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apocalypticvalraven · 15 days

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Delicious in Dungeon in The Kitchen

So... I was struck by the thought that I kinda wish some food nerd would go through the Dungeon Meshi dishes and analyze them and sort of give a "this is the real world thing they're making" run down.

And then I realized I'm a food nerd that can do research.

So.

We're gonna try this out, starting with Volume 1. I don't promise that I know everything about cooking. I don't promise I'll always be able to make the thing I'm looking at (I am broke, and I don't have my own kitchen). But I can at least look at a dish and figure out what they're doing and how to replicate it, at least sorta.

Dungeon Meshi Volume 1-- Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot

The two main components of this dish are the Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom.

Walking Mushroom

Looking at the images in the manga, Walking Mushroom seems to just... be a mushroom that can walk around. There are no organs, the interior seems pretty uniform in substance...

Like, literally, that's exactly what sliced mushrooms look like. Senshi cuts the mushroom into ~4" strips (judging by their size next to the small cabbage-like vegetable, and comparing those plants to his hand in the image of him gathering them. I am assuming dwarf hands are roughly the same size as human hands).

There's a variety of edible mushroom that is probably as close as we're going to get to the size of a Walking Mushroom, growing a cap up to 3' wide, but it seems to only grow in termite mounds in a very specific part of the African continent (please forgive my USAmerican, White education leading me to not being able to identify the specific region), so... if you can get that at all, it's probably crazy expensive (as it should be, unless you're literally getting it from the mounds or local markets yourself). Portobello or similar large culinary mushrooms are probably just fine. The Mushroom Feet are literally just mushrooms, so no worries there.

Huge Scorpion

Ok, so... there is a difference between arachnids and crustaceans. As a start, arachnids have book lungs and crustaceans have gills. Arachnid guts are different from crustacean guts, just because of environment. Hell, crustacean limbs grow differently from arachnid limbs.

That said, everything I see in Dungeon Meshi implies that, from a culinary standpoint, Huge Scorpion is a crustacean-

So, really, it's just a big lobster. Take a lobster, cut off its legs, antennae, and the tail fluke, and you're going to see something that looks pretty similar to the huge scorpion in Dungeon Meshi.

Seaweed

Next is seaweed, which... is just a thing, but also kind of an imprecise term, I think. Basically, "seaweed" just refers to any marine algae that is multicellular and macroscopic (big enough to see). Arctic Moss seems to be a real thing which refers to a couple things- the aquatic moss Calliergon giganteum and the terrestrial lichen in the genus of Cladonia, which includes Reindeer Lichen.

Reindeer lichen is edible, in a number of ways, but it's also not seaweed. So we look at Calliergon giganteum. I cannot get an answer as to whether this particular variety of moss is edible. So... fuck it, say Senshi used Reindeer Lichen, at least we know that's edible.

"Star Jelly" is... I don't know. The main result I find when googling it is that it's the sort of general term for various slimes that show up on lawns and other vegetation, etc. Which means it could be anything from amphibian spawning jelly to who the fuck knows what.

However, one thing it could be is a cyanobacteria known as Fat Choy, a commonly used "vegetable" in Chinese Cuisine:

Looks like jelly? Yep. Looks weird enough that you might imagine it comes from a star? Yep. Edible? Yes!

(I mean, maybe don't eat a ton of it, or get it from irreputable sources. At least some Fat Choy contains a toxic amino acid which may or may not have negative health effects, but I'm not a doctor, so all I'm saying is "be aware of this." It's an expensive delicacy, which means that it is a particularly lucrative target for counterfeiters, and China does not have strong, or strongly enforced, food safety laws).

The Hard Stuff

So that leaves "Invertatoes" and "Dried Slime."

Neither of which seem to have a good direct analogue to the real world. Well... sorta.

