The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

At around six o'clock, the guests finally had their fill and were ready to leave.

But when he left, Kane placed another order with Min Xi, booking a dinner for three days later. This time it was for eight people, and it was still ten dishes like today, and the price was still 1 pound 10 shillings.

They still wanted the three-piece duck and the roast chicken, but Min Xi made a suggestion. It would be better to replace the roast chicken with beggar's chicken, which is a different flavor of chicken but still tastes very good.

Kane was a little hesitant and asked everyone, "Do you want to change the chicken?"

Everyone thought about it, not knowing how to answer, so Langdon came up with an idea for him: "Let's change it. Since Mr. Min said it tastes very good, it must be very special. Let's try some other dishes."

"Okay, let's change to beggar's chicken." Kane agreed.

As for the other dishes, it was up to Min Xi to decide. Compared with the three-piece duck and roast chicken, the other dishes tasted good but were less amazing.

Everyone left satisfied.

Min Xi watched the last carriage disappear outside the courtyard gate, turned around, and opened his palm towards Yun Ji: "Seventh Brother, we won the first battle!"

Yun Ji looked at his strange gestures and asked in confusion: "What are you doing?"

"Let's high-five. You stretch it out too." Min Xi smiled and made a high-five gesture.

Yun Ji understood and stretched out his hands to collide with Min Xi's palms, making a crisp sound. He shook his head. Min Xi always had some strange words and deeds.

"Good luck with the opening!" said Yun Ji.

"Yes, good luck with the grand opening! Today's feedback is pretty good. Look, there is a follow-up, they have booked another meal. Next time they come to dine, I will take the opportunity to chat with them and learn about their family background, especially that Landon. He should be the best breakthrough point." Min Xi said.

"I think they are either rich or noble. There are emblems on two of the carriages. I guess they are all aristocrats." Yun Ji has been in Europe for a long time and has learned a little about how to identify aristocrats.

Min Xi suddenly said: "What a pity!"

Yun Ji looked at him in surprise: "What's a pity?"

"I've never eaten that three-piece duck. If there are no customers tomorrow, let's cook it ourselves." Min Xi said.

"You've never eaten it before. How is it made? I remember you made it at the Marquis de Merlot's house when you were in Lisbon."

"I learned it by watching the chef, but I've never eaten it. This dish is too expensive, and we don't deserve to taste it. Brother Qi, go buy some groceries tomorrow. If you have wild ducks and pigeons, buy some and we can cook it and try it ourselves."

In fact, it is not Min Xi's fault. A classic dish like Three-piece Duck requires wild duck. You have to know that in the era when he lived, wild duck had become a protected animal and hunting was strictly prohibited. There were very few Huaiyang cuisine chefs who could cook Three-piece Duck, and only a few large restaurants could make it. He would not deliberately go out of his way to look for Three-piece Duck to eat.

It was possible to make it when we were in Lisbon, but this dish is too time-consuming and labor-intensive. The process of deboning the duck alone means it is not a popular dish, so no restaurant has ever served this dish, and they themselves don’t have the time to make it. Now that I have opened a private restaurant and have the time, I can finally try what it tastes like.

"Okay, I'm actually curious about what it tastes like. It smells really good." Yun Ji said.

"Right! I must try what it tastes like!" I made it for others and haven't eaten it myself yet, so I feel a little sorry for myself.

The next day, Yun Ji bought wild ducks and pigeons. He also made an appointment with the game seller for wild ducks and pigeons for two days later. This man was a frequent hunter, but unlike the nobles, he used a bow and arrow instead of a gun, because guns and bullets were too expensive for ordinary people.

At noon, Min Xi and Yun Ji finally had the three-piece duck. It was so delicious that it made their eyebrows drop, and the taste was particularly layered, with different layers of flavors, and the two adjacent meats mixed together would produce a new flavor. It was so delicious that Min Xi and Yun Ji felt a little speechless.

Yun Ji asked curiously, "Is this also a dish from Yingtian Prefecture?"

Min Xi thought for a while and said, "Maybe it's Huaiyang cuisine." There seemed to be no three-piece duck in the Ming Dynasty. He hoped Yun Ji would not be so curious that he would go to the restaurant to verify it after returning. He cooked so many dishes, and many of them were not available at that time.

While eating, he heard the sound of horse hooves outside the door. Min Xi raised his head from his bowl and looked at Yun Ji: "Why are you here at this time?"

Yun Ji put down his chopsticks, stood up and went out. There was a carriage parked outside the courtyard gate. Hopson's friend named Miller stood on the carriage and looked into the courtyard. Yun Ji walked over and opened the gate: "Hello, Mr. Miller!"

Miller said, "Hello! I'm here to order food."

