Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

Chapter 470 - 382: The Perfect Rice Companion—Mashed Pepper with Century Egg

"This century egg doesn’t taste all that special, does it? Just a duck egg with a bit of alkali flavor."

Marchello and Raphael grew more puzzled as they ate; this didn’t taste like the exaggerated flavors shown in online videos, and spitting after one bite seemed excessive.

"Hey, don’t be stubborn, you two."

Lucas forced a mischievous smile and beckoned Lin Chen: "Give them a challenge with the original flavor."

Lin Chen shook his head with amusement.

The original intent was finding Lucas speechless, like an overgrown child.

However, this gesture aroused the chefs’ competitive spirit.

"Hey, are you looking down on me?"

"Bring on the original flavor! Cut it now!"

Although Nagishiro Sho remained silent, he had already picked up his chopsticks again, clearly ready to face the challenge at any moment.

Since they expressed their desire for a challenge actively, Lin Chen naturally had no reason to refuse.

After all, century eggs are easily obtainable at any Great Xia supermarket; no need to save them as if they were imported from afar.

He nodded at Old Chen, who immediately grabbed two century eggs and expertly sliced them in half.

The three chefs instantly stretched their chopsticks to pick them up.

Marchello glanced at the remaining half and turned to Lucas: "Since you’ve been in Great Xia for years, you must be familiar with eating them raw, right?"

"Of course!"

Though Lucas realized this guy was provoking him, he wasn’t afraid of it; he grabbed the remaining half with his hand and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing vigorously.

While chewing, he gestured to the three.

The three who had tasted earlier and found nothing strange about the flavor were straightforward, swallowing the century egg quickly.

Marchello and Raphael’s expressions changed slightly after a couple of chews.

The alkali flavor of the century egg without sauce was magnified several-fold, and the bitterness inside became extremely evident.

As the chewing increased, the bitterness mixed with the alkali flavor intensified, continuously assaulting their throats.

Whenever they wanted to swallow, their bodies automatically experienced nausea symptoms as if preventing them from swallowing.

"???

The two men exchanged incredulous glances and saw shock in each other’s eyes.

How could the taste differ so much with the same ingredient when just lacking a bit of sauce? It’s unbelievable!

Is it really possible for anyone to swallow something so unpalatable?

Just as this thought formed, a clear swallowing sound came from beside them.

"Gulp."

Lucas’ throat moved a few times, and with a smile, he opened his mouth, revealing an empty oral cavity.

"See, I told you I’m practically Great Xia People; century eggs are nothing."

"Looking at you two, you seem to struggle with swallowing. If it’s too much, just spit it out; there’s no need to endure. Many can’t swallow at first; it’s typical."

Marchello and Raphael’s expressions turned a bit unpleasant; they hadn’t expected the direct consumption of century eggs to taste so odd.

While hesitating whether to spit it out, the clear swallowing sound echoed again.

"Gulp."

They instinctively turned their heads to see Nagishiro Sho impassively setting down his chopsticks, his questioning gaze meeting theirs.

Did he really just swallow it???

Good grief!

Do Asian taste buds differ from Western ones?

How is that possible!

A stubborn belief surged from the depths of their hearts; gritting their teeth, they resolved to swallow without chewing.

"Gulp."

"Gulp."

Fortunately, its texture was merely odd; overall, it was smooth enough to slide down easily.

Yet the unique bitterness and alkali flavor lingered in their mouths, refusing to dissipate.

"Helena! Could you bring us a couple of glasses of cola?"

"Sure, Chef."

Marchello, being smart, noted the limited number of century eggs available; the remaining ones needed to be shared with others. Eating the pickled chili inside might pose unknown risks.

To be safe, using cola for gargling seemed prudent.

During tasting sessions, chefs usually have a glass of water for rinsing their mouths, which makes sense.

However, after experiencing the century egg trap, the two were even more curious about the special ingredients from Great Xia.

If a little sauce could transform such an unpalatable ingredient into something decent, could it also be crafted into a superior dish?

Besides century eggs, might there be more oddities like these?

"Colas are here, folks." Helena approached with a tray full of cola glasses packed with ice cubes.

"Thanks, dear."

Marchello took a cup of cola from the tray, and without thinking, tilted his head back and gulped down several large mouthfuls, not even bothering to use a straw.

Raphael and Nagishiro Sho also reached out simultaneously to take their drinks, and this action made Raphael glance at him a few more times with a trace of realization in his eyes.

Quite a pretender!

Helena wedged the empty tray under her arm, glanced at the cold tossed century eggs in front of her, and reached for a fork to try a piece.

The dressing had a distinct Asian flavor, and paired with the peculiar texture of the century eggs, it was oddly pretty good.

However, she didn’t have the courage to try the century eggs themselves, which even the chefs almost couldn’t swallow.

"Take it away, let everyone have a taste."

Marchello directly picked up the plate and handed it to her, signaling her to take it away directly, so as not to crowd this area inconveniently.

