Go back to the past to plant trees

The next day, Zhao Jinquan got up early and took Zhao Jinshui to look for the earth sheep.

Feng Cheng and Zheng Erqiang were preparing to make soy milk.

"Erqiang, grind the beans into a paste first. Add three spoonfuls of water to the spoon and grind it once. This grinding isn't very good; you'll need to grind it a couple more times. When you're grinding the soybean paste for the second time, add a spoonful of water to rinse it. If it's fine enough, you don't need to grind it a third time. If it's not fine, you'll need to grind it a third time."

Zheng Erqiang asked, "So, a total of four spoonfuls of water were added?"

"Correct."

One spoonful at the camp is about a pound, maybe a little more. Feng Cheng remembers that one pound of beans is about eight pounds of water. To make sure it will turn out well, he added less water the first time.

Zheng Erqiang added beans into the millstone while shaking it.

Feng Cheng diluted the gypsum he bought with water. He could also use vinegar to coagulate tofu, but the tofu would be a bit sour. Feng Cheng had tried it twice and didn't like it very much, so when he was in the region, he bought some gypsum powder from the supply and marketing cooperative.

After finishing his work, Feng Cheng went over to help Zheng Erqiang grind tofu. The two of them worked together, and the speed increased instantly. Zheng Erqiang turned the millstone while Feng Cheng added soybeans.

He touched the flowing soy milk and found it to be quite good, much smoother than the corn milk he had ground when he made it. This was the result of Zhao Jinquan constantly running the stone mill.

After grinding the soybeans once, he poured the mixture into the pot and ground it a second time. After the second grinding, the soy milk was already very smooth. Feng Cheng felt it was about right, so he started filtering out the soybean pulp. After filtering out the pulp, Feng Cheng added two spoonfuls of water.

"Alright, you can put it in the pot to cook now,"

Zheng Erqiang took the soy milk over to cook, while Feng Cheng took out the filtered soy pulp. This pulp could be mixed with some flour and kneaded together, then baked or fried, so nothing would go to waste.

After removing the soybean pulp and setting it aside, Feng Cheng washed the gauze, as it would be used to make tofu later.

After simmering for about twenty minutes, the soy milk was ready to boil.

After rolling for another five minutes, Feng Cheng told Zheng Erqiang to turn off the engine.

"Cover and simmer for about five minutes. Once it's not so hot, you can add the tofu."

Feng Cheng glanced at the plaster solution; the plaster had completely dissolved. After stirring it a couple of times, Feng Cheng poured it into the bucket.

"You stir the soy milk with the spatula, and then I'll pour in the gypsum water."

Zheng Erqiang kept stirring the soy milk, while Feng Cheng slowly added gypsum water.

"Okay, that's almost it."

After stirring for two minutes, Feng Cheng called a halt.

"Cover the pot and let it sit for about ten minutes, then it should be ready."

"Brother Feng, isn't brine used to make tofu? The brine you're using doesn't look like brine at all!"

Only after the last step was completed did Zheng Erqiang ask the question that had been bothering him. In his memory, this was not how the team made tofu.

"This is called gypsum water, not brine. You can use gypsum water to coagulate tofu, not just brine. If you don't have either of these, you can use vinegar, but the tofu will be a bit sour."

"Besides these things, there are some other things that can be used to make tofu, but I've only heard about them from others. I don't really know what exactly to use or how much to use. What I do know is that gypsum can be used to make tofu. It's simple and convenient, and gypsum is easy to prepare and store."

This was the first time Zheng Erqiang had ever heard of so many ways to make tofu; he had always thought that brine was required.

"Go and get the mold you made! Wash it, we'll be using it soon."

"it is good."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Erqiang immediately ran back to the dugout and retrieved the mold he had made yesterday. The mold was rather ugly and barely usable.

But it doesn't matter, it's just a mold for pressing tofu, it doesn't need to be fancy, it's something you only use a few times a year.

After Zheng Erqiang finished washing the ingredients and brought them over, the tofu had already been coagulated. He opened the pot lid, and the soft and tender tofu pudding came out.

Feng Cheng asked, "Would you like a bowl of tofu pudding too?"

Zheng Erqiang swallowed hard and couldn't help but ask, "Is it okay?"

“Sure, why not? It’s made for people to eat,” Feng Cheng said, picking up a bowl from the side and scooping two spoonfuls for him.

"Take it and eat it!"

"Brother Feng, aren't you going to eat?" Zheng Erqiang asked, somewhat puzzled, when he saw that Feng Cheng hadn't taken another bowl.

"I don't really like eating this."

This is true. In his previous life, Feng Cheng didn't eat tofu pudding much. In addition, he was a sweet tooth and would only eat it if it had sugar water. Now that he doesn't have time to dissolve the sugar, he simply doesn't eat it.

Looking at the bowl of tofu pudding in his hand, Zheng Erqiang suddenly felt that he shouldn't eat it, but since he had already brought it up, he had no choice but to eat it.

I took half a spoonful from the salt shaker next to me, stirred it, and ate it directly.

Tender, soft, and delicious.

This was Zheng Erqiang's first impression after taking a bite.

Zheng Erqiang hadn't eaten tofu pudding much. His family always brought the tofu home directly after it was made, and they didn't save any tofu pudding to eat.

Feng Cheng had already poured all the tofu pudding from the bucket into the mold, placed a board on top, and then put a stone on top of that.

Zheng Erqiang asked, "Brother Feng, how long will this take to press?"

"There's no specific time. If you want it tender, cook it for less time; if you want it firmer, cook it for longer time."

"For this one, just press it for about 30 minutes, and then take it out when it's about done."

One pound of soybeans can yield at least three to five pounds of fresh tofu. Five pounds of tofu is enough for four people to eat their fill, but it's impossible to finish it all in one meal; that would be a bit extravagant.

In this weather, it should be fine to leave it out overnight; it won't smell bad.

At noon, Zhao Jinquan and Zhao Jinshui did not return. Feng Cheng used the leftover soybean pulp from making tofu, mixed it with some cornmeal, spread it into pancakes, and put them in the oven to bake.

This surprised Zheng Erqiang again. He had found this thing when he came last time, but Zhao Jinquan did not tell him what it was for, and he did not ask. He did not expect that it was a stove for baking things.

"Brother Feng, is this stove used for baking things?"

"Yes, roasted sweet potatoes, roasted potatoes, roasted corn, anything goes. Jinquan often uses this to bake flatbreads, oat flatbreads, wheat flatbreads."

"Does it taste good when grilled like this?" Zheng Erqiang asked curiously.

"It's alright, it's a bit more fragrant than steamed, but you can't bake it too often, because eating baked food too often can cause internal heat."

"You can take a look at how to make this. If you want to make it, you can make one at home. Winter is coming soon, so you can change things up then."

"May I?"

Zheng Erqiang's eyes lit up instantly.

Feng Cheng laughed: "It's just a clay oven, it's not anything special, what's wrong with that?"

“I’ve been making this for over half a year now. Jinquan uses it often, and I thought he would tell you guys about it.”

Zheng Erqiang said, "Jin Quan rarely talks to us about these things. When he goes back, he rarely goes to the team. He stays at home most of the time."

"Since I've finally managed to come home, I should spend more time with my parents."

"Ah."