Chapter 1704: Want to have a midnight snack?
Although Russia's broad-gauge trains run slowly, their stability is truly remarkable. Xiao Peng lay there, listening to music and reading a book with headphones on, feeling incredibly comfortable.
He has an Amazon Kindle, but he's barely used it since buying it. It turns out it's a magical device for him, perfect for covering his instant noodles. The noodles cooked with it are full of knowledge. Unexpectedly, it's perfect for this trip.
As for Kasim? He couldn't sleep either, so he was watching a movie on his PAD. He had experience riding trains and had already downloaded a bunch of movies.
"Old... Xiao!" Kasim greeted Xiao Peng after watching a movie.
He now finds it really difficult to change his words.
"Ah?" Xiao Peng took off his headphones and asked, "What's wrong?"
Kasin asked, "Are you hungry? Want a midnight snack?"
Xiao Peng was stunned. "Going to the dining car now? Is there any food in the dining car at this time?"
Kasim chuckled and pointed at his suitcase and said, "Why don't I take the suitcase bed down? It's full of food!"
The luggage lockers on their trains are under the beds. You can lift up the bed and put the luggage under it, which can prevent theft and save space.
Xiao Peng asked, "What did you bring?"
"Too much!" Kasim said, "It's a whole box full!"
Xiao Peng looked disgusted after hearing this: "A big box? If you said it was bread, sausages and pickles, I would kill you!"
The Russians eat really simply, and these three things are basically what they can’t live without every day!
Leba is essentially a large loaf of bread. "Leba" means "bread" in Russian. There's a dedicated bread oven here, and every family brings in their ingredients to bake the bread regularly. The baked bread can be stored for a long time. It's considered a staple food for Russians.
As for the sausage we usually eat, it is actually the same as potato stew, which is also a Russian invention and a food that Russians love very much. However, Russians are serious about sausage. Many sausages here are pure meat without starch, which is really satisfying to eat - provided you don't eat too much.
As for pickles? They're the very soul of the Russian people! Life here feels incomplete without a daily dose of pickles. Pickles are everywhere in Russia—in burgers, wraps, barbecue, sandwiches...they're a must-have with any drink. It's common to see a few friends gathered around a bowl of pickles, eating them with salt and drinking a glass of wine—a perfect accompaniment to Russian drinking.
People all over the world are complaining about the dark cuisine of Britain. In fact, Russian cuisine is also quite "dark". However, as a native of Daxia, and a northerner at that, Xiao Peng is quite accepting of these "dark cuisines" of Russia.
For example, the "Salo" that people here love to eat is a good example of the problem.
To put it simply, "Salo" is lard. The refined lard is solidified into salt and then cut into slices. Then it is sprinkled with black pepper and other seasonings and eaten with black bread and green onions.
For others, this kind of "Salo" is too greasy, but for Xiao Peng, it is really a piece of cake and even feels very familiar.
When he was a child, his parents primarily relied on lard for cooking. The lard would be poured into a small bowl and allowed to solidify naturally into a white solid. When cooking, they would scoop out a piece with a spatula and place it in the wok. Once heated, it became lard for cooking. He also ate these lard slices as a child, sandwiched between steamed buns and sprinkled with salt. Actually, that was also called "salo." Xiao Peng felt a whiff of it transporting him back to his childhood.
But the problem with this "Salo" is that it is too greasy. It's okay to eat it once in a while, but it's really unbearable to eat it every day - there is a reason why Russians are prone to gaining weight!
There are also "meat jelly" and "fish jelly" that are difficult for Europeans to accept. These things have been made into various kinds of things in the north of Daxia: pig skin jelly, chicken jelly, chicken feet jelly, pig trotter jelly... Compared with them, the "jelly" here in Russia is child's play.
However, there are some common Russian foods that Xiao Peng finds difficult to accept, such as buckwheat.
Buckwheat, like black bread, is a very important food for every Russian speaker. It can be found on every Russian table. In their eyes, buckwheat is a panacea, rich in minerals and vitamins! There is nothing more beneficial than buckwheat porridge.
But this stuff is really choking, and every time Xiao Peng drinks it, he is afraid that it will scratch his esophagus!
We can't not mention their 'Herring Salad'!
Although their herring salad is not as notorious as the "world's stinkiest" canned herring, it is also hard to accept: they pickle the herring and pair it with vegetables such as carrots, beets, and broccoli, and then pour dressings such as mayonnaise on it. The taste is really weird: the pickled "too salty" herring is paired with sweet mayonnaise and sweet vegetables, the taste is really not a good match!
Of course, Xiao Peng could still accept these things. What he couldn't accept the most was the 'custard soup' here.
While the dish's name clearly states "soup," this custard soup falls under the category of "cold soup" in Russian cuisine. It's a solid, hodgepodge of cucumbers, meat, eggs, potatoes, and vegetables, cooked with kvass or whey, and, of course, cream. The resulting mixture, when placed in a bowl, reveals all sorts of strange things in the white cream, and it's served with sour cream.
Russian food, with the exception of pickles, is generally high in calories, a result of the harsh winters. Russians tend to gain weight as they age, a fact many attribute to their race, but a more significant factor is their diet.
Xiao Peng had indeed enjoyed some delicious Russian cuisine during this time, but after all that time, he was completely fed up with it. Especially the pickles! They were already salty, and they had to be dipped in salt. Who could possibly stand that?
Kashin laughed heartily after hearing Xiao Peng's complaints. "Boss, my taste has become more discerning after being with you. I can't stand our Russian food anymore. Of course I brought the best food! Boss, what do you think is the best thing to eat in the middle of winter?"
Without even thinking, Xiao Peng replied, "Hot pot! You can't fit a hot pot in this suitcase!"
"Look!" Kasin opened the box and said, "Boss, I have a self-heating hot pot!"
"Where did you get it?" Xiao Peng turned over and sat up in bed.
Kasin laughed and said, "It's not that you can't buy self-heating hot pot in Moscow. How could you not find self-heating hot pot in so many Daxia stores?"
"Hurry up..." Before Xiao Peng could finish his words, he heard a knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
"Sir, could you please open the door?"
This voice sounds a little familiar!
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