Chapter 32 Lamb Dish Su Zhihan never intended to take on any disciples; she only wanted…

Su Zhihan never intended to take on apprentices; she only wanted to exchange two prescriptions for the right to use the house and manpower for two years.

But seeing Xiao Hong's nimble movements and Grandma Chen's expectant eyes, she hesitated for a moment before finally agreeing: "...Okay."

Wei Yaren watched and helped draft the contract again. This time, the contract was not much different from the previous one, except that it clearly stated the master-disciple relationship between the two.

He handed the contract to the three men and asked them to examine it.

As Grandma Chen looked at the food, she kept muttering, "It's good enough that there's braised tofu... and the other one, stinky tofu, uh, stinky tofu?"

Only then did she notice the recipe for stinky tofu written in the contract, and her eyes involuntarily glanced at the earthenware pot.

...The recipe for that thing?

Wei Ya Ren had never heard of stinky tofu before, and casually asked, "What is this? Could it be a new flavor of braised tofu?"

Recently, there have been more and more shops selling braised tofu outside, and the prices are cheap. Perhaps Su Niangzi has come up with something else?

Grandma Chen hesitated, then said, "If that's the case..."

Su Zhihan calmly signed her name and pressed her fingerprint on the document. Then she got up and went to the stove. She instructed Xiao Hong to start a fire, while she lifted the pot lid and scooped out all the tofu that had been soaking inside.

An even stronger aroma than before instantly spread.

Grandma Chen and Xiao Hong, who were already used to the smell, were fine with it, but Wei Ya Ren was dumbfounded and muttered to himself, "Huh? Is this a new flavor?"

Is this flavor really okay?

Su Zhihan poured rapeseed oil into the pot, and once the oil was hot, she added the tofu...

In just a moment, the strange smell instantly transforms into a pleasant aroma.

The passersby who were just complaining about the pungent smell outside immediately changed their tune: "Where is that smell coming from? It smells so good!"

"What a strange smell..."

"What kind of food is this?"

"It feels like this just popped out of Aunt Chen's house!" said Yang San Niang, Aunt Chen's neighbor, as she approached Aunt Chen's door. "Aunt Chen, what delicious food are you making?"

Grandma Chen remained silent, ignoring Yang San Niang next door. Yang San Niang wasn't a good person; she often came to freeload when they sold braised tofu, always trying to sample three or five pieces before buying anything.

When the market price dropped these past two days, she started arguing with her neighbors, insisting that she had made too much money and that she was very unscrupulous.

Most importantly, Grandma Chen couldn't take her eyes off the golden, crispy fried tofu.

She stared at the covered earthenware pot, utterly awestruck. The broth, which had originally smelled sour and pungent, making her want to stay at least three meters away, now seemed to be draped in a golden veil, like a deity sitting at the head of a temple, inspiring awe and longing in her.

Su Zhihan ladled out the fried tofu and then invited the three of them to taste it: "There's no dipping sauce in the house, so try eating it plain for now."

Wei Ya was both surprised and delighted: "How could I possibly accept this?"

That's what he said, but his body language betrayed him as he took the porcelain plate, his gaze completely unable to leave the golden tofu blocks.

"This smells amazing."

After eating the fried stinky tofu, the people of Weiya felt their jealousy towards Grandma Chen and Xiaohong reached its peak. Leaving aside the braised tofu, the fried stinky tofu was sure to make a name for itself.

And Su Niangzi was actually going to give this prescription to Chen Da Niang and Hong Jie'er? Wei Ya Ren glanced at Su Zhi Han, then at Grandma Chen, and finally at Xiao Hong. If Su Zhi Han and the grandmother and granddaughter didn't look exactly alike, he would have doubted whether they were related.

Grandma Chen was completely convinced after eating the tofu.

Thinking about Su Zhihan's idea, and then looking at the tofu that smelled terrible in front and smelled incredibly delicious in the back, she thought it would be a miracle if the old man's family didn't fall for it!

Grandma Chen and Xiao Hong re-signed the contract, and then saw off the broker. Only then did Su Zhihan give a detailed introduction to the braising liquid.

This soup looks strange, but it's actually made with a lot of good ingredients. No wonder the fried tofu tastes so good.

"Only wealthy families would go to such lengths," Grandma Chen muttered as she looked at the recipe. It contained shrimp, mushrooms, cardamom, and other spices. Instead of using these perfectly good ingredients, she was putting them in a pot to ferment with soy milk.

