The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Before five o'clock, the customers finally came and took away the roast goose.

Min Xi is already preparing the Christmas dinner. Although they don't celebrate Christmas, Diego does. In order to give Diego a good Christmas, Min Xi decides to cook a good meal.

Roast goose is indispensable, it is already prepared, no need to bother. Braised pork is also available, a plate of it is also considered a dish.

He plans to make a few more dishes. He plans to use pork as the main dish and make one dish of braised pork, one dish of sweet and sour pork, one dish of dry pot spareribs, one dish of braised lion's head, as well as one dish of steamed fish, one dish of dry pot shrimp, one dish of fried radish meatballs, and one dish of stewed chicken soup, making a total of ten dishes, which symbolizes perfection.

By the time all the dishes were ready, it was already dark outside.

Diego brought the dishes that were hot in the steamer to the table one by one. Looking at the full table of dishes, many of which he had never eaten before, he drooled with greed: "Boss, today's dishes look so delicious!"

Min Xi smiled and said, "Today is your Christmas. Brother Qi and I will celebrate the holiday with you. You can eat whatever you want."

Diego asked, "I've never seen this pot before. Is this a new way to eat it?"

Min Xi said, "Yes, it's a new way to eat it. I haven't officially launched it in the store yet. Today is the first time to eat it. You are in luck. Come and try how it tastes."

"It must be delicious." Diego rubbed his hands excitedly.

Min Xi turned to Yun Ji and said, "Seventh Brother, come and have dinner."

Yun Ji looked at the table full of dishes and said with a smile: "Should we drink some wine?"

"Okay! Let's open the wine bar that His Majesty asked the baron to send last time. It is said that it has been stored for five years. Let's taste what five-year-old wine tastes like."

"it is good."

Yunji went up to the attic and took down a small oak barrel. They had not drunk the wine given by the king or the marquis, but had kept it in the attic. Today was a festival, so they took it out to taste.

Min Xi went to get three wine glasses, handed one to Diego, and said, "Diego, drink something too."

"Okay!" Diego's alcohol tolerance is actually quite good. When he was in the tavern, Sanvis often asked him to taste wine. The more he drank, the better his alcohol tolerance became.

Yun Ji filled a glass of wine for all three of them. Min Xi picked up the glass and said, "This is the first time we spend Christmas with Diego. We should celebrate our reunion! Come on, cheers!"

Diego clinked glasses with them excitedly, then took a sip of the wine and said, "This wine is so mellow, it must be very old."

Min Xi also took a sip and found it tasted really good: "Although I don't know much about wine, I think it's pretty good. It's really a palace wine."

Yun Ji nodded: "Well, it doesn't have a very complicated taste, it's very mellow."

Min Xi raised his chopsticks and said, "Don't drink yet, let's eat. Diego, you're still growing, so eat as much as you can, don't be polite."

Diego picked up the fork, thought for a moment, then picked up the chopsticks to pick up the food. His movements were a bit clumsy, but he actually picked up a piece of braised meat.

Min Xi said, "If you can't reach it, just stand up and pick it up. You can also go to the other side to pick up the food. We are eating by ourselves, so there is no need to be so particular."

Diego was impressed by the braised pork he had eaten before, so the first thing he picked up with his chopsticks was still braised pork.

The first thing Min Xi picked up with his chopsticks was the braised pork and put it in Yun Ji's bowl: "Seventh brother, try the braised pork. Diego, you also try this, it tastes better than the stewed meat." As he said that, he picked up a piece and put it in his mouth. It was a taste he had not tasted for a long time, salty, fragrant and delicious. It was juicy with every bite, and his taste buds were completely satisfied.

Yun Ji took a bite and nodded with satisfaction: "It's really delicious. Ninth brother's cooking skills are getting better and better."

Diego's chopsticks were not good enough, so the braised pork was a bit slippery when he picked it up. After trying for a while, he still couldn't get it to work. He had to move closer to the bowl and scoop it into his mouth to eat: "Wow, delicious! It's really better than braised pork!"

Min Xi said: "I plan to cook this dish for His Majesty the King tomorrow, so that he can taste what real pork tastes like. So you are luckier than His Majesty the King, and you can eat braised pork before him."

Diego just felt that he was so lucky. He had eaten the braised pork before His Majesty the King: "I'm sure Your Majesty will like it. This braised pork is so delicious!"