Invertatoes seems to refer to the plants. The name calls to mind potatoes, and potatoes do indeed grow in the ground and are starchy. It's probably fair to just use any kind of starchy tuber as the "invertatoes." Maybe cassava, since those are large enough that it's at least somewhat believable that "Fantasy Land Cassava" could look like that (although that doesn't fit the "these are normal plants that grow upside down" unless we're being really generous).

The problem is that it's sort of implied that the cabbage-like vegetable seen in the hot pot comes from the same plant, and everything from a potato plant other than the potato itself is toxic. They also don't look like that.

I literally don't know what those cabbage/lettuce-like leafy vegetables are. They're not seaweed, because the two varieties called out definitely don't look like that. They're not, so far as I can tell, the greens of any kind of starchy tuber--

EXCEPT.

So, I was taking one last look at tubers to see if I could find something that seemed to match, and I think Invertatoes could be likened to something similar to chicory. Particularly endives. I never knew endives were related to chicory (ie, "that thing that I'm aware is popular as a coffee substitute in the South, but I don't have much desire to try it, and I wonder if it even has caffeine..."), but, apparently, yeah. Endives are a member of the chicory genus.

So, yeah, lets say that Invertatoes are a sort of fantasy plant similar to the various members of the chicory genus. The trunk can be replicated with chicory root, and the leaves with endives.

That leaves Dried Slime. Dried Slime makes up the noodles in the hot pot, which implies that the noodles are gelatinous, and probably low in gluten. Senshi's explanation of the slime makes me want to think of it as a macro-unicellular lifeform, but... I'm not sure that's accurate.

While it's definitely not an accurate way to describe a jellyfish, I could definitely see a non-biologist describing jellyfish in a way similar to the way Senshi describes the slime. I could also see some fantasy terrestrial jellyfish thing hunting in a similar manner to the slime. Moreover, there are edible varieties of jellyfish, and they're processed in a manner very similar to what Senshi describes for processing slimes. And one way of preparing edible jellyfish is to thinly slice it into noodles.

Hot Pots

I... think this is using a very specifically Japanese sense of "hot pot" (which makes sense), because in Japan, hot pot can refer to a dish called nabemono, while in general, hot pot refers to a particular kind of dining in China where you get a pot full of boiling stock/broth and a bunch of raw ingredients, and you put the stuff you want into the broth at the table. Nabemono is more of "put a bunch of stuff in a pot, and cook it. Serve it boiling." Which is to say, it's soup.

Senshi puts the scorpion meat and mushroom into a pot on its own, and lets it start boiling-

Then, while it's boiling, he goes and finds other ingredients, coming back with the invertatoes and the slime. The two are prepared simply-

Seasoning isn't included in the ingredients, but I can understand this as a choice for presentation. We do see Senshi add something to the broth after tasting it, and I think it's fair to assume it's one of soy sauce, mirin, fish sauce, or similar. I think it's actually really interesting that we see Senshi add seasoning, but we're not told what it is-

Because... that's cooking. You can follow a recipe, but ultimately, you need to taste your cooking and make your own decisions. Senshi lets the soup cook, tastes the broth, decides it needs something, and gives it a bit of time to let the flavors meld before serving it up.

Dungeon Meshi Lobster and Mushroom Hot Pot

So, we're looking at something like this for the "Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot"--

Lobster- ~5 lbs or more (a 1 lb lobster yields about 4 oz of actual meat, which is a single serving), cut into large slices

Portobello- 2 mushrooms large diced, 2 left whole with the caps scored

Reindeer Lichen and Fat Choy- to taste

Chicory Roots- ~1 cup, diced

Endive greens- ~2 cups

Jellyfish, thin sliced- as much as you like

Add lobster and mushrooms to water, and allow to boil. While it comes to a boil, prepare the other ingredients, then add to the water. Let the soup come to a full boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes to an hour (can simmer longer, but this will affect the texture of the ingredients. Longer simmering will result in more melding of flavors, but also degraded solid parts).

