The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

The two closed the doors and windows and returned to the tavern together.

They arrived in Lisbon at the end of February, set up the stall for a month, and it took nearly two months to decorate the restaurant (mainly because the carpenters took a long time to work), and now it is the end of May.

They had been in Fronji for three months, and according to the agreement, Captain Reiss should have set off for Asia, but there was no news from him, and no one knew when he would set off.

Summer has also arrived in Lisbon, but the summer here is not very hot. Min Xi estimates that the highest temperature during the day is only over 20 degrees Celsius, and you even need to cover yourself with a thin blanket at night. The weather is really pleasant.

The summer temperature here made Min Xi feel a little relieved. If it didn't exceed 30 degrees, it shouldn't be too difficult to keep the food fresh. There was also a well behind the restaurant, where the food could be hung. The well water temperature was relatively low in summer, so it could be used as a natural refrigerator.

Otherwise, if the ingredients go bad and affect the taste, the problem is not serious. But if someone gets sick after eating the food, you will have to pay a huge loss.

The evening breeze was very comfortable. Along the way, I met many people returning home from work, old people and housewives chatting together, many children playing and fighting, and parents scolding and beating their children. Apart from the skin color and language, there is no difference from China. Human nature is basically the same.

They returned to the tavern. Diego was sitting at the door. When he saw them coming back, he felt like he had found a savior: "Sir, you are back! Mr. Sanvis was out for something today, and he asked you to help look after the tavern."

Min Xi was a little surprised. This was the first time that Sanvis was not at home to look after the pub. "Did he say where he was going?"

Diego said, "He went to Mora. He received a letter at noon and left in a hurry. He said he might be gone for two or three days."

Min Xi and Yun Ji had originally planned to move tomorrow, but now it seems they can't move for the time being, at least until Sanvis comes back.

"I understand." Min Xi entered the tavern. There was only a small oil lamp on the bar. Before the guests arrived, the other lamps were not lit in order to save costs.

Recently they have been busy with the restaurant renovation, so they can't open the stall, but Sanvis asked them to cook some food for the guests at night, so that they can earn some living expenses. They are very grateful for Sanvis's help. It is not easy to help them to this extent after meeting them by chance.

Diego followed into the kitchen and said, "Sir, I have washed the shallots."

"Thank you!" Min Xi began to scoop and knead the dough.

He didn't have time to prepare the ingredients, so he asked Diego to pick bear onions, and he paid 1 reais for one pound of bear onions. Diego was very excited because he could make money, but his time was limited, and Min Xi needed a lot of bear onions, so he asked other friends to pick them, and they paid half a reais for one pound, so he could earn half of the money. He was also a smart little guy.

Diego requires that the bear onions he purchases be picked cleanly, without any weeds or impurities, otherwise he will reject them.

There are quite a few children who are willing to pick bear onions, so there are enough bear onions every day.

Yun Ji took over the task of kneading the dough from Min Xi, while Min Xi went to cook and fried eggs at the same time.

Diego took the initiative to wash the bear onions.

The three of them worked together and soon the leek dumplings were made.

Chives are available from spring to summer, and selling chive boxes is the easiest and most cost-effective way to sell them.

One pound of flour can make about 20 fried chive dumplings, which costs about 12 to 15 riels. Selling them for 2 riels each can earn more than half the profit. Such a big chive dumpling is much bigger than a dumpling, and selling it for only 2 riels is a good deal for customers.

Sanvis didn't want to take any commission, but just provided him with a dinner. Moreover, leek dumplings could bring a lot of business to his tavern, so he was happy to let Min Xi sell leek dumplings in his tavern.

When business is good, they can earn one or two hundred riels a night, depending mainly on the amount of bear onions prepared.

Of course, it is hard work to decorate during the day and sell leek dumplings at night, but making money is hard work.

The three of them filled their stomachs first. They ate noodles with mushrooms. After all, eating leek dumplings every day would be boring. In the summer in Europe, mushrooms are abundant and plump, enriching people's dining tables.

After eating, continue to make leek dumplings and wait for customers to come.

Diego suddenly said, "Sir, is your restaurant fully decorated? Is it going to open soon?"

