Chapter 124 The char siu bao is amazing!
After finishing their delicious noodles, the little people immediately worked together to clean up the kitchen.
Once the kitchen was completely renovated, Ning Jia immediately began preparing afternoon tea, or rather, small cakes, for the little people over the next few days.
"The cream cakes won't keep, so I can only make these simple little cakes for you."
Ning Jia spoke to Dong Kui, and to the junior kitchen helper who had already started working ahead of schedule.
Ning Jia originally planned to do it by herself, but when the others heard about it, they all said they wanted to help.
Ning Jia smiled without saying a word, and seeing that everyone seemed eager to help, she didn't refuse.
Although, cooking with so many people together might not be as fast as cooking by yourself...
But at least, it adds a lot of emotional value (?)
For example, even the simple step of separating the egg white from the yolk can be fraught with problems.
Originally, Ning Jia thought this step was a bit difficult and didn't want the little people to participate.
Seeing the eager looks on the little kitchen helpers' faces, eager to try separating egg whites themselves, Ning Jia hesitated for a moment, but still gave in.
I quickly gave everyone a small bowl (so that if one person failed, the whole team would be wiped out), and let them share it to play with (not really).
The first to appear was Ina, a contestant who was not lacking in strength.
Ever since she won the title of the heaviest warrior in the tribe with a weight of 44 grams (about the weight of four Oreos), she has been very confident in her strength.
The same is true now.
Standing by the small bowl, Daoya, perhaps eager to show off her skills, had barely picked up an egg when she impatiently cracked it open with a loud "smack" on the edge of the bowl. Only after triumphantly pouring the egg whites into the bowl did she remember—
Oh no, I made a mistake! You need to separate the egg yolks and egg whites.
Seeing the still-unmixed egg liquid in the bowl, she quickly grabbed a large spoon, raised it, and scooped the egg yolk out of the bowl.
But the egg liquid was smoother than she had imagined. After finally managing to scoop it into the spoon, it accidentally slipped back into the bowl. It took quite a bit of effort to finally get the yolk out.
Hehe, it's not that difficult.
Daoya was happily preparing to pour the egg yolk from the spoon into another small bowl when, perhaps due to excessive excitement, she raised the spoon too high. The yolk, still containing some egg white, slid straight down the handle of the spoon, as if a rain of eggs had fallen from the sky, instantly drenching Daoya.
With her head and face covered in egg yolk, Daoya wiped the yellow egg yolk from her eyes and stood there blankly for a long time without saying a word.
Ning Jia, standing to the side, suppressed a laugh and wanted to pat Daoya's head to comfort her, but couldn't bring herself to do it.
Ahem, remember to remind Ina not to wash her hair with hot water later, otherwise she'll have a head full of beautiful frangipani flowers...
The other little people couldn't hold back at all and burst into laughter, since they always had a very low threshold for laughter.
The second to appear is Inagi's good friend, Tachibana.
After listening to Daoya's long, painful lesson, Juye patted Daoya on the shoulder and then... honestly asked Ningjia if there was a tool that could directly separate egg whites.
Ning Jia nodded, "Of course."
He then took out an egg separator that looked like a spoon, showed it roughly how to use it, and handed it to Juye.
After thinking for a moment, Ju Ye first put the egg separator into the bowl, then held the egg and struggled for a long time before finally cracking it open and pouring it into the egg separator.
Juye stood by the bowl, and with her two small hands, she shakily lifted the egg separator, gave it a gentle shake, and sure enough, the egg white flowed down the gap into the bowl.
But some egg whites stubbornly refused to go down. Ju Ye held the egg separator, her little face almost turning red, and she shook it vigorously, panting and sticking out her tongue.
In the end, because her arms were so sore, Ju Ye was afraid that if she couldn't hold the egg separator, all her efforts would be wasted, so she simply gave up halfway through.
Ning Jia patted her head, took the egg separator, skillfully flipped it a few times, and quickly separated all the egg whites.
Seeing that Ju Ye's face was flushed and she looked like she was about to collapse, Xue Cao and Bai Su quickly pulled her aside. One of them massaged her arms and the other massaged her shoulders. This loving scene made Ning Jia smile.
However, it is clear that the relatively weak orange leaves are not suitable for working in the kitchen.
Because for a dwarf race that is only the height of a finger, the effort required to cook in a huge kitchen is much greater than that required for a giant.
The third challenger was He Meng. Although she didn't need to help in the kitchen, she liked to join in the fun, so she came to help anyway.
