The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Min Xi thought of something again: "Wait a minute, I'll serve some more braised pork. Three dishes are not good, send four dishes."

In traditional Chinese culture, good things always come in pairs, so an odd number was inappropriate. Min Xi added a dish of braised pork, making it four dishes.

Yun Ji carried a few food boxes and drove the carriage to his grandparents' house with full sincerity.

Seeing that he was leaving, Yunlin also clamored to go with him, but Yunji didn't want to take him with him: "Brother is going to his grandparents' house. If you want to go, I won't bring you back."

When Yunlin heard this, he stopped clamoring to go. He liked being with his brothers. The food his second brother cooked was so delicious, and he hadn't eaten enough.

When Yun Ji was leaving, he ran into Sun Hua who had just arrived: "Aren't you going to treat us to a meal? Where are you going?"

Yun Ji smiled and said, "Min Xi cooked some dishes and asked me to send some to grandpa to try. I'll be back soon, you go in and sit for a while."

Sun Hua was a gourmet. He sniffed and smelled a strange aroma. What delicious food was cooked? But before he could ask, Yun Ji had already left. He did not chase after him. Since Min Xi cooked it, they would definitely be able to eat it tonight.

Sun Hua rubbed his hands excitedly, suppressed his excitement and entered Yun's house.

Yun Ji drove the carriage to deliver the dishes to Tao's house, and repeatedly told the cook how to cook the boiled cabbage. The cook agreed, but he felt funny in his heart, why did he send boiled water and cabbage hearts. After Yun Ji left, he quietly tasted a little of the boiled water and was speechless. He had never tasted such delicious broth, and what was even more rare was that this broth was clearer than water, no wonder it was called boiled cabbage.

Old Master Tao had a guest visiting him. It was his former subordinate, Xu Ji, the current Hanlin Academy student, who came to visit his old boss. The two chatted happily, and as it was getting late, Master Xu was about to get up and say goodbye. Naturally, Tao Hong wanted to keep the guest for dinner, so he ordered the servants to prepare the dishes quickly.

After a while, the servant came back and said, "My cousin sent a few dishes today. Do you want them served now?"

Tao Hong was very curious about what delicious food he had cooked and wanted to send it to them to taste, so he said to Xu Ji: "My grandson is filial and sent a few dishes. Sir Xu, come with me to see what they are."

Xu Ji was also curious, so he didn't refuse and followed him to the dining room.

Roast chicken and braised pork are both common, and Buddha Jumps Over the Wall looks unfamiliar but not surprising. There is only one dish that is very peculiar, which is a cabbage heart floating in a basin of clear water.

Xu Ji thought to himself that the dishes at Lord Tao's house were very special. They even used boiling water to soak the cabbage.

Tao Hong was also surprised, pointing at the boiled cabbage and said, "Is this the wrong dish? The cabbage was served whole without being cut, and it was even soaked in water. Take this dish away, don't let Lord Xu laugh at our family."

The servant who served the dish said, "Old Master, this was sent by our cousin. It's called boiled cabbage. It's a dish that takes a lot of effort to make. The cabbage heart was sent by our cousin. He also specifically told you and your wife to just drink a bowl of soup to taste it and not to eat too much, saying that drinking too much can cause gout."

Tao Hong looked at the dish carefully, but couldn't see anything special about it, so he said to Xu Ji, "Since the child is so filial, let's try it. I wonder what's so special about this dish. Let's serve the soup to Lord Xu to taste first."

The maid serving at the table scooped two spoonfuls of soup for Xu Ji, and Tao Hong also scooped one spoonful for himself.

Xu Ji picked up the bowl, took a sip with a spoon, and was stunned. It was not boiling water at all, but a soup as clear as boiling water. It was so delicious that it was hard to describe. He had no idea how it was made.

"Mr. Tao, this soup is truly a masterpiece of simplicity. Your grandson is really thoughtful." Xu Ji exclaimed.

Tao Hong also took a sip and was immediately delighted. Yun Ji was so good at this trick of first suppressing and then praising. He smiled and said, "I don't know where this kid got this recipe from. It's really surprising. He also sent these three dishes. Try them all."

While Mr. Tao was entertaining the guests with great dignity, Yun Ji also returned home. Several friends had already arrived and were drinking tea, eating melon seeds and chatting together.

Seeing Yun Ji, Qiao Zhilian smiled and said, "You are finally back. Wenhui has been waiting for you, his master, to return. He is drooling over the meal tonight."

Sun Hua said, "It's not my fault, it's just that Brother Min's dishes are too delicious. Aren't you curious?"

"Now that Brother Yun is back, we will soon know the true face of Mount Lu." Feng Hao said.

Yun Ji clasped his fists and apologized: "Sorry for keeping you waiting. I will see if we can start the meal right away."

As soon as Yun Ji entered the kitchen, he smelled a strong fragrance, which reminded him of the days in Europe: "Ninth brother, are you ready?"

