Chapter 17: Those Who Mess with Food

“Boss, how much pork jowl do you have?”

“Today we have about 15 pigs’ worth… so maybe 7.5kg?”

“I’ll take it all!”

Pork neck fillet confirmed.

[Pork – Neck Fillet]

Time since slaughter: 4 hours

Current freshness: 97/100

Meat color: Bright red

Fat color: Cream

Location: Between the 7th and 8th ribs

Intramuscular fat: ★★★★★

Juice retention: ★★★★★

Tenderness: ★★★★★

Meat aroma: ★★★★☆

pH measurement: 5.7

PSE meat possibility: None

Special notes: Marbling like beef ribeye, rich in juice when grilled

“What about the neck fillet?”

“It’s about 250g per pig… so there’s about 3.7kg.”

“I’ll take all of that too!”

Boss Yu looked like he had completely lost his words now.

Just then, some meat placed in the corner caught my eye.

No, to be precise, my ability reacted to it.

‘What is that…?’

“Boss Yu, what is that?”

“Oh, that? It’s pork skirt meat. It doesn’t sell well, so…”

When I touched it…

[Pork – Skirt Meat]

Time since slaughter: 6 hours

Current freshness: 95/100

Meat color: Deep red

Fat color: Milky white

Location: Diaphragm area

Intramuscular fat: ★★★☆☆

Juice retention: ★★★★☆

Tenderness: ★★★★☆

Meat aroma: ★★★★★

pH measurement: 5.8

PSE meat possibility: None

Special notes: Top-tier cut for Yakiniku

‘This is the real deal!’

Harami.

In Japanese Yakiniku specialty shops, it is treated as a top-tier cut, and that Harami was right here.

In Korea, it’s just pork skirt meat that nobody cares about, but in Japan, it’s a precious cut sold at prices rivaling some beef cuts.

“How much skirt meat do you have?”

“Including yesterday’s, about 8kg?”

“Give me all of it!”

Boss Yu burst into laughter.

“This is the first time I’ve seen someone buy skirt meat like this. Can you handle it?”

“Rather than handling it, since it’s my first time, I’m doing it with the mindset of being prepared for a loss.”

I pretended to be humble, but I couldn’t stop the corners of my mouth from twitching upward.

To be honest, I hadn’t lacked confidence even once.

Finally, I checked the cheek meat.

[Pork – Cheek Meat]

Time since slaughter: 4 hours

Current freshness: 97/100

Meat color: Light pink

Fat color: Pure white

Location: Cheek area

Intramuscular fat: ★★★★★

Juice retention: ★★★★★

Tenderness: ★★★★★

Meat aroma: ★★★☆☆

pH measurement: 5.6

PSE meat possibility: None

Special notes: Texture that melts like butter

“Give me 3kg of the cheek meat.”

“Got it. That’s 22.2kg in total.”

Boss Yu tapped on his calculator.

“Boss Yu, would it be possible to secure this kind of volume once a week?”

“Of course!”

“Thank you!”

***

On the way back after loading the meat onto the truck.

The quantity wasn’t huge, but I was confident I could win with quality.

‘Especially the skirt meat. This is going to be a huge hit.’

When I arrived at the shop, Minjae was already there waiting for me.

“Brother! How did it go?”

“22kg of special cuts! We’re going with a small elite force!”

“Oh, that sounds perfect for scarcity marketing.”

Minjae also marveled when the boxes were opened.

“Wow… look at the color of the meat. Is this color for real?”

“Heh, let’s turn the online butcher world upside down!”

Moderate quantity, supreme quality.

This was our strategy.

***

11:00 AM.

Ding-dong!

“Brother! It’s the first order!”

Minjae shouted from in front of the laptop.

“Really? What did they order?”

“500g of skirt meat and 300g of pork jowl!”

I checked the customer information. It was a regular customer from Seongjin Raw Beef.

[Order Note: I’m ordering after seeing the flyer at the raw beef shop. I’m curious about the skirt meat!]

“Uncle Seongjin’s flyer worked!”

“I’ll start packing right away! But Brother, what exactly is skirt meat?”

“What… you were going to sell it without even knowing that?”

Minjae scratched his head.

“Just because you said it was good…”

“People know about beef skirt meat, but they don’t know pork very well.”

