Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

A roaring fire snake erupted, instantly soaring above Lin Chen’s head, but it only lasted two or three seconds before it diminished by half.

The giant iron wok in Lin Chen’s hand seemed like a toy, swaying back and forth with a flick of his wrist, as strips of meat as thick as fries danced up and down in the air, gradually changing color under the blaze.

This step was originally supposed to involve ’slipping’ — a quick high-temperature deep-frying to preliminarily cook the ingredients.

But for the sake of performance, he changed it to a stir-fry format.

The amount of oil had to be enough to give the meat strips a tender texture and to provide sufficient fuel for the flames.

After most of the meat strips had changed color, Lin Chen placed the wok on the edge of the stove, spooning all the meat into a strainer to drain the oil.

All that was left in the wok was a thin layer of oil; the excess was scooped out, and it was put back on the fire to reheat.

The rich aroma of meat lingering in the oil that had cooked the meat erupted again as the temperature rose, now with a hint of charred fragrance, smelling somewhat like grilled bacon.

"Gulp."

The two men took a deep breath of the meat aroma wafting in the air, involuntarily swallowing their saliva.

They didn’t speak, but fixated on Lin Chen’s actions, eager to see how authentic Great Xia Cuisine was made.

The air in the wok gradually distorted, with wisps of blue smoke subtly rising. Lin Chen, quick-eyed and deft, immediately tossed scallions, ginger, and garlic into the wok.

"Sizzle."

In just a blink, the alluring burst of oil created a rich garlic aroma that overpowered the previous meat scent.

Lin Chen didn’t hesitate a bit. He quickly stirred the ingredients with the spatula to heat them evenly and prevent burning before tossing in the remaining carrot, green pepper, and bamboo shoots.

His wrist quickly shook twice to give all ingredients a light glaze of oil, then he gave a powerful toss, causing the blazing heat wave to strike, and flames erupted spontaneously inside the wok once more.

"Wow..."

The sudden surge of heat startled the two, instinctively stepping back with raised arms to shield half their faces. Realizing the situation, they felt a bit embarrassed, yet maintained an elegant smile.

It didn’t take long — only about ten seconds — before Lin Chen tossed the pre-stir-fried meat strips back into the wok, quickly mixing everything to even the blend before stirring fish-fragrant sauce they’d prepared into the mixture.

"Sizzle—"

A wave of steam spread carrying a unique, tangy-sweet fragrance, almost reminiscent of fish.

If they hadn’t witnessed Lin Chen blending the sauce, they’d have thought it was some sauce made with fish bone broth.

Because the fish-fragrant sauce contained starch, it quickly thickened upon heat exposure.

Lin Chen continued to toss the wok, ensuring the sauce fully coated each ingredient’s surface, closely inspecting the visually flying ingredients as if assessing their doneness.

At a certain moment, the spatula rose from the wok, and he casually poured in half a ladle of hot oil along the edge from the earlier oil pyrex, while his tossing motion continued.

"Whoosh!"

With the addition of hot oil, the previously extinguished flames erupted once more, intensifying the tangy-sweet fish fragrance.

After a quick fifteen-second stir-fry, Lin Chen rested the wok on the stove edge, scooping a full serving of the glossy fragrant meat strips into a stainless steel bowl.

"Done so fast?"

The two, who had never seen Chinese cooking before, were in disbelief, hurriedly leaning forward to get a closer look.

The dish was a dark reddish-brown in appearance, with the glaze over each ingredient luminescent under sunlight.

The green peppers intermingled with the reddish-brown meat strips, adding bright spots to the otherwise dull atmosphere.

Importantly, up close, the unique fish fragrance became even more intense, the tangy-sweet scent relentlessly infiltrating their nostrils, causing an uncontrollable rush of saliva.

"These meat strips look so tasty, soft, and tender, surely with plenty of juices!"

"Managing such a large dish in just a few minutes is impressive, so this is the Great Xia chef’s cooking style? How did those flames appear?"

Lin Chen ignored them, signaling Wang Ziqin with a look while he started cleaning the wok, preparing to make the next dish.

Elsa, who had been waiting nearby, promptly brought the heavy bowl of fragrant meat strips to the dining cart and moved it towards the serving stove.

"Nicole!"

At this time, Zhao Shun shouted and started scooping out the wine-red ribs, finally sprinkling a handful of white sesame seeds for garnish.

Moments after they began, Old Chen raised his hand, signaling the finished braised pork.

The potato beef brisket needed another ten minutes of simmering, Zhao Shun didn’t need to look, quickly cleaning the wok and rushing over to assist Old Chen.

