Gourmet: From a Stall in Northern Europe-Chapter 207 - 153: Wasn’t There a Huge Bowl Just Now? Am I Seeing Things?

Unlike the slightly al dente texture of pasta, these noodles are quite soft, and there's really no need to use your teeth; a gentle push with the tongue seems enough to break them.

Each strand of noodle is coated with a thick sauce, completely devoid of the canned tomato texture, with an incredibly rich aroma of fresh tomatoes.

Having gotten used to the Western-style tomato sauce flavor, suddenly tasting this, purely simmered with fresh tomatoes, offers a different yet refreshing kind of richness.

Canned tomatoes focus on intensity; they can be understood as a concentrated byproduct of tomato flavor, requiring heating during production and long-term sealed storage to achieve that taste.

The flavor and aroma of fresh tomatoes taste fresher, but the downside is they lack intensity.

However, in this bowl of noodles, it seems just right.

The creamy, rich aroma of soft scrambled eggs paired with tomatoes enhances the taste, creating an indescribable deliciousness.

The sauce itself is a mix of salty and sweet, with a hint of soy flavor, slightly salty when eaten alone, but forming a wonderful balance when complemented by the noodles.

"Hoo hoo hoo~"

As the two marveled at how such a simple dish could taste so wonderful, the sound of slurping noodles arose from beside them.

It wasn't just Lucas and Lin Chen; even Dais and Elsa were deftly using chopsticks to shovel the noodles into their mouths, as if they were authentic Asians.

In just a short two to three seconds of being dazed, a visible third of their noodle bowl disappeared and continued to decrease at a rapid pace, clearly showing their true hunger.

Maybe it was a mouthful of noodles whetting the appetite, or the side effect of working all night; either way, they now felt like they could eat an entire cow.

Ignoring any sense of elegance and dining etiquette, they held their bowls and vigorously forked the noodles into their mouths.

The egg aroma, creamy milkiness, mixed with tomoto fragrance, soy flavor, and the wheat scent of the noodles blended and intertwined in their mouths. The more they ate, the more appetizing it became, with an occasional bite of fragrant scallions.

"Hey! You guys look like you're enjoying it, but isn't it a bit rushed? It's not like anyone is taking it from you."

Jonathan found a small stool to sit down, poured himself a glass of iced Coke filled with ice cubes, and leisurely picked up a fork.

It's just a tomato meat sauce noodle with eggs; why are they acting like they've never had it before?

After twirling up the noodles, he purposely scooped up a piece of half-melted tomato and egg bits to cover the noodles, then opened his mouth wide to swallow it.

"?!"

The plain yet remarkable flavor made him widen his eyes in disbelief, instinctively sitting up straight to quickly chew and savor that somewhat familiar yet unfamiliar flavor.

Meanwhile, Lucas, who was devouring the fastest, had already stood up for a second helping, quickly followed by Lin Chen, and then Dais and Elsa.

Watching as they filled their bowls repeatedly, the remaining portion in the bowl dwindled, leaving Helena and Lucinda panicking as they pushed a large mouthful into their mouths and handed their bowls over.

"Mm mm!"

By the time Jonathan snapped back to reality and decided to abandon the damned dining etiquette to devour the meal, the last of the noodles had already been split among everyone.

"Gone??"

"Huh?"

"I'm not full yet, how is it all gone? There was clearly a whole big bowl earlier, am I seeing things?"

Helena: "Yeah, you must be seeing things."

Lucinda: "What big bowl? Wasn't it just half a bowl? With everyone taking some, it's all gone. Anyway, you're the chef; if you're not full, make more yourself. There's still leftover food from the morning, the kitchen's not lacking for food."

"Is that so?"

Jonathan scratched the back of his head in confusion, "I must be getting old, staying up all night caused memory issues, I'll have to be more careful in the future."

"But Lin, the sauce you made with fresh tomatoes and eggs tastes really amazing. With no special seasonings, how can it taste so good? Are you making this for lunch?"

"Sort of, but not with noodles, with rice. The sauce will be less, no soy sauce, and overall the flavor will be slightly sweeter."

Tomato and egg stir-fry can be sweet or savory, and he personally prefers a sweet-savory balance, like sixty-forty or seventy-thirty, mainly sweet. When mixed with rice, it's especially appetizing.

Foreigners probably prefer the sweeter side too. Following his own taste definitely won't go wrong, as it's proven when selling food at stalls before.

Jonathan, intrigued by Chinese cuisine, wasn't in a hurry to prepare his own as everything he needed was ready. Instead, he stood next to Lin Chen to see what ingredients and seasonings were used in Chinese cooking.

Soy sauce has entered Western kitchens in recent years as a staple for making Asian-flavored sauces, along with sesame oil, sesame paste—things he's familiar with.

But oyster sauce, doubanjiang, these he's never seen before.

Likewise, things like dried tofu are completely new to him, making him peer around curiously like a child.

Lin Chen, learning from the breakfast rush, prepared double the normal amount of dishes before opening, then started a new round of cooking as guests arrived, using four pots at once to avoid the morning's crowding issue of not getting enough food.

The lunch menu was selected from the feedback-favored dishes sold at lunchboxes stalls before, all quick and easy home-style dishes.