A Bite of Douluo Continent

"Of course." Faced with Qi Han's praise, Ruyi accepted it all. "This is a solar-powered exterior wall light. The solar energy absorbed during the day is enough for the business during the nighttime hours, and the brightness of the light will automatically adjust to the optimal state."

After greeting the diners queuing outside, Qi Han gently closed the door, turned around and walked into the store. Before he could speak, Ping Xinyan's surprised voice came over.

"Boss, do you have this many dishes for late-night snacks?"

Ping Xinyan waved the menu in her hand, her face showing a hint of despair.

She only glanced at the catalog, which was filled with several pages of dishes—it was simply terrifying.

Moreover, there wasn't a single familiar face; it was all new dishes.

There are probably three or four hundred new dishes here. Do I have to memorize them all?

"Don't worry." Seeing this, Qi Han smiled slightly. "Just like hot pot, there is a menu for late-night snacks. You just need to give the menu to the diners to order, and then collect the menus."

The menu has nearly four hundred dishes. Even if Fuya came, it would be difficult for her to memorize so many dishes, let alone Ping Xinyan, who is a waitress for the first time. Qi Han had already considered this situation.

"I see." Ping Xinyan's expression softened. If there were a menu, it would be much more convenient.

All you need to do is tally up the final meal cost; it's just simple math, no big deal!

Wait a minute... With so many dishes available for late-night snacks, can't I, as a waiter, just choose whatever I want?

The thought of being able to eat so much delicious food filled Ping Xinyan with excitement.

Seeing Ping Xinyan cheer up again, Qi Han smiled slightly.

"Now you can start thinking about what to eat for lunch."

Chapter 394 Xiangxi Skewer

"Mmm!" Ping Xinyan nodded emphatically, then began to carefully examine the menu in her hand.

Unlike her initial cursory glance, this time Ping Xinyan discovered even more secrets on the menu.

The menu has many dishes, but they are divided into four categories.

The category with the most dishes is barbecue.

This single category takes up the majority of the directory, leaving only about half a page for other categories.

The remaining half-page contains more than a dozen dishes under the Golden Fried Chicken category, six dishes under the Six Flavors Shrimp category, and finally, a lone dish in the Beverages category: Rye Beer.

After roughly understanding the categories of dishes on the menu in her hand, Ping Xinyan carefully browsed through the dishes in each category and quickly came up with an idea.

"Boss, I'd like an order of spicy crayfish, an order of original recipe chicken nuggets, and a skewer of beef!"

It was Ping Xinyan's first time having a late-night work meal, so she naturally wanted to try every kind of it.

Well…except for alcohol.

During lunch and dinner, the staff tacitly avoid drinking alcohol because they need to start their work formally after lunch.

The same applies to late-night snacks. Ping Xinyan, who was about to start business after finishing her work lunch, consciously ignored the alcohol.

The six-flavor shrimp comes in two types: crayfish and mantis shrimp. As you can see from the picture, these are two different types of shrimp. Each type of shrimp has three flavors, and the flavors of the two types of shrimp are completely different.

For Ping Xinyan, neither crayfish nor mantis shrimp were things she had ever eaten before, so she could choose either.

So she chose her favorite spicy flavor.

After all, she's not afraid of spicy food and actually enjoys it.

The name "spicy crayfish" alone made her mouth water, not to mention the tempting appearance of the bright red crayfish and bright red dried chilies in the accompanying picture.

As for the finger-licking good original recipe chicken nuggets, the various fried chicken nuggets in the Golden Fried Chicken category looked particularly tempting with their golden-yellow surface, and their palm-sized size became the reason why Ping Xinyan gave up on other dishes after much consideration.

As for the final veal skewers, the reason for choosing them is much simpler.

It's purely because it's at the very top of the menu and looks pretty good.

"Okay, I'll get it done right away." Qi Han smiled slightly and then walked into the kitchen.

Soon, he brought over three kinds of delicacies.

Almost instantly, the rich aroma filled the entire dining area, sneaking into Ping Xinyan's nostrils like needles finding their way in.

"Mmm~" Just smelling that incredibly tempting aroma, Ping Xinyan felt her mouth watering uncontrollably.

She swallowed hard and began to carefully examine the three dishes placed in front of her.

The three dishes have distinctly different aromas, but all are exceptionally rich and mouthwatering.

