Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe-Chapter 75: If you eat like this every day, you’ll have to change careers
"As for the specific principle, it’s actually quite simple, because the muscle fibers in beef are relatively thick, making the texture hard when cooked."
"By pounding, you can break and disperse these muscle fibers in advance, achieving a tender texture. Then by injecting moisture and wrapping it in a starch coating, you finally get slices of tender beef."
Lin Chen used the simplest and most understandable language to explain this marinating technique, lest Lunard wouldn’t understand.
Some words aren’t accurately translated, so it’s better to use plain language.
The young couple sitting nearby sipping congee also couldn’t understand their chatter, but were instead attracted by the images repeatedly shown on the TV.
"You’ve made roujiamo and biangbiang noodles here too? Oh wow, there’s also Bingfen, and it’s handmade, impressive."
"The background in the footage seems to be at night—do you also set up your stall at night?"
Holding the remaining beef and the slices Lin Chen had demonstrated, Lunard ran back to the food truck without looking back to experiment, even forgetting to take his congee. But since it was so hot, it wasn’t convenient to carry around; leaving it to cool for a while was fine too.
To make it easier for the diners to sip congee, Lin Chen specially bought twenty small plastic stools, which could act as tables when placed on the ground. If he happened to meet any city administrators, he would just say they were for the diners to rest.
"I mainly set up around ten at night, but this is the first time in the morning—I just wanted some congee, haha."
"Ten o’clock?!"
The woman’s eyes brightened, tugging at the man’s sleeve: "Honey, shall we come back tonight?"
"I think that’s doable; our dinner reservation is at six, we’ll finish by seven or so, we can walk around the mall nearby to digest, and it’ll be perfect timing for a late-night snack."
Being unfamiliar with the place, even though there’s a Chinatown nearby, they dared not simply enter a random restaurant, fearing it might be a modified version that would make them lose their appetite.
Having finally encountered a food truck that suited their taste, they decided to eat as much as possible.
"Brother, what are you selling tonight?"
"There’s Qiqihar BBQ skewers, fruit tea, original milk tea, and Bingfen too."
"!!!!"
"Ten o’clock, right? At the same place? We’ll definitely come!"
Speaking of milk tea, it’s something ordered by the big star, surely she should be informed.
Lin Chen gestured towards Lucas, who reluctantly glanced over there, "Should I go tell her?"
"Otherwise, should I? You’re usually responsible for attracting customers and chatting, even just now you specially invited people for dinner, suddenly not daring to speak—it’s even stranger!"
"Tsk... Fine."
Taking a deep breath, trying hard to maintain composure, he put on a commercial smile and slowly walked over to the two ladies.
In just a few minutes, the two ladies were already sweating profusely, their faces flushed, and the congee in their bowls was almost finished.
"Um, tonight we’ll be making milk tea, fruit tea, and BBQ, if you have time... remember to come and taste them."
Upon hearing the words "milk tea," Dreya and Anna immediately looked up.
Being stared at directly by the two ladies, Lucas couldn’t help but feel uneasy, with sweat starting to form on his back. He really wanted to avert his gaze but thought that would be too embarrassing, so he forced himself to stare back, focusing more on Anna to feel slightly better.
After all, as a recent college graduate, at 22, his hormones were at their peak, and it’s hard not to be moved by beautiful women.
"You’re making it difficult for us."
Dreya sighed, a hint of melancholy in her eyes.
"Every time you come, you sell different foods, and they’re all so delicious. Now you’re even offering milk tea and BBQ; if we eat it all, we’ll definitely feel stuffed. Moreover, approaching midnight every day like this, I’m bound to gain weight!"
Anna nodded vigorously: "Yeah, we’ve only been eating for three or four days, and I already feel I’ve gained weight. If this continues, will I have to change careers?"
"...Anyway, I’m just letting you know; whether you come depends entirely on you. If you miss today, no telling when we’ll make milk tea and BBQ again, we depend on the customer feedback."
Lucas didn’t want to linger for even another second and was about to turn and leave.
"Wait!"
Anna stopped him, pointing at the images on TV: "That burger-like food and handmade noodles—we haven’t tried those yet, when will they be back on the menu? We’ve been curious for a while now."
Lucas was stunned and replied without thinking, "No way, you haven’t eaten them??"
He immediately realized after speaking that their first visit seemed to be for Bingfen, and the second day was Mapo Tofu, then boxed meals?
It seemed that’s the case, so they honestly hadn’t tried them.
"You’ll have to ask Lin about that; I’m only responsible for attracting customers and filming. What we make each day depends on his mood."
"Alright."
Coincidentally, the congee in front of both of them was gone, and they got up simultaneously to head to the food truck.
"Please make us another bowl; can you pack it in two halves?"
Lin Chen always serves generously, so those with smaller appetites might not finish a single serving.
Having experience, the duo knew that congee tends to make you hungry sooner, so eating more isn’t a problem—it’s all water that passes through with a bathroom trip.
"Sure thing, no problem."
"I heard you’re making milk tea and BBQ tonight? We’ll be back, and about the food in the TV images, when will it be made again? We’d love to try it."
"You mean the white burger-like and noodle dish? Hmm... making them isn’t troublesome, quite a few customers like them. I’ll find time over the next couple of days."
"That’s great!"
Lucas stood by with arms crossed, quietly observing the scene of the three of them chatting and laughing, gaining some insight.
Lin Chen was right; indeed, focusing on one’s career is key.
Look at him now, concentrating on his work, even attracting the two beautiful women to approach and chat proactively.
Whereas I, trying to be generous by inviting them at my expense, look like a clown.
The saying holds true: a man focused on work is the most attractive.
It’s decided!
Starting today, I’ll work twice as hard!
Laughing and joking with several diners, time unknowingly slipped towards 7:40.
The street started to see an increase in vehicles, with buses appearing more frequently, and from the subway exit, hurriedly dressed pedestrians in shirts and suits began to emerge.
"Hey, a food truck?"
"Am I seeing things wrong—it’s not Lunard’s old food truck? Next to it is that Great Xia guy, this early?"
It’s not that foreigners don’t want breakfast, they’re simply lazy, lacking culinary skills besides lacking the eating habit.
If they really desired breakfast, there are restaurants providing it, albeit with a later time, typically referred to as brunch.
A food truck like this, setting up before eight, it’s everyone’s first time seeing it.
"Great, I’m so sick of eating burgers at ’M’, I could vomit, getting a taco for a change is nice."
"I remember this Great Xia Food Truck sells cold jellies, having a bowl in the morning would be refreshing."
