In This World That Favors Men, I... ~Starting a Sweet School Life in a World With a 1:8 Gender Ratio~ - 153

Chapter 153: Ehomaki

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Just before the studio recording for EXA Kitchen the other day, I had been standing in the kitchen at home with Yui. It was rare for me to be in the kitchen. 

Apparently, in the past, there was a time in Japan when, due to the male-dominated mindset, people used to say, “Men should stay out of the kitchen.” But that was a thing of the past. In modern Japan, the situation had completely flipped, and now in many households, the rule was more like “(Because it’s dangerous) Men shouldn’t be allowed in the kitchen.”

Our family was no different, and since both Yui and Mom were always overly protective of me, I hadn’t even been allowed to touch a kitchen knife until now.

“Onii-chan, make absolutely sure you don’t get hurt, okay? When you’re cutting with a knife, use a kitty paw with the hand holding the food.”

“Kitty paw?”

The cute expression brought to mind an image of a round cat paw, with pink pads and soft, fluffy fur. Getting to squish-squish one of those must’ve felt great. 

“When you’re cutting ingredients and holding them in place with your left hand, you curl your fingertips inward like this. Try it.”

That was quite different from the image I had. It wasn’t like the beckoning cat pose, but more like loosely making a fist.

“Like this?”

“Hmm… It’s better if the knuckle of your index or middle finger sticks out a bit. That way, you can avoid cutting your fingers, and when you move the knife, it’ll touch your knuckle and act as a guide while slicing.”

“I see. That’s really well thought out.”

“Yeah. But you know, just understanding it in your head isn’t enough. To move the knife safely and smoothly, you need to practice and get used to it.”

Since this was my first time ever standing in the kitchen, Yui was teaching me the absolute basics—how to hold a knife, how to move my hands, all of it. Once I actually tried moving my hands, I realized how awkward and clumsy I was. 

Watching and doing are worlds apart.

The production staff told me to just show up for the recording, no need to prepare for anything. But still, going in completely unprepared seemed like a bad idea, so I was really glad I asked Yui to let me practice.

Of course, she refused at first, but when I told her what kind of dish I’d be making for the recording, she must’ve realized how worrying that was, and agreed to help me practice.

Incidentally, the origin of the phrase “Men shouldn’t be in the kitchen” came from Mencius, specifically the saying: “A gentleman stays away from the kitchen.” It meant that rulers were not to be swayed by personal emotions and should instead have focused on their proper duties as gentlemen.

But when that Confucian concept came to Japan from China, it was misinterpreted, and over time warped to fit the era, leading to the saying as we know it.

“If you’re going to grill or boil ingredients, obviously you’ll be using the stove or a cooking heater. The big thing to watch out for here is burns. Like when oil splatters unexpectedly, or you accidentally touch a heated appliance, or get hit by steam. These little things can easily cause burns.”

Whoa! The usually tiny and cute Yui suddenly had this sharp, dignified look. Like she was in her element, totally focused.

“Especially when you’re cooking on multiple burners at the same time, you get these psychological blind spots, so you need to be extra careful. Don’t just pay attention to what’s directly on the stove, but also the surrounding area. For example, if you put a stainless steel bowl next to a heating frying pan, even though it doesn’t look hot, it can get really hot and cause burns.”

Psychological blind spots, huh? Yeah, I could totally see that happening when you’re doing unfamiliar tasks in an unfamiliar setting all at once.

“Also, like this—if the handle of a frying pan or pot is sticking out from the stove, you might accidentally bump into it and knock it over, so make sure the handles are positioned safely.”

The more I listened, the more dangerous the kitchen seemed. Yui was especially worried about me getting burned. And yeah, no one could say it definitely wouldn’t happen, so I had to stay calm and be cautious. No overdoing it.

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《EXA Kitchen: Setsubun Special! Tonight, the familiar and fabulous guest from the EXA commercial returns! In addition to our studio shoot, we’re also airing a brand-new on-location feature in a special extended episode. Don’t miss it!》

The air date for EXA Kitchen, the episode I appeared in, had finally arrived.

