Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe

Chapter 291 - 203: Tasty as It Is, Some Sighs Can’t Be Helped

The tools for Western cooking are extremely comprehensive; he had never thought of using the back of a knife to substitute for ready-made tools before.

Thinking carefully, a meat tenderizer needle pierces the surface of the food, affecting its appearance.

If it’s a thick-cut steak, it’s fine; once grilled, its surface becomes crusty, covering the holes. However, for thinner ingredients, it’s a problem.

Using the back of a knife won’t damage the shape of the meat directly and can also tear the muscle fibers.

"Interesting, this little trick is nice."

Nodding with satisfaction, he openly continued to observe Lin Chen’s preparation process.

There’s nothing special about the slicing process; cutting along the grain, it’s a standard operation.

Lin Chen didn’t cut a lot, just enough for one fried batch, and immediately started the marination process.

Add seasoning, water, massage, and coat with starch...

Watching this, Chef Marchello started to feel his brain was a bit overwhelmed.

What’s the point of adding water to the marinated meat?

The most absurd thing was that after mixing, the chicken fillet strips became sticky, as if coated with batter, and could stick to the bowl’s side.

Once the coating process finished, they looked like what he was familiar with.

Due to time constraints, Lin Chen modified the marination technique slightly; originally, it didn’t require vigorous mixing, just needed to let the water be absorbed to allow the flavor to seep in over time.

But now, only by continuously stirring to build gluten could the seasoning seep quickly, so after coating with starch, they could be fried immediately.

The main flavoring of fried chicken fillets was from the surface seasoning; as long as the fillets themselves weren’t bland, a bit of seasoning was enough, not too high a requirement.

The entire smooth process took only about seven or eight minutes.

Customers who had never seen Chinese cooking techniques were stunned, their mouths wide open, clearly shocked by the amazing water-injection method.

When the chicken fillets entered the oil and golden bubbles arose, those at the front suddenly snapped out of it.

"Is that my chicken fillet?"

"Oh my, so this is how Chinese chicken fillets are made, it’s amazing!"

"No wonder everyone says it’s tasty; the method is entirely different!"

"I saw online videos where fast food places make fried chicken fillets just by cutting chicken breast into strips or pieces, coating them with flour, and frying them—none of these steps in between, maybe just marinate for a few hours with spice mix."

"I can’t wait to taste freshly made chicken fillets, they must be delicious!"

Cam just received his food: two of each flavor of croquettes, one banana chocolate ice cream crêpe, and a box of sugar-coated fruit platters.

Though these were flavors he liked, witnessing how the neighboring stall made fried chicken fillets, he felt if he didn’t try them, unless going to Great Xia, he might never taste the magical fillets in this lifetime.

Besides chicken fillets, there was also a giant Takoyaki with a whole octopus, which was eye-catching, and the beef scallion Soka prepared by a blond guy next to him, smelling of fried beef mixed with rich scallion fragrance, making his mouth water.

Glancing at the neighboring stall’s snacks, then at what he just bought, he suddenly felt less excited.

It’s not that they weren’t fragrant, since they were made by the Head Chef himself, the appearance and aroma far surpassed any similar foods in his memory. The sugar-coated fruits were a snack he’d never seen before.

But... how do I say this?

Three snacks, two are desserts, and the only savory one is a fried potato cake.

Compared to the neighboring stall’s three meat-filled snacks and the stall beyond with meat and cheese sauce fries, these didn’t entice him much.

If it were a girl, she might prefer this stall.

But he’s a meat-loving foodie; had he known this stall sold desserts, he would’ve queued at the middle stall right away!

Well, now he’ll have to start queuing from the beginning, which might take a while.

Yet, his mindset was quite positive; after taking a few steps, he changed perspective.

By the time he queued there, he might have digested what he had, leaving more room in his stomach for more meat!

After all, idling wouldn’t do any good; who would fly a kite when they could eat?

As he joined the back of the line, he happened to meet his buddy also approaching, both moving at a similar speed.

Seeing the food in Cam’s hands, the man’s face betrayed his expectations.

"Dessert, huh? I thought at least one of us would get some meat."

With that, he lifted his bag.

The most noticeable was the box of volcano-like meat and cheese fries, followed by two skewers of assorted candied hawthorns, with the last bag holding two fish-shaped waffle-like items.

"I’ve got two desserts that are as salty as yours, and together we have four desserts, two servings of potatoes, and not a single piece of meat!"

"Who would have thought!"

Cam stamped his foot, grabbed a still-hot croquette, and took a big bite.