The spicy aroma of crayfish goes without saying; the wonderful taste that makes your mouth water just by smelling it is irresistible to Ping Xinyan.

The fried aroma of the Original Recipe Chicken Nuggets is fundamentally different from that of crayfish, but its richness is in no way inferior.

You know, deep-frying is the most delicious way to eat food.

Between the two, the plate of veal skewers is just as good. In terms of the richness of the aroma, grilling is no less than deep-frying, and the meaty aroma is even purer.

If Gu Ruo hadn't come to Hanshi Festival before, Ping Xinyan would probably have immediately turned her attention to the spicy crayfish.

After all, among the three delicacies, the spicy crayfish is the largest, with a whole small bowl that is particularly eye-catching.

At that moment, Ping Xinyan only glanced at the bright red broth of the crayfish, swallowed hard, moved it aside, and turned her attention to the beef skewers and the finger-licking good original chicken nuggets next to her.

Having tasted many delicacies of the Cold Food Festival, Ping Xinyan already had a wealth of experience. These finger-licking good original chicken nuggets looked like they were deep-fried, and if they were allowed to cool down, the flavor would be greatly diminished.

And those small beef skewers, although I've never tried them, they probably won't taste good when they're cold.

On the contrary, the crayfish with broth won't cool down so quickly, so you can eat them later.

Ping Xinyan, you're such a clever little devil!

Silently giving herself a thumbs up, Ping Xinyan began to carefully examine the beef skewers.

Although she had already seen it on the menu, Ping Xinyan still couldn't help but gasp when she actually saw the small and exquisite beef skewers. Such small beef skewers?

I could eat them one by one by myself!

But ironically, these small beef skewers look even more tempting than the larger portions of beef skewers on the food street.

Each slender bamboo skewer contains only a small piece of beef, about the size of a finger joint. Each piece of beef is uniform in size and perfectly square. Under the heat of the flame, the surface turns a dark brown and glistens with oil, making it look exceptionally tempting.

Ten beef skewers are served on a plate, sprinkled evenly with cumin and chopped green onions. The beef fat, infused with cumin, releases a unique aroma that blends with the fragrance of green onions, eliminating any greasiness. The rich and authentic beef flavor is released like an explosion, making your mouth water.

Veal skewers are small skewers.

In recent years, small skewers have become increasingly popular. From being a rare treat in the past to now being a staple in every barbecue restaurant, there are reasons for this.

Putting aside factors other than food influencer marketing, small skewers have distinct characteristics compared to large skewers.

Barbecue is the earliest cooking method used by humankind. As soon as humans mastered fire, they began barbecuing. All subsequent cooking methods that require cooking tools arose after barbecuing.

This is also why barbecue exists in the Douluo Continent.

In China, the more widespread forms of barbecue are mainly found in the Northeast, Northwest, and Xinjiang provinces. The way large pieces of meat are skewered together and whole cattle and sheep are roasted on a grill all carry strong regional characteristics.

But besides that, in the Miao village area of ​​Fenghuang Ancient Town in western Hunan, there is a barbecue style called Xiangxi Xiaochuan.

According to the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Great Wilderness North Classic, Chi You made an army to attack the Yellow Emperor. The Yellow Emperor ordered Yinglong to fight back. The two sides fought a great battle in the wilderness of Jizhou. Chi You was defeated and killed. His remaining troops moved into the Wuling area, which was called Miaojiang. They had many oxen and ate roasted on small skewers. They cleared the wasteland by day and ate wild oxen at night.

The fact that this barbecue method is recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas is enough to prove its antiquity and tradition.

Before 2016, skewers could only be found in Miao villages. With the opening of tourism and the promotion of programs such as "Day Day Up" and "Life on a String," they gradually became popular all over the country.

Compared to barbecue in northern China, small skewers are not sold by the skewer, but by the "hand" (ten skewers per "hand"). Because of their smaller size, these small skewers are cooked faster and absorb more flavor. At the same time, Xiangxi small skewers emphasize numbing, spicy, fragrant, crispy, and tender flavors, and focus on the freshness of the ingredients. They avoid the usual practice of "heavy flavor + messy" cooking, which gives Xiangxi small skewers a completely different taste experience from traditional large skewers.