While Yui and I were preparing dinner with the TV on, the program’s promotion started playing. Maybe because it was a special episode, the promotion session was pretty long, showing how much effort they’d put into it.

Thanks to all the practice, I thought I’d managed to get through the recording without messing up. But now, with Yui about to watch, I couldn’t help being a little nervous about her evaluation.

《EXA Kitchen: Setsubun Special. Today’s guest is none other than Yuusei Takeda, returning to EXA Kitchen for his second appearance!》

“Onii-chan, the show’s starting!”

“Got it. I’m coming!”

Mom was getting home late tonight, so Yui and I were having dinner together. Normally, we’d eat at the dining table, but tonight was special—we were eating under the kotatsu while watching TV.

《Since this episode is themed around Setsubun, our guest will be taking on the challenge of making an ehōmaki. Takeda-san, have you ever made an ehōmaki, or any kind of rolled sushi like futomaki or hosomaki?》

《No, it’s my first time. I’ve never even used a sushi mat before, so I’m worried I’ll mess it up, but I’m also looking forward to it.》

《Eating ehōmaki while facing the year’s lucky direction is a Setsubun tradition. Takeda-san, do you know what the lucky direction is this year?》

《It’s south-southeast, right?》

《Correct! This year’s lucky direction, where the Toshigami-sama resides, is indeed south-southeast. I’m impressed you knew that.》

《Actually, after I got this job, I looked into it and found out the direction changes every year.》

《You’re quite studious!》

《It was just surface-level research, but I got curious about why we eat ehōmaki on Setsubun.》

《We’ll explain more about how to eat ehōmaki later in the program. But first, Takeda-san, please head over to the kitchen set and get started! We’ll be back after a short commercial break.》

“So, what exactly did you do in the end?”

“All the cooked ingredients were already prepared. I just chopped the fillings and made vinegared rice. Oh, and rolled the sushi.”

“So, in the end, they didn’t let you use any heat.”

“Yeah. Same reason as you—because it’d be a big problem if someone got burned during filming.”

《We start with the longest task: cooking the rice. The sight of him standing before the sink stirs our hearts with anticipation. That’s right—everyone knows what comes next, don’t they? You can’t cook rice without washing it first. But wait! If we proceed like this, the sleeves will get wet!》

“Was that shirt part of your costume?”

“Yeah. They gave it to me and said, ‘Please wear this.’ So I changed.”

It was a simple long-sleeved shirt with buttoned cuffs, and I remembered thinking it wasn’t ideal for cooking.

《Camera, zoom in please! Look at that—those sacred forearms hidden beneath the white shirt are now revealed! Recommended for intense staring! Bulging veins, supple muscles, too hot to handle! Even the casual gesture of rolling up his sleeves leaves us breathless!》

“This commentary is kind of weird… Anyway, you rinsed the rice first and drained it properly before scrubbing. You did a good job—efficient and neat. Glad you practiced.”

“Yeah. They gave some simple instructions on site, but since I’d studied in advance, I knew what to do and it really helped.”

《Those hands! Larger and more graceful than a woman’s! Such long, beautiful fingers. The clean and polished fingertips exude freshness, yet carry an irresistible allure—wait, what? We’re getting administrative guidance warnings? Fine, fine, we’ll get back to actual cooking commentary.》

“What’s ‘administrative guidance warnings’ supposed to mean?”

“Um, well. Probably, it’s because this time slot is prime time when children might be watching, right? If it’s judged that men are being portrayed in a sexualized way, the authorities might scold us.”

“Sexual? Just from explaining the hands?”

“Yeah. I mean, it seems like there are quite a few women who feel that way… I think what we did was just barely acceptable, but if the expression escalated any further, it might’ve crossed the line.”

“Hmm. Sounds like there’s a lot to deal with.”

