Ningxia started to get busy with her own things. She had originally planned to make the braised fish that the chef in Lin's army had taught her, but she had no seasoning, so she had no choice but to find another way.
Put the fish aside first, Ningxia took the soaked and dried rabbit to the cleaned small round table in the yard, shaved out the big bones, and cut the remaining meat into small slices as much as possible.
She turned out the remaining oil from frying the meat. There was only a little bit left because she had used a lot of it in the morning.
Ningxia lifted the leaves on the pot. The multi-grain rice had absorbed moisture and gradually took shape. Ningxia quickly spread a thick layer of dried rabbit meat slices on it, and then poured the oil evenly on it.
Then cover it with leaves again and let it continue to steam.
Ningxia took out the soaked fish and thought for a while before deciding to stew it.
She chopped the two fish into large pieces before setting them aside to prepare the side dishes.
The last dried bamboo shoots and eggplants in the bag were taken out, and Ningxia placed the milk pot that had been filled with water on the fire. The fire was very strong and the water soon began to boil.
Ningxia then took the milk pot off and divided the water in it into two parts, half for soaking bamboo shoots and the other half for soaking dried eggplant.
In fact, soaking in warm water is the best, which will not affect the taste of the dried goods after rehydration. However, time is urgent, Ningxia can't care about so many things, so he directly soaks it in boiling water.
Thick fog was rising as they were busy here, while Lao Chen and Xiao Jie had already set out for the second trip to fetch water. They had experienced Ningxia's cooking and knew they couldn't help at all, so they might as well fill the tank with some water so that she could concentrate on cleaning the house in the next few days.
Li Gang and his companions were already drooling when they smelled the fragrance of the multi-grain rice wafting over from Ningxia.
Lao Liao scratched his head, wondering how could multi-grain rice have such a nice aroma. But it definitely smelled like multi-grain rice. Could it be that the military camp was feeding them stale multi-grain rice?
Ningxia didn't care what they were thinking. She took out the leftover noodles from the morning. There were only two large bowls, which were not enough no matter how she divided them. So she simply cooked them in the leftover chicken soup and ate them as a soup.
The eggplants were so thin that they became soft along with the bamboo shoots in a short while. When Ningxia took them out, the water was still a little hot, so she put them in a basin of cold water and rubbed them repeatedly before draining them and setting them aside.
Ningxia looked at her watch. It was almost one o'clock. She couldn't wait any longer. They were probably starving. Sangsang had even come to sit beside her, watching her cook, after smelling the delicious food.
Ningxia picked up the bamboo shoots and chopped them into small pieces. There were not many chili peppers left in the bag, so she took out a large handful, along with salt and green onions. After everything was prepared, the rice in the pot was also ready.
Not caring about the heat, Ningxia casually found a piece of cloth to wrap the edge of the basin and brought out the rice, put it aside and covered it with leaves, ignoring Sangsang's bright gaze.
After briefly cleaning the pot, Ningxia poured the fish into it, added a little water, and then threw in salt and chili peppers and stir-fried them until they were well-seasoned. She evenly spread the dried eggplant and bamboo shoots on top of the fish, and then covered it with leaves.
She knew that the food would probably taste rough, but there was nothing she could do. She had too few seasonings on hand, and even a good cook cannot cook without rice.
When the fish pieces are cooked, Ningxia serves them.
Pour the remaining chicken broth in, but there's not much chicken or bamboo shoots left, and there's very little broth left. Ningxia adds some more water, brings it to a boil, and then adds the noodles.
Yesterday, Lin Yi didn't eat the wild vegetables he found. Ningxia chopped them up and put them aside, throwing the noodles in when they were almost done. The noodles floated in the light yellow soup, dotted with dark green wild vegetables, which looked very beautiful.
"It's time to eat!" Ningxia howled at the top of her lungs, and several people surrounded her.
"Ningxia! Is this rabbit meat on top of the rice? Why does it smell so oily? How can dried rabbit be oily?" Old Liao looked at the rice on the ground, where brown cornmeal and sorghum rice intertwined. Because of the small amount of fat from the meat itself and the little oil Ningxia had drizzled on top, the rice had a barely noticeable, translucent coating that was rich in flavor.
Ningxia smiled and said, "You'll know when you try it!"
"Okay!"
After seeing the dishes Ningxia had laid out, a few of them went to wash their hands and faces under the eaves, and within half a minute they gathered around again, which made Ningxia laugh.
I sprinkled chopped green onions on a large bowl of mixed grain rice and mixed it, then gave each person a large bowl.
Ningxia also picked up a piece with chopsticks and put it in his mouth. There was not much oil in it so it was not greasy at all. Instead, it made the dry and hard-to-chew grains moist, and the taste was much improved.
The oil from the fried meat and the air-dried rabbit mixed harmoniously. The thin slices of meat lay soft in the rice due to the steam. The salt in the meat also enriched the taste buds of the rice. When mixed together, the fish stewed with a very light salty taste is the happiest thing.
The dried eggplant and bamboo shoots, soaked in the broth, had a distinct fish flavor. Ningxia personally thought they were better than the fish, but the soldiers clearly disagreed. After finishing most of the fish, they had time to savor the bamboo shoots and eggplant.
Several people ate without even looking up. The first thing they finished was the bowl of wild vegetable and chicken noodle soup, and then there was little left of the braised fish. Ningxia steamed nearly three pounds of mixed grain rice, which was all eaten up.
Sangsang ate two bowls of the palm-sized plastic bowl, not counting the vegetables she ate.
"Ningxia is absolutely amazing!" After finishing his meal, Lao Liao raised his greasy mouth and gave Ningxia a thumbs up.
"Thank you for your hard work, Ningxia." Li Gang also ate very generously. After eating three big bowls of rice, he felt a heavy and solid feeling in his stomach.
Ningxia smiled and said, "I should thank you all. If it weren't for you, I don't know how long it would take me to get here with them."
Li Gang didn't care much and sighed softly, "After the disaster, there are not many people as easy to get along with as you. Don't take it to heart. We met this time, and we won't see each other again until the Fiery Sun Month. When I come to see you again, don't be reluctant to leave the food."
Ningxia hugged Sangsang and said, "You're all welcome to come anytime. I'll definitely cook a delicious meal for you all."
Several people agreed, ate and drank their fill, and started working again.
Lin Yi led Sang Sang to clean up the stall after lunch. Xiao Jie and Xiao Mu continued to fetch water. After working for most of the day, they hadn't even gotten a third of the water. The remaining soldiers continued to nail the windows.
Ningxia rushed into the house, having to find a place to sleep tonight. She couldn't afford to sleep on the floor instead of the large bed.
She went upstairs, grabbed what tools she could use, and went straight to the master bedroom at the end of the corridor. It was a real mess.
Ningxia sighed and started to work. The dressing table was no longer usable, and the bottles and jars on it fell and shattered on the ground. After being exposed to the air for a long time, piles of moldy objects were spread on the ground.
Ningxia put on gloves and was about to throw it in through the window when a soldier walked in and said, "Ningxia, the squad leader said he and Brother Liao will be busy outside soon. I'll come in and help you."
Ningxia looked up and saw Xiaomu, a sunny and upright young man. He did not try to be stubborn but gave way to him and let him carry the thing out.
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