Min Xi turned around and looked at him: "Okay, everyone is here, let's serve the food. You can just send someone to ask, why do you come here by yourself and not accompany the guests?"

Yun Ji said, "You are not a cook."

Min Xi smiled slightly: "Okay, serve the food."

Several dishes were served on the table one after another, many of which were new to Sun Hua, an experienced gourmet. He exclaimed in amazement: "What kind of cooking methods are these? How come I have never seen them before?"

Min Xi said: "Many of them are southern ways of eating. It's normal that you haven't seen them before. Try them and see if they suit your taste."

Sun Hua first scooped a mouthful of Buddha Jumps Over the Wall with a spoon. Because this dish was served directly to everyone after being packaged, Sun Hua raised his eyebrows: "Oh my God! Deer meat, mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, ham, sea cucumber, abalone, fish lips, fish maw, scallops... real delicacies from the mountains and the sea, and the fresh fragrance of Shaoxing rice wine. How many ingredients did you use for this dish?"

Min Xi smiled and said, "Brother Sun is indeed a gourmet. He can taste so many flavors in one bite. I used about a dozen ingredients."

"The taste is absolutely amazing! How can it be described with just one word 'fragrant'? Come and try it. I dare say that you have never tasted such a fresh and rich taste in your life. What is the name of this dish?" Sun Hua said as he took a big bite.

Feng Hao and Qiao Zhilian also tasted it. The taste was beyond their imagination. They couldn't imagine that someone would mix so many ingredients together.

Yun Ji said: "The name of this dish is Fu Shou Quan, and it also has a common name, Buddha Jumps Over the Wall."

"Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, what an interesting name! Even monks can't resist its temptation!" Qiao Zhilian applauded.

After eating Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, Sun Hua suggested that everyone eat something light to correct their taste before trying other dishes. So under his leadership, everyone started eating steamed fish, which he said was the lightest dish.

Feng Hao said, "Shouldn't we eat the boiled cabbage? That dish is the lightest. It's just right to rinse your mouth with boiled water before eating other dishes."

Sun Hua shook his finger: "You don't understand. I can tell most of the dishes on the table, but I can't tell the whole story of this dish. You don't think Brother Min will really bring us a basin of boiling water, do you? You think it's the simplest. In fact, I think this is the most complicated dish on the table."

Qiao Zhilian looked at the boiled cabbage: "Really? Brother Min."

Min Xi smiled but did not answer: "You will know after you try it later."

As expected, after eating the steamed fish, Sun Hua suggested eating boiled cabbage, because the other dishes, except for the water shield soup which was relatively light, were not light enough. If they ate them and then ate the boiled cabbage, they would probably find it difficult to taste the original flavor of the boiled cabbage.

Everyone took two spoonfuls of soup and two cabbage leaves. Feng Hao took a bite of the cabbage first and found it sweet, fresh and refreshing.

Sun Hua looked at the soup in the bowl and observed it carefully for a moment. He said, "It's really a very descriptive term for this soup to be called boiling water. There's not even a speck of oil."

As he took a sip, his eyes lit up: "Great! Great! It's really great! I've eaten countless delicacies, but I've never seen the thickest soup made so light and refreshing. This must have taken a lot of effort."

Min Xi smiled and said, "Brother Sun is right. This dish is indeed time-consuming. First, you have to use ham, chicken, duck, spareribs, pig's trotters, scallops, etc. to make the broth. Then, use chicken breast and lean pork to absorb the impurities in the broth. Repeat this process several times, filter out the clear water-like broth, and then pour it on the tenderest cabbage heart. This is the dish."

Feng Hao sighed: "Just listening to you, I feel like it's too much trouble. There are actually people who can think of this way of eating, they are really talented."

"People never tire of fine food and exquisite cuisine. This is the characteristic of Chinese cuisine. As long as people have money and spare time, there will be countless people who try to figure out more refined ways to eat food," said Sun Hua.

Yun Ji continued, "Brother Wenhui is right! It is only the people of our Ming Dynasty who make such a big fuss about food. My ninth brother and I have also been to several European countries. There is not much food to eat there, not to mention delicious food. Only in Spain did we find a dish that tasted pretty good."

"What dish?" Sun Hua asked curiously.

“Paella.”

Sun Hua was a little discouraged when he heard this. It was so difficult to eat seafood in Beijing. You can keep it fresh in winter, but the sea is frozen in winter and few people go fishing. Dried seafood is okay, but the range of choices is still very limited: "Is river seafood okay?"

Min Xi shook his head: "River seafood has an earthy smell. It is difficult to remove the smell when cooked with rice, so it won't work."

"What a pity!" Sun Hua was determined to try all the delicacies he knew.

Qiao Zhilian smiled and said, "It's a pity that even a table full of delicious food can't satisfy Brother Wenhui. Let's eat more."

"That's right! This is a typical case of having your cake and eat it too." Feng Hao also made fun of him.

Sun Hua laughed: "I didn't say I was dissatisfied. I am extremely satisfied with today's dishes. Let's not think about the seafood rice far away. Let's eat."