Chapter 4: Coming Together

===FAHRENHEIT 451 (FUKUI NARRATING)===

Challenger Slate is offering five dishes.

First, Grilled Tofu Pockets. Snow crab and caviar are nestled in a pocket of firm tofu. The saltiness of the caviar, the sweetness of the crab and the soft texture of the tofu create a gentle harmony suitable for a starter.

Second, Korean Soft Tofu Stew. He mixed in beef and several kinds of vegetables to give this dish a heartier flavor—a taste of home in a bowl.

Third is Bibim-Tofu. Spicy red bean paste backs a garden variety of stir-fried vegetables, painting fire over the blank canvas of the tofu.

Fourth, Mapo-dofu, Challenger Slate's personal take on a Chinese classic. Various kinds of seafood enhance the dish's flavor, while the rice provides a control for its wild spice.

Last is Tofu Crème Brulee. Soft, sweet tofu tastes just like a custard in this simple, yet decadent dish. The layer of burnt sugar on the top adds a savory, sweet finish.

Iron Chef Morimoto is offering four dishes.

First, Sesame Tofu Hors d'oeuvre. Lightly torched sesame seeds provide a pleasantly crunchy texture to complement the softness of the tofu.

Second, Tofu Trio. He begins with Yodofu—tofu in broth, served with dried kelp leaves. Ginger, scallions, and bonito flakes are added at the taster's preference for a traditional touch.

He continues with Shiraae—firm tofu that has been ground down and mixed with ginkgo nuts, tomato, and mozzarella cheese.

The last part of the trio is tuna and fluke sashimi, with a puree of tofu over the top to enhance the flavor of each fish.

Third, Tofu and Blue Crab. Served in-shell, soft tofu and cream absorb the essence of blue crab, creating a delightful texture.

Last is Tofu Cake and Ice Cream. The ice cream is a mixture of tofu, sugar, and heavy cream, chilled and foamed to lead the taster into thinking of ice cream. And the tofu cheesecake, made from fresh cream cheese, is garnished with a tofu and peanut butter frosting to accentuate the tofu's flavor.

===FIGHTING 17TH (FUKUI NARRATING)===

A family man, an esteemed Pokémon trainer, a renowned chef, and today's challenger: Pewter City Gym Leader, Brock Slate.

Awaiting the challenge of this three-dimensional chef is a man who's just as accomplished: Iron Chef Japanese, Masaharu Morimoto.

Chairman Kaga unveils the theme…coagulating, bringing everything together…it is tofu!

Challenger Slate, using recipes that brought his family together, turns out a set of five dishes.

Quality, not quantity, says the Iron Chef, who counters with his set of four.

~料理の鉄ポケット~

"Mr. Slate, you're on," said Mr. Matsuo, the producer. Taking a deep breath, Brock got up from his seat in the holding room, with Vulpix and Geodude following him to the tasters' table.

"Here goes nothing, guys," he said, arriving at the head of the table. "No matter what, I'm so proud of both of you. We've done our best. Now it's out of our hands." He then brought them in for a group hug, then stood back up in time to see Erika and Professor Oak take their seats at the table. Joining them soon after were Chairman Kaga, tailed by the other two members of the tasting panel, Morty and Chuck.

"So how was the battle today?" Kaga asked Brock as his first course was brought to the table.

"I definitely prefer being on that side of it," Brock said, pointing at Erika and Oak. "Not just because I'm the one eating, but because it's a lot easier just watching from the sidelines. I certainly have a bigger respect for all the challengers that come in here now."

He looked on eagerly as the panel sampled his grilled tofu pockets.

"Where has this recipe been at all of our Gym Leader meetings?" Erika asked in disbelief.

"Well, I just came up with it today," Brock deadpanned, eliciting laughter from the panel.

"I love it!" Erika quickly added, trying to defend herself. "The sweetness of the crab goes very nicely with the caviar."

"The texture of the tofu is also really nice," Morty added. "You've grilled it to perfection."

"Somethin' about the creaminess of the crab combined with the tofu rubs me the wrong way, though," Chuck said. "I don't think snow crab was the best choice here, bud."

"Well, to each their own," Oak said. "Personally, I wish you used a different kind of roe. The caviar is a bit too salty for me, but as Morty already said, the tofu is grilled to perfection."

Brock smiled as he fetched his soft tofu stew, which he elected to serve himself.

"Whenever I couldn't decide what to make for everyone, I made this. And out of all the dishes I made for my siblings over the years, I think this one was their favorite," he told the panel. "They all loved spicy food. So I take a great deal of pride in this one."

