Chapter 5 Pan-fried Wheat Cakes
"You two, stop!"
Finally, Jiang Zhi couldn't take it anymore and roared, interrupting the two childish brats' bickering.
"You, are you Little Twist's brother?"
Jiang Zhi handed the hand that Xiao Mahua was gently pulling at her to the man surnamed You, and only continued speaking after confirming that the two of them were holding hands.
"Here's your task: Hold your sister's hand!"
"And you, stop grumbling and being so sullen, come and play with the little girl."
Jiang Zhi casually turned to Pei Ye, who was still standing there looking sullen, and Pei Ye subconsciously did as she said.
But this startled You Yi, who was standing to the side.
Pei Ye may look dashing on the outside, but those of us who hang around him know that he loves to quietly smear others and throw away their hats.
Outsiders often call this guy a playboy, which he always accepts nonchalantly. But in reality, he's incredibly ruthless.
But look at what he saw today?
The fact that the ruthless tyrant kept a strange girl at home was already strange enough when it happened to Pei Ye.
He actually let others do whatever they wanted!
You Yi was shocked by the truth he had discovered, and his gaze toward the two of them was filled with a strange look.
The two men were naturally aware of the piercing gaze, but when they caught a glimpse of You Yi's rather unwitting eyes out of the corner of their eye, they both ignored it without prior agreement.
Jiang Zhi was busy dealing with the boiling water in the pot, while Pei Ye was focused on playing with Xiao Mahua and had no idea how far You Yi's brain could go.
Although she unexpectedly found a child while shopping for groceries and successfully located the child's relatives, Jiang Zhi did not forget the work she still had to do.
As soon as Jiang Zhi arrived home, she filled the large pot in the kitchen with well water that had been pumped up. While she was busy dealing with various odds and ends, the well water was already bubbling and boiling.
Jiang Zhi quickly took out the chicken legs she had just bought, deboned them, lightly salted them, and then chopped some scallions and ginger and placed them under the plate she had just taken out. She placed the chicken legs on top of the scallions and ginger, and then placed a small porcelain bowl upside down in the middle to hold the broth later.
After all the preparations were completed, Jiang Zhi hurriedly lifted the lid of the large pot, and a cloud of white steam immediately enveloped her face.
Jiang Zhi wasn't annoyed. She simply wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and then placed the plate above the water to steam it.
Then, in that short time, she hurriedly washed the carrots and cucumbers she had just bought, dried them, and finally cut them into thin strips.
When both are placed on the nail board, the cucumber shreds appear even more vibrant green and the carrot shreds even more crisp and orange.
After Jiang Zhi finished cutting the above, the water in the pot boiled again, and the bubbles bubbled up the steamer. Jiang Zhi was already used to this sound, and it sounded particularly reassuring.
Taking advantage of this moment of leisure, Jiang Zhi cupped some water in her hands and washed her face to clear her mind. By then, the steamed chicken legs in the pot were almost ready.
Lifting the lid, the steamed chicken drumsticks were already a beautiful golden brown, and the bottom of the bowl glistened with oil. As for whether they were cooked through? Jiang Zhi had her own little secret.
She picked up a chopstick and poked the chicken leg with it. The fragrant juice flowed out from the tip of the chopstick. The clear, bright broth indicated that the chicken leg was cooked.
Jiang Zhi picked up two rags, took out the whole pot of scalding hot food, and then tore the chicken leg meat into strips and put it in another bowl for serving vegetables.
At this moment, the inverted bowl containing the soup in the basin was no longer as scalding hot as before. Jiang Zhi poured out the soup, added some minced garlic and the juice of the half lemon that was left over from last time, and mixed it with the fried peppercorns. Stimulated by the hot soup, the aroma immediately filled the air.
Gradually, the aroma wafted out of the kitchen and permeated the entire Pei family home.
The three people who were facing off in the main room stopped their standoff.
Little Twist was already too lazy to listen to the two childish squabbles, and had turned his head away. But now he turned his head back and stared straight into the corridor.
You Yi was even more direct, already swallowing hard.
Pei Ye was the calmest of the three. He had already witnessed Jiang Zhi's cooking skills, and when he smelled the extremely tempting aroma of meat, he simply raised an eyebrow and secretly suppressed the urge to take a deep breath.
"Pei Er, would you mind if Xiao Mahua and I had a meal at your house today?"
You Yi stopped fighting and making a fuss, and just grinned at Pei Ye, showing his white teeth.
Reminded by her older brother, Xiao Mahua stared intently into Pei Ye's eyes.
Pei Ye felt unusually uncomfortable being stared at by the two pairs of eyes, one big and one small. He scratched the back of his head and prepared to slip away.
"Hmm, I'll go check how many have been made..."
Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Youyi and Xiaomahua holding hands, following closely behind him.
Jiang Zhi was completely unaware that three mouths had already sat neatly arranged outside.
She was still busy mixing the sauce, the shredded chicken thigh meat, and the shredded cucumber and carrot together.
