Hey, so are you gonna do it with me or not?
Hmm?
Let's do it...
Shokugeki.
Good morning, Soma-kun.
I'd like your help with something.
Can you come out once you get changed?
I was up late last night. I'm dead tired.
Please ask someone else.
Oh, don't be like that.
That's where you were?!
The Meat Invader
Yukihira, you were woken up, too?
I guess you were, too, Yoshino.
So we're gonna help out with something?
We're going to harvest veggies from the back garden.
Wow, you guys even grow your own ingredients.
The road to good food is paved with good ingredients!
That's our dorm's motto, you see.
Ibusaki makes smoke wood for his own use,
and Ryoko, who specializes in dishes using rice malt,
has her own workspace.
I want to breed a special Polar Star chicken like the French Bresse chicken,
so I'm breeding some cage-free right now.
Huh.
And this is the lot we manage, with Isshiki-senpai as...
...our leader!
It's a field where we grow over ten kinds of vegetables!
Good morning, Soma-kun, Yoshino-kun!
Morning labor is good for the spirit!
Let's sweat together!
It fits him to a T!
Knowing how food grows is part of our training.
You can call this the Polar Star Farm,
or even Isshiki Farm.
Okay.
Oh, Soma-kun!
Oh, Tadokoro. You're here, too.
See?
Isshiki-senpai grew these vegetables.
Don't they look delicious?
Y'know, seeing you here... It's very soothing.
Yeah, Megumi's a breath of fresh air at Polar Star.
Here!
Try a bite.
Oh, thanks.
It's delicious!
It's plump and super sweet...
I'd love to have these for our own restaurant.
How'd you manage to grow something this high-quality?
Oh, it eats up all my time.
I haven't been able to go to classes most of the time lately.
Don't you have your priorities backwards?
Sorry to keep you guys waiting!
Whoa!
This is delicious, too!
C'mon, Soma-kun. You're just eating.
Aw, come on.
Breakfast time, everyone!
My back's killing me.
I'm starving!
Oh, you made these, Tadokoro?
Yeah, you must be hungry.
Dig right in.
Wow...
I see!
It's the Tadokoro-chan Special, the Three Rice Balls.
Oh, rice balls are great after fieldwork!
Thanks for the food!
So delicious!
This is salt and green onion, right?
You seasoned cooked chicken tenderloin with it,
and also brushed some of it onto the rice ball!
The saltiness really does a number on your appetite!
You kind of want salt after doing hard labor.
This must be kelp!
It's a classic rice ball ingredient.
Kelp simmered in soy... and cheese?!
Right!
The heavy sweet flavor of the kelp
works surprisingly well with cheese.
What's the last one, then?
Delicious!
The garlic flavor rocks!
This one's pork marinated with garlic.
Wow!
After seeing you use honey in class the other day,
I decided to try something based on that.
I marinated boiled pork in a marinade of garlic, miso, sake, and honey.
It goes really well with rice,
so I chopped it up and put it into rice balls!
Huh.
Oh, there's barley and roasted green tea, too.
Have as much as you'd like.
Sigh...
This is the appeal of Tadokoro-chan's cooking.
It soothes everyone.
The chicken isn't dry,
and the pork's nice and tender, too.
They all show signs of careful preparation.
Why can't you cook like this in class?
STAB
I've always had stage fright issues...
When I get nervous, I blank out
and I just fail at everything.
Oh, that's tough.
You should try to be more relaxed when you cook, Tadokoro-chan.
Yeah, Megumi.
You'd make a good cook and a good wife.
You think so?
Huh?
Research societies?
Yeah, Totsuki has a ton of groups
that do research on specific types of food.
Members can develop new recipes after school...
...or compete in cooking contests outside of the academy.
I guess you could say it's our version of clubs.
I'm in the Regional Cooking Research Society.
Huh.
You weren't kidding.
Japanese, Western, and Chinese cuisine...
Haute cuisine and vegetarian cuisine...
Fermented foods, and preserved foods...
Huh, this one's for train bentos.
Donmono Research Society
Huh?
The Donmono Research Society?
Maybe it'll inspire menu items for our restaurant.
All right, guess I'll go take a look.
Let's go, Tadokoro.
Huh?
Donmono Research Society
Why me?
Wait...
Doom
Gloom
Sorry, but you should go.
Don RS is about to become history.
What?!
You said you're Yukihira and Tadokoro?
Doom Gloom
Konishi Kan'ichi 2nd Year, High School The Don of Don RS
I'm Konishi, the leader of this research society.
Doom Gloom
You okay, Senpai?
You look pretty down.
Laugh at me all you want.
I couldn't save Don RS.
Don RS
Are these recipe collections?
They're recipes put together by Don RS.
Let's take a look!
From more mainstream items to off-beat ones...
They're all jazzed up with a spark of creativity.
These recipes are all interesting!
Why do you have to shut down?
Growing Growing
You get us?
Yukihira!
He's crying!
The don has a functional beauty that obeys the laws of speed, taste, and affordability!