As the strongest warrior in the tribe, He Meng is indeed very strong, agile, and quick-witted.
However, she was clearly not interested in cooking, and she was also careless when separating egg whites.
She accidentally knocked some eggshells into the bowl at the beginning, and then she had to keep scooping them out with a spoon, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get them all out. Frustrated, she finally gave up.
As for the okra, which was highly anticipated, it did not participate.
Separating egg whites wasn't necessary for him; the most important thing right now was to conserve his energy in order to prepare meals for the next few days.
"Anyone else want to try? If not, then I'll begin."
Seeing that the children had finished playing, Ning Jia smiled slightly, put on her apron, and went up to play. She first collected the egg yolks and whites into two separate bowls, and then picked up an egg—
After cracking the egg into the bowl, she casually shook the broken shell to let the egg white flow into the bowl. Then she poured the yolk from the shell into another bowl and tossed the shell aside into the trash can next to the counter.
The entire movement was performed in one smooth motion, with ease and freedom.
This incredible skill of separating egg whites with bare hands stunned the group of scoundrels, their eyes wide with disbelief.
Wow, that's amazing... your movements are so fast and precise, and you didn't even drop the eggshell!
Watching Ning Jia quickly divide all the eggs and crack them into bowls one by one, the little ones silently thought to themselves:
It seems I'm still a long way from becoming as good a cook as Ning Jia.
...
Ning Jia had no idea what the little people were thinking. While she was idly playing with egg whites, the memory that flashed through her mind was the funny story of making a birthday cake for Ms. Ning when she was a child.
Don't be fooled by how skillfully she separates egg whites now; this is actually the only technical skill she learned in baking.
Ning Fang said that the birthday cakes from nearby cake shops were all too sweet and cloying, and Ning Jia thought so too, so he thought, why don't I just make a cake for Ning Fang myself?
The idea is good, but putting it into practice is difficult.
Ning Fang's birthday happened to fall on a weekend. Ning Jia got up early to make the cake base, but she didn't expect that the first hurdle would be separating the egg whites. Back then, there was no online shopping and no egg separator at home, so she separated them by hand.
That morning, the kitchen was piled high with eggshells. The number of eggs that failed to be split could have been enough to order a cream cake from a store. Ning Jia managed to make a passable cake base.
The subsequent piping decorations were also atrocious.
By the time the crookedly written "Happy Birthday Ningfang! May you always be happy!" cream cake, the size of a washbasin, was finished, it was already evening.
Even so, Ning Fang, who was on a diet, ate the whole cake—or rather, half of it, because Ning Jia ate the other half herself.
She spent half the day cracking eggs in the kitchen and then half the day practicing her calligraphy with cream; she was utterly exhausted and starving.
As a result, that night, because they ate a lot of cream cake after dinner, both mother and daughter vomited profusely due to indigestion. Ning Jia regretted it as she vomited.
Waaaaah, all that time I spent making this huge cake, and now it's all gone to the trash.
...
After Ning Jia finished replaying the past in her mind, pot after pot of small cakes were ready.
After letting the small cakes cool and putting them in bags, Ning Jia sorted the vegetables in the house and placed them in the small cart next to the kitchen counter.
"If you don't know how to cook it, you can either boil it or fry it. Just make sure the ingredients are cooked."
Ning Jia pointed to the food and gave Dong Kui some advice.
"As for eggs, since they can't be refrigerated, it's best to eat them as soon as possible, since the weather hasn't gotten completely cold yet."
"Also, if you really want to eat rice, you can steam some yams, potatoes, or sweet potatoes as a substitute."
Dongkui listened attentively to Ning Jia's instructions, her notebook already filled with many pages of notes.
Seeing that Ning Jia was about to say something, Dong Kui quickly said, "It's okay, with so many people cooking together, we'll definitely make it well, don't worry."
That's true.
Ning Jia swallowed another instruction with a sheepish look on her face. She had just said that she wanted the little people to learn to live independently, so she had to put her mind at ease.
"Okay, then Dongkui, you go and rest first, I'll move the table."
"Yes, thank you for your hard work."
After the last curly-haired little man left, Ning Jia took off her apron and immediately began renovating the kitchen.
She first slowly moved the square dining table over and placed it next to the counter. Then she took all the dwarfs' tableware out of the cabinet and placed it on the storage rack on the counter.
Hmm... A large induction cooker can cook more dishes, but it's more dangerous and inconvenient to wash the pots, so I'll pass.