Taste the broth. It will likely need salt and acid, which could come in a variety of forms, such as kosher salt and lemon juice, soy sauce and mirin/rice vinegar, oyster/fish sauce, or something else. Go with your gut and your taste buds..

#Dungeon Meshi #Defictionalization #Cooking #Food #Huge Scorpion and Walking Mushroom Hot Pot #Lobster and Portobello Hot Pot #This actually isn't really my thing due to the mushrooms but hell #Cashapp: $ValravenApocalypse #Paypal.me/Korbl #Ko-fi.com/valravenapocalypse #If this gets 100 notes and people like it I'll do the carnivorous plant fruit tart #Delicious in Dungeon

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ratcandy · 3 months

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Seeing as ur a entomologist I like feel kinda silly using my limited bug facts to make a HC but I know ants are very pheromone driven and I can imagine Sozo feeling like super lost in the cult sober? Both like physically and mentally.

Like yes its very similar to a colony but there's like a biological factor missing that makes him feel lonely and disconnected. Cause he always mentions his family (wherever they are now) and how he clearly misses them and it could be the very fact lone ants don't survive long.

Like he can't get around well cause he probably barely left the grotto while infected and even then the Mushrooms led him back but there's no pheromone trail the cult. Or just having different task everyday. Cause I like to think he was like a scout since he was a researcher and not being able to do that role anymore like messes with him cause yeah it's easier to cook meals or serve a pint but he was like bred to do that and ant life is just so different from where he is now.

Sorry for rambling but i just really liked ur takes on Sozo and how you draw him and I wanted to share :]

DON'T WORRY about limited bug facts I am only a student!! And while I have done actual research on ants in an Ant Lab, that project was specifically about genome stuff regarding an invasive species, so my ant knowledge isn't super duper detailed!! I can just tell you basic stuff really sdghKJH

But the idea that Sozo would be absolutely Screwed Over in the cult due to pheromone fuckery* (or lack thereof) is totally valid!!!! And I love adding more things to make him suffer (lovingly) so Hell Yea. Whether the lack of a pheromone trail would be an issue for him or not would mostly depend on how anthropomorphized these guys are though,,,, regardless I am ALL for it

And definitely regarding him being lonely + Absolutely decimated by the fact he has no idea where he is or how to get back to his family. Like that whole situation is just Ow from an emotional standpoint, not even touching the Ant Biology. But touching the ant biology, ants having a lower life expectancy in isolation isn't just due to the Dangers, isolated ants just seemingly die faster than grouped ants, with no real known reason why (the journal I linked hypothesizes that it is a mixture of energy imbalance - as isolated ants tend to walk around more and spend a ton of energy - and issues with digesting food while alone). So that is a Very Real threat looming over him, if we're paying attention to that!!

AND Sozo being a colony's scout would make sense!! Not only for plot (him getting lost), but also for real ants, the older ones are the ones that do the foraging. Younger ants tend to stay at/near the colony while older ones go out longer distances (bees are the same way, it's called temporal polyethism!). So him being an Old Man on his last go out makes total sense. It's just an upsetting last excursion, since he can't get back to his family now.

And now he can't do it,,, yeah :( Having instaed to provide for this "new" colony that doesn't function the same way as he/his family did.... Culture shock to the Extreme

*(speaking of pheromone fuckery, now that we're talking about irl ant stuff, i had a really self-indulgent angst idea a while back about any of Sozo's family actually trying to track down where he was. Because if they did stumble across the grotto, before even getting NEAR the skull he hid away/died in, they would be able to sense the death pheromone. The very specific "i'm dead, bring me back to the colony" chemical that dead ants love to give off. like that would be a suck shit way to find out ur family member died)

#this is of course acknowledging (as is necessary) that Sozo is trans. Because if he were born male he wouldn't be doing any of that #Mans would be a reproductive and he would have wings and would've fucked off ages ago to . fuck around #but of course (as is necessary) sozo is trans. So #OK thanks for letting me bug ramble I love to bug ramble #ask #cotl sozo #sozo

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not-too-many-eyes · 1 year

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Do u happen to have any survive au notes?

