Rising from the Slum City of Reincarnation in Another World ~ Gathering, Hunting, and Living a Slow Life by Eating

Chapter 52 Tomato and Kikurage mushroom

Thursday.

I keep track of the days of the week, but I actually don’t know the specific month and date.

I don’t have a proper calendar or anything, although I guess there should be one in town.

Spring is coming to an end.

After finishing breakfast, I inform the restless Minya about today’s plans.

“Let’s go to the forest today.”

“It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, there have been conflicts and wars recently.”

“Uh, yeah.”

There is a certain ingredient that I really want.

If I go to town, they should have it for sale.

However, it’s definitely expensive.

I’ve seen the price before, but even if I have the money, I hesitate to buy it because I’m frugal.

So I decide to explore the forest where it might grow naturally.

I often go on forest expeditions, but I often miss things.

They’re difficult to spot when they’re hidden among tall grass and such.

As usual, I bring Lania with me and head to the entrance of the forest.

“Alright, let’s ask for our usual blessing.”

“O Raffalier-sama, please protect us.”

Minya cuts a holy symbol with her hand and offers a prayer.

There’s a sacred atmosphere, truly a blessing.

“Let’s go a bit to the right side of the forest.”

“Yeah.”

“Sure!”

We haven’t really gone deep into the right side, beyond the lookout mountain.

Lania also responds with a serious expression, holding her staff ready.

Even though we call it the forest, its atmosphere and vegetation vary.

Today, I really want to make a discovery.

We walked a bit further and reached an open area.

“Oh, there are red fruits. They look delicious!”

“Meow, amazing!”

Yes, it’s Tomato. That’s the one.

The thing I desire the most – Tomato.

As usual, I perform identification.

[ Tomato: Plant, Edible ]

From tomato ketchup and tomato sauce to BLT sandwiches… Bacon, lettuce, and tomato.

Tomato and onion salad.

And not to forget pizza and tomato-based pasta, which fall into the Italian cuisine category.

In our household, besides ketchup, we often enjoy tomatoes in their raw form, but their versatility is vast.

They can be added to hamburger sauces and more.

We use tomato sauce in a similar proportion to tonkatsu sauce, a brown-colored sauce.

I have a feeling like that.

In my past life, I often watched my mother cook until elementary school. So I have a rough idea of the ingredients and such.

My mother was skilled in cooking.

However, she also used convenience ingredients like dashi-infused miso and blended seasonings, so it wasn’t exactly authentic.

Now, the memories have become a bit vague.

It’s purely a matter of imitating what I see as an amateur, but I can’t help but think it’s better than being completely clueless. When it comes to measurements, it’s all about intuition.

“Well done, Tomato. I’ve been looking for you.”

“Meow!”

I harvest the tomatoes and store them. It might be too early for summer. Perhaps they are an early-ripening variety. Or maybe in nature, the seeds fell and sprouted quickly, resulting in early growth.

Strangely enough, once you find something once, it becomes easier to find it again. Look, even the tomatoes are bearing fruit again.

I have a feeling that this phenomenon of “once you break through, the rest becomes easy” had a name.

Maybe it’s called a breakthrough, a term used in academia.

I tried thinking of other ways to say it, but I can’t come up with anything.

I’ve heard there’s a barrier of 10 seconds in the 100-meter sprint.

Now, the exploration of the forest continues.

Another group of goblins.

There are four of them today.

“Lania, go easy on them.”

“What’s the matter?.”

“Don’t use fireball.”

“understood, I won’t use Fireball.”

I and Minya attack the goblins.

Minya has her staff.

It’s not a mace, but it serves a similar function.

With Lania’s magic attacks included, we managed to defeat the four goblins.

Quickly, I perform a simple dissection and only bring back the magic stones.

The rest can be left behind. The wolves will eat them.

To be honest, those wolves are scarier than the goblins.

Now, let’s move a little and harvest more tomatoes.

Things are looking promising.

“Oh, this fallen tree is great!”

“What is it, Ed? There’s something strange and black on it.”

“Yeah, that’s actually edible. It’s a mushroom called Kikurage.”

“I see. Is it tasty?”

“Well, it’s usually just average. But it’s fun because it adds some variation in taste.”

“I see.”

【Kikurage – Mushroom – Edible】

I have come across Kikurage in Japan before.

They often grow in abundance on dead trees in parks with dense foliage.

“Let’s gather more.”

“Okay.”

Hehe, we’ve got the Kikurage.

I can’t think of a specific use for it, though.

It’s often used as a side dish in ramen and other dishes.

It’s commonly found in chilled Chinese noodles and Chinese stir-fried dishes like “hakubosai.”

It could also be used in stir-fried dishes with vegetables, although I haven’t had it much.

There were more Kikurage growing on another fallen tree nearby, so I’ll harvest them too.

Seeds or spores probably fall nearby, following the laws of nature.

In between, I pick up some spinach, dandelion greens, and butterbur that I found in the past.

There were also some taros around.

Among other things growing in the area, there were mugwort and comfrey.

Both of them can be used in healthy teas and such.

With a satisfied expression, I head back home.

It’s great to live in a world where various ingredients grow naturally.

If a certain ingredient is circulating in this world, it’s natural to assume that it grows somewhere in the world. However, it doesn’t necessarily mean it grows in our own land.

Especially with tomatoes, they are believed to be of New World origin in the Earth’s world, so I have a feeling that people used to tease me with phrases like “Potato Police” when I brought up memories from my past life. It was an argument stating that if potatoes didn’t exist in medieval Europe, they shouldn’t exist in medieval-style fantasy worlds either. It seemed odd, but in this world, things might be different after all.