The Age of Discovery: Chinese cuisine swept across Europe

Min Xi got goose bumps on his arms. This guy really flirted with everyone: "I dare not offend Your Excellency. Are you here for dinner? If not, I'm sorry we don't have the time to entertain you. Please go ahead." Then he stretched out his hand to signal the guest to leave.

Lord Melo said quickly: "Of course, of course I'm here to eat. I'll sit here." As he spoke, he pulled out a chair beside him.

Min Xi said: "Your Excellency is of distinguished status. The seats downstairs are not suitable for you. Please sit in the private room upstairs."

Lord Mello sat down in the direction of the kitchen door: "No, it would be a waste for me to go to the private room alone, so let's just stay here."

Seeing this, Min Xi had no choice but to say to Gail, "Gail, pour tea and order food for His Excellency." Then he turned and left.

Yun Ji saw that Min Xi had been gone for a while before coming back, so he asked, "Who's here? The Baron?"

Min Xi smiled bitterly: "Lord Mello refused to go to the second floor yesterday. You will definitely run into him when you go out later. Just ignore him."

Yun Ji said: "If he wants to come, then he can come. It's not like he's eating for free anyway."

"Don't you feel awkward?" Min Xi asked.

"Why are you feeling awkward? If he dares to touch me, I will make him unable to move." Yun Ji said.

Min Xi laughed: "He is the son of a marquis, his hands and feet cannot be cut off. But from the looks of him, he shouldn't be violent, he is a well-educated person."

"It would be better if you don't touch me." Yun Ji said indifferently.

After a while, Gale came in and said, "The Excellency said that the most expensive dishes should be served to him."

Min Xi raised his eyebrows and came up with an idea: "Go and tell that guest that our most expensive dish may not suit his taste. Is he willing to take the risk and try it?"

Gail nodded and went, then came back: "The guest said he would be happy to try it."

"Okay, then I'll do it for him." Min Xi rolled up his sleeves and started to work, intending to entertain this distinguished guest well.

The dishes he was going to make for Lord Melo were garlic lobster, sweet and sour pork, white-cut chicken and boiled fish. Why these? Europeans have not liked garlic since ancient times because garlic has a strong smell and will leave residue after eating, which makes them feel impolite. If they hadn't heard that eating garlic can prevent diseases, it would not appear in the vegetable market. Garlic lobster and white-cut chicken both require garlic sauce; sweet and sour pork is made of pork. In this era, pork is not high-end and only eaten by common people, not nobles; the best white-cut chicken is the one whose bone marrow is still red after being cut open, depending on whether he dares to eat it; boiled fish, of course, cannot be without chili.

When the first dish of garlic lobster was served, Lord Merlot saw the exquisite presentation at first glance. He thought it was indeed the most expensive dish, and the presentation was so beautiful. But when he saw the garlic on the lobster, he hesitated. As a master of hunting for beauties, how could he eat garlic? It really damaged his elegant image.

Lord Melo looked unhappy and said to Gale who was serving the food, "I don't eat garlic."

Gale said, "But sir, Mr. Min said that the soul of this dish is garlic. It would be a pity if you can't eat it. Mr. Min recommends that you try it."

Lord Mello was a little embarrassed, but he had to admit that this dish was delicious and should taste good, but it was too challenging for his bottom line.

So when the second dish of sweet and sour pork was served, he didn't dare to pick up his chopsticks for the first dish.

Lord Mello looked at the second dish and asked, "What is this?"

Gail said: "Pot-fried pork, Mr. Min said you will definitely like this dish." There is no vinegar in the pot-fried pork, but fortunately there is ketchup as a substitute.

Lord Mello forked up a piece and took a bite. It tasted sweet and sour, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. It tasted really good. He raised his eyebrows and ate a piece of sweet and sour pork very happily, then picked up another piece. He really liked the taste.

After he finished eating several pieces of sweet and sour pork, he looked at the garlic lobster and decided to give it a try. After tasting it, he felt like a new world had opened up. The taste of garlic was not bad. No wonder so many people love to eat it despite its strong smell.

He was eating lobster when the third dish of white-cut chicken arrived. This dish looked ordinary, just a plate of chicken on a plate with a small plate next to it. The dipping sauce in the plate was garlic paste again, and this time, the garlic paste was raw! It was just poured with hot oil to fully stimulate the garlic flavor.

Lord Mello looked at Gale with some embarrassment: "Why is this garlic paste raw?"