"I can certainly see why," Oak chimed in soon after taking a bite. "It's gentle enough to appease those who don't like spicy as much, but still hot enough to tickle your senses."

"The blend of vegetables and the beef is good, but I think it's a little overpowering when you consider the tofu is supposed to be the centerpiece of this dish," Morty said.

"It's certainly very pleasing to the senses," Erika said. "I disagree, though, I think the tofu is supposed to be a textural component of the dish, which it does a splendid job of doing. And I happen to like it against the spicy broth, even if I think you put too many vegetables in this."

"What's wrong with too many veggies?" Chuck retorted. "Personally, I think he should've taken the beef out, because that's what's overpowering the tofu."

"Tofu is easily overpowered, though," Erika shot back. "Besides, plain tofu is just so boring! Would you rather he have done that instead of this?"

Not wanting to get caught in the middle of the ongoing dispute amongst Morty, Erika, and Chuck, Brock quietly retreated to retrieve his next course. Professor Oak and Chairman Kaga were left staring at each other in disbelief, as if to say, "What did we do to deserve this?"

If memory serves me right, Kaga thought with a slight chuckle, this is the first time that tasters have actually argued over a dish…

"Well, if you're done fighting over how I screwed up the tofu on that one," Brock said over the ensuing ruckus, "my next course is ready."

Sure enough, the bibim-tofu had arrived at the tasters' table no sooner than Brock finished speaking. To Kaga's relief, the panel was quiet once more, silenced by the tofu and mixed vegetables.

"Ahhh…just like home," Chuck said.

"That might be the first positive thing you've said today," Erika joked. "I actually like the mix of vegetables in this," she added. "You've definitely picked a lot of vegetables that go well with tofu. Nice kick to it, too."

"I'm not really seeing anything terribly special with this dish, though," Morty said. "It's not very Iron Chef. It hasn't pushed the envelope enough…"

"Simplicity, though, is a good thing sometimes," Oak cut in. "It's important to remember that."

Sensing the beginnings of another argument, Brock retrieved his mapo-dofu to serve to the panel. As he spooned a healthy serving into a separate bowl to serve alongside the rice, Brock was soon hidden behind the steam cloud that erupted from the plate from which he was serving.

"Well, at least we know it's fresh," Chuck deadpanned.

"Yes, this is what I've been waiting for," Oak said as he eagerly scooped up a large spoonful of tofu and popped it into his mouth. His bliss was short-lived, however, when he realized how much his mouth was on fire after he swallowed. "But good heavens!" he shrieked. "I think I'm gonna break a sweat!"

"I think this is your best one yet, even if it is incredibly spicy," Morty added. "I love what you did to the texture of the tofu, as it's very smooth. Quite good."

"Yes, I agree, the texture is excellent," Erika added. "A bit too hot for my liking, but then it wouldn't be mapo-dofu if it weren't spicy, would it? My one quibble is that I feel the seafood you put in here overpowered the tofu. Octopus probably wasn't the best choice."

"Yeah, in a battle of textures, octopus always wins," Chuck said. "But this ain't an octopus battle, Slate, you know that."

Brock wryly smiled as he fetched his final course, the tofu crème brulee.

"So this one, I just pretty much hoped for the best…" Brock chuckled as the panel began to sample his dessert. "I'm pretty sure no one's ever done this before."

"Well, I certainly haven't had something like this before," Oak said, spooning a bite into his mouth. "But I certainly like what I taste! What a great way to end the meal."

"Great flavor, and I love the texture of the torched sugar on top," Morty added. "There's an inherent sweetness to the tofu here that I didn't know it had. Nice touch."

"It's like eating tofu without knowing it's tofu," Chuck added. "Very creative."

"I agree with Morty's statement about the subtle sweetness," Erika added. "It still tastes like tofu, yet it's still unabashedly a dessert. I think this is your strongest one yet."

"Challenger Slate…thank you for an excellent meal," Kaga said, shaking Brock's hand and sending him back to the holding room. The Pewter City Gym Leader, very much relieved at getting away from the judges' table, finally collapsed in a chair when he got to said holding room. Vulpix trotted up to him and nudged his leg.

"Great job, girl," he said. "Now it's out of our hands…"

~料理の鉄ポケット~

Back at the judges' table, Iron Chef Morimoto had begun serving his courses.

