Eishi Tsukasa Quotes

“That casing of white armor traps the meat's juices, its fragrance and the umami goodness of its blood inside, waiting to explode the moment you bite into it! The dish's enormously delicious flavor impacts every sensory organ you have!
"Not only that, its already impressive flavor has been imagined by the appetizer.
By being presented after an appetizer centered on mushrooms- which pair exceptionally well with venison- and being accented with the flavor booster formic acid...
...its deliciousness has been raised to even greater heights!"
"Rindo's dish pointed the way...
... but not to a mere final dish in a banquet.
It was a signpost to a Gourmet Eden!
A paradise where all chefs are freed from earthly troubles...
a beautiful land of peace and tranquility that we all desire!”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 30 [Shokugeki no Souma 30]

“Ooh, but the most surprising dish of all was Mr. Tsukasa's four shades of Green Tea Puree! He pureed each type of tea leaf together with the vegetables, mushrooms or beans that best complemented it and then wove them together into a single, harmonious dish!"
He boiled the chickpeas. And for the asparagus and artichoke, he cleaned and sliced them before sautéing them in butter. Once all were gently heated through, he teamed them up with their specific tea leaf, placed them in a food processor and pureed them!
He seasoned the resulting puree with just a touch of salt, pepper and butter and then plated them in spinning-wheel arrangement, making an elegant dish of the gently shifting flavors of green tea!”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 27 [Shokugeki no Souma 27]

“He took the juiciest leg and neck meat, slicing each piece down the middle...
... and layered them so they could be wrapped into a single ballotine tube. Then he sautéed it in a frying pan, successfully subduing its distinctive odor while cooking it to perfect juicy tenderness!
The sauce was a red wine reduction using hare bone fond and meat...
... which was then infused with foie gras, chocolate and the hare's own blood, making it the perfect accompaniment.”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 29 [Shokugeki no Souma 29]

“It's a layer of Royale !
It's very similar to Japan's Chawanmushi !"
*Royale is a savory custard of eggs, consommé and spices baked in a water bath until firm. It's usually cut into fanciful shapes and used as a soup garnish.*
"What?!"
Mmmm! The savoriness of consommé and porcini mushrooms gushes through the mouth! Its texture its satiny, melting on the tongue in a silky rush!
Royale hare and Royale eggs- both kingly dishes have been combined together seamlessly. But that isn't the only thing hidden in this dish!
There's also a chestnut confit and an apple and fig puree! The mellow, savory flavor of the egg custard resonates with refreshing notes of sweet and tart from the fruits...
... cutting through the thick richness of the hare meat until it tastes so light you could finish the whole dish in a breeze!
All this without losing an ounce of the dish's heavily powerful impact!”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 29 [Shokugeki no Souma 29]

“That knife! It looks similar to a machete-like weapon used in India- the Kukri!
He's using it to chop leeks, ginger and some herbs...
Which he's tossing into a pot of rich chicken stock!"
"Ah! Now he's grinding his spices!"
Cross!
"What?! He's crossing different implements in every step of his recipe?! Can he even do that?!"
"I recognize that mortar and pestle. It's the kind they use in India to grind spices."
"Oh gosh... I can already smell the fragrance from here!"
He clearly knows just how much to grind each spice...
... and to toast each in a little oil to really bring out its fragrance!
"Ah, I see! What he has steaming on that other burner is shark fin!"
"From Indian cuisine, we dive straight into something very Chinese!
Cross! Saiba x Mò Liú Zhâo!"
"What the heck? He's stroking the fin...
... quickly running the claws along its grain!"
Ah! I see what he's doing! Shark fin by itself is flavorless. Even in true Chinese cuisine...
...it's simmered in Paitan stock or oyster sauce first to give it a stronger, more concentrated umami punch.
But by using those claws, he can't skip that step...
... and directly infuse the fin with umami flavor compounds!
"Saiba...
Cross..."
"Aaaah! That implement! I recognize that one!
Eishi Tsukasa!"
Tsukasa Senpai's Super-Sized Grater-Sword!
"He took a huge lump of butter...
... and is grating it down into shavings at unbelievable speed!"”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 35 [Shokugeki no Souma 35]