Speed
Speed Taste
Speed Taste Affordability
It mans up by being contained in a bowl!
It's food for men who fight!
I...
As a man, I...
AHHHHHH
I cannot die until I create the penultimate don!
He sure is something.
He's kind of oppressive.
My Don RS!
If only Nakiri Erina didn't exist...!
Nakiri?
Right, this is how she works.
First, she'll propose that the council cut the budget
or decrease the alloted space for any group she doesn't like.
She strongarms them into voting in agreement.
Once they're cornered, the groups have no choice but one:
the last-ditch Shokugeki!
Shokugeki
In return for accepting the Shokugeki challenge,
Nakiri will make even more extreme demands,
and, in the end, get her own way.
That is how she is expanding her sphere of influence.
Once my members learned that our opponent is one of Nakiri's lackeys,
Konishi Kan'ichi
Donmono Research Society Member List
they all fled.
Doom Gloom
He doesn't inspire a loyal following, huh?!
So are you facing off with Nakiri?
It's...
Hey!
Rather than a renovation,
it'd be faster to raze this place down and rebuild from scratch.
Yeah?
Let's go with that, then!
Who do you think you are, Mito?!
What? I just came to do a survey.
I already know the outcome, after all.
Like Erina-sama said,
Mito Ikumi 1st Year, High School
no matter how much effort you put into a don,
they are a low-class dish relegated to class B gourmet fare.
Totsuki has no need for such a dish. That's what she said.
Well, it's a different story if you think you can win against me.
Get it now, Mr. RS leader?
A club like this doesn't belong here.
Damn you, Nikumi!
Niku (meat) Mi
My name isn't Nikumi.
Say that one more time, and I'll...
Wait, she's your Shokugeki opponent?!
Who the hell's she?
She's Mito Ikumi-san,
known as the Meat Master.
She's always received high ratings, ever since junior high.
In particular, she's never received anything below an A rating for meat dishes.
Her knowledge of all things meat-related
is said to be top-notch, even within the academy.
All ingredients bow before worthy meat!
No matter what dish you may try to create,
you will never beat my super high-quality meat!
I think you give cooking a bad name
if all you care about is the price of your ingredients.
Senpai.
Can you let me handle this Shokugeki?
Who the hell are you?
Outsiders should stay out!
You're the transfer student... from the opening ceremony?
I've been wanting to talk to you.
I guess you've got some confidence in your skills
if you're willing to butt into someone else's Shokugeki.
Well, why don't we compete on your turf with a meat dish, then?
I'll win, though.
Then if I win, asshole,
are you willing to leave Totsuki?
If you don't have the balls to do that, don't talk so big...
Sure, fine!
What?!
In return, if I win...
Yeah, you need to join Don RS.
Huh?
Huh?!
Join Don RS and contribute to advancing don culture.
Let's call it penance for bothering us.
You really think you can win against me?
That's it for today, contractors!
I'll let you set the theme, then.
The main ingredient will be "meat,"
and the dish will be the don.
The cook-off will be in three days!
Why'd you do that, Yukihira?
Oh.
Hearing her say that pricey meat is everything...
I couldn't let that pass me by, as a diner brat.
Besides, I think this club's too good to let it go to waste.
Growing
Yukihira...
But do you have a plan, Soma-kun?
I'll think one up.
I knew it!
I'm grateful to Erina-sama for letting me handle this.
I'll teach this uppity transfer student the pleasure of meat!
It's heavier than I thought...
A bit more to the right. Just a bit more.
A little more to the right.
What's Yukihira thinking?
To Sports Transfer Student to Be in a Shokugeki His Opponent is the Meat Master, Mito Ikumi!
Everyone in the academy's talking about it!
Calm down, Yuki!
I'll do my best to help,
but we have too little time!
So what's going to be your move, Soma-kun?
Shokugeki T-minus 2 Days
Strategy Conference Theme: Don Ingredient: Meat
We've all slept on it.
I've given it a lot of thought.
Nikumi's a specialist in meat.
Beef, in particular.
Then I don't think we need to go for beef.
For example, we could go for chicken-and-egg don.
Chicken still fits the theme.
We should try to differentiate ourselves from Nikumi as much as possible.
Okay, so an off-beat choice.
What don do you like, Tadokoro?
Well, I don't know if you can call it a don,
and it's not meat-based,
but I like taking scallops that've been lightly grilled in the shell,
then seasoned with a bit of butter and soy sauce.
It's godly on piping hot rice!
You're right.
We could've gone with a seafood don,
Doom Gloom
but you just had to go ahead and say we'll do meat.
It's a done deal. Quit complaining!
You don't know how strong Nikumi is.
If we get slammed with her A5 beef, we're done for!
English
"Eigo"-what?
English?
"A5" is a meat grade for beef, right?
Yeah, that's right.
"A" refers to the yield grade: the yield ratio from a beef carcass,
Yield Grade
Marbling Grade
which ranges from A to C.
Then, there's the marbling!
The firmness and texture of the meat!
