring her sister down, but wasn't she rushing things a bit too much? It might have shown just how much Lady Kate was being underestimated.

"Sienna, be quiet. If you have complaints, wait until you've tasted the food," Lady Kate said.

"Are you telling me to eat this lump of salt, Sienna and Father?!"

"If you don't want to eat it, then just watch quietly."

Ignoring Lady Sienna's protests, Lady Kate maintained her composure. Upon closer inspection, her cat ears were twitching, indicating that she was inwardly angry, but her expression remained controlled.

Seeing Lady Kate's unusually calm demeanor, Lady Sienna seemed to lose her momentum and fell silent.

...It was a good thing I had warned Lady Kate that Lady Sienna might cause trouble when the dishes were served.

While the sisters were bickering, the table was steadily being set with plates. When the lumps of salt were placed in front of each of the 15 guests, Lady Kate spoke up.

"Thank you for your patience. Today's dish is a creation by our palace chefs, but the way to eat it is a bit unusual. I'll demonstrate first."

A maid handed a wooden mallet to Lady Kate.

"Oh my, oh my, could it be?"

Lady Iriena whispered. It was the first time I had seen her express surprise.

――――――――――Clank!!

The wooden mallet struck the lump of salt with a hard sound. After a few strikes by Lady Kate, the surface cracked and pieces fell off.

"Such a good smell..."

The aroma of roasted meat and herbs wafted up, stimulating everyone's appetite and raising their expectations.

Lady Kate, looking somewhat pleased, moved the cracked salt to the edge of the plate. The smell grew stronger, and well-roasted pork appeared.

"To eat this, you break the lump of salt, remove the ingredients inside, and enjoy them. This dish is called 'salt pot roast.' The ingredients are covered with a mixture of salt and egg whites and then steamed."

"Salt pot roast..."

The guests seemed surprised by the name of the dish they had never heard before.

I, of course, had taught Lady Kate about salt pot roast. In my previous life in Japan, it was a famous dish known for its dramatic presentation, but fortunately, it seemed to be rare in this world. There might be similar dishes somewhere on the continent, but it appeared that no one in this country had ever tasted it.

Previously, I had received rock salt as an apology for being served overly salty dishes at Lady Kate's palace. With the abundant salt delivered, I thought about making salt pot roast and presenting it to the king, but after much consideration, I decided to serve a different dish to the king. The salt pot roast was an unexpected addition, intended to help Lady Kate.

"Salt pot roast, huh. It seems to be a luxurious dish using a specialty of our territory."

Lady Kate and Lady Sienna's father, Lord Galon, looked at the salt pot roast with interest.

"The lump of salt covering the ingredients is not meant to be eaten, correct?"

"Yes. Just move it to the edge of the plate. We will collect and preserve it for non-culinary uses later."

In Lady Kate's hometown, when processing rock salt, some salt not suitable for consumption is produced. This salt is reused as an abrasive, among other things.

The outer layer of salt in the salt pot roast is just baked with egg whites, so it can be collected with some effort. This knowledge, accumulated over years of living with salt, seems to have been useful.

"I see. Then I can enjoy my daughter's hospitality with peace of mind."

Following Lady Kate, a maid handed a wooden mallet to Lord Galon, the guest of honor. After striking the salt a few times, Lord Galon examined the contents of his salt pot roast closely.

"Hmm. The contents of my pot seem to be steamed beef."

"Yes. I included your favorite. Please feel free to break open and check the contents of your salt pot roast, guests."

The maids distributed wooden mallets to the guests. The sound of breaking salt echoed throughout the dining table, and the guests seemed to be enthusiastically breaking their salt pots as if they were on a treasure hunt.

"Mine is pork."

She muttered, looking at her plate.

Today, three types of ingredients were prepared for the salt pot roast: pork and beef seasoned with rosemary and other herbs, and river fish stuffed with lemons. Lady Kate seemed to have served each guest's favorite based on what she knew about their preferences. Since I can enjoy any of the ingredients, I left the choice to Lady Kate.

Despite its dramatic appearance, the salt pot roast is a relatively easy dish to prepare, aside from mixing the salt with egg whites. The meat is better when cut thick, and after being wrapped in salt, it is baked in the oven to complete the dish. Even with the shortage of staff in Lady Kate's palace kitchen, they managed to prepare it.

Relieved that everything went well, I immediately broke the salt and tasted the contents.

"Delicious..."

The juices seeped out as I chewed. The salt was just right, enhancing the flavor of the meat. Thanks to the rosemary, the pork was juicy and refreshing.

Listening to the satisfied murmurs around me, I saw that Lord Galon was savoring the beef carefully.

"...It's delicious. The meat is full of juices thanks to the steaming in salt. The meat is tender and the salt on the outside pleasantly stimulates the tongue."

The salt pot roast, with its striking appearance, seemed to have been well-received in terms of taste as well.

Thank you for reading.

I was a bit surprised to see so many people guessing about the salt pot roast in the comments. I thought it was a rather obscure dish, but once you see it, the dramatic appearance must really stick in your memory.