Ginbayashi Yoko is a top-class chef at a high-end Italian restaurant, but her life is turned upside down when the owner runs away with all the earnings, forcing the restaurant to close. With two children to support, she takes a job at a local men’s prison as a nutritionist, where her main duties involve planning monthly menus.
In the prison kitchen, however, she is constantly called in to deal with inexperienced inmate cooks, leading to chaotic situations like exploding croquettes and basic cooking questions. Though initially intimidated by the inmates, Yoko gradually finds herself amused and moved by their earnest efforts. Despite a strict daily food budget of 543 yen per person, she works with staff to create inventive dishes that begin to win over both the inmates’ stomachs and hearts.
When a former inmate she helped send off is arrested again, Yoko is shaken by the reality of high recidivism. Encouraged by the warden, she resolves to pursue rehabilitation through food, questioning whether people can truly change and what she herself can achieve. Thus begins her new challenge—aiming for “three-star prison cuisine.”
(Source: Japanese = NHK || Translation/Edit = MyDramaList)
~~ Adapted from the book "Mezase! Mushoran Mitsuboshi Keimusho Eiyoshi, Kyo mo Jukeisha to Kusa Kunai Meshi Tsukurimasu" (めざせ！ ムショラン三ツ星 刑務所栄養士、今日も受刑者とクサくないメシ作ります) by Kuroyanagi Keiko (黒栁桂子).