Simultaneously, the chefs’ eyes turned to Lin Chen.

Judging by his previous actions, he surely wouldn’t just make one kind of century egg dish, otherwise why continue peeling eggs?

"Old Chen, cook some porridge using the rice cooker, make plenty and we’ll have the leftovers for breakfast tomorrow."

Old Chen glanced at the bowl of century eggs, instantly understanding, and turned to go into the kitchen, carrying the rice cooker inner pot to the sack of rice and started scooping.

"Century egg and lean pork congee?"

Upon hearing about porridge, Lucas’s eyes lit up, "Please add extra century eggs! It tastes better when it’s richer!"

"You’re so talkative."

"I also like the rich flavor of century eggs. The ones served at breakfast shops hardly include any, making it unsatisfying to drink."

From seven or eight meters away, Wang Ziqin timely interjected.

Lin Chen immediately agreed without hesitation: "Alright, I’ll add twice the amount later."

"Old Chen, while you’re at it, peel ten more century eggs!"

Lucas felt disdain from the bottom of his heart towards Lin Chen’s preferential treatment, but he couldn’t show it.

After all, Lin Chen was the big boss, and Lucas was still able to live in a single room entirely because of Lin Chen’s favoritism.

No use talking too much.

During the gap while waiting for John and Magna to deliver the ingredients, Lin Chen wasn’t cooking any dishes but was continuously preparing various ingredients.

Fresh Mao bamboo shoots, thunder bamboo shoots, taro of various sizes, the fragrant Lipu taro, smoked cured pork, cured chicken, cured sausage...

An array of novel ingredients appeared one by one in his hands, increasing the curiosity of everyone present, making them completely unable to imagine what kind of dishes he was going to create later.

"Here we come!"

John and Magna almost arrived one after the other, sweating profusely as they rushed into the restaurant dragging a heap of ingredients.

Seeing so many gathered in the restaurant, both were momentarily stunned.

"Mr. Wang? Chef Marchello? So everyone’s here, is today some special holiday?"

Almost everyone present was familiar, except the middle-aged Asian next to Daniel.

But anyone standing next to Daniel must presumably be of similar status, also a management member of a supplier.

Most likely it was someone from the Great Xia food supplier company providing ingredients to the restaurant.

"You two, have a cup of ice-cold cola to quench your thirst. There’s also specifically reserved Great Xia cuisine for you guys over here."

Dais perceptively quickly poured two full cups of cola and handed them over, guiding the two towards that plate of cold tossed century eggs, whilst Elsa and Lucinda proactively pulled away the ingredients they brought and took them over to Lin Chen.

The long-awaited Lin Chen and Old Chen rushed forward, rapidly selecting the required ingredients and quickly started processing them.

Old Chen opened a packet of minced pork with fat and lean parts intermixed, poured in the chopped century egg pieces, added a handful of small green onions, seasoned simply with salt, sugar, pepper, and mixed in some starch and soy sauce, quickly stirring it to a smooth consistency, and then shaped it into meatball-like portions.

Lin Chen grabbed a bunch of green peppers and tossed them into a pan over high heat to roast, with nothing added to the pan, not even oil, purely dry roasting.

With the support of high heat, the iron pan quickly started smoking, accompanied by the smoky aroma of green peppers wafting out.

This action made three chefs’ eyes light up.

Roasting peppers is quite common in Western cuisine, usually using bell peppers.

It can be roasted directly over flame or put in an oven at maximum power to roast, with the aim of charring the surface layer while internally heating somewhat.

The roasted peppers undergo a flavor change, becoming sweeter, losing the raw taste, and acquiring a faint smoky charred flavor, perfect for making uniquely flavored sauces or dishes.

They didn’t expect Great Xia to have similar techniques, which instantly made them immensely excited.

The roasted green peppers became soft and collapsed, tossed into a bowl and covered with cling film, allowing the internal temperature to emit naturally, forming a steam-like effect, which can moisten the charred skin, making it easier to peel.

It doesn’t take long, covering for one or two minutes until the skin slightly moistens is enough, peeling too clean will make the charred flavor disappear completely, a portion of flavor needs to be retained.

The scorched green peppers are roughly peeled of their blackened skin, the stalk cut away, and tossed whole back into the bowl, along with a few century eggs, picking up a rolling pin to start mashing.

"Century eggs with roasted green peppers??"

Such a peculiar combination stunned the three, their mouths slightly open, completely unable to imagine what the finished dish would taste like.

Also, the century egg pork balls beside it was an equally unexpected pairing.

Soy sauce, aged vinegar, sesame oil, minced garlic.

Four simple basic condiments added one after another, with the rolling pin continuously rising and falling, the century eggs and green peppers gradually were mashed.

The soft yolk formed a mayonnaise-like texture, fully enveloping the green peppers and chopped century eggs together, emitting a faint fresh pepper aroma mixed with the rich scent of sesame oil, forming a uniquely enticing fragrance.