“It’s winter now, so this formula is suitable.” Su Zhihan carefully explained to the two of them, “It won’t be usable in early summer, and I will give you another formula then.”

Soy milk and shrimp are rich in protein, but improper handling can easily produce toxins. In winter, if you are careful, it is less likely to cause problems. However, when the weather gets warmer, fermentation can become uncontrollable, which can easily lead to problems.

Summer has arrived, which is the perfect time to start making fermented amaranth. Stinky tofu made by soaking fermented amaranth in its juice is safer than stinky tofu made by fermenting soybean soup.

Grandma Chen was unaware of Su Zhihan's worries and was completely dumbfounded. In her opinion, this recipe for making stinky tofu was something she had never heard of or seen before, but Su Zhihan actually had other recipes, which was truly astonishing and unimaginable.

Su Zhihan repeatedly instructed the two to be extremely careful when making the braising broth, and said that she would personally check it every time it was ready.

After that, she bid farewell to the two men, bought two earthenware pots in the market, and then returned to the Marquis's residence.

For the next two weeks, Su Zhihan had plenty of free time.

Wu's mother showed no sign of arguing or refuting as others might expect. She was as honest as an ordinary servant, and apart from not cooking, she did everything perfectly.

Even Cao's mother gradually became suspicious, wondering if she and Su Zhihan had made a mistake, or perhaps Wu's mother really had no desire to fight.

Su Lan's efforts to please Xiu He were quite effective; at least Wu Mama's gaze towards her was gentler than before, and she would occasionally offer a few pointers while Su Lan was preparing ingredients. Su Lan now couldn't wait for Wu Mama to return to her position as head cook, so she could properly take over as her assistant.

In her opinion, the time should be about right.

The day before yesterday, Han Jie made stir-fried cabbage and three-delicacy tofu soup again. Yesterday, she made the same dishes she had made before: chrysanthemum greens with dried tofu and pickled vegetable soup with yellowtail (catfish).

The yellow-cheeked fish is a very common river fish, cheap and rarely eaten in the mansion, especially when it is boiled in a soup with salted vegetables, which sounds rather shabby.

She casually inquired and learned from Qiuyue that this was also a local dish that Hanjie had learned to make at a restaurant in town.

When Su Lan relayed what she had learned to Mama Wu, sure enough, a maid complained to her that the dishes were the same and wanted to try something different.

"What would you like to eat, sister?"

"I don't ask for much, I just want to eat braised mutton with scallions." The maid didn't mince words and stated her intention directly.

Now, everyone in the kitchen was energized.

Mrs. Zhang was making egg dumplings by hand when she heard this, and her hands paused, almost burning a piece of egg skin.

As for Cao's mother, she stared wide-eyed and said, "Hey! You're quite good at choosing, aren't you? I've never seen Wu's mother make all of these for you before."

This braised mutton with scallions is one of Mama Wu's specialties. The mutton is sliced ​​thinly, blanched, and then tossed in a special scallion oil sauce. It has a fresh and rich flavor and was once served to the master as a reward.

Of course, Madam Wu was also selective. In the past, she would only work for second-class or first-class maids who asked her for help, or for third-class servants who paid her.

The maid's words clearly indicated that she wanted to eat the dishes cooked by Mama Wu. She first glared at Mama Cao: "Mama Cao, Han'er hasn't said anything yet, what are you saying?"

Then, she looked at Su Zhihan and said, "These days we've been eating pork and cheap fish, and we haven't had any mutton for quite some time."

"Let alone this braised mutton with scallions, any other mutton dish would be fine too," the maid pouted, changing her tune to complain.

Since Su Zhihan took over the kitchen, the food had been either pork or fish. The taste was not bad, but she felt uneasy when she heard that it was actually country vegetables. That's why she spoke up, hoping that Su Zhihan could put pressure on Wu Mama so that they could try something new.

Mrs. Wu continued kneading the dough, her eyes secretly glancing at Su Zhihan out of the corner of her eye. After her daughter revealed her big plans, Mrs. Wu, no matter how unwilling she was, could not resist her daughter's persistent pleading and finally decided to help her.

But given her current state, let alone helping her, Xiuhe said that Pearl and others had been mocking her for days.

Aunt Wu, we need to climb back quickly.

