"Senior sister, I'm so embarrassed! How can I face anyone now! That wretched junior uncle!"

"Who hasn't? In all these decades, when has there ever been such a humiliating moment?"

"What should I do? I don't even want to leave the cave now."

"Go into seclusion. Ten or so years should be enough."

"Seclusion? What if we go into seclusion for ten years and then come out to find that all our fellow disciples have been fed to the Nascent Soul stage by our junior uncle? Wouldn't we be at a huge loss?"

"...Forget it, let's take a nap and talk about it when we're awake..."

The disciples of the Shushan Sword Sect all stayed in their caves and refused to come out.

Several acquaintances used jade slips to complain and vent to each other.

The content of the chats was basically the same.

This time, everyone in the entire sect, without exception, anyone below the Nascent Soul Realm, was affected.

It can be described as a collective social death.

Because they haven't been practicing for very long, they're all still quite thin-skinned.

...

Ye Feng returned to the small canteen after a long absence.

Although it has only been a little over ten days since I last came, it feels like more than ten years have passed.

I came here mainly to prepare some more food.

Seafood might not be a familiar dish for some disciples from the north.

In order to save these disciples who had died, Ye Feng decided to make some more dumplings.

I'll just make pork and cabbage filling and pork and sauerkraut filling.

A 3-star Xiaomai plus a 3-star music-loving cabbage plus a pork that has eaten Blue Silver Grass—just thinking about this combination is exciting.

The sauerkraut is also made from 3-star Chinese cabbage, so the effect is naturally just as good.

Dumplings can enhance one's understanding, so putting these things together would create an amazing effect.

With a wave of his hand, Ye Feng dusted off the already spotless cafeteria before preparing to make dumplings.

Dumplings are a very common food, both in the north and south of China.

Whether it's a restaurant or home cooking, I still eat there several times a year.

However, how it tastes depends on the individual's cooking skills.

There are only two things in dumplings: dumpling wrappers and dumpling filling.

The key to good dumpling wrappers is that "alkali is the bone, and salt is the sinew."

Both of these ingredients can make dumpling wrappers more chewy and less likely to break when cooking dumplings.

However, consuming too much alkali can irritate the gastric mucosa.

Eating dumplings with added alkali can cause heartburn and other discomfort. Furthermore, alkali can destroy the fiber in the dumpling filling, affecting the absorption of nutrients.

Ye Feng, who strives for perfection, would naturally not choose to add alkali.

Adding salt has many advantages.

Firstly, salt can promote water absorption by proteins and cause them to swell after absorbing water, allowing the proteins to adhere tightly together. Adding salt to dumpling wrappers can increase their elasticity and stretchability.

Secondly, salt has a bactericidal effect, which can inhibit the growth of bacteria in dumpling wrappers; salt can also inhibit the activity of proteases in flour. Adding salt to dumpling wrappers can prevent them from spoiling and turning sour.

Thirdly, salt and water have strong permeability after dissolving. When salt is added to dumpling skin, the water inside can easily penetrate to the surface of the dumpling skin, which is conducive to the evaporation of water. This makes the dumpling skin less likely to stick together.

If there is a downside, it is that it may make the dumplings too salty.

Therefore, once salt is added to the dumpling wrapper, the amount of salt in the dumpling filling must be controlled.

This is to achieve a balanced effect.

The filling for dumplings has even more requirements.

What Ye Feng is currently working on is the preliminary steps of making dumpling filling.

That's the seasoning for making dumpling filling.

This step is usually not done when making it at home.

Everyone just chops the meat, adds the vegetables and seasonings, and mixes it all together.

This is also what distinguishes our family from some restaurants.

This seasoning is not a dry powder like Thirteen Spices, but rather an "oil" spice and a "water" spice.

The first step is the preparation of "oil" spices.

Take out the following ingredients from the jade slip in order: Yunnan fennel seeds, star anise, cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorns, and cardamom peel with the seeds removed.

Then I took out the ginger and century-old scallions I had harvested during this period, and the spices were all ready.

Heat oil in a wok, then add the spices directly into the oil and fry over low heat.

The heat is crucial at this step; too high a heat will easily burn the ingredients and make them bitter.

Ye Feng was also very serious about controlling the heat.

As the oil temperature rose, a sizzling sound began to be heard inside the oil pan.

A unique blend of seasonings wafts over you.

As the oil temperature rises and the frying time increases, the scallions, ginger, and various seasonings gradually turn golden brown.

Seeing that the oil and ingredients were almost fried, Ye Feng poured them into a large urn.

After all, if the dumplings are too small, there won't be enough for tens of thousands of people.

Cover the large earthenware jar and let the hot oil steep and cool. The temperature of the hot oil will allow the aroma to infuse to its optimal state.

The ingredients for the water seasoning were about the same, except that the amount was a little less. Ye Feng also added cardamom, cloves, and long pepper separately.

There's no need to boil them; just pour the cleaned spices into boiling water and soak for fifteen minutes.

While waiting for the spices, you can use the time to knead the dough and make the dumpling filling.

Ye Feng calculated that if each person in the sect made 40 dumplings, it would require about 1 jin (500 grams) of flour.

On Earth, it would take 2,000 sacks of flour weighing 10 kilograms each to work, and he couldn't possibly manage it even if he worked himself to death.

Fortunately, this is a cultivation world where people directly use their spiritual power to control the flour to fall into the basin by making a sword incantation with their hands.

After sprinkling in about 20 jin of salt, while stirring, I poured in jin of spiritual spring water at a ratio of 1:0.56.

As Ye Feng moved his hands, the dough in the large basin began to knead.

Then work your way from the dough flakes to the dough until all the dough in the bowl is incorporated.

This is the basin light among the three lights.

After he kneaded the dough, the surface became very smooth, and it even reflected a faint light.

This is the surface light among the three lights.

As for the other light, there's no need to consider it, since the hand didn't even touch the surface.

While the dough was resting, Ye Feng began chopping the filling.

The ratio of dumpling wrappers to filling is 1:1, so 1 jin of wrappers naturally requires 1 jin of filling.

The ratio of meat to vegetables in the filling is 7 to 3.

Ye Feng took out another jin of pork, 3,000 jin of Chinese cabbage, and 3,000 jin of pickled cabbage from the jade slip.

Chopping fillings was a piece of cake for him, a sword immortal.

With a dazzling series of wielding the cleaver, pork, cabbage, and sauerkraut were transformed into neatly arranged fillings.

After chopping the filling, Ye Feng kneaded the resting dough.

The dough needs to rest and knead three times to reach its optimal state; after resting for a while, it needs to be kneaded again.

Next, it's time to season the minced meat.

After being left to sit for a while, the oil and water seasonings have cooled down and are ready to be used.

Pour 7,000 catties of meat and 3,000 catties of Chinese cabbage into a basin, sprinkle with some minced ginger and chopped scallions, and add some white pepper powder.

Cooking wine is also essential for removing fishy smells.

After adding light soy sauce, pour in the water and spices while stirring.

Reach out and control your spiritual energy to start stirring the minced meat.

Stirring in one direction will make the meat filling firmer and firmer; this is what is commonly known as "getting it to work its magic".

After the minced meat has absorbed enough water and spices and is stirred until it becomes elastic, it will bounce back when patted.

Once it reaches this stage, you can add the oil and spices.

After adding the oil and spices, continue stirring. The originally bouncy meat filling will become moist and fragrant.

The filling at this stage is considered perfect; it's in the category where you can't eat it without paying extra.