Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

I thought this pineapple would be sliced or grilled whole like in Brazilian barbecue restaurants, but surprisingly it was cut into small pieces and grilled with meat skewers. Would cooking them this way make them tastier?

Given the deliciousness of the Great Xia food tasted today, Alex quickly put aside his doubts and chose to trust Lin Chen’s culinary skills.

Even stepping back, grilled pineapple is quite delicious on its own, so it’s unlikely to taste bad.

"Lin, to what degree should these meat skewers be grilled?"

Swallowing hard, he couldn’t wait to taste them, turning his head towards Lin Chen, who was placing a frying pan on the grill.

Lin Chen glanced at the status of the skewers: "The venison skewers will be medium-done in about three more minutes. If you prefer medium-rare, you can eat them now. The pork skewers need an additional one or two minutes compared to the venison."

"?"

Alex stared at the skewers in front of him, all sizzling with oil and appealingly charred on the surface, which gave no clue to their doneness.

What technique does this guy use to judge the doneness of different skewers?

Not having the nerve to ask—questioning would make his decades of grilling experience seem worthless—he quietly turned the skewers over, and casually grabbed a venison skewer, sprinkling it with chili and cumin before directly stuffing it into his mouth, not afraid of the heat.

The temperature of these charcoal-grilled skewers seemed high but was actually lower. Especially in the early morning outdoors, the cold wind prevented the skewers from heating up.

Though it was summer, Europe’s coastal geography caused significant temperature differences between day and night, with daytime being over twenty degrees, while night could drop to around ten.

Even freshly grilled skewers, after a few seconds in the air, were only about seventy degrees, just slightly mouth-burning.

"Sizzle"

The slightly hot meat juices burst out with chewing, filling the mouth with a distinct sweet taste of blood.

Alex’s eyes lit up and he quickly slid the remaining venison pieces from the skewer into his mouth, savoring the thrill of the cascading juices.

Compared to fully-cooked or medium-done, hunters usually prefer medium-rare. That way, they can taste the gentle, sweet, blood flavor and feel a strong sense of pride.

That’s their prey caught with their own hands. Eating it medium-rare awakens the wild, bloodthirsty factor within their blood, boosting their confidence as hunters.

"Joshua, give it a try."

He handed over two tender-looking grilled venison skewers, their surfaces glistening with oil, unsure whether it was from the meat juices or marinade.

The man, sitting by the bonfire and repeatedly turning a venison leg, having no other responsibility, hurriedly accepted the skewers, blew on them lightly, and stuffed them into his mouth.

"!!"

"Indeed, much tastier than what we grill ourselves. Next time, we’ll use this method!"

Alex nodded in agreement: "Previously, I thought marinating involved merely rubbing spices on the meat, maybe adding some oil at most, never expecting such a unique marination method. It makes the meat tenderer while perfectly retaining its juices."

"No wonder they say Great Xia is one of the world’s most famous food nations. I never had an idea before, but now I finally feel it!"

"Haha, just thinking about how next time our meat will shock those old folks makes me laugh. They haven’t tasted anything good their whole lives, what a pity."

"Lin, does this marination method have limitations? Like can only be used on land animal meat? Can it be used for meat from animals that swim or fly?"

"No limitations," Lin Chen replied, reaching to test the frying pan’s temperature. Shaking his head, he said, "Any raw meat can be used. However, the marinated grilling method is quite simple, without adding egg whites or starch. So, the texture is not as tender as stir-fried meat slices."

"The bag here beside me is marinated with egg whites and starch. You can see the difference with the naked eye."

The meat slices in the bag shimmered in the firelight, coated in a starch layer mixed with a thin layer of oil, appearing much tenderer than the raw skewers.

"Egg whites? Starch? Using these for marination can make meat tenderer?"

The never-imagined combination baffled both men, leaving them puzzled about why adding these would make meat tenderer.

"Because egg whites contain a special protease that can break down protein structures, preventing the proteins from clumping into large pieces when heated. Comparatively, it’s like chicken breast that has been tenderized with a mallet, disrupting the muscle fibers, making the texture tenderer. Understand?"

"I see... What about starch?"

"What does starch mixed with water form? Similar to the coating on fried chicken. Why is there a coating on fried chicken?"

"Don’t know."

Alex and Joshua simultaneously shook their heads, looking like curious children, filled with a thirst for knowledge.

"The tenderness of meat actually comes down to two factors: moisture and temperature."

"Take chicken breast, for example. The longer it’s cooked and at higher temperatures, the tougher it becomes, whereas slowly cooking at lower temperatures keeps it tender, right?"

"Yes, that’s indeed the case."

"At lower temperatures, the rate at which moisture is lost in meat slows down, which naturally makes it more tender. The main purpose of the Great Xia marination technique is to infuse water into the meat, increasing its internal moisture so that the loss of water during cooking doesn’t affect the original texture of the meat."

