Chapter 73, The 73rd Inn: Tofu Pudding
Salt-baked chicken is certainly available. Yunyin had prepared many beforehand. Apart from those needed for the event, she sold the rest. She smiled and said, "I don't have many, but one per person is still possible."
"I'll write down your name first, and I'll give it to you when you leave." Thinking of the canned fruit she had made before, she asked Wang Yu, "Would you like to try my canned fruit? If you like it, you can take some home."
They had finished the canned fruit Yunyin had made before, and later she made some canned peaches and pears, which were being stored in the ice cellar. Although there was no ice in the ice cellar, the temperature was still lower than outside. The canned fruit Yunyin had stored last month was still intact, but it had to be eaten as soon as possible, as it seemed it wouldn't last until winter.
She wanted to store it for winter, so she could only make it into dried fruit. The preserved plums she made before were still in good condition and hadn't spoiled at all. She thought she could buy some fruit later and make some dried fruit. She only had apricots, persimmons, and raisins, and Yunyin always felt that she didn't have enough.
Wang Yu asked curiously, "What is canned fruit?"
Yunyin took out two jars of fruit from the ice cellar, opened them, and ladled a bowlful for him: "It's just fruit made in sugar water. You can try it; it tastes pretty good."
Wang Yu picked up a bowl and tasted it. It was indeed very sweet, but it was a different kind of sweetness than candied hawthorn. Since he couldn't buy candied hawthorn at school, buying some canned fruit would be a good alternative. He smiled and said, "Then give me two jars of each."
"These canned fruits should be eaten as soon as possible after opening. You should buy a jar and eat it first, otherwise it would be a waste if they spoiled."
Wang Yu: "Miss Yun underestimates us. This jar of fruit preserves has been almost gone in less than a day. I see you only have three kinds of fruit here, and even two jars of each kind wouldn't be enough for us."
Yunyin smiled and said, "Then let's do as you say. I'll pack it for you when you leave." She then remembered something and asked him, "Did you come on horseback or in a carriage?"
Wang Yu exclaimed, "Oh dear!" and said, "I came on horseback. Everyone came on horseback today; no one is driving a carriage."
Yunyin: "It's okay, I'll have Zhang Lin deliver it to you later. If there's anything else you want to eat, you can buy it too, and I'll have him deliver it for you."
Looking at the table next to the counter, which had some pastries on it, Wang Yu said, "Since someone gave them to me, I'll buy some of everything. I'll take a portion of all the pastries here so my family can try them too."
After agreeing with Wang Yu, Yunyin brought another can of fruit to Xia Yan, saying, "You've been looking around for so long and have eaten quite a few snacks. It's good to have a bowl of fruit to soothe your throat."
Xia Yan took the bowl from her and handed it to Ahui, who was standing next to her. She then asked Yunyin, "What were you talking about with Wang Yu just now? Why did you talk for so long?"
Yunyin sat down next to her and said, "He asked me to buy something. Your family doesn't need any canned fruit, so there's no need to buy it. They only get one day off every ten days, so he bought it to take to school to eat."
Xia Yan took a sip of the sugar water. "They do need it. We can eat fresh ones anytime, so there's really no need to buy them. But I really like the candied hawthorns you make. I wonder if you would be willing to sell some?"
Yunyin: "It's very easy to make candied hawthorns. You can go back and tell Madam Wan, she'll definitely be able to make them. When you leave later, you can go to the stalls by the main road and buy some fruit to take back and have Madam Wan make them for you. Isn't that more convenient than asking me to buy them?"
After finishing a bowl of canned fruit, Ah Hui nodded and said, "Yes, Ah Yan, you can ask Madam Wan to make some when you get back, and I can come to your house to eat too."
Xia Yan said helplessly, "Alright, then I'll take something else back. I remember you used to roast a few ducks every day, do you still have any?"
Yunyin smiled apologetically and said, "There really aren't any left. The six roast ducks I make every day sell out very quickly. People come to buy them early in the morning, so if you ask now, they're all gone. How about this, I'll make two for you tomorrow, and you can have someone come and pick them up?"
Xia Yan: "It seems that's the only way. You still have some salt-baked chicken, right? You didn't sell it all to Wang Yu, did you?"
"Also, I'll keep two for you, and I'll only sell one to everyone else." Yunyin whispered to Xia Yan, "Thank you for the things you gave me before, and thank you for the cow you gave me in return. If it weren't for that cow, I wouldn't be able to sell milk tea anymore."
Nowadays, the food stall in front of Yunyin not only sells noodles and pastries in the morning, but also drinks for lunch and dinner. Milk tea is especially popular. People passing by who can't easily go to the county town will choose to buy from her. Although Yunyin doesn't have much milk, it's all used to make milk tea, which is enough for a day.
If she had only asked Xia Yan to deliver milk to her, she definitely wouldn't have had this much milk. She knew that the people here valued cows very much, especially cows that were still producing milk. They preferred to use the milk to feed newborn calves, which was why it was so difficult to buy milk outside.
Xia Yan said, "This is a deal between us. You gave me your formula, so there's no need to thank me."
The two were chatting happily when a loud bang erupted from the stage in front of them. It turned out that the winner had been chosen. Yunyin went forward to watch and was surprised to find that only Shen Rong and Xie Yan were left on the stage. She asked in surprise, "What's going on now?"
Wang Yu coughed lightly and said, "They tied, neither of them could do anything to the other, so in the end it was a draw." He laughed and said, "That's good too, I can also get a prize. When the event is held again next month, it will surely be even more exciting."
Looking at the group of cheering youths, Yunyin asked with a face full of questions, "Ah, but I only prepared one table of dishes. There aren't enough seats for all of you."
Wang Yu said, "It doesn't matter. I don't know if they can get any, but I'm sure I can get some."
