Chapter 7 Sprouting Mung Beans
After resting for a while, Jiang Zhi watched as the sun dipped three feet below the horizon, and then slowly entered the kitchen.
She stretched languidly, her toes lightly hooking over the leftover pig lungs and intestines she had bought that morning. Then she drew a basin of well water from the side and gently rinsed away the surface dust.
She plans to make some mala tang (a type of spicy hot pot) today, both as a late-night snack and to sell at the night market.
She first cleaned the huge pig intestines and lungs again, and then picked some dried meat from the shelf next to her and cleaned it as well.
Then she asked Pei Ye to make sure that there were some lotus roots, carrots, lettuce, wood ear fungus, cucumbers, and even mushrooms in the cellar at home. She then happily picked out some of each and washed them with well water.
Cut carrots into chunks, slice lotus root into pieces about half a finger's width, and cut lettuce and cucumber into long strips.
Wood ear mushrooms and mushrooms are the most convenient. Jiang Zhi simply washed them one by one, without even cutting them, and the food preparation was already done.
After preparing the ingredients, Jiang Zhi was ready to start braising the pig intestines and pig lungs.
She scrubbed the large pot clean, then stuffed the pig intestines and lungs inside, added five spoonfuls of salt, three spoonfuls of soybean paste borrowed from her neighbor, a ladle of white wine, and her secret braising spices—dried tangerine peel, perilla leaves, cloves, Sichuan peppercorns, as well as scallions, garlic, and ginger—all wrapped in a breathable little herb bag before putting it into the large pot, waiting for the aroma to fully develop.
Then add two or three ladles of water, cover and simmer.
While the stew was cooking, Jiang Zhi thought for a moment and decided to grow some vegetables that she could harvest at home, such as—
Bean sprouts?
Jiang Zhi naturally knew how to sprout beans. Before she transmigrated, she still had a basket of bean sprouts in a shady corner of the house that hadn't been harvested.
When it comes to sprouting beans, Jiang Zhi summarizes it into a few key points: "Select beans, soak beans, wet beans, shade beans, water beans, and finally remember to turn the beans over."
Jiang Zhi only has time to complete the first two steps: selecting and soaking the beans.
I grabbed a handful of mung beans from the cellar, poured a ladle of water into them, and discarded all the ones that floated to the surface, as these were usually either rotten or shriveled and wouldn't sprout.
Then she brought a bucket from outside and threw in all the beans that she had just slightly sifted. She added a few ladles of water, until the water level was about one finger joint above the beans, and that was it—the beans were now soaking.
Soaking beans might take overnight in winter, but now it's the sweltering summer. Jiang Zhi estimated that she could prepare to pack them up after returning from her stall at night, so she placed them in a bright spot in the kitchen, afraid that she would forget about them.
Then she looked at the large pot of braised food again, and seeing the water still bubbling and gurgling inside, she picked up another pot, rinsed some rice, and started cooking.
After everything was settled, she quietly nestled in her bamboo chair and went to read a book.
*
When the bubbling sound came from the pot, Jiang Zhi knew it was almost done cooking.
She leisurely put the book aside, got up, and opened the pot lid.
Warm, white steam rose from the edge of the pot, wafting into her nose.
Jiang Zhi took a sniff and nodded in satisfaction.
The aroma is indeed perfect. Although it's not as rich as the stew I had in my previous life, when you take a deep breath, you first smell the rich aroma of soybean paste, then the spiciness of cloves rushes in, followed by the unique herbal aroma of Sichuan peppercorns. These are the most prominent, while the other spices are mixed together to form a complex and rich aroma.
Jiang Zhi picked up a piece of sausage with her chopsticks, brought it close and sucked hard. Perhaps because she unconsciously squeezed it, the unique aroma of oil mixed with the spiciness of spices immediately came out.
Jiang Zhi poked each piece with her chopsticks to make sure that the pig intestines and lungs could be easily pierced, thus confirming that the braising process was almost complete.
*
With the most important meat dish prepared, Jiang Zhi began preparing the rest.
Carrots are strung in pairs; lettuce and cucumber are strung in long slices; wood ear mushrooms are strung in pairs, about two to three slices each; lotus root slices are also strung in pairs; mushrooms were cut into quarters earlier, so about four pieces of mushrooms are strung together diagonally.
As for the intestines and pig lungs, they were also cut into small pieces and strung together into many skewers.
After doing all this, Jiang Zhi wiped the sweat from her brow, blanched the meat again, and finally began preparing the seasonings.
The key to the delicious flavor of skewers lies in this:
When the oil in the pan is slightly hot, first stir-fry the soybean paste. After the soybean paste is cooked, add the peppercorns, a handful of cloves, and the crushed scallions, ginger, and garlic to the pan. As soon as the oil is slightly heated, the aroma of the seasonings will waft out from all directions.