"And the role of starch water, including batter for fried chicken, is the same; it forms a layer to lock in the moisture in the meat and prevent it from escaping. That’s why freshly fried chicken juices explode—isn’t that something everyone has experienced?"

"So that’s how it is!"

Fried chicken is one of foreigners’ favorite foods. Using it as an example, the two immediately grasped the logic behind this marination technique.

"But starch water is very thin, only a thin layer, unlike the thick batter coating on fried chicken. Therefore, during cooking, the temperature must be high enough to rapidly set the starch coating within seconds to lock in the moisture, while its thinness doesn’t affect the texture of the meat."

"You must have had that stir-fried meat with green peppers at noon, right? It’s in that state."

"Oh, it was that!!"

Mentioning stir-fried meat with green peppers made Alex and Joshua realize the secret, as if they were already savoring the tender and juicy meat slices in their mouths.

At noon, they were already amazed, discussing why the meat slices were so tender. Little did they know they would learn the secret marination method and cooking techniques of Great Xia at night.

The value of this Hunter’s License is still increasing!!

Lin Chen once again reached out to feel the temperature of the frying pan, waiting for ages until he finally felt it was just a bit hot to the touch.

"Do you want to try feeling this temperature?"

"Yes!"

Lin Chen handed the frying pan to Alex and Joshua, allowing them to reach out and sense the temperature, giving them an idea of its level.

Seeing this, John and Maurice couldn’t resist trying it too.

"The temperature must reach this level to commence cooking. This is a basic requirement in Chinese stir-fry; if the temperature is below this, the meat will release water, affecting the texture."

Lin Chen returned the frying pan to the grilling rack, supplemented the temperature, and casually drizzled some oil around the pan. After waiting a few seconds, he grabbed the bag of meat and poured it directly into the pan.

"Sizzle——"

As the meat slices entered the pan, the bottom began to change color. Lin Chen held the pan with one hand and swiftly stirred the meat slices with a wooden spatula with the other hand, preventing them from sticking while gently tossing the pan to ensure they were evenly heated.

The temperature of the outdoor grill was somewhat low. After tossing the pan a dozen times, Lin Chen couldn’t stand it anymore and moved it over to the bonfire, starting to stir-fry with the open flame.

This time, just a single toss ignited roaring flames, just like they had seen at noon.

"My God!"

The sudden burst of flames startled everyone, followed by heartfelt admiration.

Lin Chen quickly tossed the meat slices a few times, sprinkled a handful of garlic slices and chopped green and red chili peppers, and continued to stir-fry. Soon, the air was filled with a pungent, spicy aroma.

Seasoning with a bit of soy sauce and oyster sauce, sprinkled with sea salt and mixed evenly, it’s ready to serve!

It’s the same stir-fried meat with peppers, but this dish uses three different types of chili peppers, and the meat is not ordinary pork but wild boar hunted by everyone.

Just the visual effect and psychological influence made Alex and Joshua think the stir-fried meat was definitely better than the one they had at the restaurant at noon.

Lin Chen casually found a bowl, poured the stir-fried meat into it, and drizzled the reddish-brown sauce that had settled at the bottom of the pan over the meat, coating the already tender and juicy slices with an even more enticing hue.

Using the residual heat from the bottom of the pan, Lin Chen didn’t wash the pan, instead cutting a piece of butter and tossing it in. He deftly cracked an egg against the edge of the pan and pulled it apart in a relaxed manner.

Cracking in six eggs consecutively, he used the spatula as a whisk to quickly scramble them, and under the searing flame, the egg liquid began solidifying into pieces at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The egg liquid absorbed the aroma of the butter, gradually emitting a strong egg and milk fragrance.

Holding the pan, he walked to the side, under the watchful eyes of everyone, took out two boxes of white rice from a plastic bag and poured them into the pan, using the back of the spatula to gently press them apart, returning to the bonfire.

The refrigerated rice initially clumped together but slowly dispersed as the pan’s temperature rose, with the pan lightly shaking, coating the rice surface with a bright oil gloss. The previously scrambled eggs were evenly mixed with the rice.

With the addition of diced carrots, cucumbers, ready-made pickled greens, and fresh scallions, the originally monotone rice instantly became vibrant and colorful.

"Swish——"

"Swish——"

Lin Chen tossed the frying pan repeatedly, ensuring the ingredients were evenly heated. Occasionally pressing with the spatula, he broke apart any remaining rice chunks.

Casually drizzling a few circles of soy sauce, the white rice grains instantly transformed into a tempting brown hue, mingling in the air with the distinctive savory aroma of soy sauce, the slight sourness of the pickled greens, and the buttery scent of the eggs.

Finally, he drizzled a bit of clear oil along the edge of the pan, quickly stir-frying over the open flame, infusing the fried rice with a touch of distinctive flavor.