“Baking with a salt crust!
Salt is mixed with egg whites and then spread over the top of the dish to form a thick crust.
This ensures no moisture escapes during baking, keeping the goodness of the ingredients concentrated inside.
It's said that centuries ago, when Shogun Hideyoshi Toyotomi was deployed on maneuvers, he'd cover his fish in a salt crust to prevent it from rotting.
Because of the insulating wall of salt, the dish is heated gently and evenly while in the oven...
... its juiciness and deliciousness slowly growing within its protective shell.
The dish is considered complete...
... when you crack open the now golden-brown salt crust.”
― Yūto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 30 [Shokugeki no Souma 30]

“On the right is Sauce Poivrade, a sauce made from beef or venison stock and lots of pepper. It has a rough bite with a lingering and clear aftertaste. Poivrade comes from the French word poivre, which means "pepper." This heavy and strongly flavored peppercorn sauce gives the mild and light venison a sense of weighty volume, you see.
Then I took some of the sauce and added various berries to give it some tangy and refreshing sweetness, making the sauce on the left- Sauce Poivrade au Baie The berries I used are-"
"Blueberries, blackberries, and red currants. You also used black currant liqueur, red wine, blueberry vinegar and raspberry jam. Correct?"
"Amazing! You got them all. Not surprising, I guess, considering it's you."
But that sauce is not nearly as simple as it sounds! It uses liqueur, wine, vinegar, jam and raw fruit... five different forms of fruit actually, all painstakingly and precisely added together. It's what gives the sauce such a deep and complex flavor.
But make even the tiniest mistake and the flavor will get muddled or overly bitter! Keeping everything in correct proportion is a tricky balancing act! It can't be done without a full and nuanced knowledge of all of the particular traits and compatibilities of each individual ingredient!
It is a superhuman dish only someone like Eishi Tsukasa's skill and knowledge could create.
With the two different sauces, he has beautifully expressed both the delicate elegance and the untamed wildness of a deer!”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 20 [Shokugeki no Souma 20]

“We won, so it makes little difference now...
but how dare you force me into making an about-face on the dish I was in the midst of cooking! And without the slightest hint of warning beforehand!"
"Oh, that's right. In all the fuss over the Gifting, I'd completely forgotten."
"Well, we had more than ten minutes left, right?
With that much time, I knew you could do it."
"! W-well, of course I would!"
"Heh heh heh."
"I wonder how they were able to make a dish like that. Yukihira and Nakiri...
they have such vastly different talents that they were clashing every step of the way. So how did they put together a course that unbelievably delicious?"
"A very good question, Senpai. How indeed?
Though to my eye, at least...
it looked like, out of everyone on this floor...
... they were the ones having the most fun cooking.”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 31 [Shokugeki no Souma 31]

“What an impact! Wrapped together in strips of piecrust...
... the two distinct layers of stuffing each amplify the deliciousness of the other!
The top layer is a chicken mousse! Tender, juicy cooked chicken...
... put through a food processor with heavy cream and seasonings until it was a silky-smooth puree! Its thick yet gentle savory flavor, accented with a touch of sweetness, slides across the tongue like satin!
And the bottom layer is a beef meat loaf!
Its flavors are perfectly paired with both the creamy chicken mousse and the demi-glace. What a frighteningly defined dish!"
"Okay, but he used convenience store food for all that?! There's no way it could be that delicious..."
"Oh, but it is. His skill elevated the ingredients to new heights."
"Um, i-it really wasn't all that much. All I did was, well...
To give the chicken mousse a more luxuriant texture, I carefully mixed in some egg whites beaten into a stiff meringue...
And then added a little mushroom paste (Duxelles) to boost its richness.
Canned mushrooms have a mild funk to them, so to get rid of that smell, I minced and sautéed them until nearly all their moisture was gone.
I also reduced some red wine as far as I could, leaving behind just its umami components, and added that to the demi-glace.
It isn't the best, but I had only cheap ingredients to work with.
What about that isn't "all that much"?!
"The main common ingredients he used were a precooked hamburger patty, chicken salad and a frozen piecrust.
They're prepackaged foods anyone can buy, designed to be tasty right out of the box. In other words...
They're average foods with completely average flavors! Use them as they are and you'll never pass this trial!
Out of all of them, he singled out the ones that could stand up to haute cuisine cooking...
... and melded them together into a harmonious whole that brought out their best qualities while eliminating anything inferior!
It's a level of quality only someone of Eishi Tsukasa's skill could reach! ”
― Yuto Tsukuda, 食戟のソーマ 33 [Shokugeki no Souma 33]