Culinary God in Wilderness

The familiar sweet and sour aroma of the jam instantly captivated Andre. This stuff was far more appealing to him than the stir-fry from before.

If his interest in the stir-fry was born from curiosity about a new food, then this jam-seared meat was the taste of home he’d grown up with.

Western breakfasts are generally quite simple. Aside from the various salads, omelets, and sandwiches sold in restaurants, the most common homemade breakfast is jam or peanut butter on toast, along with a cup of iced coffee or iced milk.

The sweet and sour berry jam, in both taste and appearance, was extremely similar to American barbecue sauce, just without the smoky flavor.

When the sauce in the pan had thickened and was bubbling like lava, Lin Chen finally moved the pan off the fire.

Without needing any prompting, Andre very consciously grabbed the small skillet and held it out, his face a mask of longing.

"Hold on."

Lin Chen smiled faintly. He pinched a few slender chives, chopped them quickly, and rubbed them between his fingertips. The bright green flecks rained down from above, adding a touch of life to the otherwise somber, purplish-brown seared meat.

Hit by the steam from the jam, the chives’ own fragrance rapidly rose.

"I’ve noticed something. Do you Great Xia chefs have a particular fondness for garnishing dishes with these green, aromatic vegetables?"

As Lin Chen presented the finished dish to the camera, Andre looked thoughtful, feeling as if he’d grasped a key point.

"You could say that," Lin Chen said, pausing for a moment before nodding in agreement. "It’s not just scallions, leeks, or cilantro. Authentic Daxia Cuisine uses many seasonings, like green and red peppers, Sichuan peppercorns, green Sichuan peppercorns, garlic scapes, celery, and so on."

"Adding these spices and aromatics not only enhances the overall flavor of the dish but also serves as a finishing touch visually. It’s the same principle as Western chefs using various flowers and herbs for decoration."

Andre scratched his head and glanced down at the GoPro on his chest.

"Forget it. I’ll leave this professional knowledge to the professionals. Just give me the meat!"

Lin Chen plucked a relatively leafy sprig from a pile of spruce branches nearby, dipped it into the water reservoir, shook off the excess droplets, and used it as a brush to scrape all the sauce and meat from the pan into the small skillet.

Of course, as was tradition, he kept a piece for himself to taste.

The porcupine wasn’t large, and the leg meat he’d carved off was only about as thick as a finger. Cut into cubes, it looked a lot like the diced beef you’d find at a barbecue restaurant.

He picked up a piece of meat coated in the thick jam with his chopsticks and blew on it gently a few times.

He wasn’t an idiot. Any sauce this viscous was unimaginably hot right out of the pan. It could even cause a blister if it touched your skin, let alone if you put it in your mouth...

"AHHH!!!"

Before he could even blow on it twice, Andre leaped up as if he’d been electrocuted. He yelped in pain, shaking his head and stomping his feet as faint white steam puffed from his mouth.

"..."

Lin Chen looked at him as if he were an idiot and shook his head in pity.

He carefully touched his lips to the sauce on the surface of the meat. Only after confirming it wasn’t scalding did he dare to pop the whole thing in his mouth.

The hot berry jam was mixed with a large amount of berry puree, and you could feel the texture of the fruit the moment it entered your mouth.

After being heated, the berries’ natural tartness had weakened slightly, and the sweetness was amplified. The overall taste was a bit like the sweet and sour sauce for *guo bao rou*, but tarter.

The surface of the porcupine leg meat had been seared until it was nicely browned, forming a thin, crispy crust.

With one bite, rich juices burst forth inside his mouth. The tender texture combined with the savory flavor made him instinctively close his eyes to savor the wonderful moment.

He wasn’t sure if it was because porcupine meat itself isn’t very gamey or because of the berry jam, but he couldn’t taste any gaminess at all. All that remained in his mouth was the taste of a thick, savory, juicy, sweet, and sour piece of meat.

Andre, having recovered slightly, held the small skillet with lingering fear. He paced back and forth in the yard, fanning it rapidly with his other hand, trying to cool down his lunch this way.

Even though he’d been burned half to death, he couldn’t bear to spit out the piece of meat in his mouth and just toughed it out.

"Hah... holy shit, I almost cooked my tongue," he said, chewing the meat in his mouth with big bites. Soon, his eyes narrowed in pleasure too, and he made an "OK" gesture.

"This is the taste! It’s a little tarter, but it’s like eighty percent similar to American barbecue. So this is how you can use these berries. I’ve learned something new."

Compared to the last dish, this jam-seared meat was practically foolproof. Even he was confident he could replicate it himself when he got back.

While Andre patiently waited for his food to cool, Lin Chen had already scrubbed the pan clean with spruce leaves and poured in some of the duck blood broth to reheat.

Taking advantage of the downtime, he took a small piece of dried sunchoke starch, crumbled it, and sprinkled it into the remaining shredded porcupine meat. He added a pinch of salt for a base flavor, then scooped in some water with his hand and mixed it all together.

After being massaged with the starchy water, the pinkish meat shreds were coated in a thin, white, paste-like layer that looked a bit strange.

When the duck blood broth in the pan slowly began to boil, he moved the pan off the fire, spread the coated meat shreds in a little at a time, and only then put it back over the flames.

But he didn’t just set it down to heat directly. Instead, he held the pan handle, suspending it in mid-air to manually control the heat and prevent the broth from boiling and washing the starchy coating off the meat.

After soaking for a few minutes, the meat shreds were clearly cooked through. He then placed the pan on the stones to heat it thoroughly, bringing over the pot of duck blood broth as well. He chopped up a good amount of porcini and Elfin Saddle Mushrooms and tossed them in to stew, then added the crab claw algae and dried lichen.

After the broth had been boiling for a few minutes, he poured the meat shreds from the pan back into the soup pot, grabbed a handful of cilantro, tore it up, and sprinkled it in.

"Here, the last dish for lunch: Mushroom and Duck Blood Soup."

Andre, who had initially been a bit repulsed by the idea of duck blood, suddenly felt that duck blood soup didn’t seem so hard to accept after seeing such a pot brimming with rich ingredients.

After all, both dishes he had just eaten included the duck blood broth, and neither had any strange taste.

Besides, the cooked duck blood wasn’t the mushy, bloody sludge he had imagined. It really was, just as Lin Chen had said, like blood-colored tofu.

The pot of soup, including all its ingredients, weighed at least four or five pounds—more than enough to stuff two grown men.

He quickly devoured the seared meat in front of him, even licking the jam at the bottom of the pan clean.

Andre subconsciously reached for the soup pot. But as his hand extended, he suddenly remembered something, his expression changed, and he silently drew his hand back.