Tired from her work, she picked out two bowls of buckwheat flour from the side of the stove, intending to make buckwheat pancakes as a treat for herself.
She picked out extra ingredients, intending to let the little girl, Xiao Mahua, try them out. Since she hadn't bought the ingredients herself, she felt perfectly justified in using the landlord's ingredients to treat the landlord's friend.
Wheat cakes were a relatively easy food in the diet of ancient working people. Jiang Zhi once replicated this kind of food when she was recreating delicacies, so naturally she made it with great skill.
She first carefully crushed the buckwheat flour in her hands to make sure the particles weren't too big. Then she added a small spoonful of salt and kneaded it again and again with boiling water. When it became a smooth dough, the first step was essentially complete.
To enhance the aroma, Jiang Zhi added some mustard greens picked from the wall and mixed in some lard. After confirming that both were incorporated into the dough, Jiang Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, covered it with parchment paper, and let it ferment on its own.
Next, they prepared to fry the pancakes. Actually, in ancient times, there was a special tool called an aozi (鏊子) for making pancakes. Jiang Zhi had seen one before when visiting a museum. However, the Pei family didn't have one.
So Jiang Zhi simply washed and scrubbed the frying pan, dried it, oiled it, and then threw in the dough pieces one by one, pressing them down with a spatula.
As the sizzling sound from the pan grew louder, Jiang Zhi seized the opportunity, quickly flipped one over with a spatula, glanced at the bottom, and saw that it was indeed golden brown. Then she could start flipping them over one by one.
In just a short while, the entire kitchen was filled with a sweet aroma of wheat, which made Jiang Zhi feel happier.
Not to mention the three people who happened to be at the door at that moment.
You Yi swallowed hard once more, and for the first time ignored Pei Ye's expression as he led the way. He walked straight to the pot, looked down, and took a deep sniff.
The golden-brown crust puffed up slightly as it baked, and the aroma of wheat mixed with the scent of caramel wafted straight to one's nose.
Unlike the kind of pancakes sold on the street that are baked directly over charcoal, these pancakes are lightly pan-fried in a pan, so they are not as thick as those sold on the street, but rather so thin that they seem to be able to see through.
He almost reached out and grabbed it.
But just then, a pair of chopsticks gently tapped his wrist, bringing him back to his senses. His hand was on top of the pot, and the steam made him wince in pain.
"Young lady, I'm a good friend of your Master Pei, and Little Twist's older brother. Could I try some of these pancakes later?"
Pei Ye couldn't help but feel a little disgusted with his friend. This guy had pulled every string he could to get help just to get a stutter.
Fortunately, he agreed quickly when the girl asked for a kitchen, otherwise...
He couldn't help but think about it.
Upon hearing the title "Master X," Jiang Zhi's lips twitched, but she still smiled and said...
"Of course, young master, I already saved one for you and Xiao Mahua when I was making the pancakes, but it's not time to eat them yet, so please take your hand back."
As she spoke, she slapped away the hand holding chopsticks that was trying to reach into the pot without turning her head.
"Hehehe," You Yi chuckled awkwardly, then turned around and pulled his youngest sister over, pressing her against him.
Jiang Zhi's expression gradually relaxed after the commotion. The pancakes were almost done frying, and their aroma was so enticing that it seemed to linger for miles around.
Taking advantage of this free time, she took out the shredded chicken that had just been cold-dressed, then lined up the three of them outside and casually told them to peel some peanuts to eat with the side dishes later.
After finishing all these tasks, she placed the pancakes one by one onto a plate.
Then he carried out the dish with a cold chicken salad in one hand and a wheat pancake in the other.
In the short time that followed, the three people at the table were already seated.
Pei Ye slightly crossed his legs, and there was indeed a pile of peanut shells beside him, but judging from the rhythmic chewing at the corners of his mouth, it was obvious that he hadn't left any.
You Yi did peel some peanuts, but obviously not many, as he quickly finished them off by popping one into his mouth and putting another on the plate.
So, the one who peeled the most peanuts among the three was actually the small twisted dough sticks. She was sitting upright, and although her feet couldn't touch the ground, she didn't sway back and forth like her brother. Her eyes were focused on the peanuts, and she even separated the peanut shells from the kernels one by one.
As Jiang Zhi walked past the three people, she smiled and patted Xiao Mahua's fluffy head, her suspicions growing stronger. She then handed the two plates in her hand to Xiao Mahua.
The other two were somewhat angry but dared not speak out.
After all, who would dare offend a chef?
Who would dare to argue with a six or seven-year-old child over food without any regard for their reputation?
Eat!
Jiang Zhi lazily pulled over a bamboo chair, and while picking up her chopsticks, she gave a call to action.
Then, the four chopsticks almost clashed in mid-air.
Jiang Zhi, however, ignored the two and focused solely on serving food to Xiao Mahua. Since they were using spoons, they had no interest in getting involved in the fight between the two men.
A note from the author:
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