The luster of the fat, and so on!
Luster
Texture
Those characteristics determine the quality grade,
Firmness
Marbling
which ranges from 1 to 5!
Only beef that meets the highest qualifications for both grades
receives the A5 rating!
I've eaten one of Nikumi's steaks at an academy event.
At that level, you can...
You can drink the meat!
Drink it
Drink it?!
That's right!
The moment you bite into the meat,
it transforms into a mass of umami
that slips down your throat.
If you were to order that kind of meat at any store,
you'd have to throw down several Benjamins.
And another thing to keep in mind is,
any ingredient you use in a Shokugeki
must be prepared by you, yourself!
Procuring ingredients is considered an essential skill for chefs!
The Mito clan operates a large-scale meat wholesale business,
and has close to a monopoly on a segment of the beef market.
They have the finances, the facilities, and the distribution.
All of this lies behind Nikumi's premium-quality cooking.
Unguarded
Doom Gloom
He's bringing himself down with his own talk.
Can we really beat meat like that?
Y'know...
You know what?
Don RS should go with beef, too.
Huh?!
Listen up, Yukihira.
Were you even listening to me?
We don't have a snowball's chance in hell of beating Niku at beef...
You said it yourself, Konishi-senpai.
The don's about speed, taste, and affordability.
Nikumi's making fun of us for it.
If we're to make her respect the don,
we just have to win with an affordable beef dish!
Also, we can't use super premium ingredients!
That's not where the don shines.
At times, men must compromise their principles in order to win...
Okay.
Let's go shopping.
How much do you have left in Don RS's budget?
Doom Gloom
W-Well...
Huh?
That's it?
I'll just have to chip in from my personal funds!
This is all I have?!
Thank you for your business.
I'll send you some money to live on.
This is what "some" meant?!
That's what you meant?!
Doom
This is too little!
Donmono Research Society
I might be in trouble...
These are Don RS's recipe collections from before.
You might find something useful.
Senpai, I found some, too.
Oh, thanks!
Put that stack over there.
All right!
Let's do this!
All done!
Have a taste, please!
A cutlet don, subbing beef for pork!
I took the Don RS recipe further
and used a mix of chicken and quail eggs at the end,
so it should have a richer taste.
It's not bad.
But it's still lacking!
There isn't enough impact when you take the first bite...
Nikumi's dishes always hit you in the mouth with a punch.
A punch, huh.
We're talking fat, then!
How about a sukiyaki don, made with sugar and beef fat,
and finished up with chicken egg?
This won't work, either.
The flavor's not refined enough.
Okay, we can decrease the amount of beef fat, and instead...
Um, how about this recipe?
Shokugeki T-minus 1 Day
Senpai's deathly pale again!
Throw water on him to get him back up!
We've followed all promising leads in Don RS's recipe collection...
We've tried all kinds of variations we could think of...
Soma-kun, why don't you get some rest at least?
Japanese-style Steakdon
Maybe you'll come up with something if you take a break,
just like in the last class.
Maybe.
Oh, like how I used honey to tenderize the meat.
S-Soma-kun?
I owe you one, Tadokoro!
I've got an idea!
I think I know how to make affordable meat sing!
Konishi-san!
It can be sirloin or even the rump!
Do you have any steak cuts left?
Steak cuts?
Make cuts in a grid pattern on the steak meat,
then pound it out flat.
Spread minced onions on both sides of the meat, then let it sit.
Remove the onions,
then season the meat with salt and pepper.
Cook the meat in butter,
then sauté the onions in the juices...
Onions...
Sprinkle the cooked onions on top of the meat, and it's done.
It's... a Chaliapin steak!
When the opera singer, Fyodor Chaliapin, came to Japan,
he suffered from severe toothache
and asked if he could have a tender steak, which inspired this dish.
It's an off-beat dish unique to Japan!
All right, both of you try it.
O-Okay!
A'ight.
So light...
It's so tender!
You can easily cut it with chopsticks!
And every time you bite into it...
...it dissolves in your mouth...
Onions have enzymes that tenderize proteins,
just like pineapples and honey.
That's why the meat is so tender.
I wouldn't guess this cut of meat to be inexpensive at all.
My mouth's full of its flavor.
It goes without saying that the meat pairs well with rice.
But...
Is this really enough...
...to surpass Nikumi's A5 meat?
I'll use black wagyu fillet.
An A5 grade, of course. Not to mention,
one that's aged over a month
to be at its peak flavor the day it's served.
In other words, it'll be an A5 to beat all A5 beef.
I'll cook it in a way that optimizes its taste,
and crush the Don RS.
I have high hopes.
Excuse me.
I didn't think an opportunity would come so soon...
Yukihira Soma...
A chance to exile you from Totsuki....
To Be Continued
Preview
Next time on Food Wars,
the seventh dish:
Menu The Quiet Don, the Eloquent Don
"The Quiet Don, the Eloquent Don."
Enjoy.
Ba-dum Ba-dum
What a demanding body you have.