In terms of how to eat them, small skewers also have their own characteristics. All small skewers pay special attention to "one bite at a time". No matter what the ingredients are, they try to make sure that you can eat a whole skewer in one bite. It's clean and quick, and the feeling of eating skewers will be more intense.

If there's anything wrong with it, it's probably that it wastes bamboo skewers.

Picking up a skewer of beef, Ping Xinyan swallowed hard.

"Awoo!"

Chapter 395 Original Recipe Chicken Nuggets

As soon as the skewer entered her mouth, Ping Xinyan instantly felt the most original and appetizing aroma of the beef burst forth under the heat. That pure and rich meaty aroma completely enveloped her lips and teeth in the blink of an eye, making her eyes light up.

It smells so good!

The beef is evenly sprinkled with cumin and chili powder. During the grilling process, the cumin and chili powder slowly mix with the juices and butter that seep out of the beef. After absorbing the delicious juices from the beef, the cumin and chili powder also infuse the beef with their own flavor.

The wonderful flavor of spices and meat juices blended together, instantly captivating Ping Xinyan's taste buds the moment it entered her mouth, leaving her mesmerized.

With her eyes slightly narrowed, Ping Xinyan placed the empty bamboo skewer aside, gently bit her lip, and began to chew the beef in her mouth.

The size of the beef was just right; it wasn't too big to require tearing and eating, nor too small to lose its chewy texture. As she chewed, the juices hidden within the beef slowly burst out, and the delicious flavor almost filled her mouth.

The cumin and chili powder, which originally dominated the taste buds, quietly gave way to the main flavor at this moment, becoming the best accompaniment to the delicious taste of the beef juice. The beef itself did not become tough due to grilling. Instead, the quick cooking process of the small skewers perfectly locked in the tender texture and juice inside. This wonderful texture and flavor exploded in the mouth at the same time, creating an unparalleled culinary experience.

After finishing a small beef skewer, Ping Xinyan's gaze brightened as she looked at the nine remaining skewers on her plate. Without hesitation, she picked up the next skewer and put it in her mouth again, a contented and satisfied smile on her face.

Although there were ten small beef skewers in one hand, the portion was really not enough. For Ping Xinyan, it was only enough for ten bites at most.

She quickly put down the last bamboo skewer, glanced at the few remaining scallions on her plate with a hint of lingering satisfaction, and then her gaze quickly shifted to the finger-licking good original recipe chicken nuggets on the other side.

Original Recipe Chicken is not actually made from one part of the chicken, but from five parts: chicken thigh, chicken leg, chicken wing, rib meat, and chicken breast.

Chicken drumsticks are a great choice, as they are wrapped in soft, tender skin and have equally tender meat inside. The meat is large and chewy, with almost no dryness, making it a very good option.

The chicken thigh is triangular in shape. It is not actually the chicken leg, but rather the part where the chicken leg connects to the body. Although the meat in this part is not as tender as the chicken leg, it is still not dry. Most importantly, except for the small bone in the middle, the entire chicken thigh is all meat, making it the most cost-effective of the five parts.

The chicken wings in Original Recipe Chicken consist of three parts: wing tip, wing middle, and wing root. Each of these three parts has a different texture. The wing tip has less meat, but it is exceptionally tender. The wing middle has more meat and is tender, with rich skin and delicate fat. The meat between the two main bones is the most tender. As for the wing root, it has a texture similar to a chicken leg and is also called a mini chicken leg.

The rib meat is also a large piece with a lot of meat. There is a rib bone on its edge to distinguish it from other parts. The meat in this part is a bit tougher and drier than other parts, so it is less popular.

As for the chicken breast, it has a good amount of meat, but it is the drier part of the five parts. If it is not cooked well, it may even be difficult to swallow. If you have to say what its advantages are, it is that it is low in fat and calories, making it a favorite among people who are trying to lose weight.

but…

Surely no one actually buys Original Recipe Chicken and then wants to lose weight, right?

A chicken, except for the breast, is symmetrical in all other parts. So if you make it entirely into Original Recipe Chicken, you can get nine pieces. If you eat Original Recipe Chicken at KFC, you can specify one of five parts. But if you don't specify, you will most likely get the relatively unpopular breast and rib meat.

Of course, this situation would not occur during the Cold Food Festival.

The only type of Original Recipe Chicken here is the chicken thigh meat, which offers the best value for money.