Chapter 395: Xiangxi Skewers
"Mm-hm!" Ping Xinyan nodded heavily, then immediately began studying the menu in her hands with care.
Unlike her earlier quick glance, this time she noticed more of the subtleties hidden within.
Although there were many dishes listed, they were divided into four categories.
The largest category by far was barbecue, which alone filled up most of the menu, leaving barely half a page for everything else.
On that remaining half-page were: a dozen or so items under the Golden Fried Chicken Combo section, six dishes in the Six-Flavored Shrimp section, and finally, a single lonely entry under the Drinks section—Pure Rye Lager.
After roughly understanding how the dishes were organized, Ping Xinyan flipped through each category carefully and soon made her choice.
"Boss, I want one Spicy Crayfish, one KFC Finger-Lickin' Original Chicken, and a skewer of Veal Kebabs!"
Since this was her first time trying the late-night staff meal, of course she wanted to sample a bit from each category.
Well… except for alcohol.
During lunch and dinner, the staff always tacitly avoided choosing Blazing Cup, since after the meal they still had to start their shifts, and drinking was obviously a no-go.
The same logic applied to the late-night shift—after eating, Ping Xinyan would have to start working, so she automatically ignored the beer option.
The Six-Flavored Shrimp came in two types—crayfish and mantis shrimp. Just from the pictures, it was clear these were two different kinds of shellfish, each available in three flavors, with no overlap between them.
For Ping Xinyan, whether crayfish or mantis shrimp, both were completely new. So either was fine.
She ended up choosing the spicy flavor she loved most.
After all, she wasn't afraid of chili—in fact, she loved it.
Just the name Spicy Crayfish alone made her mouth water, not to mention the picture of those bright-red crayfish tossed with equally crimson dried chili peppers.
As for the KFC Finger-Lickin' Original Chicken, the various golden, deep-fried chicken pieces in the Golden Fried Chicken Combo section all looked incredibly tempting. But these particular ones were nearly palm-sized, which made her settle on them after some thought.
The Veal Kebabs, on the other hand, she picked for a much simpler reason.
They were listed first on the menu—and looked pretty good.
"All right, it'll be ready soon." Qi Han smiled faintly, then disappeared into the kitchen.
In no time, he returned with the three dishes in hand.
Almost instantly, a rich fragrance filled the dining area, slipping in through every gap and drilling right into Ping Xinyan's nose.
"Mmm~" Just from the aroma alone, her mouth was already watering uncontrollably.
Swallowing hard, she carefully inspected the three dishes placed before her.
Each had a completely different aroma, yet all were intensely rich and mouthwatering.
The spicy scent of the crayfish went without saying—it was the kind of flavor that made your mouth water just by breathing it in, irresistible to Ping Xinyan.
The fried chicken's deep-fried fragrance was of an entirely different nature, yet no less enticing.
After all, frying was the king of aromas.
And then, standing proudly between the two, the veal kebabs were in no way overshadowed. When it came to richness of scent, barbecue was no less potent than frying, and the pure meatiness of roasted beef gave it a flavor all its own.
Had it been before she ever came to Han Shi, Ping Xinyan would probably have gone straight for the Spicy Crayfish without a second thought.
After all, among the three dishes, the Spicy Crayfish had the largest portion—an entire small basin, eye-catching and brimming with fragrance.
But at this moment, after just one glance at the bright red broth, Ping Xinyan swallowed hard, then deliberately set it aside and turned her attention toward the Veal Kebabs and the KFC Finger-Lickin' Original Chicken.
Having eaten plenty of Han Shi's food already, she now had some experience. One look at the chicken bites and she could tell they were deep-fried. If she let them cool, the taste would definitely suffer.
The same went for the veal skewers. She hadn't tried them before, but even so, barbecue that's gone cold was bound to lose a lot of its appeal.
The crayfish, on the other hand, steeped in its own broth, wouldn't cool nearly as fast—she could save that for later.
Ping Xinyan, you clever little thing.
She secretly gave herself a mental thumbs-up before focusing fully on the veal skewers.
Even though she had already seen them described on the menu, seeing the real thing in front of her made her click her tongue in surprise. So small?
She could pop one whole into her mouth in a single bite!
And yet, despite being so small, these kebabs somehow looked even more enticing than the big, chunky skewers she had seen on the street.
Each thin bamboo stick carried only a single cube of beef, about the size of a knuckle, cut perfectly uniform—square and neat. Roasted over open flame, the surface had taken on a deep brown hue, with glistening traces of oil catching the light and making the meat look impossibly inviting.
Ten skewers made up a plate. The meat was dusted with cumin and sprinkled with chopped scallions. The beef fat seeped out during roasting, fusing with the cumin to release a unique fragrance, blending with the sharp freshness of scallion. Instead of being greasy, it was rich, primal, and explosive—an aroma that could set anyone's appetite aflame.
These veal kebabs belonged to the category of "small skewers."
In recent years, small skewers have exploded in popularity. From being a rare specialty in earlier days, to now a staple of every single barbecue restaurant, there was a reason behind the trend.
Leaving aside all the marketing and food-blog hype, small skewers simply had qualities very different from large ones.
Barbecue was humanity's earliest form of cooking. From the moment mankind first mastered fire, roasting meat was born. Every other cooking method that required tools came only later.
That was why barbecue existed even here in the Douluo Continent.
On Earth, in China, the most widespread barbecues were those of the Northeast, Northwest, and Xinjiang regions: big chunks of meat skewered into kebabs, or entire cows and sheep roasted whole—styles steeped in strong regional identity.
But in the Miao villages around Fenghuang Ancient Town in Xiangxi, there was another tradition: Xiangxi Small Skewers.
The Classic of Mountains and Seas · The Northern Wilderness even records:
"Chi You raised his army against Huangdi. Huangdi ordered Yinglong to battle. They fought fiercely in the fields of Jizhou. Chi You was defeated and slain. His remnants fled into the Wuling region, where they were known as the Miao tribes. There they raised cattle, and roasted them in small skewers for food. By day they cleared the land, by night they feasted on beef."
For it to be recorded in the Shan Hai Jing itself spoke volumes of just how ancient and traditional this cooking method was.
Up until around 2016, small skewers could only be eaten in those Miao villages. But with the boom of tourism, and TV programs like Day Day Up and A Bite of China, they gradually spread to every corner of the country.
Compared with northern barbecue, small skewers weren't measured by "sticks" but by "hands"—one "hand" being ten skewers. Because the pieces were smaller, they cooked faster, absorbed more flavor, and Xiangxi skewers in particular emphasized "numbing, spicy, fragrant, crispy, and tender." They focused on freshness, strictly avoided the "heavy flavor + sloppy" stereotype of other street barbecue, and offered a completely different taste experience from large skewers.
Even the eating style had its charm: each skewer was designed to be eaten in a single bite. No matter the ingredient, you could finish it neatly in one go. Clean, crisp, and far more satisfying for anyone who loved the lu-chuan (skewer-pulling) experience.
If there was a downside, it was probably just that it wasted a lot of bamboo sticks.
Grabbing one veal skewer between her fingers, Ping Xinyan swallowed hard.
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