Chapter 102: Kirara-sama, you’re wonderful!
Since Kōno-kun had impulsively came over here, it seemed like he needed to head back soon, so I told him where my little hut was and saw him off.
I have to say, that cheat teleportation was impressive. Instead of just vanishing suddenly, it was more like—how should I put it? Like one of those “aha!” moments on a TV quiz show where details gradually change and then it disappears.
It was like when small details change little by little in an image. With that kind of teleportation, suddenly appearing or disappearing wouldn’t cause a fuss.
I was thinking maybe Nipopo-san would return after a while, but it seems he was very happy that his journey home had been shortened.
Honestly, with only 1,000 yen a day, I realized I couldn’t even feed five high school students until they were full. I felt a bit down about that.
“I guess I need to look for rice,” I muttered.
Previously, Jude-san told me that rice existed as animal feed here. But since it was mixed in with the feed, I wasn’t sure how to find it.
“Hmm, I do have rice,”
“What!?”
“Are you thinking of raising chickens or something?”
I’d like to have some at some point because I want fresh eggs, but no, not really.
“The rice?”
I got caught up in the conversation.
“Yeah, just wait a moment.”
Nipopo-san smiled and disappeared into the back. I stood there dumbfounded.
Rice was something you could get this easily?
“This is definitely rice. And bird feed.”
“Just like I said.”
This is what Nipopo-san brought me. Yes, It was definitely rice, but it was unmilled rice with the husks still on. I peeled off the husk from one with my fingers. The brown rice inside was bigger and longer than Japanese rice—somewhere between Japanese rice and Indica rice, and it was about twice the size of Japanese grains.
I wanted to try cooking it once, but how do you remove the husk? I’d heard of rice hulling, but I’ve never actually done it.
And even if I could remove the husk, it’ll still be brown rice, right? I’ve cooked brown rice before, but it was with a pressure cooker. Ideally, I’d prefer white rice.
How do you polish brown rice into white rice without a coin-operated rice polisher?
I vaguely remember seeing someone put rice in a bottle and pound it with a stick, but while it might be possible if it was just a very small amount, I imagine it would be quite difficult to polish a lot of rice that way.
But I have no choice. I don’t mind small, tedious tasks. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Still, I wonder how many servings of rice high school boys would eat…
gazing off into the distance, I decided to buy a bag—only to find it was heavy…
It must weigh over 30 kg. No way. But wait, didn’t Nipopo-san just carry this easily to bring it out? he’s so slim yet so strong.
I hesitated for a moment when they asked me if I wanted to have it delivered, but I had them split it into smaller 10kg bags. That should be manageable.
I brought the rice home, now what? From the word “momi-suri,” I thought maybe rubbing the rice would help, but hand-rubbing didn’t peel much of the husk off.
It looks like it needs a little more force.
I tried putting some in a bottle and pounding it with a stick.
Ah, the husk came off! Maybe this will work?
I removed the husks little by little and finally got a little bit of brown rice.
This is going to be a really endless task…
If you pound wheat or rub it with your hands, the grains will come out immediately, so why is rice so tightly guarded? I wish it were easier for people.
“You’re back already?”
“I picked pumpkins today too.”
Kirara and Mimi returned from the field carrying pumpkins. It was a fine white pumpkin. White pumpkins keep for quite a while, so they’re a great vegetable. They’re also delicious. The cork-like stem is a sign it’s ready to be picked. If you let them sit for a while before eating them, they become incredibly sweet.
I wrote the harvest date with a marker. I want to let it rest for about two weeks.
“What were you doing?”
They peered at my hands.
“I wanted to remove the husks from this rice,” I said, pointing blankly at the still large pile of rice grains.
“Oh, like this?”
Kirara waved her hand, and in an instant, the rice grains separated into chaff and brown rice.
Whoa, that’s amazing! What is this?
“Kirara, you’re incredible! Wonderful! So talented!”
“What? Not really!” Kirara puffed up her chest proudly, looking more dazzling than ever. She looks as if she has a sparkling halo around her.
“Lady Kirara, can you maybe remove the thin brown layer on the brown rice too?” I asked, looking up at her.
“Of course!”
Her hand fluttered gracefully and elegantly.
While I admired her movements, the brown rice transformed into shiny white rice.
I even got bran.
Amazing, too amazing.
“Thank you, Kirara. I love you.”
I was so happy that I hugged her tightly, squeezing her soft, nice-smelling body and smiling.
“No exclusion allowed!” Mimi joined the hug, so the three of us hugged each other and laughed. I love you too, Mimi.
Alright then, let’s get cooking.
I washed the rice and put it in the pot. Was the water level about to my wrist?
It’s been a while since I cooked rice by instinct.
Well, since it’s the first time cooking this rice, I’ll just adjust the amount of water.
Should I let it soak it for an hour? Is 30 minutes not enough…
There’s a saying that goes: “Start with a little trickle, then a steady stream-and even if the baby cries, don’t lift the lid,” but I don’t think the initial trickle is necessary.
When I cook rice in a normal pot, I usually bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, then simmer for 12 minutes, and finally steam for 10 minutes without lifting the lid. Not opening the lid is an important trick.
It’s hard to adjust the heat on a traditional stove. I waited until the fire was lit and the heat was high enough to put the pot on. Once it started to boil, I scraped off the embers and turned the heat down to low.
When I finally lifted the lid after steaming, the smell of freshly cooked rice filled the air, bringing back memories that made me want to cry.
The rice grains stand up nicely. I cut the rice in the pot into a cross shape and gently loosened the rice.
Before the rice in the bowl, we put your hands together, itadakimasu.
Since I always do it, Kirara and Mimi have started doing it too.
Because I always do it, Kirara and Mimi started doing it too.
Now, how does it taste?
When I ate it… It’s definitely rice. I can even taste the sweetness. But it feels a bit dry and the texture has a slightly crisp texture. It doesn’t seem to have the same stickiness as Japanese rice.
It’s tasty, but a little different. But it’s rice. I don’t think the dryness is due to the amount of water.
It may be a little closer to Indica rice after all.
But if that’s the case…
Yeah, I think this rice will definitely go well with that.