Min Xi said, "Yes, it's almost ready. It will open in a few days."

"Then I will never be able to eat such delicious leek dumplings again." Diego said a little disappointed. Once Min Xi left, he would go back to the days of having only black bread to eat. He felt uncomfortable just thinking about it.

Min Xi and Yun Ji looked at each other and said, "If you want to eat leek dumplings, come to my restaurant and I'll make them for you. You can still pick bear onions and bring them to my restaurant in the future. It's still 1 riyal per pound. But you may not need so much."

"Really?" Diego was overjoyed. "If you don't want so many, I'll pick them myself. The ones I pick are more tender and cleaner than theirs."

Min Xi smiled and nodded: "Okay. I need mushrooms too. When you go picking bear onions, if you see any edible mushrooms, you can pick them for me as well." There are plenty of mushrooms in the summer, so how can this dish be missing from the menu?

"Okay!" Diego agreed readily.

After the guests arrived, Min Xi went to the bar to greet them, Yun Ji was in charge of making fried chive dumplings, and Diego was in charge of serving drinks and vegetable dumplings. The three of them were able to handle the work, although Diego was a little tired because he was the one who ran errands, but the child was very smart and could handle it.

Min Xi was actually very envious of Sanvis. If Diego worked as a waiter in his own shop, it would be much easier for him. If they didn't have a good relationship, he would have poached him directly. The food in his own shop alone would be much better than that in the tavern.

Min Xi was giving change to customers behind the bar when suddenly a big hand knocked on the bar: "Hey, man! So you're here!"

Min Xi suddenly looked up and saw a familiar face: "Hi, Bob, long time no see!"

"I just arrived in Lisbon yesterday and heard other sailors say that there were two Chinese in the Magellan Tavern, so I was wondering if it was you. If it was you, are you working here?" Bob asked curiously.

Min Xi gave the customer the change and said, "I'll buy you a drink. What would you like? Beer or wine?"

"Beer, then," said Bob. "You haven't told me what you are doing here? Where are the clouds?"

Min Xi said, "I'm a tenant here. The boss is not here today, so I'm here to help him look after the store. I'm also selling some food, and Yun is cooking in the back. I'll go call him, wait a minute."

Min Xi walked out of the bar and into the kitchen, where he saw Yun Ji still making fried chive dumplings. "Seventh Brother, an old friend is here, would you like to meet him? He's Bob, the sailor from the Shark."

Yunji thought about it and realized that Bob was one of the sailors who was very friendly to them, so he asked, "Does he have any news about the Shark?"

"I haven't asked yet, so I don't know. Give him two chive dumplings." Min Xi put two or three chive dumplings on a plate and gave it to Bob.

Yun Ji scooped out the chive box from the pan and put down the spatula: "Let's go and take a look."

When Bob saw Yun Ji, he raised his hand and greeted him: "Yun, long time no see!"

Yun Ji nodded at him: "Bob, come over now, is the Shark ready to set off?"

"You are speaking well now. I got the news that the ship was ready to leave, so I came here." Bob said, "Old Dick and his men should be here soon. I remember you were going back with us, right?"

Min Xi put the chive box in front of Bob and said, "This is for you. We probably won't go with you this time. We plan to stay in Fulangji for a while and earn some money before leaving."

Bob knew that Min Xi's food was delicious, so he took a bite and said, "It tastes great! Aren't you going back? I was thinking that I could still eat the food you cooked after I got on board."

Min Xi said, "We are going to open a restaurant in Lisbon. You can come to our restaurant for dinner next time you come back. It's on Magallanes Street. It's called Chinese Restaurant and it will open soon."

"Magellan Avenue? It's not cheap to open a restaurant there! Where do you get so much money?" Bob said in surprise.

"Borrowed." Min Xi smiled.

Bob gave a thumbs up in admiration and praised: "You are really good. But your cooking skills are really good. You will definitely make money if you open a restaurant."

"Thank you for your good wishes!" Min Xi said with a smile.

Min Xi said: "When Captain Reis arrives, I want to tell him in person. He should come here, right?"

"Don't worry, Captain Reiss and the tavern owner Sandvis are very good friends. He will definitely come," said Bob.

However, Captain Reiss did not come, he had an accident.