I explained as I took out the meat.

“Skirt meat is the pig’s diaphragm. It’s the muscle located inside the ribs.”

“The diaphragm?”

“The muscle used for breathing. Because it moves a lot, it has a deep meat aroma.”

I showed him the skirt meat.

It was deep red with moderate marbling.

It looked almost like beef hanging tender.

“See? It looks completely different from pork belly, right?”

“Huh? The color really is deep. It looks like beef.”

“Exactly. And when you grill it…”

Sizzle—

The juices danced as they flowed out.

I took out a pan and grilled a piece.

“Wow… the smell is amazing!”

“Try it.”

“Mmm… eh? What is this!”

Minjae’s eyes widened.

“It’s chewy yet soft… and the meat flavor is so intense… Brother, is this really pork?”

“Right? In Japan, they call it Harami. It’s a top-tier cut.”

“But why isn’t it famous in Korea?”

“Because people don’t know it. And you only get less than 400g from one pig.”

“Ah… so that’s why it’s rare.”

Minjae nodded.

“With this kind of taste, I think it’s going to be a total hit.”

“That’s why I bought it.”

It was then.

Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

Notifications started ringing consecutively.

“Oh? More are coming in!”

As lunchtime approached, orders flooded in.

“500g of neck fillet!”

“1kg of pork jowl!”

“Add 300g of skirt meat!”

12 orders by 3:00 PM.

They were all customers from Seongjin Raw Beef.

“Brother, this is actually working!”

“I didn’t expect Uncle Seongjin’s effect to be this big. Minjae, since these are the first orders, pay extra attention.”

“Don’t worry!”

[The packaging prepared by Minjae]

Vacuum-sealed meat

Descriptions for each cut

QR code for grilling instructions

Handwritten letter

Small gift, premium salt

“Brother, please write a small note for each order package.”

“What kind of note?”

“Something like ‘Thank you for your first order. We prepared the best meat.’ That kind of thing.”

***

Closing on the first day.

“Brother! 23 orders total today!”

“23 orders?”

It was more than I expected.

“The sales are… 620,000 won!”

“On the first day?”

“Uncle Seongjin’s customers have incredible purchasing power.”

I analyzed the order contents.

Skirt meat: 15 orders

Pork jowl: 12 orders

Neck fillet: 8 orders

Cheek meat: 3 orders

“The skirt meat is the winner. Everyone must have been curious since it’s a cut they don’t know well. They know their meat, so they didn’t have any hesitation about trying a new cut.”

***

Two days later.

Ring ring!

“Yes, this is Hidden Gem Butchery.”

“I’m the person who ordered skirt meat yesterday.”

My heart shrank at the first customer call I’d ever received.

To think I’d get so timid over a single phone call…

Is it a refund?

“The thing is… it was so delicious that I had to call!”

“Oh, really?”

“It’s a taste I’ve never had before! I want to reorder. 1kg this time!”

From then on, the phone started ringing non-stop.

“I’m a regular at Seongjin Raw Beef, and a friend told me to try the skirt meat…”

“The neck fillet is really good. I’ll order 1kg!”

“The pork jowl I received yesterday was so good, I want 5 sets for gifts…”

In just three days, the stock was completely depleted.

“Brother! Skirt meat is sold out!”

“Already?”

“8kg in just three days…”

Minjae said excitedly.

“I should go to Majang-dong tomorrow to buy more.”

“There are already five reviews up.”

[Skirt meat is insane… the pork of a lifetime]

[Bought it because I trust Seongjin Raw Beef, and I’m fully satisfied!]

[Is the softness of this pork jowl for real? 100% reordering]

“Junho! I heard the news.”

Uncle Seongjin called.

“Our customers are making a fuss. They say your meat is delicious!”

“It’s all thanks to you, Uncle.”

“What are you talking about? It’s because the meat is good.”

Uncle laughed as he spoke.

“Secure more volume starting next week. Once word of mouth starts spreading, you won’t be able to keep up.”

It was true.

First week sales: 1.8 million won.

With Uncle Seongjin’s help, the start was a success.

***

That afternoon, at Junho’s father’s butcher shop.

An unfamiliar customer walked in.

A woman in her 40s; she wasn’t a face from this neighborhood.

“Boss, give me 2kg of pork belly.”

