According to Yuan Zhou's usual practice, appetizer dishes or drinks would be served first.
Since it was a large-scale banquet, Yuan Zhou also served appetizer fruit juice for dinner. But this time, he did not use acerola juice. Instead, he used another specialty of Yunnan, the sheep milk fruit.
The sheep milk fruit used to be wild in Yunnan, but now, it was planted. The wild fruits were slightly smaller while the planted ones were slightly larger.
The cultivated sheep milk fruit had a large purplish-red color and a less astringent taste than the wild ones.
Therefore, Yuan Zhou naturally chose the optimized and cultivated sheep milk fruit.
The goat's milk juice that had been squeezed out of the juice was served to each of the guests. An extremely sour smell was inhaled at the tip of their noses, causing them to salivate uncontrollably.
"This is rather special. This is the first time I've seen this after coming to China so many times," said the Thai Prince as he looked at the purplish-red juice curiously.
The official in charge of receiving the foreign guests was also one of the top officials in Beijing. He was known as Minister Hao.
Minister Hao said with a smile, "China is a vast country with many kinds of fruits. This is a specialty of Yunnan. It has never been served in a state banquet, so you naturally don't know about it."
That's right. Minister Hao was the one who came to receive these guests and not others. This was because these people had specifically stated that this was not an official state activity, but a private trip.
Due to the repeated emphasis, the officials in Beijing naturally understood. But they couldn't be careless either. Therefore, Minister Hao and He Zhenghong from the Asia-Pacific Economic Exchange Conference came to Chengdu together.
This not only showed the importance of the Chinese side, but it was also not as solemn as a state banquet. The atmosphere at the table was quite relaxed.
"We also have this in our country. But it tastes sour and not very delicious," said the vice president of Vietnam, who obviously didn't have a good relationship with Minister Hao.
"The original taste might be ordinary, but I believe it will be very delicious after being cooked by this Head Chef Yuan," said the Thai Prince seriously. He was obviously very fond of Yuan Zhou.
"That's right. We have all tried Head Chef Yuan's craftsmanship in the previous exchange conference," said He Zhenghong.
"Prince, you may be right. We can give it a try," the Japanese cabinet minister chimed in, then raised his cup and said.
"Then I won't stand on ceremony." The Thai Prince gestured to the people at the table, and then also picked up his cup to drink.
Thai cuisine tended to be sweet, sour, spicy, and sweet. Not only that, but there were also rich spices. It could be said to be a complex taste.
But now, when the Thai Prince drank the goat's milk juice, an extremely sour taste immediately dominated his entire taste buds. He could not help but frown, but his brows soon relaxed because a faint sweetness came along with the sour taste and brushed past the tip of his tongue.
The sour and sweet taste instantly stimulated his mouth, and his mouth began to secrete a lot of saliva. The taste slowly entered his stomach, and the Thai Prince instantly felt his appetite increase. A feeling of wanting to eat a big meal instantly appeared in his mind.
"Oh, I'm so hungry." The Thai Prince was the first to speak, and everyone else at the table had the same expression.
Even the famous Thai chef who had a good relationship with the Prince sitting beside him couldn't help swallowing his saliva and said, "This is really wonderful and awesome."
That's right. Every chef would do something to stimulate the appetite, but it was the first time that he saw someone like Yuan Zhou who could have such an immediate effect after drinking a cup of beverage.
Therefore, the way the famous Thai chef looked at Yuan Zhou was almost the same as how Dashi Xiujie looked at Yuan Zhou.
At this time, Yuan Zhou's main dish was just served. It was the Rose Sugar Oil Chicken that he had mentioned in the afternoon.
The plate carried by the waiter was in the shape of a snow-white crescent moon. At one end of the crescent moon was a three-dimensional transparent rose. The dark red color was very beautiful, and at the other end was a brighter and bigger rose.
The sparkling roses seemed to be covered with crystals. They sparkled under the light, giving off a beautiful rose color.
If one smelled it carefully, he could even smell the fragrance of a real rose, while the three-dimensional and slightly transparent dark red rose on the other end had a sweet fruity fragrance.
