The stalls were lined up all down one side of the public square where the morning market was located.
Fer and the rest approached the stall nearest to us. [2] It was serving some kind of grilled fish fillet. The smell coming from this stall was incredible.
“Yosh, I’ll have this fish.”
“Ou!”
“Fishy~”
Everyone’s in agreement, so I went up to the stall owner, [3] “Excuse me,”
“Ou, welcome!”
“May I have all the fish you have on the grill?”
The old man blinked at me, clearly shocked. But then understanding dawn when he saw the drooling trio behind me. He nodded and began to fill in my orders.
“What kind of fish is this?” I asked.
“Saban fish. Freshly caught, so it’s very delicious!”
[6] Saban, just one letter extra for Saba, the Japanese word for Mackerel. How adorable, I mused. It was grilled only with salt, but since the fish was fat and fresh, it was more than enough to make it delicious. [1] I paid and accepted the grilled fish from the old man.
Now how should we… I looked around to check out how the other customers eat their stall bought food and saw some people buying tableware from certain stalls. [1] Well, that solves it then. I brought out plates from the [Item Box] and divided up the fish among three plates, letting them have all the grilled fish.
I got myself a skewered dish.
We moved to a place with fewer people and ate peacefully without being in anyone’s way.
“Umu, this is not bad.”
“Freshness is the key to deliciousness!”
“There’s only salt, but the fatty fish is tasty, na~”
Looks like the grilled Saban was a hit. [1] The grilled fillets quickly disappeared from the plates and everyone clamoured to visit the next stall, so we went. [5]
The next stall turned out to be a soup stall. [6] I took a peek into the pot and saw vegetables and shellfish bobbing in the soup when the stall auntie stirred it. It smelled really good.
“Excuse me, what kind of soup is this?” [5]
“This soup is made with chopped Giant Hard Clams and simmered with vegetables. It’s delicious, you should try it!”
“Of course,” [6] I took out the deep plates (already cleaned by Sui) and placed them in front of the lady. “Please fill these up.”
“Of course, dear, and thank you for your patronage!”
The plates were generously filled. I included my normal bowl as well. After paying the lady, we went to our spot to eat.
There were all kinds of ingredients in the soup. The heart of the soup came from good soup stock made from Giant Hard Clams and the sweetness of the vegetables gave it body. It was seasoned only with salt, but that was more than enough with such high-quality ingredients.
I had thought that Giant Hard Clams would have a more intense flavour due to its size, but that was not the case. [1] The soup stock was unexpectedly light and delicious and the cut-up clams were nice and chewy.
It was light, fragrant and easy to eat. I feel like I could eat bowls and bowls of it.
“Oi,” my bliss was interrupted. “I want another!”
“Sui too~”
Ah, this chorus…
“I want more too, but I guess I’ll stop here and save room for other things.”
Oh? Dora-chan is unexpectedly sensible. [5]
Knowing I’ll get no peace, I put my soup away and bought more for Fer and Sui from the old lady. The ‘seconds’ soup disappeared in record time. [5]
“Alright, next!” [6] Fer seemed to have appointed himself as our leader on this ‘Food Stall Tour’. [3] Our leader led us to a stall serving grilled Giant Hard Clams and Small Hard Clams.
I have no objection as we stared at the open lids of the clams. The meat of the clams looked thick and luxurious. The juicy clam sizzled from the fire…
Slurp, we all swallowed.
It sure looks delicious.
It has to be delicious, I’m sure of it.
[6] I turned to my familiars and telepathically asked, “How many of these do you want?”
One Giant Hard Clam is pretty big, so it’s best to let them estimate for themselves.
“I’ll have 10, for now.”
“Unn, I guess 3 is good for me.”
“Sui will have 10, just like Uncle Fer~”
[6] I bought 24 Giant Hard Clams and 1 Small Hard Clam before we went to our eating spot. I took a little time to scoop out the clams from its shell and pour out the broth onto the plates for my familiar before giving it to them. [1] They can’t eat the shell after all.
“Hmm, this is pretty good.”
“Yes! It’s very juicy and broth flows out when I chew it.”
“Yummy~”
[6] Gulp, they sure make it look delicious. I want to try one too! I got my clams out. Just looking at the single Giant Hard Clam was enough to make me feel full. [2] Ah, well, let’s taste it.
I sank my teeth into the tender meat of the clam. The concentrated flavour of the ocean immediately spread out throughout my mouth. Every time I bite down, the umami of the shellfish seemed to flow down my throat.
The texture of the clam was pretty good too, crisp and chewy without being rubbery. It’s basically a bigger version of the clams I know in my previous life. It tasted pretty similar too.
I wonder why shellfish are so delicious.
All the guy did was put the shellfish on fire and wait for it to pop open, I bet it would be even more delicious with a little butter and soy sauce. [1] I must do a seafood barbecue!
I tipped the shell to my mouth and drank down the broth. [3] “Ahhh, that was delicious.”
Time to try the Small Hard Clam.
I took a bite and, as before, the deliciousness of the sea exploded in my mouth. It tasted similar to the Giant Hard Clams, but the texture was a little firmer and chewier. Let’s cook these up with a little soy sauce as well.
After our shellfish feast, we enjoyed some grilled Vermillion Shrimp, grilled and boiled Bronze King Crab. My final meal for the morning was a stewed tomato dish made with all kinds of seafood that was similar to the aqua pazza [8].
After that, Dora-chan and I pretty much gave up. However, Fer and Sui happily ate their way down the rest of the stalls in the market.
[Gumihou: There’s a Chinese saying that goes: Good appetite is good fortune.]
[1] Structural Change: Combine 2 paragraphs
[2] Structural Change: Combine 3 paragraphs
[3] Structural Change: Combine paragraph & dialogue
[4] Structural Change: Change passive sentence to dialogue
[5] Delete Repetitive or Pointless Information
[6] Additional Information for Aesthetic Purpose
[7] Add Dialogue Tag
[8] aqua pazza – Fish poached in tomato stew. Could be served with clams
Fish only https://italianchef.com/pesce-allacqua-pazza/
Japanese style https://j-simplerecipes.com/recipes_us/fish/japanese-style-acqua-pazza.html