Ancient Foodie Survival Guide Chapter 15
Translated by Serena Love
Edited by Azure and unsaltedfish
Chapter 15: Spicy Prawns and Lotus Root Paste
While Xie Xun was still struggling outside, Jiang Shuyao came out from the kitchen.
Xie Xun's gaze accidentally clashed with hers, making him feel a little uncomfortable.
Jiang Shuyao didn't seem to mind, and smiled at him, "You came back at the right time, I just finished preparing our food." After saying that, she went straight to the east wing.
Her attitude was natural and generous. Xie Xun, affected by her attitude, strode to keep up with her.
The two sat down face-to-face. Jiang Shuyao didn’t like being served while she ate, so the maidservants stepped back once the food had been laid out.
Seeing Xie Xun sitting so straight across the table, his expression solemn, made Jiang Shuyao a little nervous.
When eating, being overly self-conscious was the greatest faux pas.
She picked up the porcelain jug on the table, leaned slightly, and poured a glass of wine for Xie Xun.
When he saw it, Xie Xun was taken aback, "Is this...wine?" He had never met a woman who drank alcohol with her meals.
"Of course." Jiang Shuyao smiled, her eyes curving like crescent moons "I requested this especially. I have tried it myself, and it is not bad. I wonder if it will suit your taste."
The culture of brewing and drinking in ancient times was long-standing and rich, with a vast array of wines. There were floral- and fruit-infused wines commonly enjoyed as beverages: grape, jujube, mulberry, citrus, plum, pomegranate, peach, and pear wines, among others. They were low in alcohol, pleasantly sweet, and particularly suited to women.
When Jiang Shuyao heard Bai Zhi list so many varieties, she felt like a mouse let loose in a granary. With a sweeping gesture of excitement, she urged Bai Zhi to buy one of each.
Xie Xun’s eyes moved from her to the wine, a flicker of surprise crossing his face."Do you like drinking?"
Jiang Shuyao nodded.
Xie Xuan was taken aback for a moment, but he didn't say anything and took a sip from the glass.
His fingers were fair and slender, the joints well-defined, and the way he lifted the jade-green cup was particularly pleasing to the eye. Jiang Shuyao couldn’t help but let her gaze linger on his hand.
Xie Xun, unaware of her attention, asked, “Is this pear wine?”
Jiang Shuyao moved her gaze to his pale, slender wrist, then nodded firmly. "Yes."
Xie Xun’s sleeves were wide, and as he lifted his hand, the fabric fell gracefully, revealing a glimpse of the pristine white inner cuff. His manner of tasting the wine was so elegant and refined that Jiang Shuyao, who had intended to cultivate the casual atmosphere of sipping wine and nibbling skewers by the roadside, felt somewhat thwarted.
"Cold and lovely, sweet and delicious." Xie Xun lowered the glass, and a sudden smile spread across his face. "This is my first time drinking pear wine."
This was the first time Jiang Shuyao saw him smile.
The setting sun cast a soft halo around him. His black hair was neatly bound, his face as flawless as polished jade, and when he smiled lightly, the aloof, proud air that usually surrounded him vanished in an instant, replaced by a gentle warmth, bright and serene like willows beneath a spring moon.
Then, his smile froze.
"Why–Why are you looking at me like this?" Xie Xun coughed, a little flustered by Jiang Shuyao's scorching gaze.
Jiang Shuyao retracted her gaze that was admiring his beauty, and sighed with regret, "Nothing, let's eat."
She lifted the lid on the large porcelain bowl on the table, and a strong, spicy flavor instantly penetrated into Xie Xun's nasal cavity.
Before him sat a pot full of bright-red prawns, their deep-fried skin gleaming with a lustrous shine. Sauce streaked with red oil was poured over it, sending spirals of steam into the air.
Jiang Shuyao had intended to prepare spicy crayfish, but it was a pity that crayfish was introduced to China in the 19th century. At this period, there were only ordinary shrimps. So, she used a spicy crayfish recipe to make this big pot of spicy prawns.
Xie Xun looked at this pot of prawns, remembering the shrimp gnawing method that Jiang Shuyao had taught him before. His head throbbed at the thought, there were too many... and it was too troublesome to eat.
He was about to move his chopsticks when he saw a white hand leaning towards the bowl... Xie Xun was stunned while holding the chopsticks.
Jiang Shuyao peeled the prawn in three moves, threw it into her mouth, and squinted happily.
It's a pity that there are no crayfish at this time. If not, you can hold the crayfish shell and take a sip of the soup. That’s the essence of it.
After Jiang Shuyao finished eating, she kept grabbing prawns. She felt Xie Xun's unbelieving eyes upon her, and returned his look, "Are you not eating?"
Xie Xun looked at her hand, then at the shrimps. "You eat with your hands?"
Jiang Shuyao responded with a natural ease, "It's so troublesome to use chopsticks. It's such a big pot."
She peeled the prawns as she was talking. After peeling, Xie Xun was still staring at her. Afterwards, she realized that people might balk at the thought of using their hands to eat.
"You can use chopsticks, uh... my hands are not dirty."
Xie Xun saw her look embarrassed, and was about to say that he was not disgusted, only surprised, but Jiang Shuyao intercepted the conversation first and said quickly, "If you think it is troublesome, do you want to ask a maid to peel the prawns for you?"
Xie Xun hurriedly said, "No." As soon as he finished saying this, Jiang Shuyao suddenly leaned forward and handed a peeled prawn to him.
Her movements were so sudden that Xie Xun could not react at all.
He looked down at her hand, her wrists were snow-white, and her fingers were pale, like the white core of scallion stalks.