The two roses were at the two ends of the crescent moon respectively. It was as if two flowers of different shapes and different postures had bloomed on the snow-white crescent moon, which was extremely beautiful.
"It's so beautiful." Although the Thai Prince said that, he swallowed his saliva without a trace.
That's right. It looked very beautiful, but the Thai Prince wanted to eat it very much. It was just that nobody had picked up the chopsticks now. He also wanted to maintain his dignity as a member of the royal family.
He couldn't be the one to pick up the chopsticks and eat first all day, right?
"My God. Where are you looking at, prince?" The famous chef beside the Thai Prince saved him. His surprised voice sounded.
Because the voice wasn't a whisper and besides the accompanying translator and simultaneous interpreter beside everyone's seat, everybody looked at the place where the famous chef was talking at the same time.
That was exactly where Yuan Zhou was.
Yuan Zhou was waving a kitchen knife in each of his left and right hands, waving it on the two well-roasted chickens with perfect color. "Shua Shua Shua".
From a distance of at least 15 meters, everybody seemed to have heard the sound of the knife cutting through the air.
As Yuan Zhou raised his wrists slightly, the knives danced and the chicken meat was cut into slices and stacked on the plate below obediently.
The chicken slices on the plate were arranged into the shape of a rose according to where Yuan Zhou cut them. It looked exactly the same as the Rose Sugar Oil Chicken placed in front of them.
Obviously, these were also cut by Yuan Zhou in the same way.
"What an amazing knife skill," the Japanese cabinet minister couldn't help exclaiming in surprise.
The cabinet minister asked Dashi Xiujie in Japanese in a low voice, "Can you do it?" Dashi Xiujie shook his head immediately. Even Tengyuan couldn't do it.
Of course, the cabinet minister didn't dare to ask Tengyuan, let alone Dashi Xiujie.
"That's amazing," the vice president of Vietnam sighed with emotion.
"This is the knife skill of our Chinese cooking. This Head Chef Yuan's knife skill is indeed exquisite," Minister Hao explained with an indifferent expression.
He looked as if any Chinese chef could do it easily. No one could compare to him when it came to pretending to be cool and unperturbed.
"Indeed. This knife skill is also very important in our Chinese cooking," He Zhenghong agreed with Minister Hao with a faint smile even though she felt honored inwardly.
"I'm really looking forward to the taste of this dish," the reticent Fiji Prime Minister also looked at his plate expectantly.
"Yes. Why don't we start tasting it?" Suggested the Thai Prince. After a short pause, he continued, "After all, this is Head Chef Yuan's personal cooking exhibition. Eating it in time is a sign of respect to him."
"That's right." Everyone present agreed with him.
They nodded and picked up their chopsticks, knives, and forks, preparing to eat.
Seeing the attention diverted, the Thai chef heaved a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the Thai Prince didn't ask him if he could do the same knife skill.
How could a knife skill like that be achieved by a human?
In the heart of the Thai chef, Yuan Zhou was a human, but his hands weren't human.
Amateurs enjoyed the bustle while experts appreciated the artistry. On one side, the politicians were amazed by Yuan Zhou's gorgeous and beautiful knife skills while on the other side, the people in the culinary circle were truly amazed by Yuan Zhou's culinary skills.
Only a few people present could do what Yuan Zhou did. He could slice the chicken with both hands at the same time and ensure the shape and size of the meat were the same. This was no longer precision. This was the pinnacle of culinary skills.
"This is truly a worthwhile culinary exhibition," sighed Ogyust.
"Don't worry. It's only the first day," said Francis contentedly as he ate the chicken slices.
"Fortunately, it's only the first day. Even now, I still feel that time passes too quickly," said Manfred.
"That's right," nodded Ogyust, agreeing with Manfred's words.
"There's a reason why an invitation is so rare. This is how it should be," said Salomon, who had been silent ever since he sat down.
"Because this is a sumptuous feast," said Chu Xiao, his hands trembling as he looked at Yuan Zhou.
Of course, Chu Xiao was excited. He wanted to have a real competition with Yuan Zhou.
…
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