P.S. Earl -
  Concerning the discussions about Taoism, and it's relationship to BBQ
and mysterious recipes, what follows is something I found on a site some
time ago.... related to both Confucius, Taoism and Eight Immortals of
Chinese legend. I don't know that DaVinci is one like them, but I have my
personal suspicions about the matter....
  Also, note the use of asparagus......
  
   

                             Confucian Recipe
      The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea Gambolling around the
                                   Arhat
                                      
     "For your dinner, you can never cook your food too fine, nor mince
                            your meat too well."
                                (Confucius)
   
   Written by Ronghe Yu

   Many centuries ago, when China was ruled by family dynasties, chefs
   prepared the light, elegant dishes that typify Confucian cuisine. Many
   came from the kitchen of the Confucian Mansion. Built over 2,000 years
   ago to house the descendents of Confucius (the Kong family), the
   Confucian Mansion was the grandest residence in China other than the
   Imperial Palace.
   
   One of the most famous examples of Confucian Cuisine was a dish with
   an impressive sounding name of "The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea
   Gamboling around the Arhat." This dish typifies the fresh, fragrant,
   pure taste that made Confucian cuisine so memorable. From the time of
   the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD) until the late Qing Dynasty (161 -
   1911 AD) chefs would prepare the dish for celebrations within the
   Confucian family, and when important dignitaries such as high
   officials, scholars and even Emperors came to visit. Qian Long of the
   Qing dynasty was a particularly frequent visitor, giving the Confucian
   family many opportunities to entertain with traditional family dishes
   such as this one.
   But how did the dish come to have such an unusual name? According to
   an old Chinese legend, there once lived eight individuals who had done
   enough good deeds to allow them to become immortal. First, however,
   they had to pass a test by overcoming several obstacles put forth by
   the devils in the East Sea. The eight individuals struggled to swim
   across the sea in the company of an Arhat or Buddhist saint, each
   showing off feats of strength and in the end becoming immortal.
   At some point a chef (whose name, unfortunately, is lost to history)
   was inspired by the legend, and decided to create a dish with eight
   ingredients representing the eight immortals: shark's fin, sea
   cucumbers, abalone, shrimp, fishbone, fish maw, asparagus, and ham.
   Just as the eight immortals swam across the sea, each ingredient is
   cooked and laid in an earthen pot containing chicken broth. But where
   does the Arhat come in? Considered as the guide and companion of the
   eight would-be immortals crossing the sea, he is represented by
   chicken, which acts as the leader of the ingredients.
   The best way to trace the aroma of this exotic dish is to visit the
   Confucius Mansions in Qufu, Shandong Province, China. This will give
   you a taste of what life was like for the Kong family, who ruled the
   town of Qufu and the surrounding area. If you stay at nearby Queli
   Hotel, you will be able to enjoy some of the dishes that made up a
   typical Confucian banquet. Of course, it won't be quite the same as
   when the descendents of Confucius sat down to dinner - for one thing,
   it was customary for an opera company to perform for them while they
   were enjoying their feast! Those with a culinary bent can also try
   making the recipe at home.
   
   Recipe: The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea Gambolling Around the
   Arhat
   
   Ingredients:
   1. Cooked Chicken breast 300g
   2. Soaked shark fin 100g
   3. Sea cucumber 100g
   4. Abalone 100g
   5. Fishbone 100g*
   6. Fish maw 100g**
   7. Shrimp 100g
   8. Ham 100g
   9. Asparagus 50g
   10. Fish meat (white fish, preferably Chinese white croaker) 250g
   11. Cooking wine 50g
   12. Some chicken broth, some ginger, leaves of greens, and some cooked
   lard.
   Directions:
   Note: The ingredients must be laid out separately in a pot or dish in
   eight sections. The chicken representing Arhat is placed in the
   center, and covered with slices of ham, ginger, and greens).
   1. Mince half (150 g) of the chicken breast into a fine paste. Use
   part of the paste to lay out on the bottom of a pot or dish to form
   Arhat's cushion. Cut the rest of the chicken into bars.
   2. Cut the white fish into bars and sandwich the fishbone in each.
   3. Arrange the shrimps in a ring.
   4. Form the shape of chrysanthemum with the shark fin and the chicken
   paste.
   5. Shape the sea cucumbers like butterflies.
   6. Pick out eight pieces of asparagus.
   7. Arrange all the ingredients in the pot as described above.
   7. Season the materials above with salt, MSG (if desired), and Shao
   Xing Chew (a cooking wine) and steam.
   8. Pour hot chicken broth and hot lard over the ingredients and serve
   hot.
   *Fish bone is a kind of fish glue abstracted from fishbones and scales
   of sharks or croakers by braising. In fact, it is a clear jelly.
   ** Fish maw is the air-bladder of certain types of fish. It must be
   soaked in water before being cooked.
   
   (About Ronghe Yu
   Ronghe Yu graduated from the Shandong Teacher's University, China, and
   lives in Shandong province. As a bilingual writer and cameraman, he
   devotes himself to promoting the exchange of cultures between China
   and the English world)