If he didn’t eat some meat soon, he felt he might go crazy.

"Crunch"

The fried potato crust was as crispy as expected, and as he bit into it, the inside was soft mashed potatoes filled with a rich milky aroma—surely there’s cream and butter in it.

The first bite didn’t hit any meat; he knew it must be the beef-stuffed one.

With another bite, the soft mashed potatoes pressed down, and the hidden meat stuffing finally burst in his mouth with a rush of hot and savory juices.

Not the textured meatball he imagined, but rather a tender, exceedingly soft meatball that melts away with just a gentle press of his tongue.

No, perhaps calling it minced meat would be more appropriate.

Between the mashed potatoes and minced meat, there was a layer of sweet, salty, and rich brown sauce—you could tell it’s a typical Japanese-style sauce.

"How does it taste?"

His buddy’s eyes were full of anticipation, waiting for him to say it’s delicious.

Cam nodded, using a bit of force to grip the croquette so he could clearly see the mashed potatoes, sauce, and minced meat oozing out.

"It’s pretty tasty, and this combination is quite unique—I haven’t had it before. But how should I say this... it doesn’t have that wow factor?"

"While waiting in line, I overheard some people talking, saying that Japanese croquettes are a modified version of what’s passed from our place, usually bursting with mixed veggies or minced meat directly fried."

"Although Sakura Chef’s approach definitely tastes better than the original version, using mashed potatoes with butter and cream, it’s somewhat similar to our creamy fried meatballs. Though the meat filling is tender, when mixed with mashed potatoes and sauce, it feels all too familiar."

"So that’s how it is."

His buddy nodded, a trace of disappointment flickering across his face.

Just from hearing his description, he could already imagine roughly what the flavor is like—nothing more than potato-mashed beef meatballs.

If someone from another country were to taste it, they might be amazed, but for their Romantic Country people, there’s really nothing special about it.

"Why don’t we eat this meat sauce cheese fries first? If we leave them too long, the cheese will harden and won’t taste as good."

Being the familiar food, meat sauce cheese fries presented more appeal to them.

As soon as the bag was opened, a rich aroma of red wine mixed with tomato and beef scent wafted out, followed promptly by the unique sweetness of the sweet potato fries—just the smell was enough to make one greedy and swallow saliva.

Meat sauce fries taste pretty much the same wherever you go; the only modification usually made is the meat sauce poured on top.

Chef Marchello’s sweet potato fries are not the frozen kind sold in fast-food restaurants; instead, these are wavy and finger-thick, standing straight like finger biscuits, clearly fried to optimum crispiness.

These thick fries have a unique trait—the outer layer is crispy, while the inside maintains the expected dense texture of fries.

"Even though it’s sweet potato, there doesn’t seem to be much difference from potatoes? I want to eat meat ahhhhh!!"

Cam howled in his heart, hurriedly swallowing the half remaining beef croquette without bothering to use a fork, grabbing a wave-shaped sweet potato fry to give it two swirls in the meat and cheese sauce, pulling up long strings before stuffing it into his mouth.

The flavor of the beef mince in the croquette was notably distinct; this meat sauce simmered with red wine and canned tomatoes had a sweet and sour taste, with many spices added to enhance the flavor, masking much of the sourness.

The chemical reaction from slow-cooking red wine and beef enhanced the meat sauce’s flavor by several levels, further boosted by the cheese sauce on top—with who knows how many kinds of cheese—giving a sense of caloric explosion that finally brought some satisfaction.

The sweet potato fries themselves didn’t have any special flavor; they were sweet, fragrant, soft, yet crispy—it was a competent serving of fries.

But... he still wanted to eat chunks of meat!

He wanted to fill his mouth with meat, unable to speak, to savor every bite that felt like biting into substantial meat.

No matter how delicious the meat sauce is, it’s still just sauce, not actual meat, unable to provide that mental and physical satisfaction.

The guy queuing behind them just entered, joining the middle queue with everyone else, and upon seeing the two munching on all that food, couldn’t help but swallow his saliva.

Especially that portion of meat sauce fries they were currently indulging in—it looked so enticing, even pulling cheesy strings!

"Ah..."

Cam sighed, grabbing two more fries to shove into his mouth.

"?"

The guy behind blinked in confusion and couldn’t help but ask, "Bro, why are you sighing? These meat sauce fries look pretty tasty—are they not really that good?"

"Can’t be, right? Aren’t they made by a Michelin three-star chef?"

Cam looked up at him, nodding and shaking his head: "They’re tasty, yes, but... you don’t understand!"