Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

Lin Chen’s fried rice cooking speed was fast; within five or six minutes, with the help of the open flame, he had made a steaming, fragrant plate of snow vegetable fried rice.

"Indeed, little stir-fried meat must be eaten with rice to feel comfortable."

Wang Ziqin took an empty box that had been used to hold rice before, filled it halfway, and then scooped a few spoonfuls of stir-fried meat slices with red and green chili peppers on top, presenting it to Chu Yueyue like a treasure.

"Here you go, honey~"

"Hmph."

Chu Yueyue showed a satisfied smile, picked up the box and dug into the fried rice.

They often ate fried rice, but eating fried rice cooked over a bonfire in the wilderness at midnight was truly a first.

These dry branches and corn stalks were collected nearby, found scattered among the cornfields trampled and dug up by wild boars.

Whether it was a psychological effect or because it was a midnight snack, this fried rice had a wonderful aroma, different from the ordinary wok aroma, and somewhat resembled the scent of charcoal grilling.

Adding the fragrance of snow vegetables and the buttery aroma of butter, the three scents combined, and the rice was distinct and well-cooked, neither too moist and mushy nor too dry and hard, with each grain filled with fragrance, soft with a noticeable resilience.

The butter-fried egg pieces had a rich buttery aroma that went beyond typical scrambled eggs, achieving a level of satisfaction upon tasting.

Paired with the fragrant and appetizing stir-fried wild boar meat, within just a few seconds, most of the fried rice in the box was gone.

"Uh..."

Seeing her eating so deliciously, Wang Ziqin hesitated to speak, showing a slight anxiety on his face. The other four foreigners couldn’t wait either, taking some fried rice each and mimicking to eat.

The marinated and stir-fried wild boar meat slices tasted similar to ordinary pork, complemented by garlic and three kinds of fresh peppers; the overall flavor was savory and appetizing, spicy and refreshing, yet not overwhelmingly spicy.

The silk-spicy taste balanced the slight gamy taste of the wild boar meat, leaving only a soft and juicy texture.

The fried rice was filled with a fresh onion aroma, the seasoning relatively light, perfectly paired with the stir-fried meat as a meal. Even the occasional pieces of chili seemed especially delicious.

"Hiss..."

Accidentally chewing on a little chili, Alex inhaled sharply, his face turning bright red.

"Look at you, so useless, still unable to handle spicy food after all these years, no progress whatsoever!"

"Can you handle spicy food?"

"Of course... Why? What are you doing??"

Just as Joshua was about to relish the situation, Alex scooped up a hearty spoonful of fresh peppers onto his box of fried rice, with almost seventy percent being pepper rings.

Knowing these foreigners can’t really handle spicy food, Lin Chen barely added any chili pepper, counting by headcount, it was diluted throughout the dish to the point where the chili was almost invisible.

The green and red peppers were cut larger, resembling lantern peppers in color, whereas the chili peppers were small and red, easily recognizable.

Joshua stared at the mountain of chili on the fried rice, gulping. He could see five or six bright red chili rings mixed in, with probably more hidden beneath.

"Eat it, why aren’t you eating? Are you afraid to eat it?"

Alex sneered repeatedly, seemingly enjoying the show, as Joshua gulped again, bravely saying, "I’ll eat it, who said I won’t? I just want it to cool down a bit."

"If it cools any more, it’ll cool completely; wild boar meat should be eaten hot, otherwise it has a gamy taste." Lin Chen timely added but was glared at by Joshua, "Is there any other dish, it can’t be just one, right?"

"Fuck!!"

Alex suddenly stood up, hurriedly returning to the grill to flip the meat skewers, "Thank goodness, the temperature dropped at night, it hasn’t burned, almost ruined my roasted meat reputation!"

"Don’t worry, I’m watching it." Lin Chen leisurely took a bite of fried rice, attentively savoring the taste of the wild boar meat.

Perhaps due to the high physical activity of wild boars, the fat content was indeed pitifully low; after marinating, the meat tasted tender but always lacked a bit of oily flavor.

For those who don’t eat fatty meat, it might be just right, but for him, it still lacked some soul.

Just as the plate of stir-fried meat had been divided cleanly, leaving only peppers at the bottom, driven by the principle of not wasting, he picked up the metal basin and returned to the bonfire.

Taking advantage of the moment Alex turned the meat skewers, Joshua’s eyes quickly darted around, swiftly picking out the chili peppers and tossing them into the fire, then hurriedly shoveling the remaining fried rice in the box into his mouth.

"Did you finish it just like that??"

Holding the meat skewers, Alex walked back, watching with wide eyes as Joshua scooped the last bit of rice into his mouth, looking nonchalant and not quite believing.

"Yeah, otherwise?" Joshua puffed out his cheeks, "I told you your spice tolerance is low, still don’t believe me."

"Where’s the spicy in this?"

"How can it be, I don’t believe it!"

Alex intended to stack the meat skewers on a plate but intuition told him there was deception, yet he couldn’t see any chili peppers on the ground.

He’s not foolish, immediately coming up with a new plan, distributing the meat skewers to everyone except leaving Joshua and his own portions aside.

Then, in front of Joshua, he grabbed a few pieces of chili pepper from the plastic bag next to him containing the pepper rings, placed them flat on the meat skewer, and held it to the man.

"Eat! I don’t believe you can handle spicy food."

"....."

Joshua was stunned, never expecting this old chap to play such a trick, his throat instinctively rolled twice before stubbornly saying,

"I’ll eat it, but you only ate two or three pieces, I’ve had so much, the spiciness is several times yours, feeling spicy is normal, it’s unfair, you need to match it!"

Saying that, he grabbed a handful of chili rings and evenly placed them on the meat skewer surface, glaring at Alex with a determined look of watching him eat it.

The other four had no intention to intervene, smiling as they continued eating, watching the duo bicker.

Ordinary soy-marinated venison became incredibly fiery after being covered with a layer of chili pepper rings, the initial chewing still allowing a bit of pepper sweetness, but as the chili seeds burst, the overwhelming spiciness swept in, even the sweet-salty sauce couldn’t withstand its power.

"Hiss...!"

Joshua’s face turned red almost instantly, feeling a burning pain akin to fire in his mouth, but he remained defiant, lightly inhaling as he gazed up at the man across from him.

Alex’s face similarly flushed, the previous spiciness hadn’t fully dissipated, and new spiciness piled on, dizzying him, a thin layer of sweat appearing on his forehead, with a ring around his mouth looking like he had applied lipstick, quite sensuous.

As farm owners, John and Maurice were well aware of the potency of these Thai peppers, rarely attempting them, secretly enjoying the duo’s spectacle.

Only Wang Ziqin lacked the mood to watch the spectacle, his gaze tightly fixated on a certain bag on the ground.