"This is positively mind-boggling," Morty said of Iron Chef Morimoto's first course, the sesame tofu hors d'oeuvre. "This is a bit like candy, it's actually pretty ridiculous. I mean…I don't know what else to say!"

"I'm still trying to figure out how he made this," Chuck said, eyeing the hors d'oeuvre. The rest of the panel chuckled.

"But yes, Morty's right, this is quite unique," Oak chimed in. "And, I might add, the sesame flavor complements the tofu quite well."

While Erika was left to contemplate the intricacies of Morimoto's dish, the Iron Chef enlisted some help to bring his next course, the tofu trio, to the table.

"You've already won me over with the presentation," Erika said when the dishes arrived at the table. "I love the layered bentos you have here, in these elaborate drawer-like contraptions."

"Thank you, Erika. I suppose you could say this is technically three dishes in one," Morimoto explained. "Please start with the yodofu and leave the sashimi for last."

"The soup's too plain for me," Chuck said.

"But did you add the toppings? The bonito flakes especially make a world of difference," Erika chided.

"Well, no…" Chuck said sheepishly, to the amusement of the rest of the panel.

"Having said that," Erika said after trying all three dishes, "I love the different preparations you have going on here. Tofu is never used the same way twice anywhere here, and it enhances the flavors of everything—it's not strong enough to overpower anything, yet it's not being overpowered by anything either."

"I'm personally not a fan of the ginkgo nuts in your second dish, as I think they make the dish a little too bitter," Morty said, "but I love everything else. I echo Erika's sentiments."

"And now that I've added the toppings, I can definitely say that this is a good dish," Chuck bellowed to the panel's amusement. "I'm a big fan of the fish in particular."

"I think your approach in your second course was the best of the trio," Oak said, "but that's not to say I didn't enjoy the other two. I really enjoyed the fish, but pairing the tofu with it was a bit strange to me. And your traditional touch with the soup reminded me so much of home."

Well…I took a bit of a gamble there, but I think it paid off, Morimoto thought as his blue crabs were brought to the table.

"Again, I have to say your presentation is impeccable," Erika said. "Serving the tofu in the shell was a great idea."

"This is quite good," Oak chimed in. "The tofu is masterfully infused with the essence of blue crab, and the texture is quite nice. Not to mention the flavors complement each other really well."

"I've said it before, and I'll say it again: tofu has a subtle sweetness to it," Morty said, "and it's coming out guns-a-blazing in this dish. I like what you've done here. Very well done."

Morimoto was all smiles as his dessert came to the table.

"You know, you don't normally think of tofu in cake OR ice cream," Oak said as the dessert arrived at his place setting. He took a couple of bites, thinking all the while about the bizarre combination.

Well, then again, Brock had that crème brulee… he thought. And this is actually quite good…!

"Holy cow," Chuck said. "This is amazing!"

"Well, that's a shocking thing to hear from you," Morty jabbed.

"I'm serious, though! The tofu is masterfully integrated, and it just goes so well with the peanut butter. Such a creative approach."

"I agree, it's such an original dish, and all the components…just…work," Erika said. "I don't really know how to explain it."

"Where does he come up with these ideas?" Oak asked in disbelief. "I sometimes wish a lot of my research was as fruitful as this!"

Morimoto simply laughed and smiled, relieved that his dishes were well received. He retreated to the holding room, where Brock sat waiting with Vulpix at his side.

"Hey, good battle," Morimoto said, extending his hand to Brock. The Gym Leader shook it firmly.

"Likewise. I don't know how you guys do this week after week…that one battle wore me out!"

"It helps that we're not on every week, let me tell you!" Morimoto said with a laugh. "But what I don't understand is how you get your little creatures to help you in the kitchen like that. I keep seeing it whenever I battle here, but I want to hear it from one of the best trainers in Kanto."

Brock chuckled, mussing Vulpix's head as he explained. "You know, I don't know if we'll ever fully understand it. But, if you think about it, it's like training your pets a new trick. And each Pokémon has its own unique personality, its own hidden talents. I think cooking, though, is something that any Pokémon with arms or legs can learn."

Morimoto nodded. "So did you teach yours?"

"Oh yeah, absolutely. You should've seen this one—" here he patted Vulpix, "—when she first started learning. She would've made any novice human chef feel better about himself!"

At this both men laughed. Their moment of levity, however, was interrupted upon Mr. Matsuo calling out to them, inviting them back to the stadium floor.

"The scores are in!"

Now that the numbers have come together…whose cuisine reigns supreme? The verdict…when Poké Iron Chef returns.