Eventually, we found ourselves settling down for our sukiyaki party in a tatami room that had manifested—seemingly out of thin air—in the back of Alice’s workshop.
The ingredients were prepped and ready to go. Since I was taking point on the cooking today, I would be preparing the meal under Alice's direct supervision.
"Now, for the main event," Alice began. "Few people realize it, but sukiyaki actually has two distinct regional styles: Kansai and Kanto."
"Wait, really?" I asked.
"Kansai-style? Kanto-style?" Kuro echoed, sounding intrigued.
"It’s a regional thing," I explained.
While the variations in eel or okonomiyaki were famous back home, I hadn't known the same applied to sukiyaki. I wondered which style my family favored. We lived in Kanto, but since Mom was originally from the Kansai region, there was a good chance her preferences had taken center stage.
As Alice spoke about the two regions with her usual casual familiarity, I noticed Kuro looking puzzled, so I took a moment to elaborate on the cultural context of Japan.
"There are several subtle differences," Alice continued, "but the biggest one is how you handle the meat. In the Kanto style, you first melt beef tallow in the pot and sear a small portion of the meat. After that, you pour in the warishita—the seasoning liquid—and simmer the rest of the ingredients and meat together."
"I see, I see. And the Kansai style?" Kuro asked.
"In the Kansai style, you sear most of the meat first. Then you adjust the flavor as you go by adding the other ingredients directly. You might find this surprising, but only the Kanto style uses a pre-mixed warishita. In Kansai, you season it with sugar, cooking sake, soy sauce, and the natural moisture from the vegetables. Because of that, it has significantly less liquid overall compared to the Kanto version."
"Huh..."
If that was the case, the version I grew up with was definitely Kanto-style. The fundamental difference seemed to be that Kanto-style centered on simmering the meat, while Kansai-style was all about the sear.
"Since the Kansai style doesn't use a pre-mixed sauce, the seasoning depends entirely on the chef’s intuition," Alice added. "You could say it’s the more difficult of the two."
"Hey, Shaltier, if it's called sukiyaki, why do you simmer the meat?" Kuro asked.
"That’s because the dish traces its roots back to something called gyunabe—beef hot pot. As the name suggests, that dish involves putting the sauce in from the start and simmering the meat like a stew."
"I see. You're as knowledgeable as ever, Shaltier."
Alice truly was a godsend in situations like this. Not only was she a brilliant cook, but her presence was vital when it came to shared meals because she was the only one who could successfully prevent Kuro from trying to toss baby castella into the pot. That alone provided a level of peace of mind I couldn't put a price on.
Regardless, we set to work. We decided to go with the Kanto style.
"First, once the beef tallow has melted, let's lightly char the green onions before we add any meat. Searing them first really brings out the aroma."
"Like this?" I asked.
"Perfect. Once you can smell the fragrance, put in a little beef, sear both sides lightly, then pour in the warishita. This first batch of seared beef has a delicious, savory character that's quite different from the simmered meat."
Following her lead, I seared the first few slices, and the three of us each took a piece. I dipped mine in the beaten egg and took a bite. The smoky, savory aroma from the sear flooded my palate. It was incredible.
"Now that the pot is hot, let's turn the heat down to low, add the rest of the ingredients, and let them simmer while we eat. Just one thing to keep in mind: try to keep the shirataki noodles away from the beef."
"Oh? Why is that?"
"People say the calcium from the lime used to process the noodles makes the meat turn dark and tough. The 'tough' part is mostly a superstition, but it definitely discolors the meat, which ruins the presentation."
I tucked the ingredients in just as Alice directed and let them simmer. The sweet, rich scent of the warishita was enough to make anyone’s mouth water. Once it had cooked through, I tried a piece of the simmered beef. Unlike the first seared slice, this one had a heavenly, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
Between the beef, the charred green onions, and the tender napa cabbage, I was making short work of my bowl of rice.
"This is so good," I said. "It pairs perfectly with the rice."
"Well, because it relies on soy sauce and rice, it’s still considered a bit of a niche dish in this world," Alice noted.
"I’ve gotten used to it, but I imagine using chopsticks for the first time would be a real challenge," Kuro added. "Oh, these shirataki noodles are wonderful too."
"I suppose rice-based meals are always going to be the minority compared to bread here... though, honestly, I feel like you could probably eat this with bread too."
As a Japanese person, it felt like a minor heresy, but given the bold, savory-sweet seasoning of sukiyaki, I didn't think it would actually clash with a good loaf of bread.
Of course, rice would always be the undisputed champion in my eyes.
As we chatted idly over our meal, Kuro suddenly seemed to recall something and turned to Alice.
"By the way, Shaltier, you mentioned that you were going to open that amusement park to the public eventually..."
"Are you looking to invest?" Alice asked with a grin.
"Sure. I have several plots of land that would be perfect for it, and the idea of a massive recreational facility is very appealing. It would probably be difficult to build it in the Human Realm right away, given the political balance between nations, though."
"The plan is to build it in the Demon Realm first and let the hype build from there," Alice replied.
It was a casual exchange, but knowing Kuro, she had likely been taking notes the entire time we were playing earlier and had decided the project was worth her backing.
Then again, I had a sneaking suspicion Alice had anticipated this exact outcome from the moment she first suggested the trip...
Either way, it looked like the day a massive amusement park would grace the Demon Realm wasn't far off.
Machina: "I've restored Serious-senpai to her original form! Hey, Serious-senpai, do you want some sukiyaki too?"
Serious-senpai: "...Wait, would this count as self-cannibalism? Whether I should view the sugar from my sugarified state as a separate entity or a part of my own body is a philosophical dilemma that would normally require significant contemplation... but don't you have any hesitation at all!?"
Machina: "...Huh? I mean, Serious-senpai, you aren't 'My Child.' Since you're not My Child, I don't really care what happens to you..."
Serious-senpai: "I keep forgetting... this is just how she is..."