"Come in!" Yun Ji led the person into the house.

After Miller entered the house, he saw Min Xi eating at the dining table: "I'm very sorry to disturb you."

Min Xi stood up and said, "It's okay. I wonder if Mr. Miller has eaten yet? If not, come and eat with us."

Miller actually chose to come at mealtime on purpose, just to get a free meal: "Will it cause any trouble to you?"

"No. Let's sit together, I'll get you the tableware." Min Xi got up and went to the kitchen to get the tableware.

Miller looked at the three sets of duck that had been opened in the basin and asked curiously, "What is this?" As soon as he entered the house, he smelled a strong fragrance, which he thought came from this dish.

"Three sets of duck. Mr. Miller, please try it and drink some soup first." Min Xi said as he served him some soup.

Miller picked it up and took a sip. The delicious taste shocked him. He couldn't believe that there was such a delicious soup in the world. "What is this? It's so delicious!"

Min Xi smiled and said, "It is stewed with domestic duck, wild duck and wild pigeon."

Miller finished a bowl and couldn't help but ask for another one: "Can this dish be added to the menu I ordered?"

"If you like, you can join in. When do you plan to come and eat?" Min Xi asked.

Miller said, “The day after tomorrow.”

"Sure. How many people, and what time?"

"Four people, at noon the day after tomorrow. We are distinguished guests, and I hope everything is the best. I want to order the beggar's chicken that I had last time again," said Miller.

Min Xi thought for a moment and said, "If the guest is of distinguished status, beggar's chicken will easily leave a bad impression. Why not change it to roast chicken, which is also a whole chicken. Three-piece duck is relatively light, beggar's chicken is also light, and roast chicken uses more ingredients, so we can change the taste."

Miller remembered the taste of beggar's chicken and was still a little obsessed with it. He loved the smooth and juicy taste of beggar's chicken so much, so he was a little hesitant: "You can remove the mud shell before serving it."

Min Xi said: "That's fine, let's just make beggar's chicken." The cost of beggar's chicken is much lower than roast chicken, and since the customers like it, let's stick with this.

Miller finished eating three sets of duck and three sets of noodles cooked in duck soup, and ordered a few more dishes at Min Xi's suggestion. He paid a deposit of 5 shillings and left satisfied. It turned out that it was a good idea to come and eat at mealtime and he made another profit.

That afternoon, Brett came again. He came with the butler of Earl Comstock's mansion to order food. The Earl had booked lunch for six people and was going to eat at noon the next day. He specifically asked for the roast duck and beggar's chicken recommended by Brett.

From this point of view, the effect of making snacks at the Earl's Palace has gradually emerged. The restaurant has gradually received customers, and there will be more and more in the future. Even if there is only one table of customers a day, it can almost match the income of the Lisbon Hotel. It is much easier here.

When Brett left, Min Xi asked him to help keep an eye on the news of the Fulangji delegation. They were not in the city now, so it was not easy to find out the news of the delegation. Brett was a local and had connections, so it was much more convenient for him to find out the news than for the two of them to go through so much trouble.

Brett agreed readily and said he would bring his friends to his place for dinner some other day.

The other party agreed so readily, so Min Xi certainly couldn't let him down, so he asked Yun Ji to buy more beef when he went shopping tomorrow so that he could make beef jerky for Brett, as he had been too busy these days and had forgotten about it.

The next day, Yun Ji went shopping for groceries and ordered wild ducks and pigeons for tomorrow from a hunter who sold wild game. He also bought fish according to Min Xi's instructions. Today, he planned to make a fish and mutton dish to shock the British nobles who did not eat fish.

After buying the food, Yun Ji hurried back to help Min Xi, because Count Burcomstock and his party would come over for lunch at noon, and time was very tight.

Fortunately, today's dishes were not like the three-piece duck and roast chicken, which took a long time to prepare, so the two of them could handle it calmly. When the Earl and his party arrived, the beggar's chicken and roast duck were almost ready.

Brett was among them, but it was understandable if you thought about it. After all, this house was his villa, and when the elders in his family came to visit, he, as the host, had to receive them personally.

According to Brett, Mrs. Comstock did not invite outsiders this time. Only her family members came, including Brett, for a total of seven guests.

There were originally eight dishes, plus the staple food and dessert, it was ten dishes, and Min Xi was going to give a free serving of double skin milk. But now that there were so many people, he gave another dish as a gift.

Even though she had expected that the meal would exceed her expectations, in fact, the meal completely exceeded Mrs. Comstock's expectations. The old lady praised the meal highly and even asked Min Xi to tell her the name and cooking method of each dish.

Min Xi was also very patient in answering their questions one by one.