From her observations over the past few days and the information she gleaned from Su Lan, she discovered a possibility—Han Jie'er is indeed exceptionally talented in cooking, and her dishes often surprise and delight people, but she hasn't cooked mutton in a while!

Currently, mutton is highly regarded. Because pork is not used in imperial banquets, mutton is also considered the best choice for banquets in the homes of high-ranking officials and nobles. Even ordinary people, as long as their family can afford it, will choose mutton as their first choice.

The higher the quality of the mutton, the higher the price. Although the price of mutton sold in the market is not much higher than that of pork, the mutton used in the Marquis's mansion starts at three hundred coins per catty. If it is a top-quality sheep transported from the Western Regions, it is said that a catty of meat costs nine hundred coins.

The Marquis's mansion uses several sheep every day. Besides the masters who love mutton, everyone from the head maid to the servants also loves it. For example, Zhang Mama uses mutton almost every day when cooking for the first and second-class maids.

Having been exposed to the ways of the world, Wu Mama naturally knew a few tricks up her sleeve, but everyone knew how embarrassed Su Zhihan and Jiang Zhenniang were when they came to the mansion.

Therefore, Wu's mother had a guess: perhaps Su Zhihan rarely ate mutton in the past because of her family's poverty, so she wouldn't make a decent dish with mutton as the main ingredient.

She kneaded the dough and listened intently to Su Zhihan's slightly hesitant reply: "I understand. I'll make mutton in a couple of days."

"What time is 'two days'?"

"In the next two days."

Seeing that Su Zhihan had finished speaking, she quickly turned around to avoid the maid's questioning. Wu Mama hurriedly put down the dough she had kneaded and changed to another bowl to continue kneading.

Su Zhihan glanced at Wu Mama, then looked away. She looked at today's dishes with a troubled expression, and soon went to Cao Mama's.

"...mutton...pork..."

"Pretty much the same..."

Wu's mother couldn't hear clearly, but she vaguely knew that Su Zhihan and Cao's mother were talking about mutton and pork. She was anxious, but she had no other choice. She couldn't be so shameless as to lean in and eavesdrop, so she could only wait for Su Lan to overhear the news and then tell her.

"There are many varieties of mutton, and they are prepared in different ways."

“I’ve bought mutton in the market before. They mostly sell cheap goat meat there. The meat is a bit coarse, and you have to remove the gamey smell before you can use it.”

"But the mutton in our household is different."

"The mutton had absolutely no gamey smell; it was incredibly fragrant just from being boiled." Cao Mama, being a cook and someone who had tasted and eaten a lot of ingredients, plus her past experience in purchasing, spoke with great expertise. She recounted to Su Zhihan the details of how she had witnessed Wu Mama and Zhang Mama preparing meat, her heart filled with genuine anxiety.

Su Lan, who was standing nearby, overheard the whole story and was overjoyed. She became even more certain of Wu Mama's guess and told Wu Mama about it after her shift ended.

Mother Wu clapped her hands and laughed, "Is that really so?"

Su Lan smiled and nodded repeatedly: "I heard it with my own ears. Han Jie was asking about the mutton at Mama Cao's house and how it was cooked."

"Pfft." Xiuhe sneered upon hearing this, "I thought he was some kind of powerful figure, but it turns out he can't even cook mutton?"

The three on one side felt confident of victory and waited for Su Zhihan to come to them for help. Meanwhile, Cao Mama found the butcher and quickly retrieved the five catties of mutton left over from the mansion that day, and hurriedly went to the Jiang family.

"Han-jie, this is for you."

"Huh?" Su Zhihan looked at the basket of mutton with some surprise. After hearing from Cao Mama that she had asked the butcher for it and that it was mutton commonly used in the mansion, Su Zhihan was truly stunned.

When he asked Cao Mama and the others about mutton, he only wanted to spread the word that he knew nothing about mutton. He didn't expect Cao Mama to take it so seriously and even go so far as to find a butcher.

“Aunt Cao…this matter, this matter.” A warm feeling welled up in Su Zhihan’s heart, and she was deeply moved.

Since she transmigrated, apart from her mother who wholeheartedly loved and cared for her, few people have been able to think so meticulously and thoughtfully, and even went out of their way to ask others for help for her.