With the three working seamlessly in cooperation, a series of aromatic, visually appealing stir-fried dishes successively emerged, and the entire space was filled with the enticing scent of meat.

Each time they made a dish, Wang Ziqin would roughly introduce a few sentences to the two guests, but his explanations were somewhat vague. After all, he’s not a professional chef, and many things could only be glossed over.

It was precisely because of this vague explanation style that made the two Hunters increasingly curious about the cooking mode and techniques of Great Xia. Plus, seeing all these magical skills firsthand, they began to feel that Chinese cuisine seemed more impressive than Western cuisine.

However, the two quickly adjusted their mindset, knowing that they harbor such thoughts mainly because they know very little about Chinese cuisine, adding mystery and a touch of curiosity.

It’s just like hunting; there’s no method that is absolutely powerful and effective. It mainly depends on different situations and targets to decide on the hunting method to use.

Wang Ziqin glanced at his watch: "Shall we start serving? Although there are still a few dishes unfinished, if we wait any longer, we’ll have to compete with so many diners for food."

The two had long noticed the lengthy queue of diners, imagined the scene in their minds, shivered involuntarily, and nodded quickly.

"Let’s do as you say."

They didn’t fear crowded places, as years of training granted them plenty of muscle and strength; their reaction speed was well beyond that of regular people.

But nonetheless, they were prestigious figures; bullying ordinary diners with their strength would only harm their own and the association’s reputation if word got out. It was not worth the loss.

Under Wang Ziqin’s lead, the two each served themselves half a box of rice steamed in a steamer, and the distinctive aroma immediately caught their eyes.

"Turns out rice can be made this way. Great idea, would this method work using hollow wood or bamboo out in the wild?"

"This rice actually has a woody fragrance, is fluffy, and smells even better than when cooked in a pot, perfect texture and taste."

The two eagerly scooped a spoonful of white rice into their mouths for a taste, chewing and nodding, their faces full of surprised smiles.

Next, they went straight to the dish of fish-flavored shredded pork.

For this dish whose complete preparation process they were seeing for the first time in their lives, they felt a unique obsession in their hearts, determined to taste what this Great Xia Cuisine was like.

"Serve a little less of it; there’s so much more food, and tasting each is sufficient for you to eat two full boxes."

Wang Ziqin took the lead to demonstrate to them, using tongs to pick a bit of fish-flavored shredded pork and place it in the corner of the lunch box, roughly enough for two bites.

"Is this self-service?"

"No worries, we eat more than regular people, can handle it, if we can’t finish, I’ll pack it to go!"

"...Though we’re not charging for you, packing food from a self-serve buffet is a bit..."

"Uh, you have a point. I wasn’t considerate enough; can I start tasting now?"

Saying this, the two imitated his movements, picking some dishes and placing them on the rice, then used their own spoon to scoop a spoonful of meat coated in rich sauce into their mouths impatiently.

The moment the meat entered their mouths, the distinctive sweet and sour taste burst forth, their already rumbling stomachs opening up completely.

Just like it appeared, the meat’s texture was unexpectedly tender and juicy; when their teeth bit into it, it felt as though it had life, trying to escape.

The meat surface was coated with a slippery paste, not thick, just a thin layer that perfectly wrapped the meat juice inside while allowing the thick sweet and sour sauce to adequately cover the meat’s surface.

Apart from this, there was a very pronounced roasted aroma, extremely similar to when they grilled meat with open flames in the wilderness but with the smoky flavor removed, leaving only special scents.

After just one bite, their eyes widened, they quickly scooped up two spoonfuls of white rice.

The sweet and sour sauce blended with the fluffy and chewy wooden steamed rice, elevating the overall flavor profile, giving the rice an exquisitely delicious taste.

Without hesitation, both simultaneously reached out and grabbed the tongs placed on the plate in front of them.

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They exchanged looks and silently started applying force.

"Let go, let me grab first."

"Why should you go first? Didn’t you see my hand holding the tongs? I grabbed it first!"

"I won’t let go; you won’t be grabbing; the control is in my hands."

"Nonsense, as if you could grab without me letting go; you haven’t even touched the tongs!"

Standing quietly to the side, Wang Ziqin shook his head humorously, casually picking a piece of sweet and sour rib from the dining stove, grabbing the bone part, and handing it to one of them.

The man looked at the rib before him in confusion, sniffed, and his eyes lit up.

It really had a plum taste?

Without thinking further, he immediately opened his mouth and swallowed it whole, chewing.

The tender rib was completely soaked in the flavor of sweet and sour plum sauce, similar yet distinctly different from the fish-flavored shredded pork, a different form of deliciousness.