‘It‘s fortunate that you get a good rest’ Lee Yeon-bok’s cooking, which creates something out of nothing, has captured the attention of viewers.

Episode 30 of the MBC entertainment program ‘It‘s fortunate that you get a good rest’ (directed by Kim Myung-jin, Shin Hyun-bin, Lee Jun-beom, Kim Ki-ho / written by Kwon Jeong-hee / hereinafter ‘It’s fortunate that you get a good rest’), which aired on the 6th, was composed of two parts of ‘Chefs on the Deserted Island’, featuring Chinese cuisine god Lee Yeon-bok, Japanese cuisine master Jeong Ho-yeong, Western cuisine king Fabri, 0.5-star deserted island executive Boom, and Trot‘s crown prince Park Ji-hyun. According to Nielsen Korea, a viewership rating research agency, the broadcast that day recorded a nationwide viewership rating of 5.4%, showing the highest rating among all entertainment programs broadcast on Mondays, demonstrating the power of Monday entertainment.

On that day, Boom and the chefs had a fierce battle to find ingredients in a 0.5-star mudflat. The chefs couldn’t hide their excitement at the ingredients such as clams and mussels that came out every time they put their hands in the mudflat. The sight of the three people burning with competition at Boom‘s words, “You have to catch what you’ll use for your own cooking,” made people laugh. In addition, the crown prince of trot Park Ji-hyun, who came to the Goheung Yuja Festival near a 0.5-star uninhabited island to hold an event and stopped by as a worker, joined in, adding to the excitement.

In the midst of all this, Lee Yeon-bok caught enough clams to cook and said, “Oops. I caught them all. I‘ll go first,” making everyone burst out laughing at his childish(?) words. Boom dissed them, saying, “Still, please maintain your adult appearance,” and after hearing this, Lee Yeon-bok quickly reflected and went back to focusing on fishing. After gathering strength while listening to Park Ji-hyun’s work song, they returned to the 0.5-star uninhabited island with plenty of ingredients.

From shrimp caught the day before to clams caught from the tidal flats, the abundance of ingredients raised expectations for breakfast. However, Boom decided to unify the breakfast menu to accommodate the hungry guests due to time constraints. Fabri chose ‘Vongole Pasta’ and Jeong Ho-yeong chose ‘Cold Udon’, showing off their respective specialties. Lee Yeon-bok, who couldn‘t be outdone, took out a new menu called ‘Shrimp Noodle Jjamppong’. This menu stimulated the curiosity of not only the guests but also the chefs, and was chosen as the breakfast menu.

Lee Yeon-bok finely chopped shrimp meat and used it to make noodles, and added his know-how to create a spicy jajangmyeon broth, creating a dish that had never been seen before, ‘Shrimp Noodle Jjajangmyeon’. Jeong Ho-young and Fabri were amazed, saying, “This is so amazing”, and Ahn Jung-hwan, who was watching in the studio, also exclaimed, “Emperor Jjajangmyeon”.



After serving breakfast to the guests, they went back out to sea for dinner. They were divided into the Boom, Park Ji-hyun, and Fabri team and the Lee Yeon-bok and Jeong Ho-young team and went fishing with longlines. The two teams, determined to catch more than the other team, competed by pulling up their fishing lines and catching a variety of fish, from red snapper to rockfish and eel. Fabri, who especially wanted a large fish for fish steak, cheered and said, “Miracle!” when he caught a large fish at the end.

Dinnertime, which came with such an abundance of ingredients, came, and unlike the first day when they fought over the menu order, this time they decided the order with one mind and one heart solely for the guests. Lee Yeon-bok made “Menbosha,” proudly saying, “My Menbosha is the best in Korea,” Fabri made “Fish Steak,” and Jeong Ho-yeong made “Fish Cake Soup,” using high-quality fish cakes.

Among them, Lee Yeon-bok’s cooking process of making Menbosha without fish or shrimp caught the eye. Instead of shrimp, he made the filling with crab and red snapper meat, and instead of bread, he made bread-shaped bread with potatoes to create a one-of-a-kind Menbosha. Everyone could not help but admire Lee Yeon-bok’s ability to make the best dish even in extreme environments. Here, the viewers’ mouths were watered by the feast of dishes that can only be found on a 0.5-star uninhabited island, including the ‘Water Steak’ with Michelin Chef Fabri‘s special sauce and the world’s first ‘Handmade Fish Cake Soup with Red Mackerel’.

Meanwhile, the preview released at the end of the broadcast featured the world-conquering golden swordsman Oh Sang-wook, stimulating curiosity by showing off his unexpected charm as a ‘coy swordsman’ wandering around on a deserted island. MBC‘s ‘Good to Get a Good Rest’ airs every Monday at 9 p.m.

Reporter Choi Yoon-na, Donga.com yyynnn@donga.com