At the bus station, she found a bus to Yeheman Township. It was a two-hour ride, not too far. Yeheman Township was said to be the hometown of Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Yuzong, and was once said to be the place where the phoenix rose, belonging to the Zhenghong Banner. There weren't any historical sites for her to visit now; she was just there to check out the food.
Manchu hotpot used to use chicken soup as the base, and cooked venison, roe deer, etc. The sophisticated royal family would cook flying dragons in the sky pot, seafood in the water pot, and cattle, sheep, deer, and roe deer in the ground pot.
There's also a commoner's version of a sauerkraut and pork hot pot, with sauerkraut, pork, black sausage, frozen tofu, and some beef and mutton. Jiang Cha's meal today didn't even have the frozen tofu or black sausage; it couldn't be made in the heat.
A copper pot arrived, swirling with dried seaweed and shrimp. A charcoal fire was lit, and sauerkraut, pork, and fresh tofu were served. The seasonings were fermented tofu and sesame paste, and the chives were optional.
Simmering slowly over low heat, the fat from the white meat seeps into the broth, and the pickled cabbage absorbs the savory flavor, neutralizing its sourness. The tofu becomes more fragrant as it cooks, its pores soaking up the delicious broth. It's especially delicious when frozen in winter.
This state-owned restaurant was recommended by a passerby. Hot pot is rare here in the summer. This place was specifically designed to cater to outsiders like her! The food was fantastic, and I spent 4.5 yuan per person, plus a pound and a half of meat coupons.
After dinner, I packed up eight bowls of Manxiang food and put them directly into my lunch box. It cost me 19.5 yuan plus three pounds of meat coupons and one pound of grain coupons. It was not cheap, and the amount of food was really big. The eight bowls of food filled 13 lunch boxes.
I put the food in a big bag and rushed to the station to go back to the guesthouse. I sat in the back of the bus and, when no one was looking, I put the food away and got off with the empty bag.
Say hello to the lady at the front desk, go back to the room, lock the door, draw the curtains and enter the space. Put the dishes in small bowls and wash the lunch boxes for later use.
After moving the quilt and making the bed, it was time for dinner. The restaurant had dumplings, braised pork belly, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, stir-fried beans, and a main course of rice and steamed buns.
Pack one portion of dumplings and two portions of snow-covered bean paste in a lunch box. Don't miss out on this traditional Northeastern dish. Pack it up here and be sure to prepare a few extra lunch boxes.
She put the food in a net bag and took it back to the guesthouse. She wasn't hungry at all. Since she was here, she couldn't miss any delicious meal. Since she came, she had been buying one or two dishes every day to store.
Stocking up makes people feel safe, and the chefs at that time all have excellent skills. There are no additives, and the ingredients are all natural and green food.
The shelves are specially used to store vegetables. There are two layers of them, which is satisfying. The vegetables I bought today took up a lot of space. There were many vegetables in large quantities, and there were eight bowls of both cold and hot dishes.
Put the snow-white bean paste and dumplings on top, leaving a few outside to taste.
The snow-white, fluffy skin is filled with red bean paste and sprinkled with white sugar. It looks good and tastes good. I heard that this dish takes a long time to make.
The customer placed the order and the chef started cursing. Once she calmed down, the dish was quickly served. It was a joke, but the most difficult part of this dish was beating the egg whites. Electric whisks are much easier these days, but back then, people used chopsticks, beating everything by hand. If she had, she would have cursed too.
Go to bed early and get up early to keep healthy. Do horse stance and frog jump in the space, take a shower and have breakfast. It is not convenient to exercise outside, so it is more comfortable in the space.
The state-owned restaurant's large steamed buns, fried dough sticks, fried cakes, soy milk, rice porridge, and egg soup all looked delicious. I bought a bowl of soy milk and a fried dough stick. The rich soy aroma and the crispy fried dough sticks made for a wonderful start to the morning.
This is the birthplace of the Manchu people, and they still have some beautiful embroidered patterns on their clothes and door curtains. The buildings still have traces of that time, but unfortunately I don’t have a camera.
The famous "Siping Battle" took place here, and the tall Monument to the People's Heroes stands here. On the front is the inscription by Chairman Mao: "The people's heroes will live forever."
Some of the people were rushing around, some were going to work, some were going to school, and some were going to the black market. In a secluded corner, she took out her big basket, changed into some old-fashioned clothes, and, imitating the aunties, wrapped her hair and transformed into a "hen mother."
Following the aunt who was hiding, we entered a huge black market. Everyone knew it well, otherwise we would have caught one of these aunts by looking at their appearance.
It was very lively inside. There were homemade cloth and knitted shoe soles next to them; there were pheasants with their feet tied next to the wild mushrooms; and eggs were in baskets.
Green vegetables and beans from my own garden; miscellaneous fish caught in the river; Korean rice cakes and various kimchi; peanuts and millet in a cloth bag.
The meat stall was quite crowded, so after a quick walk, Jiang Cha started buying everything, ordering mushrooms, pheasant, and even the whole basket of eggs.
I bought a jar each of Chao ethnic rice cake and kimchi. Using the basket to put them away, I bought some peanuts and millet. When I was almost done, I drank some ginger tea and headed for the exit at the end of the street.
At the end of the street, a tall man stood alone, standing straight. He held a box in his hand and remained silent. Jiang Cha glanced at him curiously, and the man came over and asked her, "This is something passed down from our ancestors. Would you like to see it, young lady?"
She was just curious. This guy must have been a soldier, considering his build. It was strange that he was selling things here without saying a word.
He came over suddenly and scared her. What gave her away? "Your hand" Jiang Cha stretched out her hand to take a look. She was covered in homemade black powder, and two white spots were revealed on her black hand.
It must have been rubbed against something when he was buying something. This person has a sharp eye. He didn't even lower his voice when he asked, "Take the thing out and let me see it." Why is he still pretending when he's already exposed?
The man opened the box and found a string of imperial beads. "This string of imperial beads is a family heirloom. My family is in urgent need of money. Take a look. It's made of 108 imperial pearls. The top four are coral, the back of jade is cloud, and the back of turquoise is Buddha's head."
He earnestly explained the value of the imperial beads, hoping she'd buy them. "What's going on at home? Are you in trouble?" He touched the imperial beads. These days, they weren't worth much in public, but it was hard to explain privately. Since he was a soldier, he offered to help if he could.
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