I do in fact! I don't really talk about them much cause I'm still hammering out details (and by that I mean rotating scenes and drawings in head) but here's some AU notes:

I have a PMD AU cause I like Mystery Dungeon a lot and always thought a digimon mystery dungeon game would be fun, but I thought it be even more fun if the character's are turned into digimon but they still landed in the Pokemon world. Post-Truthful, they are there digimon cause...well half of their soul it all lines up. Where are there digimon...no clue. Usually in Mystery Dungeon evolving is blocked for some reason or another but since there NOT pokemon it means they can and that just breaks everything in half.

I'm...not sure if I'm roping in the amnesia trope Mystery Dungeon has, and if I am I'm going to play around with it a lot. I'll think on that.

Concrete PMD AU thoughts: Everyone arrives a few days after the other, so it isn't sequential, and not always in the same area, some do arrive in pairs though (Miu and Kaito arrive together for example) The place they all eventually settle in is a city. I've always wanted to play around with Pokemon cities and it's so different from the setting in Survive it just seems fun. I like to think that to some level the kids look more comfortable in Dungeons rather than in the city due to this.

There's this little cafe run by this nice Sylveon and sometimes they go there for group meetings.

COLOR-CODED SCARFS!

Overall the tone is Lighter but like...considering PMD at the moment has a lot of slightly eldritch big bosses which mind control and/or send people to actual hell...y'know.

Anyway I Also Have my Magical Girl AU but that one is more of a mega crossover AU cause...I thought it be fun if I lumped all the digimon continuities (well...ones I know) in that AU as magical people.

Really it's just a flip of the Digimon-Human partnership dynamic, Digivolution is an outfit upgrade and a power-up. Jogress is...I'll figure that out but Steven Universe Style Fusion is on the table cause I like it.

The digimon doesn't necessarily inform the costume, this is mostly because I cannot imagine certain character's having outfits that look like there digimon.

I like to think the Frontier Kids are very well known because I like to think they were the first to go to the Digital World in this AU cause of there season thing. I don't know much about the Frontier kids honestly so I'll get back to what there up to when I finish it. All I know is, everyone comes back for festivals!

The Survive kids are the most recent Rising Group, they slowly grabbed there members, it starts with Aoi Minoru and Takuma, followed by Saki and Ryo, then Miu and Kaito and then finally Shuuji. What is Haru and Miyuki doing? ...I'll figure it out.

Digimon Adventure 02 shows the International Digidestined and I'm still going to incorporate that, but due to how the Digital World works in my head you can travel some distance and find them if you want.

Shuuji and Ryo are interesting cases in this AU, for similar reasons why they are in canon but Ryo comes in earlier because...well less running for your life and possible death hanging over his head. So Ryo actually comes in As A Magical Girl already.

Think this AU is a bit like the setting of Jewelpet Twinkle. The Digital World is actually calm most of the time and there's a bunch of cities and towns around and a lot of times you can just come in and have a good time, maybe do an errand or two for a nice Ogremon who needs some mushrooms from a high mountain. But sometimes there are actual giant problems that need to be fought.

Related to Ryo, Shuuji comes in last because his problems are not helped at All by this setting, honestly the switch of who's fighting and the fact he's at his house makes it worse.

On How Kids are Chosen: I like to think it's a Savers situation where certain Digimon just gravitate towards certain kids. Not really because there the other half of their soul, but because those kids just called to them somehow.

Uh I have more but those aren't Survive-related and more about the other teams but yeah!

I have other scattered thoughts about other concepts but they aren't really detailed enough to make them an AU yknow.

#digimon #digimon survive #asks #Its really nice to ramble about AUs

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