Meat and Gravy

[Clam shells are made of minerals that accumulate on the true shells of the clams. So, you can grind clam shells to get a type of seasoning and supplement. This is a very common seasoning in more mainstream foods and can be bought online for a very cheap price.]

Sazzy helped me pull up the shopping interface as she lectured. And while she was talking, my hands were non-stop grinding against the clam shells that we had collected from yesterday's lunch and dinner. After grinding for about 2 minutes, I would hit an incredibly hard and black surface underneath the gray clam exterior. Then, I would have to switch to another spot to grind.

This black surface was what Sazzy called the 'true shell' of the clam.

[However, just like all synthetically made products, it only contains the chemical molecule for this mineral. It does not include all the other undetectable minerals and salts that are mixed together in the clam surface. That's why, although the pure mineral is very cheap, natural clam powder is still recommended by chefs and is almost 4 times the price. The middle-ground, clams from clam farms, are only twice the price of synthetic clam powder so it's the most popular go to for the seasoning.]

Right next to my manual grinder, there were more common dish ingredients that Sazzy had woken me up early in the morning in order to collect and buy. Including the Jasmine milk that I had originally found in the fridge. Next to that was the failed mixture of jasmine milk and rain powder bark. And next to that was rain powder bark mixed with too much water. Apparently jasmine milk and rain powder bark together produces an inedible poison that smells like milk tea. And there was a certain limit on how much water could be mixed with rain powder bark.

Finally grinding up half a bowl's worth of clam powder, I wiped the sweat off my forehead and placed it next to the other bowls of ingredients.

[This recipe here involves clam powder, jasmine milk, musk rat meat and yellow leaf. First, wrap the musk rat meat in yellow leaves and steam it for half an hour.]

Taking the yellow leaf and musk rat meat that Sazzy had taught me how to buy, I wrapped the meat in the large and long leaves before setting it inside the steamer. I then turned the timer to half an hour.

[In the meantime, prepare the gravy for the meat and gravy by first mixing the jasmine milk with a tablespoon of Jem dust, mix it until the milk turns brown, then add a little clam powder for taste.]

Following the instructions that Sazzy was repeating from a well-known food blogger, I prepared our breakfast, occasionally writing down notes on my personal terminal. Although the ingredients were quite different from my original world, at least most of the methods for food preparation were still quite similar?

[Once the meat has finished marinating, place it in a pot with boiling milk until the meat floats on the surface. When it starts floating, scoop it out and plate it. Finish the dish by pouring the gravy over the meat.]

Sazzy read finished the recipe and then jumped down from the kitchen chair she was standing on. Running to where the plates were kept, she quickly grabbed two, including two forks, and practically threw them onto the counter.

While waiting for the meat to float, I double checked my notes on how the cuisine in this world worked. Jasmine milk was a common ingredient in sauce recipes as well as meat recipes. Acting as a binding agent for the sauce, it also had the property of retaining the flavor of meat while dissolving the inedible 'rock bones' that were embedded within all forms of meat. These bones were apparently present in all living forms, and were made of rock minerals, named after the fact that these minerals were first identified in rocks before they were connected with the small and thin bones in meat.

Scooping the meat out of the boiling pot, I put it in the plate and took a knife to cut it into two. From the corner of my eye, I could see Sazzy practically drooling over the meat. I transferred her portion to her plate, dribbled the gravy over it, and then turned to pour some gravy over my own share.

Similar to the gravy I knew of, this mixture was a slightly dark shade of brown and was quite viscous. However, it definitely smelled different, more sweet than savory. Cutting a small piece of meat, I dipped it into the gravy and tasted it. Sweet, yet with a hint of saltiness, it fit very well with the musk rat meat.

According to chick, musk rat meat is considered one of the easiest meat to prepare, only needing to boil in milk. Its name is due to its distinctive smell, a pleasant earthy smell due to its diet of jasmine flowers. The same jasmine flowers its meat is most commonly boiled in. This quite ironic animal is easily domesticated for farming and has the cheapest price for meat on chick's shopping site.

With the gravy, the slightly woody tang of the musk rat gave me the impression of biting onto a meat seasoned with rosemary. The meat without the gravy tasted less sweet, with its herb-like taste a little too overpowering for my liking.

However, with this herb-like taste, I felt like I could perhaps recreate some dishes in my previous world. Like steak with rosemary, or beef roast with rosemary. Unfortunately, I would first have to find something that would give the 'meat' taste in this 'meat and herb' combination dish.

Feeling as if the to-do list in this world was increasing at a never ending rate, I sighed and ate finish the meat. And while Sazzy took the dishes to wash, I sat down on the counter and stared at the failed combination of jasmine milk and rain powder bark.

Following the idea I had when I had first heard of it, I mixed these two ingredients together as an experiment, and was disappointed when they didn't mix. There were dry clumps of the rain powder bark in it's powder form surrounded by the Jasmine milk. But the smell was just so good!

I sighed once more as I took a spoon and stirred the failed mixture around. It felt like the milk and powder would make a great combination. It was just missing something. But what was it missing?