The most crucial step is here. It's not that chili peppers didn't exist in ancient times, but the overall productivity of the dynasty Jiang Zhi traveled to was at least similar to that between the Tang and Song dynasties. Naturally, there was no way to travel overseas to find chili peppers. But I have a clever plan:
Jiang Zhi rushed out of the kitchen, went to the yard, picked some small hawthorn berries, crushed them slightly with her hands, and sprinkled them directly into the pot. A pungent, spicy aroma immediately filled the air.
This is Evodia rutaecarpa, a pungent herb that can replace chili peppers, and it appeared as early as the Han Dynasty. Its only difference from chili peppers is that it's spicier and more bitter. However, ginger had already prepared it. Using both Sichuan peppercorns and ginger to neutralize the Evodia rutaecarpa prevents it from becoming bitter and unpalatable.
As the oil sizzled slightly from frying, Jiang Zhi adjusted the firewood to make sure the flames under the stove were only lightly licking the bottom of the pot before picking up a large spatula and starting to flip the oil from side to side.
After stirring it for about a minute, the chili oil was ready.
At this moment, Jiang Zhi quickly added a ladle of braising broth and kept it simmering over high heat. When the aroma of the braising broth and the spicy aroma of the chili oil on top were completely blended together, the chili oil seasoning was ready.
It was past mid-Shenshi (3-5 PM), and the afterglow of the sun was still shining on the earth, scorching the roadsides.
Jiang Zhi tested the temperature and then decided to let it cool down a bit more before taking it out to set up her stall. Then, she could start eating.
She first poured the prepared red broth all over the skewers she had just made, and the aroma immediately filled the air.
*
Outside,
The two men who had been eyeing the diligently reading Xiao Mahua with predatory intent were finally distracted by the aroma.
You Yi had mostly recovered by now. It didn't matter; it was just a matter of going from "cute little sister" to "genius little sister."
He! Doesn't! Care! At! Anything!
At that moment, he turned his head and spoke in Pei Ye's direction.
"Come on, guess what Miss Jiang plans to do tonight?"
"Hey, what are you still doing here?"
Pei Ye was annoyed just looking at this guy, so he gave him a cold, sarcastic glance.
Unexpectedly, You Yi was like a piece of chewing gum that couldn't be shaken off, so these words had no effect on him at all. He even felt a sense of pleasure that his good brother had broken down at the same time, so he replied with a grin.
"Hmph! Miss Jiang and I, You, are truly destined to meet. Look, my sister has become a genius overnight after Miss Jiang said those words! As for me, I'll naturally wait for Miss Jiang's next favor!"
"But Pei Er, not to criticize you, but what you did was the most unethical thing—tricking someone into thinking they were a poor scholar!"
You Yi spoke with great enthusiasm.
Pei Ye's face darkened with anger, but a small knot suddenly formed in his heart:
Was he doing this because...?
In a short while, he calmed himself down a bit.
He didn't do it on purpose; he simply didn't get a chance to speak...
Seeing the change in his good brother's expression, You Yi couldn't help but laugh, but he didn't continue to tease him. He just strode towards the dining table.
As soon as he opened the door, the strong spicy aroma made him sneeze loudly.
"Ah-choo, Miss Jiang, what are you cooking? It looks so..."
"How can this taste good?"
When Jiang Zhi first heard You Yi's cheerful, silly voice, she had a slight smile on her face. Just as she was about to speak, Pei Ye interrupted her.
He picked up a skewer with a slightly picky look, examined the carrots hanging on it and the red oil dripping down, and said.
Jiang Zhi was in a bad mood.
She gave him a lazy sidelong glance, put down the small pot she was holding on the table, and then, taking him by surprise, stuffed the string of snacks he was holding into his mouth.
Before Pei Ye could react, something like this was stuffed into his mouth. He subconsciously curled the slightly crisp carrot with the tip of his tongue.
Then,
As if a ball of fire had spewed from his throat, his face instantly turned red, the kind of red that reached the tips of his ears.
Pei Ye had never experienced anything so spicy before, and this was really bad. He instinctively swallowed his saliva frantically, but the saliva was still spicy, making his entire mouth and digestive tract feel like it was on fire.
Jiang Zhi snorted and, as if she had expected, handed over a glass of water.
Pei Ye quickly downed the water in two gulps, which finally relieved the burning sensation in his throat. He then poured himself two bowls of water and drank them, finally able to breathe normally again.
You Yi, who had been watching his brother's reaction the whole time, was stunned. He stared at the huge pot of vegetables with a sense of fear and even awe.
After staring for a long time, he finally chose to silently take a step back.
Pei Ye, who had finally caught his breath, walked over and silently stared at the dish.
Jiang Zhi was then happy.
She continued to slump in her bamboo chair, smiling lazily.
"Go ahead and say it if you dare?"
Pei Ye remained silent, recalling the astonishing spiciness and the amazing taste, before finally answering in silence.
"It tastes good."
At this moment, You Yi's face was full of question marks:
Judging from Pei Er's behavior just now, he almost thought that Miss Jiang was planning to poison Pei Er or something. And now Pei Er said it was delicious? What about all that water you drank just now?
Jiang Zhi lazily sat up slightly, a piece of pig intestine skewer on her hand, which she stuffed into her mouth without even looking at it.
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