“Ah… I’m sorry. We don’t carry pork belly.”

My father said apologetically.

“You don’t have pork belly? In a butcher shop?”

“Are you new to the neighborhood? It’s my first time seeing you.”

“Yes, yes. I moved in last week and wanted to grill some meat for the first time. I asked around, and the neighbors recommended this place as the best.”

“What should I do? We’re focusing mainly on special cuts. Instead…”

Father hesitated for a long time before speaking.

“Rather than the Mega Meat in front, there are butcher shops further inside the market. You should buy from there. Their pork belly is better.”

“Where?”

“All three places are decent.”

The woman looked surprised.

“You’re introducing me to your competitors?”

“Well… the customer needs it, and we can’t provide it.”

Father laughed bashfully.

This man, my father in 2025, was this kind of person.

A soft-hearted man who couldn’t completely turn his back on people, even if he was wronged.

***

The next afternoon.

The same woman came back.

This time, she didn’t look happy.

“Boss, today I’ll just buy some special cuts here. That pork belly from the place you recommended yesterday…”

“Yes? Why? Was there a problem?”

“It was terrible. It was for a housewarming party since I just moved in, and I just ended up feeling upset.”

Father looked puzzled.

“Terrible… was there a specific issue?”

“It was tough, and it smelled a bit… I wondered if it was even pork belly.”

“That shouldn’t be… the market owners all get decent pork belly… Ah, what should I do? I’m sorry. I’ll give you some extra of another cut.”

“No, it’s not like you were the one who sold it.”

Their conversation reached my ears as I came out of the storage room to organize some goods.

“Ma’am, which pork belly was bad?”

“I bought it from Choi Daegam Butchery inside the market…”

Choi Daegam Butchery meant Boss Choi.

Upon hearing that name, I had a gut feeling.

“Ma’am, did you eat all of that pork belly?”

“No. I ate half and it was so bad that I put the rest in the freezer.”

“Perhaps…”

I thought for a moment but made up my mind.

“Could you bring that here tomorrow?”

“You want me to bring it?”

“Yes. If they accidentally gave you something of poor quality, I’ll exchange it for our special cuts.”

Father looked at me with surprised eyes.

“Junho, what on earth…”

“It’s a place Father recommended, so if it was bad, we should take responsibility.”

“Oh my, is that okay?”

“Ma’am, in exchange, you have to become our regular.”

“Oho, the young boss has good business sense.”

The woman looked pleased.

“Then, I’ll bring it tomorrow.”

“Yes, please bring it. I’ll exchange it for another delicious cut.”

After the woman left, Father asked.

“Why are we dealing with another shop’s meat…”

“Father, doesn’t something feel strange?”

“What?”

“There’s no way Boss Choi sold bad meat. The place he gets it from is obvious.”

“…”

“We’ll know when we see it tomorrow.”

The phone rang. It was Minjae.

“Brother! Another online order came in! Pork jowl and neck fillet!”

“Got it, I’ll get it ready.”

I took off my gloves.

“Father, I’m heading out. Take it easy.”

“Yeah, alright. Be careful when you’re carrying things.”

***

The next afternoon, at Junho’s father’s butcher shop.

Ding!

The door opened, and the woman from yesterday walked in.

A black plastic bag was in her hand.

“Welcome. You brought it?”

“Yes, here it is.”

The woman handed over the bag.

Inside was rock-hard frozen pork belly.

Father took it and examined it here and there.

“Hmm… since you froze it at home, in this state…”

Father tilted his head.

Even with 30 years of experience, it wasn’t easy to distinguish in a frozen state.

I lightly touched the meat.

In an instant, information surfaced.

[Pork – Pork Belly]

Origin: Chile

Initial freezing date: October 15, 2024

1st thawing: August 7, 2025

Refreezing: August 9, 2025

Current freshness: 31/100

Freezing/Thawing cycles: 2 times

Cell destruction rate: 68%

Drip loss: Estimated 20%

Fat rancidity: Medium

Special notes: Quality degradation due to repeated freezing and thawing

‘As I thought… it was frozen Chilean meat.’

But I couldn’t say that in front of the woman.

I had no evidence right now, and it would only cause a pointless commotion.

“Ma’am, since you had such an experience, I’ll give you a special service.”

