Beuttep Cuisine

Subterranean Ingredients

The Beuttep? dwell within the depths of Tchaoxlik?, where only a few species of plant and animal life reside. As a result, the ingredients available to them are incredibly limited. What's more, they have yet to discover fire— giving them even fewer options to prepare these limited ingredients. A variety of mosses, insects, lichen, mushrooms, fish, and algae are available to them, and make up the grand majority of their dishes. It's only in the past year that foreign ingredients have made their way to the subterranean people, and even then they've appeared only in Pottott. Much too recent to become staple.

Can't you smell it? The still moistened algae? The freshly diced mushrooms? Listen, stranger, hear how it gently waves in the air. You may have eyes— but I do not envy you. You will never experience our meals the way we do.
— A Beuttep cook

Dishes

Staples

Moss balls: Moss is first washed and flattened, next mushrooms are placed inside— then the whole thing is rounded into a ball. This can be mixed with insects still found within the moss for protein.

Algae moss salad: Dried, rounded and flattened "leaves" of algae make the base of the dish, while clumps of algae and mushroom placed inside. Occasionally includes moss balls for extra texture.

Sushi: Pale, eyeless fish are caught in nets, gutted, and rolled with algae.

Pollnor: Red lichen (which the Beuttep recognize by shape and touch rather than color) is placed on a plate, fish are then cut and placed over it. A variety of mosses and mushrooms are mixed with water into a sauce which is poured over the dish, before the entire meal is topped with leaves of algae.

Holl ttor: A delicacy, once a holl dies— regardless of whether or not it perished in battle— the last warriors to fight alongside it will cut and prepare the small animal with an algae-mushroom garnish.

I smiled politely, though I did not expect that my hosts could see this. The dish before me was, honestly, quite far from what I would typically choose to dine upon— but they had saved my life. I owed it to them. I was glad they couldn't see my face as I slowly managed to eat the whole thing.
— A Rektouzk trader

Drinks

Algae juice: Algae is taken from water, filtered a number of times, and finally mixed back into clean water with a thicker consistency.

Notto: Algae is prepared as above, and mushrooms are ground into a mush— both ingredients are mixed with water.

Lleutt: Water is served inside the hollowed head of a mushroom, giving it a subtle flavor.

Deserts

Fettep rall: The sweet— almost sugary— fettep mushroom is cut into small pieces, and placed between layers of algae.

Fettep: Sometimes, the mushroom itself is all one needs. To the Beuttep, it is a nigh divine gift.

Ah! Fettep! It aids one's journey. The hunters are re-energized, leaders are quicker to think and slower to tire. Something like this can be no less than a gift from Auroull herself!
— A hungry Beuttep