Min Xi scooped a lion head for Yun Ji: "Seventh brother, eat this, lion head, this is a famous dish in Yangzhou. Have you eaten it?"

Yun Ji nodded: "I have eaten it. There are many talented people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, and many of them stay in Beijing to wait for the exam. There are many Jiangsu and Zhejiang restaurants in Beijing, and the taste is light. I have eaten both braised lion's head and braised lion's head."

"Then try what I made and see how it tastes." Min Xi said.

Yun Ji took a bite and said, "It's very soft and tender, fat but not greasy, and delicious. It's better than what I had in the capital before."

Min Xi looked at him and smiled: "Seventh Brother, are you praising me against your conscience? I'm just an apprentice, I can't compare to the famous chefs in the Beijing restaurant."

Yun Ji said seriously: "Why would I lie to you!"

"Okay, then I'll accept the compliment." Min Xi said with a smile.

Three people, ten dishes, basically all hard dishes. To be honest, they were very full. Diego took the goose leg that Min Xi tore for him, burped and said, "Boss, I'm really full. I can't eat this anymore."

Min Xi said: "This is your traditional Christmas dish, you can't not eat it. You should eat a little to celebrate the occasion." Of the whole roast goose, they only tore off the leg and no one touched the other parts because there were so many delicious pieces that they couldn't finish it.

The three of them ate and drank their fill, and there were still a few empty bowls. The remaining dishes might not be finished by tomorrow.

Diego had no choice but to take the goose leg. He wanted to eat it, but he really couldn't eat it anymore, so he said, "Then I'll take it back and eat it before going to bed. I'm going to go for a run. There's no curfew tonight."

Min Xi reminded him: "Wait a minute before running. You can't do strenuous exercise right after eating. If you feel full, go for a walk."

Yun Ji suggested, "Ninth brother, why don't we go for a walk? We've eaten a bit too much."

Diego's eyes lit up when he heard this: "Yes, it's not windy today, and it's not raining. Boss, let's go out for a walk. I heard there's a Christmas tree as tall as a house in front of the City Hall, and it will be decorated with lights at night. Let's go take a look."

Min Xi said, "Okay, clean up the table and let's go for a walk and take a look around the Municipal Square."

Diego said positively, "I'll wash the dishes!"

Min Xi said, "Then I'll marinate the meat so that I can stew the pork elbow tomorrow morning."

Yun Ji asked, "Is it stewed for His Majesty?"

"Yes, stew a Dongpo pork elbow for His Majesty, and make a pot of braised pork. Let him feel what fatness means." Min Xi said with a smile.

Min Xi cleaned both pork elbows and marinated them with spices and salt to make them tasty. Marinating overnight should be enough. He cooked both elbows together, one for the king and one for himself.

Diego took his goose leg when he went out. Min Xi thought about it and put a bag of bear biscuits in his pocket, so that he could give them to children if he met them.

The three of them put on their coats, hats and scarves, closed the door tightly, and went out together. On Christmas Eve, the lights were brighter than usual, and there were many people walking on the street, unlike usual days when there were basically few pedestrians after dark.

Lisbon has a curfew. In fact, in recent decades, with the development of overseas trade and increasingly frequent commercial activities, the curfew has not been strictly enforced. There are still many people active at night, but people still habitually follow the old system and try to reduce activities at night. Of course, there are indeed not many entertainment options, and it is dark and gloomy, which always makes people feel insecure.

There were quite a few people out and about tonight. Diego was holding a goose leg and jumping all the way, showing no signs of being overfed.

However, Min Xi and Yun Ji felt that they were too full and didn't want to walk too fast, so they walked slowly at the back.

Seeing that they were walking slowly, Diego ran back to urge them: "Boss, hurry up, the City Hall is right in front of us. I can hear music and there are performances!"

As he spoke, he stepped back. Yun Ji saw a figure on the ground and quickly warned him: "Be careful!"

In the end, he was tripped by the figure on the ground and stumbled backwards. Fortunately, the running and horse stance he had practiced in the past few months were not in vain. He reacted quickly and supported himself on the ground with one hand and did not fall. Diego showed a relieved expression on his face. Fortunately, he did not dirty the new clothes he had just changed today. Unfortunately, the goose leg in his hand fell to the ground.