This time when she came to the Wang family, Aunt Li's attitude was noticeably different.
She knew Xia Chunmei had come to make longevity peach buns and was hoping to learn the craft.
However, Xia Chunmei had already decided to make a living with this skill, so she wouldn't easily pass it on to others. She simply said, "Aunt Li, I'm going to make longevity peach buns. Please excuse me for a moment. My sisters and I can stay here."
Aunt Li's expression changed, and she turned and left unhappily.
"Then I should also excuse myself," Xia Ping said.
"No need, I can't figure this out."
If you could see it, how come so many netizens today still turn steamed buns into stones and sausages into poop?
The steamed buns of this era didn't taste good, mainly because everyone used sourdough to ferment them, so the buns and steamed bread were sour and not soft enough, and they had to be neutralized with alkali.
Xia Chunmei's secret weapon is filtered wood ash water.
Without alkaline water, simply watching how to knead the dough and wrap the filling is completely useless.
She filtered the wood ash water last night and stored it in a bamboo tube; even Qiu Mei and Dong Mei don't know about it yet.
Xia Chunmei brought them here today mainly to give them a chance to learn how to wrap longevity peach buns.
The birthday banquet is the day after tomorrow. The weather is so hot now, everything has to be prepared on the day itself. If I don't find an opportunity to teach them, how will we manage to manage it all?
Thirty tables, ten people per table, and two more tables need to be prepared, at least three hundred and twenty or thirty people. If she doesn't bring two apprentices along, she won't be able to finish it even if she works herself to death.
Xia Chunmei kneaded the red bean paste into long strips, then cut them into small pieces with a knife, so they could be used for wrapping later.
After all the preparations were done, Xia Chunmei killed the fish again. The Wang family loved to eat pickled fish, so since Xia Chunmei was here today, they asked her to make it again and also to make sweet and sour fish for them to try.
Today, Xia Chunmei happened to sell a few black carp to the Wang family. For today's sauerkraut fish, she chose black carp. She was busy cleaning and filleting the fish.
After the preparations were completed, the dough had risen sufficiently.
The weather was hot, so the dough rose too quickly.
Xia Chunmei taught Xia Ping and Xia Qiumei as she did it, and the two of them learned quickly, mainly because the thing wasn't too difficult.
With three jin of flour, Xia Chunmei made thirty-six longevity peaches.
After steaming for about fifteen minutes, the peach tips were colored, and the longevity peach buns were finished.
"It really looks like a peach!" Xia Ping exclaimed. "Chunmei, you're amazing!"
"It must be delicious!" Xia Qiumei stared at the longevity peach bun and swallowed hard.
Aunt Li was also stunned; she really didn't expect Xia Chunmei to have this skill!
Xia Huohua and Xia Mingshi also gathered around to look, and were immediately awestruck!
After the steam dissipated, Xia Chunmei wrapped both sides of the steamer with a rag and carried it directly to the Wang family's dining table.
The Wang family immediately gathered around, and when they saw the longevity peach buns, they were dumbfounded!
They really look alike!
Wang Dagui could already imagine how sensational it would be if such a steamed bun appeared at his birthday banquet.
That will definitely make you look incredibly impressive!
"Wow! Peach! What a beautiful peach bun, I want to eat it!" Wang An'an rushed over and grabbed it with her hands.
"Grandma's darling, it's fresh out of the pot, it's very hot!" Wang Dagui's wife, Wang Zhangshi, hurriedly grabbed Wang An'an, afraid that he would get burned.
"I want to eat, I want to eat!" Wang An'an refused to listen and struggled, insisting on grabbing it with her hands.
"Madam, please use chopsticks to pick it up, be careful not to burn yourself." Aunt Li thoughtfully offered chopsticks.
Wang Zhangshi immediately picked one up for her beloved grandson, and Wang An'an was overjoyed.
“Miss Xia, you learned this skill from your father,” said Xiao Zhangshi, Wang Fuchun’s wife.
"Yes, I learned it from my dad. My longevity peach buns not only look beautiful, but they also taste different from other buns. They are softer and sweeter. You can try them first."
"Delicious." At this moment, Wang An'an said politely.
Wang Xiuxiu, the daughter of Xiao Zhangshi, also started eating heartily, disregarding her image, and kept saying how delicious it was.
"It's really good, not sour at all, and softer and sweeter than other buns. Miss Xia, how did you make this?" Madam Zhang asked.
"There is indeed a little trick to this." Xia Chunmei naturally wouldn't say that she added alkaline water.
Xiao Zhang was surprised that Xia Chunmei, despite her young age, was quite tight-lipped.
Xia Chunmei asked, "Are you all satisfied with the longevity peach buns?"
"Satisfied, satisfied. Prepare 360 or 370 longevity peaches for me, and enough other dishes for 32 tables, just like you said before, 12 coins per table." Wang Dagui was so happy that he didn't haggle and readily agreed.
"Then thank you very much for your appreciation, Village Chief Wang. Leave the banquet to me, don't worry. Now I'll go and make sauerkraut fish and sweet and sour fish."
With the business deal secured, Xia Chunmei became even more motivated.
Back in the kitchen, they immediately started cooking. The pickled fish and braised carp received unanimous praise, but the sweet and sour carp was only considered okay by Ms. Zhang and her daughter; no one else liked it.
"Will you be making sweet and sour fish for the birthday banquet?"
The customer is king, so Xia Chunmei felt it was better to ask questions first.
"If we don't like it, someone else will, so let's do it anyway."
"Okay, let me confirm the menu with you again: pickled fish, steamed sea bass, braised grass carp chunks, pan-fried grass carp cakes, spicy fish balls, braised carp, sweet and sour fish skin, and sweet and sour carp," Xia Chunmei said. "The braised carp can also be replaced with braised crucian carp, which tastes very good too."
If you replace carp with crucian carp, the cost difference will be significant.
Because crucian carp is the cheapest.
"Then let's change it to braised crucian carp." Madam Wang still wanted to save some money.
"The menu is settled then. It's getting late, so we'll head back now."
On the way back, Xia Ping grabbed Xia Chunmei and said, "Chunmei, how are you so amazing? You did it so realistically!"
"And they even smell better than the steamed buns in the city." Xia Mingshi couldn't stop smiling; she knew the deal was a done deal.
"Today, Ping-jie, you and Qiu-mei both helped me. From now on, we'll come here before dawn every day to make steamed buns. We must make all the longevity peach buns and steam them by the beginning of the 9-11 AM."
Fortunately, the banquet here usually starts around 1:30 to 2:00 pm, otherwise Xia Chunmei wouldn't be confident she could cook it.
That day, she didn't slice the sauerkraut fish; she cut it into chunks instead. For this kind of large-pot dish, there's no need to be so particular about the details, but the taste must be guaranteed, otherwise, the reputation won't spread.
"Don't worry, I definitely won't hold you back," Xia Ping said.
Xia Qiumei also assured, "I will definitely do my best."
"Now that the deal is done, let's talk about wages. I'll give Sister Ping and Aunt Lihua thirty coins after the job is done. Grandma Ming and Uncle Huohua did a lot of work, so I'll give you two thirty-six coins each. What do you think?"
This figure was determined by Xia Chunmei after careful consideration, taking into account the current market situation.
In those days, a dishwasher in a restaurant earned 22 coins a day, but the workload wasn't heavy. They had to start working before dawn to prepare for a banquet and continued until the banquet ended, cleaning, washing dishes, and wiping tables. It was a very tiring day.
Moreover, Xia Mingshi and Xia Huohua helped set up four temporary stoves today, contributing a lot of effort, so their wages should naturally be higher.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com