After their poetry contest ended, Yunyin brought out roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) and placed several baskets on each table, saying to them, "Have some flatbread for lunch first. I've prepared a big meal for dinner to celebrate the successful conclusion of your event."
Xie Yan stood up and bowed to Yun Yin, saying, "I must thank you for your generosity, Madam Yun. We had a very happy day."
Yunyin waved her hand and said, "I should thank you. You have added a lot of vitality to my shop, and passersby are more willing to come in and take a look."
She was right. The arrival of these students today not only attracted the villagers from the surrounding area, but also many passersby who came to watch out of curiosity. Even those in a hurry didn't care about the time; they came to her place for a meal and to watch the students compete in poetry.
After delivering the roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) to everyone, Yunyin was about to return to the kitchen to prepare for the evening's banquet when Xia Yan stopped her and asked, "Are you going to watch us play Cuju (ancient Chinese football) later?"
Yunyin said, "I'll go take a look when I have time. If I don't have time, I'll just take a look from the courtyard and that will be enough for me." There are too many people today, and she's too busy to go see for herself.
Xia Yan shrugged and said, "Alright then, I won't bother you anymore."
As Yunyin returned to the kitchen to prepare ingredients, Zhang Lin carried in a large bucket of things from outside. "Yunniangzi, the tofu pudding you ordered from Aunt Fang has arrived, and there are also a few pieces of tofu that she gave you as a gift, saying it was to thank you."
Ever since Luo Man tried Aunt Fang's tofu, she has been buying tofu from her. Later, she also bought tofu from Aunt Fang for her restaurant in the county town. As a result, Aunt Fang's tofu became more and more popular, and many restaurants in the county town bought tofu from her.
After Aunt Fang learned that Yunyin had recommended Luo Man, she had been wanting to thank her, but it had been inconvenient for her to come over. Not long ago, her family finally bought a mule. A couple of days ago, Yunyin ran into Aunt Fang when she went to town and ordered a large bucket of tofu pudding from her. Aunt Fang had already delivered tofu before, but she didn't expect her to deliver so much more now.
Yunyin carried the still-steaming tofu to the kitchen and handed the tofu to Feng Hai, saying, "Since Aunt Fang sent tofu, let's prepare a tofu dish for tonight's banquet."
Feng Hai took the tofu and asked, "How do you make tofu? Like the Wensi tofu you made before?"
Yunyin shook her head: "Let's make some simple home-style dishes today, nothing too complicated. Braised dishes will be fine. How about you make this one?"
Looking at the white and tender tofu in the bowl, Feng Hai pondered for a moment and then said, "Okay, I'll make it. I'm quite good at making tofu."
He has recently been learning to cook from Yunyin and has made considerable progress. Even the regular customers who have been coming to eat here feel that his cooking skills have improved a lot. Customers who were unwilling to change chefs before are now accepting his skills. In any case, Yunyin cannot cook all the dishes by herself.
Feng Hai soaked the tofu in water to remove the beany smell. Although Aunt Fang's tofu had a very mild beany smell, it tasted better after being soaked in water.
Seeing that he was busy, Yunyin also went to prepare the tofu pudding. She had eaten sweet tofu pudding, savory tofu pudding, and spicy tofu pudding before, and they were all delicious. Today, she wanted to let these students' wives try the different ways of eating tofu pudding.
Sweet tofu pudding is the simplest; just pour brown sugar water directly over it. Of course, you can also add various fruits, red beans, and other sweet ingredients.
Yunyin first made a bowl of tofu pudding with red beans, handed one bowl to Feng Hai, and then let Zhang Lin, Zheng Guilan, and the others try it. After everyone had eaten, she continued to make savory tofu pudding.
Savory tofu pudding requires a sauce. Yunyin used minced meat, wood ear mushrooms, and eggs to make it. After stir-frying, she thickened the sauce and poured it over the tofu pudding. Finally, she drizzled minced garlic on top, and the savory tofu pudding was ready.
Spicy tofu pudding is even simpler. If you have chili oil, you can just add chili oil, Sichuan peppercorn oil, and soy sauce. But she didn't have any chili peppers at the moment, so she used oil made from dogwood leaves instead, along with chopped green onions, minced garlic, and crispy soybeans.
Yunyin called Zhang Lin over, and together they brought over the various flavors of tofu pudding they had made. At this time, they were still eating braised dishes, and one of the students said, "These braised edamame and lotus root are really delicious. I think they taste even better than meat."
Another person replied, "It really is delicious. If only we could have such delicious food in our school." He shook his head and sighed, "I can only come here on my days off in the future. How come I only discovered such a delicious restaurant today? I heard that Lady Yun can make a lot of delicious food, like roast duck and mooncakes, which I have never tried before."
The student asked in surprise, "Hey, didn't you eat what Song Shi brought back earlier? By the way, where's Song Shi? I haven't seen him all morning. Where did he go?"
Yunyin brought the tofu pudding up to them and said, "Song Shi is busy in the side room next door. He's working on a drawing, so he didn't come over."
When the student heard that he no longer cared about Song Shi, he stared at the bowl on the table and asked, "Miss Yun, what delicious food is this now?"
Yunyin raised an eyebrow and asked, "Haven't you ever tried tofu pudding?"
"Of course we've eaten tofu pudding, but I've never had tofu pudding with so many flavors before." He scooped up a spoonful of tofu pudding topped with minced meat and put it in his mouth. It melted in his mouth, fresh, fragrant and mellow. His eyes lit up involuntarily, and he praised, "Miss Yun, your cooking skills are amazing. This is the first time I've ever had savory tofu pudding. It's just as good as sweet tofu pudding."
Another student shook his head and said, "I still prefer sweet tofu pudding."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
