Starting a new chapter in life

Although no wine tickets are required, each person can only buy one barrel at most. She originally bought it to make medicinal wine, but she was delayed because she hadn't gathered all the ingredients. Oh well, it's the New Year, so she should let them drink to their heart's content. They only get to indulge like this once a year.

He carefully filled the two empty wine bottles with grapes, put the wine barrel back, placed the wine bottles in the living room, heated up the leftover carp from New Year's Eve in a steamer, fried the remaining dumplings in oil, and also cooked millet porridge. After preparing breakfast, he was just about to wake He Zhijun and ask him to call Battalion Commander Gao when the two of them, as if they had planned it in advance, came out of their respective rooms one after the other.

"You're awake just in time. Wash your faces and eat. If you're tired, eat before you go back to sleep," Jingyan said casually.

He Zhijun shook his head: "You've slept enough. Is there any work to do after breakfast?"

“Didn’t we agree to have lunch with the neighbors tomorrow? Go to the storeroom and get a few pieces of mutton. When it’s thawed to a slightly frozen state, while it’s still cold and firm, slice it thinly. How much? This plate. After you’ve sliced ​​one plate, take it outside and freeze it again. Once it’s frozen solid, pour it into this basin. That should be enough to fill one basin.” Jingyan pointed to a large enamel basin for washing vegetables in the kitchen.

"Okay." He Zhijun took over the job of slicing the meat. Battalion Commander Gao didn't want to be idle either. Preparing food together these past few days had been quite interesting. Thinking about the coal blocks in the warehouse, which came in all sizes, he put on his coat and went to the backyard. Soon after, the sound of pounding could be heard intermittently from the warehouse in the backyard.

Jingyan was cutting and marinating meat in the kitchen when she heard the noise from the backyard. She said to He Zhijun, who was carefully slicing meat, "Is it appropriate to have your Battalion Commander Gao break coal? He's here as a guest, not as a farmhand."

He Zhijun, on the contrary, felt it didn't matter: "Let him find work to do. Otherwise, he'll feel guilty and won't be comfortable living here. If he wants to work, we won't stop him, and he'll be much more at ease. It's good for him to practice at our house. Once things are settled back home, his sister-in-law will come to join him. They've been separated for too long, and it might not be easy for them to get back together. When he helps his sister-in-law cook a meal, their relationship will be back in no time."

Jingyan thought there was nothing wrong with that statement. Who said that the kitchen is only a woman's job? Since they were a family, they should do it together. So she stopped worrying and focused on her work. After marinating the lamb chunks, she started preparing the hot pot base. Nowadays, not many people know how to make this kind of base, especially in the north. She learned this method from the sisters who sold skewers at the neighboring stall when she ran a barbecue stall in her previous life.

The girl's family is from Sichuan Province. She came to Beidahuang with her husband to settle down. Although they worked hard to earn money to support their family, they always had a good relationship. At that time, the cost of hot pot restaurants was high and they didn't have much money, so they modified the recipe and set up a food cart to make skewers. They earned much more than they did with barbecue.

The two became acquainted when some thugs came to cause trouble. Fearing her stall would be affected, Jingyan quickly grilled some meat skewers, had her friends make some hot pot skewers, and even bought beer to appease the thugs.

She was already in her forties at that time, and those thugs probably felt sorry for her because of her age, so they backed down. In fact, they would often come to visit her whenever they had the chance.

She wouldn't let me eat barbecue there without charging me. It was during that time that she changed her original perception of people, realizing that not all hooligans are inherently bad. Perhaps, the more flamboyant someone is, the more they crave attention from those around them.

Although those years running a barbecue stall were tiring, I didn't really suffer any bad treatment. On the contrary, the sisters from Sichuan Province even taught me how to make hot pot broth from their hometown, so I could make it at home during the winter. See how important a skill is? It has brought me good fortune to this day.

In Sichuan province, beef tallow is the most important ingredient for hot pot base. If Jingyan hadn't managed to buy beef tallow this time, she would have actually wanted to try using soybean oil. But now that she has the best ingredient, there's no need to settle for second best.

The dried chilies had been soaked in water beforehand. After confirming they were softened, the excess water was squeezed out, and they were chopped and placed in a bowl for later use. The fire in the stove was tamped down with coal dust to ensure it would remain at a medium-low heat for a while.

Then, put the butter into a wok and melt it. Add the scallions and fry until dry, then remove them. Next, add the ginger slices and fry until they are about 70% dry. Then, add the soybean paste and stir-fry continuously until the butter is colored. Add the chopped chili peppers and stir-fry for two or three minutes. Add the rock sugar and wait until the butter turns a bright red color. Add the spices such as Sichuan peppercorns, cardamom, bay leaves, star anise, and fennel seeds and simmer for about a minute until the aroma is released. Add the minced garlic, stir-fry a few times, remove the wok from the heat, and transfer it to an enamel jar. Before eating it tomorrow, scoop out some and it's ready to use.