The string of surprises left him dizzy, leaving him momentarily confused. He looked at the hand holding the prawn very close to him, and reflexively lowered his head to take the prawn with his mouth.
Silence, awkward silence.
Jiang Shuyao expected him to use chopsticks to pick up the prawn, or perhaps disdainfully refuse with a ‘I don’t want it’. He had always maintained an elegant and somewhat dramatic demeanor. But to take it directly with his mouth? That wasn’t like him at all.
Xie Xun didn't realize how he lowered his head and bit the prawn. When he realized what he had done, there was a thud in his head, eagerly climbing to the base of his ears, and a bloody redness quickly appeared on his ears.
Xie Xun was flustered for a while, not knowing how to conceal it, but before Jiang Shuyao noticed that his ears were red, his mouth tasted the prawn.
An irritating spiciness suddenly came up from the tip of his tongue. He was not prepared for this, and coughed because of the sudden pungency.
His white face was red and he was coughing, his waist was arched, and even the corners of his eyes were stained red, which lo, really painful.
"Are you okay?" Jiang Shuyao asked.
Xie Xun shook his head and took a sip of fruit wine to barely relieve the spiciness.
His face was burning fiercely and his behavior just now was really embarrassing, he didn't know what to do at the moment.
Jiang Shuyao didn't care at all. After all, eating spicy food would sometimes cause tears and snot to flow together. There was nothing to be embarrassed about.
Without stopping, she said to Xie Xun, "Do you want to eat it?"
Xie Xun nodded in a pretending manner, so he wouldn't look too fragile and delicate.
"Then I will call a maid to help you peel the shrimp." Jiang Shuyao said.
As soon as she finished speaking, Xie Xun immediately interrupted, "No." As if trying to prove something, he quickly reached out and picked up a spicy prawn, and began to peel it awkwardly.
Jiang Shuyao thought he was a little weird, but she and Xie Xun had always been from different worlds, so she was too lazy to think about it. She didn't have the right way of thinking for this era anyway.
Xie Xun was relieved when he felt Jiang Shuyao's eyes move away from him.
He peeled the shrimp, hesitantly, and slowly put it into his mouth.
It was not like his mind flew elsewhere, at first bite it was not choking, however, the prawn wrapped in the soup was extremely hot, causing the tip of his tongue to hurt slightly.
The rich and spicy flavor activated all taste buds. Salty, spicy, numbing, and fragrant. All the flavors complement the light flavor of prawn, turning it into an extremely rich and spicy delicacy. The sauce was as thick as gravy, and it was wrapped in oil.
After swallowing, the tip of his tongue was still numb and painful, leaving the unique sweetness of shrimp in the mouth.
He raised his head to look at Jiang Shuyao. She had already peeled a large plate of prawns quickly with her hands, and her lips were so hot that she could barely roll up the wine glass with her ring finger and little finger to drink it unsightly.
Seeing her eating happily, Xie Xun panicked.
There was still a faint spicy taste in his mouth, and the tip of his tongue was slightly tingling and painful. The more you do this, the more you want to eat one bite after another, as if it could alleviate the spiciness. The spicy flavor was addictive, and the flavor was even more memorable.
Xie Xun peeled the prawns faster and faster. The spicy and delicious taste stimulated a thin layer of sweat on his forehead.
He really couldn't figure out how Jiang Shuyao managed to make such delicious prawns. The thick sauce penetrated into the prawn, making it tender and elastic. The delicate flavor of prawn was also incorporated into the sauce, and even the spicy oil enveloped the sweet flavor of the prawns.
The sauce was salty and spicy, but it couldn't conceal the sweet taste of the prawn. Xie Xun took one bite after another, and even gave birth to an idea of using steamed buns to soak the brown-red sauce with prawn flavor. It must be delicious, even if it's just steamed buns, it's better than the food they eat for lunch in the East Palace.
The two ate prawns quietly, except for the noise of peeling prawns, there was only the sound of the bamboo leaves being blown by the cool wind outside the house.
Jiang Shuyao was eating very happily, and finally stopped when her stomach was about to burst.
Xie Xun was quick to get started, and now his speed of peeling prawns was already faster than a veteran like her. The two wiped out the large bowl of prawns cleanly without any trace of elegance.
Jiang Shuyao asked people to collect the dishes, and they both washed their hands with acacia soap several times until the smell on their hands disappeared.
Xie Xun was satisfied with this meal. He was about to go back to the study room, but was stopped by Jiang Shuyao, "Are you going to drink lotus root paste?"
"...there's more food?"
Jiang Shuyao nodded and returned to the table, "Of course, you can't just eat prawns. Lotus root paste can be regarded as a staple food, it can remove the oiliness and suppress the saltiness."
Xie Xun found himself marveling that Jiang Shuyao was truly proficient when it came to eating.
The prepared lotus root paste was thick but transparent to the point that it was crystal clear, and had a faint red color in the white paste. It was sweet in the mouth, soft, and slightly waxy. There was no need to chew, as the sweet lotus root paste would slide down the throat, leaving a long sweetness.
After a meal of spicy and salty meat dishes, he ate a bowl of sweet and glutinous lotus root paste. A wave of comfort enveloped him as the dryness brought on by the hot and spicy prawns disappeared with the sweetness.
Xie Xun ate two bowls before stopping reluctantly.
Thinking of the tasteless meals that awaited him tomorrow, he felt instantly dispirited.
[T/N: The Chinese considers lotus root as a "cooling" food, so it is consumed to restore balance to the body, especially after eating hot or "heaty" food.]
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