“Oh, really?”

“I’ll give you 500g of pork jowl and 300g of neck fillet. Our special cuts.”

Father looked at me in shock, but I gave him a signal with my eyes.

“Oh my, doing this much…”

“It’s because you had a bad experience at a place Father recommended. By the way, how much did you pay at Choi Daegam Butchery?”

“I bought 2kg because guests were coming… hold on.”

“Did you perhaps pay 43,600 won?”

The woman pulled a receipt out of the bag.

“Yes, that’s right. You’re like a fortune teller! Haha!”

“Ah… yes, well…”

‘Just as I thought… he charged the price for domestic meat.’

I carefully packed the special cuts and handed them over.

“You’ll know the difference when you grill them. What real good meat is like.”

“I’m really grateful. I’ll buy from here from now on.”

“Ma’am, please leave your contact info as well. We manage our regular customers.”

“Aha, butcher shops do all sorts of things these days.”

The woman wrote down her number and left with a happy expression. As soon as the door closed, Father asked.

“Junho, there’s something going on, isn’t there?”

“Yes, Father. I think so.”

I took out the frozen pork belly again.

“This is Chilean.”

“What? How can you tell in a frozen state?”

Father had an expression of disbelief.

“Father, look at this.”

I scraped off a part of the meat with a knife.

Though it was frozen, I could peel off the surface slightly.

“Do you see the color of the fat layer here?”

“Hmm…”

“Domestic meat, even when frozen, doesn’t have fat that turns this grayish-yellow.”

Father looked closely.

“You’re right… the color is definitely a bit…”

“And here, look at the muscle grain.”

It was frozen, but if you looked closely, you could see it.

“The grain is too coarse. The tissue was all destroyed through freezing, thawing, and refreezing.”

“Really?”

To thaw it a bit more, I submerged it in lukewarm water for about 5 minutes.

The surface began to melt slightly.

“Now look.”

I pressed the half-thawed part. Water leaked out.

“Drip is already coming out like this. If you freeze domestic fresh meat, it doesn’t happen like this.”

Father touched the meat. The sensation his hands felt after 30 years of experience.

“Truly… this is definitely frozen meat.”

“And old frozen meat at that. It was probably frozen around October last year.”

“How can you know even that…”

“Just the texture. And this smell.”

The unique smell coming from the slightly melted part.

“Imported frozen meat has a specific smell.”

“That’s right. You even know things like that?”

Father sighed.

“…Boss Choi… really did something like this?”

“Probably because sales dropped because of Mega Meat…”

“Even so, this isn’t right.”

“I agree.”

Father’s face was full of disappointment.

To think that someone he did business with in the same neighborhood would do such a thing.

“Selling imported frozen meat while charging domestic prices to customers…”

“Father, what should we do about this?”

Father laughed hollowly.

“The world is going crazy.”

The pressure from Mega Meat.

And the corruption of fellow merchants.

The war had already begun, and everyone was struggling to survive.

“Shouldn’t we report this?”

“Still, a neighbor…”

Father couldn’t make a decision. The bond of being neighbors held him back.

“For now… let’s think about it more.”

“Father!”

My voice grew harsh.

“Do you know who the most inhuman people are?”

Father looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“It’s the ones who mess with food.”

Memories of the year 2157 flashed through my mind.

Corporations that sold cultured meat while hiding genetic manipulation.

Scammers who faked protein content and sold it at high prices.

“Deceiving people with food they eat every day… that is truly the worst.”

“Junho…”

“A neighbor of 30 years? That kind of person plays around with the health of his neighbors? Did Boss Park, who went bankrupt, go under because he didn’t know how to do things like this?”

Strength entered my voice. Father was speechless.

“Father, this isn’t a matter of neighborly bonds. It’s a matter of justice.”

“…”

“You must never forgive messing with food. That is my philosophy.”

Whether in 2157 or 2025.

It was a conviction that did not change even as eras passed.

Father sighed.

“I understand… let’s just think about it for today.”

“Father!”

“Junho, please. Just for today.”

Father retreated into the back of the shop as if avoiding me.

His shoulders looked heavy.

I looked at the frozen pork belly again.

If Father couldn’t do it, I had to.

Those who mess with food.

I had no desire to live as a neighbor to people like that.