Ming Dynasty and New Rome and Infinite Magic Machine

Chapter 1616 The Banquet at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices
"Wait a minute, senior brother, are you sure you want the Imperial Sacrificial Temple to host a banquet?"

"Oh, don't worry. I might not be reliable in other areas, but my taste is definitely trustworthy. Everyone's coming tomorrow, it's on me."

I think other people's opinion is that he's reliable in everything except when it comes to his taste in food.

I admit, I was too hasty. His taste is excellent, practically flawless.

Apollonia ate the meat skewers while praising them highly.

Zhu Xianxi held his banquet on an open space next to Taiye Pond. This area is part of Xiyuan Garden, and many outdoor activities have been held here before, such as fishing, which Zhu Xianxi himself enjoys doing.

The banquet that Zhu Xianxi held here was hosted by the Imperial Kitchen of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

How can a banquet be held if the imperial kitchen has no chefs?

The answer was barbecue. The Guanglu Temple prepared a whole banquet of barbecue.

Although the Imperial Kitchen lacked culinary skills, they had excellent ingredients. Zhu Xianxi also rented a batch of catering equipment from the Jinling Hotel—a service the Jinling Hotel offered regularly. Specifically, when Jinling Hotel customers needed to eat their meals but couldn't find suitable takeout options, the hotel would offer catering services, having a professional catering chef come to their location to cook. Generally, customers brought their own ingredients, and sometimes they could also bring their own cooking utensils.

Because the Jinling Hotel was right at the entrance of the Grand Palace, it was much more convenient to move the cooking equipment—the Jinling Hotel brought over a large oven for roasting whole lambs. There were also several smaller barbecue grills, some for open-flame roasting and some for closed-flame roasting.

The meat skewers were grilled over an open flame, while the bone-in ribs were roasted in a closed oven earlier that day. By dinnertime, everything that was going to be taken out of the oven was ready.

The moment the oven was opened, even Apollonia snapped out of her social anxiety and started eating.

Ah, this meat tastes delicious! What kind of meat is it?

"Pork." Shangluo held the meat skewers on a plate.

What kind of pork is this?

"I don't know, I couldn't taste it. But it was definitely delicious. So, senior brother, what kind of meat is this?"

“Two-headed black pigs,” Zhu Xianxi replied while turning the pork chop with a meat fork. “This is from the Imperial Kitchen, used to make Jinhua ham—don’t be fooled by the fact that they don’t have chefs; they’re actually very good at processing these kinds of foods. These two-headed black pigs are raised on orders from specialized farms, so the price is naturally… well… very expensive. But the quality is absolutely top-notch.”

This is authentic Jinhua two-headed black pig. Its characteristics include marble-like snowflake patterns in the fat distribution, firm and moisture-locking red meat, and a rich meaty aroma that can be released simply by searing it over a fire during roasting.

The chefs at Jinling Hotel—or rather, the master butchers—cut the pork according to the instructions. Some of the fattier, more marbled parts were roasted over an open flame. The muscularer parts, which needed to be fully roasted, were pre-roasted in a closed oven.

Not a single part of the pig was wasted. Besides the meat, the other parts of the pig were also processed and grilled. Anyway, Zhu Xianxi isn't picky at all when it comes to meat; he eats everything.

Ah, so there's such delicious pork in this world!

“Actually, you have some good meat over there too,” Zhu Xianxi replied. “I really like your ham.”

[Do you have one? Where is it from?]

“Iberian ham is quite good. I have some hidden here; it was purchased from Okinawa. When I want to eat it, I usually use it to make fried rice.”

【I said, Your Majesty the Holy Emperor!】 "Hey, why are you suddenly calling me that so mushy? You've never called me that before, have you?"

When are you having your second baby? When are you going to invite me over for dinner?

Shangluo grabbed Apollonia's head and forced it back, saying, "Shameful."

"It's because you never eat well. Now that this food is so delicious, of course I want to eat it again!"

"What do you usually eat?" Zhu Xianxi asked.

[I often eat glutinous rice, which is made by cooking glutinous rice with sausage.]

"Ah, I had this yesterday too. You didn't know, but among the local preserved foods, sausage is the most famous—even the home-style kind has a home-style flavor. Then there's cured pork, but it's not as famous as sausage."

"He's not a local, so he doesn't like this kind of food. Romans just love roast meat."

[Correction: I'm Greek, and I prefer food grilled over an open flame.]

"And what about the Romans?" Zhu Xianxi asked. He was very curious about the tastes in Rome.

The Greeks loved grilled food, but the Romans preferred roasted or stewed food. Look, Phaethon and his consort are over there eating roasted meat cooked in a stew oven.

"I smell danger in the air." Zhu Xianxi opened the oven to check, flipped the food over, and then closed it again. "Do you have similar disputes over sweet versus savory food over there?"

The meat in the oven is cooked to perfection. The oven is still on, mainly to keep it warm, so we can brush on some more sauce later.

In our area, when it comes to Peking duck, it's a matter of hanging oven roasting versus closed oven roasting. The Greeks prefer it roasted over an open flame, resulting in a crispy texture. The Romans, on the other hand, prefer it softer and more tender, roasted in a closed oven.

"Hmm," Zhu Xianxi thought for a moment, "Actually, if it weren't for such good ingredients as two-headed black pig, I also think that oven roasting would taste better."

Oven-roasted duck and meat are different from those roasted over an open flame.

It's essentially similar to beggar's chicken, except that beggar's chicken requires some processing of the ingredients, while a slow cooker has specific equipment requirements. However, both share the characteristic of minimizing contact between the ingredients and open flames, instead using low-temperature charcoal fire to slowly roast and cook the meat using its own moisture. This method allows ample time for the fat to melt into the meat.

At this point, you have different options. If you want the meat to be completely free of smoky flavor, you can wrap it in aluminum foil. If you want some smoky flavor, you can leave the meat exposed in the oven. If you want to add other flavors, you can brush it with sauce before putting it in to bake. Basically, it's similar to making oven-roasted duck.

"By the way, if Romans like oven-roasted food, then she should like this." Zhu Xianxi opened the oven, took out a piece, and handed it to Shang Luo. "Take this for her to try? You try this for her first?"

"Uh," Shangluo looked around and realized that he was still 5 meters away from Faetong, which was too far. He would have to take three steps to get there.

"Then I'll try it myself first!"

He took a bite—the meat could only be described as melt-in-your-mouth tender. It was so soft and mushy that it fell off the bone without losing its shape, and it retained the proper texture of meat even in its tenderness.

"How was this done?"

(End of this chapter)