The aroma of the stir-fried base sauce was so strong that even the battalion commander Gao, who was breaking coal in the backyard, could smell it when the spices were being stir-fried. He Zhijun, who was originally slicing mutton in the kitchen, had already moved his cutting board and plates to the living room to work. The kitchen was too pungent, and Jingyan kept sneezing while stir-frying. Later, she couldn't stand it anymore and covered her mouth and nose with a wet towel, which made her feel a little better.

After finishing the stir-fry, He Zhijun put the kettle on the stove and immediately ran out. Looking at Jing Yan, whose eyes were red, He Zhijun asked with some hesitation, "Is this really edible? The taste is too strong."

Battalion Commander Gao happened to enter the room and heard his words. He laughed and said, "This is the flavor of Sichuan Province, right? I didn't expect my sister-in-law to have this skill. Zhijun, you probably haven't tried it before. The soup base made with this kind of broth has a fresh, fragrant, spicy and numbing taste, which is completely different from the light flavor of the soup in Yangzhou. You'll know once you try it. I had it once before, and the taste was amazing."

Jing Yan had calmed down a bit by then and replied, "Brother Gao, don't have too high hopes. This is a recipe I heard from some educated youth in Sichuan Province. I don't know if it's authentic or not. I'll make some dipping sauce tomorrow and make do with it. Anyway, I've done my best."

Battalion Commander Gao nodded quickly: "As long as it's six or seven parts similar, that's enough. This is their specialty, how can you learn it completely? In the dead of winter, being able to eat this is already an unexpected joy."

After the kitchen smell dissipated, Jingyan looked at the lingering residue in the wok and hesitated to wash it. She thought for a moment, then soaked some wood ear mushrooms and other mushrooms, washed and chopped a cabbage, and then went to the storeroom to retrieve a small dish of frozen tofu cubes. Using the remaining seasonings from the wok, she added some water and threw in the ingredients in order, cooking them until half-cooked. After tasting and adding more salt, she brought in a plate of sliced ​​lamb from the house and added it in. Once the lamb had changed color, she poured it, along with the remaining broth, into a bowl, carried it into the living room, and then made a pot of pan-fried dumplings. A simple, easy, and delicious meal was thus prepared.

Jingyan glanced at her watch. "We had breakfast a little late today, and this meal is a little early. How about we just have two meals?"

Battalion Commander Gao laughed heartily: "It's already quite good to be able to eat two meals a day during the winter hibernation. You'll be full and won't go hungry."

After the meal, He Zhijun and Battalion Commander Gao started playing chess again, while Jing Yan went to prepare the barbecue seasonings for tomorrow. After everything was ready, she saw that the lamb had been marinated, so she took out the iron skewers, opened another package, cleaned them, and dried them for later use.

One person skewered over 150 lamb skewers in the kitchen, and then there was no more meat left. After setting the skewers aside, he went to the storeroom to get more meat and brought it inside to cook. Since he was hosting guests, he couldn't be too stingy. In any case, when it came to food, it was better to have more than less.

After finishing the preparations, it was around seven o'clock. The two men went to the backyard to set off firecrackers, and then there was nothing else to do. With nothing to do, they decided to sleep and fatten up.

On the morning of the second day of the Lunar New Year, He Zhijun went to the kitchen to make breakfast. Jingyan cut up the mutton that had been brought in yesterday and started marinating it. When she turned around, she saw He Zhijun slowly spreading potato pancakes in a frying pan. The ones that were fried were already placed in a bowl. Each one was intact, golden brown on both sides, and looked very appetizing.

"Your pancakes are pretty good! Are you good at making noodles? Isn't rice the staple food in Yangzhou?" Jingyan asked him.

“My dad is from the north, and he doesn’t really like rice. Besides, no family can eat refined rice every day. He dislikes rice mixed with coarse grains even more. My mom specially learned how to make noodles from northerners so that my dad could eat better. When I was little, I often helped my mom in the kitchen, and she taught me. I’m not as good as my mom, but it’s enough for daily use.” He Zhijun didn’t think there was anything wrong with it. With a skill in hand, he wouldn’t have to worry about food and drink.

"Do you know how to steam buns? You ate the buns I made last time. I don't know if I put too much sourdough or if I really didn't knead them properly. They were all yellow and white in patches, and they kept blooming. They didn't have the wheat aroma that my fourth sister makes." Jingyan frowned.

