He Tiantian is very confident in her skills.
"Hehe, practice makes perfect," He Tiantian laughed. "You'll get the hang of it after a few tries, it's nothing. I've already done it, you can just pluck the chicken feathers on the side, I'll clean the internal organs."
The two divided the work and finished cleaning up completely in just half an hour.
Now that the weather is cold, Director Zhao put the kneaded dough containing the starter on a large pot and started heating it to speed up the fermentation process.
This is a skilled job; most people wouldn't be able to do it. Director Zhao's family used to run a steamed bun business, so she has this skill. The steamed buns she makes are quick and delicious, which is why she's always been in charge of steaming buns for the village canteen.
Once the dough has risen, it's time to start making steamed buns.
The large pot was filled with water, and firewood was burning underneath, with large flames occasionally leaping out from the bottom of the pot.
A whole big bowl of noodles, bulging and full, was placed on the cutting board after the steamer cloth was lifted.
He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan both knew how to do this. The three of them worked together to knead the dough, shaping it into fist-sized balls. Their hands never stopped, and they moved very quickly.
Zhao Dajiao initially thought He Tiantian, being a city girl, wouldn't know how to make steamed buns, but now, seeing that He Tiantian's buns were even better than Qi Xiaoyan's, she was very happy. The more He Tiantian made, the easier it was for her; this is why rural people like to work with hardworking people.
If I don't slack off and finish early, I can rest for a while.
On the cutting board, fist-sized dough balls, plump and soft, were taken shape by the three people's hands.
A large steamer with a diameter of 1.2 meters was already placed on the pot. Seeing that there were already dozens of steamers on the table, Zhao Dajiao began to put them into the steamer.
Over there, He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan sped up their pace, actually managing to keep up with the speed at which Zhao Dajiao was putting things into the pot.
A large basin of dough was kneaded and placed in the steamer in less than an hour. Zhao Dajiao had already counted the dough. There were 132 men and 21 women working this time. The men's steamed buns were larger, and the women's were smaller. Two steamed buns each, no more, no less.
Zhao Dajiao watched the fire and then started chopping chicken on the cutting board. He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan carried a large basket of radishes and cabbages to the stream to wash them.
When He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan returned, Zhao Dajiao's steamed buns were already steamed and placed in three large baskets on the side, covered with clean cloths.
With the remaining two pots, one was used to make wild vegetable and egg soup, and the other to stir-fry vegetables. After about half an hour, the stir-fried vegetables were finally ready.
Two chickens were cut into 160 pieces by Zhao Dajiao, not too big, not too small, so everyone could get a small piece. Although there wasn't much meat, these two pheasants were quite plump and had a lot of oil. When stewed with cabbage and radish, it tasted much better than just cabbage and radish on its own.
There was also a large pot of wood ear and egg soup on the side, which was much better than what we eat at home. Although the steamed buns were made with coarse flour, Zhao Dajiao was very skilled at making them, and they were especially chewy.
After several busy hours, we finally prepared a meal for more than a hundred people. It was no easy task, but it was a little cleaner than working in the river.
Qi Xiaoyan went to find her father and told him that the meal was ready.
Secretary Qi looked up at the sky and realized it was lunchtime, so he told everyone to stop, wash their hands, and go eat.
Everyone took out their own bowls and chopsticks, some even lunchboxes, and lined up to get their food. They were quite surprised to see that there was actually a piece of meat in the radish and cabbage in the pot.
Second team leader Qi Shuming laughed and asked, "The commune is really generous this year, they even gave us meat on the first day!"
While serving food to everyone, Zhao Dajiao said, "This wasn't issued by the commune. Xiaoyan and Tiantian went into the woods to gather firewood, caught two pheasants, and collected a dozen or so wild eggs. Seeing that everyone was tired from working, they offered them up for everyone to eat. After eating the meat, you must work hard!"
Qi Xiaoyan was handing out steamed buns, while He Tiantian was in charge of serving soup to everyone.
Upon hearing that the chicken today was contributed by He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan, everyone praised He Tiantian and felt grateful.
Seeing everyone's reaction, He Tiantian was happy, feeling that her efforts had not been in vain.
Enjoying the fragrant chicken stew with radish and cabbage, drinking the black fungus and egg soup, and eating the chewy steamed buns, the intense fatigue of the morning doesn't seem like a big deal!
This time, only He Tiantian, Wang Lei, Zhang Qingshan, Sister Wu, and Ye Xiaofan, all former educated youth, came. Lin Xiaoru and Huang Jingli were usually slow workers, so they weren't asked to come this time. Although they wouldn't have to do strenuous work, there was no money or food. However, Lin Xiaoru was actually hoping she wouldn't come; she didn't want to do dirty and tiring work!
As for Li Mingkai, he was also excluded!
"Tian Tian, Xiao Yan, come over here to eat." Sister Wu called to He Tian Tian and Qi Xiao Yan, inviting them to come and eat.
The three of them, who were in charge of cooking, would serve the food to the others before they started eating. Some of the educated youth were particular about their time and took a long time to wash up, so they were the last to eat with He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan.
He Tiantian and Qi Xiaoyan came over together, each carrying a bowl and a steamed bun.
Wang Lei would give the chicken to Sister Wu, and Sister Wu would give the chicken to Wang Lei, passing it back and forth. Zhang Qingshan and Ye Xiaofan were doing the same thing over there.
"You two, each eat your own food, you still have work to do this afternoon," He Tiantian said with a smile. These two couples are very affectionate, and she truly hopes they can grow old together.
“That’s right, anyway, there’s plenty of food, and it’s very fragrant and oily, so don’t keep offering it to us. It makes our teeth ache just looking at it,” Qi Xiaoyan said with a grin. Following behind He Tiantian, she also became a little closer to the educated youth.
Feeling embarrassed to keep offering food back and forth, the four of them went to eat their own meals.
"Burp..." Wang Lei let out a burp. "Sweetie, Xiao Yan, the food you make is so delicious. If I could eat such delicious food every day and be full, I would rather work every day."
"Hehe, I'm lucky today, but I might not be so lucky tomorrow," He Tiantian sighed. She wanted to eat some too, but the Snake King needed to cultivate, so she couldn't bother him every day.
"Sister Tian, we saw fish in the stream when we were washing vegetables. We'll bring a fishing net tomorrow, maybe we can catch some fish. We'll also bring some ginger to make fish soup," Qi Xiaoyan said, adding that fish soup is very nutritious.
"We haven't gone into the water yet. There are lots of aquatic plants at the bottom of the river, and there are definitely fish in there. We'll go into the water and try to catch some tomorrow. It would be even better if we could catch some fish," Zhang Qingshan said. Right now, as long as there's food, he doesn't care about being a little tired or cold.
“Yes, go back and find a few baskets, put earthworms in them, maybe we can catch eels and loaches,” Wang Lei said, his words revealing his experience.
“Even snakes can be used to make soup!” Zhang Qingshan added. His family is from the south, where snake soup is a popular dish. (To be continued.)
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