《Yes. This program is unmistakably a cooking show. With graceful hand movements, the rice is being washed with a rhythmic shaka-shaka-shaka. Such a dreamy soft touch. Even the lowered face isn’t sexy—it’s charming! If someone stared at you like that while mixing, even the rice would feel blessed and ascend to heaven!》

“Shall we start eating soon?”

“Yeah. I think I’m getting hungry.”

Aside from one thin roll left whole to be eaten while facing the lucky direction, the rest had been cut into easy-to-eat pieces. We made two types of thick rolls: a regular one and a luxurious seafood roll.

《Like worldly desires that failed to be cast off on New Year’s Eve, the cloudy white water from rinsing the rice is washed away, flowing down the drain. Just watching it feels like it purifies your soul as well.》

Yui handled making the thick omelet, the sweet-simmered kanpyō and shiitake mushrooms, and boiling the shrimp. I sliced the cucumber and grilled eel, peeled the shrimp, and tried making the sushi rice the way they did on the show.

Well, of course Yui took care of the seasoning and the cooking that involved heat, while I was in charge of cutting, peeling, and mixing. Ah, but she also cut the sashimi. Not only because it was tricky to cut, but also because the sashimi knife was so razor-sharp that she was afraid I might get hurt and didn’t let me handle it.

《It’s said that ehōmaki should have seven ingredients to represent the Seven Lucky Gods. Each ingredient has a meaning: kanpyō and shrimp symbolize longevity, dried shiitake mushrooms symbolize good health, eel symbolizes career success, thick omelet represents financial luck, cucumber stands for nine kinds of benefits, and sakura denbu brings happiness. The bright colors also make it look festive.》

“Yui, this seafood roll is amazing. Being able to taste tuna, salmon, ikura, squid, and shrimp all at once—it’s pure luxury.”

“Right? This time I splurged quite a bit on ingredients. There’s still some left in the fridge, so I was thinking of making seafood inari sushi for lunch tomorrow.”

“Is that why you made extra sushi rice?”

This time, we cooked five cups of rice. About two-thirds of that had been used for the ehōmaki. I did wonder why there was so much sushi rice leftover after making the ehōmaki.

“Yeah. It’s for the inari sushi. You can make about eight pieces from one cup, so we’ll end up with quite a few. I’m planning to make half of them seafood inari that we can eat right away, and the rest will be regular inari with sesame mixed in.”

“Are you going to simmer the skins yourself too?”

“Uh-huh. It’s a bit of work, but I can season them just the way I like.”

“In that case, I’d like them a little on the sweet side.”

“You like sweet things, Onii-chan?”

“Yeah. I don’t know, when it’s sweet, it just have a gentle taste to it somehow.”

《On the spread out bamboo mat, the seaweed is laid out, and on top of that, the ascended sushi rice is carefully spread. After neatly arranging the ingredients, it’s finally time to roll. I want to be wrapped up too. I seriously want to be held by those hands. I can’t help but feel jealous of the ehōmaki being so gently rolled like that.》

“By the way, which way is south-southeast?”

“I checked on my phone earlier—our yard faces due south, so if you turn just a bit to the left, that should be south-southeast.”

《You face the lucky direction while eating ehōmaki, make a wish, and eat the whole roll in silence. But the rules can vary by region, so don’t stress too much—just enjoy your meal!》

Facing the lucky direction while eating was said to ward off bad luck and invite good fortune. We had to stay silent so the fortune wouldn’t escape from our mouth. And by eating the whole roll in one go without cutting it, we avoided severing our luck and absorbed it all at once. Of course, we mustn’t forget to make our wish! 

《Today’s episode focused on the theme of Setsubun. How did you like it? Now, here’s a message from our sponsor about a newly released snack: A pudding-flavored wafer with a bonus “Vampire Prince Ruthven☆” card, which can be used in the popular arcade game Love Wolf, will go on sale at EXA Convenience Stores starting 2/5. Look for this poster of Yuusei Takeda dressed as Vampire Prince Ruthven to find participating stores. Great to collect for yourself or give as a ‘friend chocolate’! This is a limited-time offer, so don’t miss it!》

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