He Zhijun thought for a moment: "Steamed buns? My mom didn't make them much before, and I really don't know how. But if you know how, you can teach me, and I'll make them. The yellow and white patches you mentioned are probably because you didn't knead the old dough properly. As for the 'blooming' part, I don't know about that. Why don't you teach me after breakfast, and I'll make a batch to try?"

Jingyan nodded repeatedly, "That's a great idea. We'll have steamed buns for lunch, and we can even toast them into slices, which will make them even more delicious."

The potato pancakes were ready, and He Zhijun made a seaweed and egg soup. The three of them ate with great relish. After they were full, it was time to teach how to steam buns. When Battalion Commander Gao heard that it was about steaming buns, he also joined the class with great interest. Jing Yan guided them from the beginning until they covered the basin with a lid and put it on the kang (a heated brick bed) to let the dough rise.

"What constitutes a good state for facial hair?" He Zhijun asked.

"It's like the dough puffs up, has air holes on the surface, feels soft when you press it, and slowly bounces back when you release it," Jingyan's answer was somewhat rough.

"So how did you confirm the dough rising time beforehand?" He Zhijun, being well-educated, asked in great detail.

Jing Yan scratched her head, looking a little embarrassed: "I don't have the patience to check it over and over again. I usually start making the dough in the morning, check it in the afternoon, and once it's puffed up, I move on to the next step. I haven't really paid attention to the time."

He Zhijun nodded: "It's okay. This time I'll calculate the time and see. With a rough estimate, it will be easier to estimate how long it will take to finish making dough in the future."

Jing Yan nodded: "Okay, you watch over things, I'll go to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients."

He Zhijun was bored by himself on the kang (a heated brick bed), so he dragged Battalion Commander Gao and the other man to move a table on the kang and start playing chess. Battalion Commander Gao joked, "I haven't played chess as much as I have in the whole year."

The room was warm. After about an hour, the two had just finished their game of chess. He Zhijun habitually lifted the lid of the bowl to take a look and was surprised to find that the dough in the bowl had visibly doubled in size. He quickly went to the living room to wash his hands, dried them, and then came back to take the lid off. The white dough had a dense network of air holes. He pressed it with his finger and, well, it was soft enough. He quickly carried the bowl to the work surface on the dining table in the living room.

"Jingyan, the dough is ready, come and take a look," He Zhijun shouted at the top of his lungs.

Jingyan came out of the kitchen when she heard the shout. She wiped the water off her hands on her apron as she walked. When she got to the living room, she saw a basin full of dough. "Hey, it's rising pretty fast. Add some dry flour and knead it again. Let it rest for a while, um, about ten minutes. Cut the dough into small pieces and knead them into balls. Make sure the dough is smooth. Once it's all done, we can steam it."

He Zhijun nodded quickly: "Okay, I'll do it right away."

"Then you two get to it. I just sliced ​​the potatoes and they're soaking in water. I haven't chopped the cabbage yet. Once I'm done, the preparations will be complete." Jingyan said and went back to the kitchen. After she finished preparing the ingredients, she took out the steamer, filled it with tap water, and, seeing that there was enough water, placed the steamer rack inside. When she went into the living room, she saw rows of round dough balls neatly arranged on the rack, looking like a military parade.

Jingyan stepped forward and asked, "Are you done making the noodles? I'll take them to the kitchen and put them in the steamer."

He Zhijun quickly picked up the lid and followed behind Jing Yan. Jing Yan instructed him on how much space to leave between the two dough balls to prevent the steamed buns from sticking together and making them look nice after cooking.

Twenty were placed in the two-tiered stack, and there were still a dozen or so left on the lid. "Hmm, let's start the next batch."

"How long should it be steamed?" Battalion Commander Gao asked curiously.

"Twenty minutes after the water boils is about right. If the dent in the steamed bun quickly disappears after you press it with your finger, it is a cooked steamed bun. If the dent remains, it means it is not cooked yet."

The two of them simply stood by the stove. Jingyan glanced at them but didn't pay them any attention. She went to the living room to clean the work surface and wipe the dining table clean. She then placed the copper pot in the center of the table, arranged potato slices, cabbage chunks, soaked wood ear mushrooms, and mushrooms on plates, and also placed a hot pot dipping sauce specially prepared with soy sauce, peanut butter, scallions, and fermented bean curd. She also put out a jar of chive blossom sauce and chili oil, telling anyone who wanted to mix these to themselves.

Use iron tongs to place the pre-lit charcoal pieces one by one into the inner pot of the copper pot. Then, scoop out several large spoonfuls of hot pot base and put them into the soup pot. After the base melts, the aroma will spread. Add boiling water, cover the pot, and you're all ready.