Ch 125 -- I Tried Out the Oven

　　I borrowed the inner courtyard of the Labyrinth City Inn and set up my newly-purchased "Latest Model Black Magic Cooking Stove" while I gave some thought to what sort of meals I could prepare with it. Since Fer, Sui and Dora-chan insisted they were dying of hunger I got some fried pork cutlets out of my Item Box and put them out for the starving creatures. I had been so busy shopping we had missed lunch so I felt a bit guilty but it couldn't be helped.

　　Once everyone was eating I fired up the stove's oven as I had decided to make a number of dishes using it. Oven baked recipes with meat and vegetables would be simple and not take much time. I opened the Net Super and bought cooking parchment, olive oil and herb salt to start with then I started preparing vegetables.

　　I kept things simple, a recipe I had made before with potatoes, onion and carrots as the base vegetable ingredients. I added s.h.i.+meji and eringi mushrooms and some paprika for colour and a little spiciness. I had to buy the mushrooms and paprika from the Net Super. I looked over the ingredients and nodded. Yosh, that would do fine.

　　For the meat, I figured I'd use Rock Bird. I cut it into large bite-sized pieces and punched holes with a fork before adding salt and pepper and then I started preparing the vegetables. The more solid veggies like potatoes and carrots I sc.r.a.ped and peeled then I cut them up into pieces so they would cook more evenly. The onions I sliced into circles after peeling them. I broke up the s.h.i.+meji mushrooms and split the erengi mushrooms down to an appropriate size too.

　　Now for the baking. I put down cooking sheets on the top shelf of the oven and arranged the meat and vegetables, topping them with the paprika and mushrooms before adding olive oil and finally sprinkling everything with herb salt. I closed the oven door and fired it up with a touch of my finger and a little magical energy on the ignition b.u.t.ton. I didn't know just how this oven behaved since the controls were unfamiliar so I cooked while anxiously watching the condition of the food on the parchment sheets inside, judging the food was ready when the vegetables seemed a little scorched.

　　"Oh, that looks like it's working well." I mused, peering in through the oven's gla.s.s door. "The vegetables and meat are nicely baked and, yup, ready now." I took the cooked vegetables and meat from the oven and dished them out to Fer, Sui and Dora-chan.

　　"Took you long enough..." Fer grumbled and then he caught sight of the food. "What, vegetables again?" Fer, don't complain about eating vegetables. They're good for you, honest.

　　"Something smells funny..." Dora-chan's muzzle was twitching as he sniffed at the food. That was probably the herb salt, I reckoned. I pushed the dish at him. "Go on, try it." I said, watching darling Sui-chan diving in as usual.

　　"This isn't just salty, yeah-? It smells nice and it's delicious." Sui thought it was good, obviously.

　　Dora-chan ate the roast meat and vegetables in his dish with growing enthusiasm as his suspicions of the herb salt flavouring wore off. It was clear his one serving would fill him up but I knew from long experience that Fer and Sui would be demanding "Seconds!" soon. I'd be able to satisfy them with one more serving of roast meat and vegetables, probably. This time around I melted a lot of cheese on top after cooking, letting the remaining heat do the job. It looked really delicious. I ate my portion while the second batch cooked and planned out what to do next. The oven was working out well, I mused as I helped myself to a mouthful of the roast Rock Bird meat. How would it do as a stove though? Time to find out.