Gail said: "The chicken in this dish has no seasoning, it is just blanched in boiling water, and then it needs to be dipped in sauce. Mr. Min said that in China, the most common dipping sauce is soy sauce, but Fulangji didn't have soy sauce, so he had to change to another version of the dipping sauce, which is a mixture of mashed garlic and white wine. The taste is lighter. You will know when you try it."

Lord Melo took a deep breath. How could raw garlic be called light? He decided to eat it without dipping it in sauce. As a result, he forked a piece of chicken and saw the red bone marrow in the middle of the chicken. He was shocked and called Gale who was about to go back to the kitchen: "Wait a minute, is this not cooked? There is blood in it!"

Gail said, "No, sir, this is a normal phenomenon for this dish. The chicken tastes best when the meat is cooked through but the bones are not. If you don't believe me, try it."

Lord Mello looked at Gale doubtfully: "You didn't lie to me?"

Gale said politely: “Sir, we run a restaurant. If the food is inedible, we cannot serve it to our guests.”

Lord Mello took a deep breath and waved his hand, asking Gale to leave. He looked at the chicken on the fork, took a deep breath, plucked up the courage to take a bite, and found that what the waiter said was right. The chicken was unexpectedly sweet and much more tender than the chicken he usually ate. Even without the dipping sauce, the taste was quite good.

He finished one piece, picked up another one, looked at the dipping sauce on the plate, hesitated, looked towards the kitchen, but still didn't dare to eat.

As soon as he finished eating, someone patted him on the back: "My Lord, you arrived earlier than me!"

Lord Melo was so frightened that he turned around and saw Baron Fernando and his elder brother Lord Fernando. He was suddenly embarrassed and didn't dare to speak because he had just eaten garlic lobster. He could only purse his lips and nod to the two of them as a greeting.

Baron Fernando looked at the three dishes in front of him and said, "Is this a new dish today? I've never eaten it before. How does it taste?"

Lord Mello nodded vigorously and raised his hand to signal them to sit down and eat as well.

Baron Fernando asked curiously, "Simon, what's wrong with you?"

Lord Melo covered his mouth with his hand and said, "Nothing, these dishes taste good, you can come and eat together. Let the waiter bring you tableware."

Gale had already brought up the last boiled fish dish. Seeing the guests coming, he was about to greet them when he heard Baron Fernando say, "Bring us two sets of tableware. We will dine with His Excellency. By the way, tell your boss that I am here to taste the food."

Gail put down the boiled fish, turned around and went to the cupboard to get the tableware. After putting it away, he quickly ran to the kitchen to tell Min Xi that someone came to taste the food. Min Xi knew that it was Fernando. He put down the knife in his hand and went out to greet him: "Your Excellency the Baron, Your Excellency Lord Fernando, you are here."

Fernando held a knife and fork, looked at the dishes on the table, and said, "I have never seen these dishes before. Are they prepared for my grandfather's birthday party?"

Min Xi smiled and shook his head: "No, these dishes are new dishes today, and Lord Mello is the first to try them. Lord Mello, how do the dishes taste today? Do they suit your taste?"

Lord Mello covered his mouth with his hand and said, "It tastes pretty good."

Baron Fernando suddenly understood and said, "It would be better if we put less garlic, Simon, am I right?"

Lord Melo was a little embarrassed, but Baron Fernando did not make fun of him. Instead, he picked up the fork, picked up a piece of lobster meat, and put it in his mouth: "Hmm, it's quite good. Brother, you should try it too. I think Min's cooking skills have never failed. Grandfather's birthday party can be completely assured."

Lord Fernando loves chicken. He picked up a piece and took a bite. "This chicken doesn't seem to have any seasoning. But it's the most delicious I've ever eaten. It's quite good."

"Yes, sir. This is poached chicken, cooked in boiling water without any seasoning. We try our best to keep the original flavor of the chicken, and you can dip it in sauce when eating." Min Xi explained.

Lord Mello pushed the dipping sauce over with his free left hand: “Try this.”

Lord Fernando dipped a little garlic paste in it, brought it to his mouth, and said in great surprise: "It's actually garlic paste? And it's raw!"

But he just said that and put it in his mouth without hesitation. The taste of white wine overwhelmed the taste of mashed garlic, and it tasted different. He nodded while eating: "It has the aroma of white wine and a very unique taste."

Lord Mello finally put down his hands. They all ate garlic, so no one should look down on anyone else.

Min Xi smiled and said, "Your Excellency is a connoisseur of good things. By the way, why don't you three move to the private room upstairs to eat."

"Okay." Although he felt a little disappointed for not seeing the beauty, Lord Mello no longer insisted on eating in the hall. After all, he had eaten garlic and was embarrassed to see the beauty.