Seeing this, Su Zhihan couldn't help but think of how she had deliberately lied to Cao Mama in the beginning, trying to get close to her. At this moment, she felt a little ashamed, and after a long while, she managed to squeeze out a sentence: "I'm so sorry to have troubled you."

"What trouble or not? You've helped our family several times already!" Cao Mama chuckled, and seeing Su Zhihan's eyes redden, she quickly changed the subject: "You've only been in the manor a few times, and you don't know anyone in the kitchen, so it's not easy for you to make friends."

"From now on, I'll introduce you to them."

“You’re working in the main kitchen, so you have to get to know people. Relationships are built through interaction.” After saying that, Cao’s mother went on to give detailed instructions on the other things she had asked the butcher.

From then on, the relationship between the two families became even closer than before.

But that's a story for later, so let's leave it at that. Meanwhile, Jiang Zhenniang returned and learned about the kitchen situation from the third-class maid in her own courtyard, and she was deeply worried.

Seeing that Cao's mother was there, and seeing the two of them gathered together discussing the kitchen, she simply picked up the money and went to the market to buy some mustard greens and pickled pig's head meat. She then went home, heated up some soup and wine, and invited Cao's mother to sit down and talk slowly.

"Han-jie, please have some soup." Jiang Zhenniang dared not let Su Zhihan drink any more wine, so she moved the hot soup in front of her. Then she filled Cao Mama's cup with hot wine and filled her own cup as well: "I'll have a couple of drinks with Mama to thank her for taking care of Han-jie."

Cao's mother readily agreed and drank it all in one gulp.

She had been talking to Su Zhihan about mutton dishes, but as Su Zhihan went to the stove to prepare the mutton, she turned to Jiang Zhenniang and started chatting: "Speaking of which, the weather this year is so strange. It's almost the winter solstice, but it's still not cold."

"That's right. In previous years, I would have had to wear two coats at this time, but this year one is enough. Sometimes when I'm busy in the kitchen, I have to take off my coat and change into a soft cloth garment."

Upon hearing this, Cao's mother complained bitterly: "Although it's comfortable, it's not very friendly to us workers. Oh no! Last time, Madam Xu taught us how to make cured meat, saying that because of the hot weather, a lot of it has already gone bad."

"Just thinking about it makes my heart ache."

"My family was in the same boat. Han'er was in such a hurry to make it that the fish had already gone bad, so we had to throw it away in the end." Jiang Zhenniang felt a pang of heartache as she spoke, and complained a couple of times: "Then she made braised pork in a jar, saying that the meat wouldn't spoil easily and would taste good."

What is "jarred meat"?

"It's fatty pork that's been cured with salt, first fried in lard, then soaked in lard, and finally sealed in an earthenware jar." Su Zhihan, who had moved to the cutting board, didn't even look up, and her hands didn't stop moving.

She selected a piece of lamb of suitable size, removed the bone, and sliced ​​it thinly along the grain, piling it all into a porcelain bowl: "After leaving it for twenty days, take it out, slice it, and stir-fry it with garlic sprouts and vegetables. It will taste very good."

“I made quite a lot at home. I’ll pack a jar for you to take back later, Aunt Cao. You can take it and try it. If you like it, you can make more before the New Year and save it for the holidays.”

Su Zhihan put down the cleaver, wiped her hands, and then added a little salt, rice wine, egg white, pepper, and cornstarch water to the lamb slices, mixed them well, and set them aside to marinate.

While waiting for the meat slices to marinate, she prepared the scallions, cilantro, and other ingredients, and then rinsed the iron pot.

First, dry the pan with water, then coat it with oil.

Once the oil is hot, add chopped scallions, garlic, and cilantro to sauté until fragrant, then add the marinated lamb slices.

As the mutton slices landed on the scorching hot wok, they sizzled and the pinkish-red color of the meat quickly deepened, while a rich aroma filled the room.

"It smells so good!"

"Han-jie, you know how to cook mutton?" Cao's mother, who had just been thinking about stewed meat, smelled the aroma of mutton and her eyes lit up. Her eyes were fixed on the stir-fried mutton and she didn't want to look away for a moment.

Before Su Zhihan could reply, she continued to add the sauce and seasonings to the pot, stir-frying them over high heat until they were evenly mixed, and then served them. She then said, "I cooked it like pork tenderloin. Aunt Cao, please try it and see how it compares to Aunt Wu's braised mutton with scallions."