She's already taught Dongkui how to use the microwave; at least heating milk is no problem. But safety is still a concern.
How about letting Bai Su be in charge of safety supervision in the kitchen? She's meticulous and calm enough that she can quickly resolve any problems that arise...
Ning Jia tidied up the kitchen while thinking, and only after looking it over from all angles and finding no problems did she turn off the kitchen light and return to the living room.
The living room was unusually quiet at this moment. Apart from a few little figures playing with building blocks on the sofa, there wasn't a single little figure chatting or resting.
Seeing Ning Jia's surprised expression, Luo Luo pointed to the sofa in her childish voice, "They're all in class."
Ning Jia naturally also saw the study area, which was packed with students, but she was a little puzzled:
It's so late at night, and we'll be going to bed soon. Why are they still studying? Do little people have evening study sessions too?
When she got closer, she realized that everyone wasn't having evening self-study, but rather attending a class.
The children were all intently watching the whiteboard used for class, while Canglan, standing next to the whiteboard, solemnly held up a black pen and wrote an equation on the whiteboard while explaining something.
"Learn arithmetic, build skyscrapers, win competitions?"
Ning Jia read a note pasted next to the whiteboard, listening to Cang Lan's lesson on "7+2=9," and was momentarily at a loss for words, not knowing whether to laugh or cry:
As expected of the Canglan Clan Chief, his ability to seize upon current events and persuade students to study is truly first-rate.
Look how diligently everyone is studying!
Before it got involved in building skyscrapers, nobody was this passionate about learning arithmetic!
...
The next morning, Ning Jia finished breakfast early and, before Liu Yue's car arrived, received a package from Zhou Chi.
This guy is being so mysterious, what exactly did he send over?
She opened the styrofoam box with a puzzled look and took out... a very exquisite four-layer insulated box.
An ominous premonition welled up in Ning Jia's heart. She looked hesitantly at the still warm insulated box and thought to herself, "Could this be... Zhou Chi's learning results?"
Was it sent on purpose so that she would test the poison on herself?
When Ning Jia placed the heavy insulated box on the coffee table, ready to invite the little ones to taste it, they all ran off in a flash.
Yes, thanks to Yunzhu's vigorous promotion, Zhou Chi's culinary abominations have become deeply ingrained in people's minds, and no one dares to eat this food with its incomprehensible taste.
Hmm, there seems to be a small note next to this insulated box. It must have the name of the dish written on it, right?
Ning Jia picked it up and looked at it:
"I had my teacher make what's supposedly authentic Cantonese dim sum. Have a safe trip! ^^"
She subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief. Oh, you should have said so earlier! It turns out it was made by the chef. Now she can eat it without worry!
Inside the insulated box, each layer was divided in two, revealing shrimp dumplings, char siu buns, steamed siu mai, and egg tarts, as well as rice noodle rolls, steamed chicken feet, glutinous rice chicken, and lava buns...
As soon as you open it, all sorts of aromas waft out.
Although she had already eaten breakfast, Ning Jia couldn't help but swallow.
She took a picture with her phone, sent it to Zhou Chi, and thanked him.
Actually, she was just casually mentioning during a chat last night that she knows a little bit about most cuisines, but because Ms. Ning can't cook Cantonese food, she has always wanted to go to Guangdong to experience morning tea.
I never expected Zhou Chi to be so thoughtful, even bringing so many dim sum dishes for breakfast...
Ning Jia felt a little ashamed.
She actually mistakenly thought that Zhou Chi would send her some of his terrible cooking for her to try; she was really being petty and judging a gentleman by her own standards.
After thinking for a moment, she sent Zhou Chi another message: "Wait for me to come back and bring you authentic hairy crabs," and then quickly summoned the little ones.
“These were not done by Zhou Chi.”
Ning Jia's short sentence made the little people breathe a sigh of relief. After learning the origin of these snacks, they all thanked Zhou Chi.
Looking at the plump char siu bao, Xuecao couldn't help but lick her lips and asked:
Why did Zhou Chi suddenly send over some delicious food?
Ning Jia laughed and said, "Of course it's because I'm afraid you won't have anything to eat if I leave."
However, looking at the words on the note next to her, Bai Su felt that Ning Jia's words seemed a bit off.
She turned to look at Ning Jia, who seemed completely unaffected, then at the delicious snacks spread across the coffee table. After hesitating for a moment, she ultimately said nothing.
Perhaps because of the delightful surprise of the snacks, the children were less saddened by the parting and even had the mood to discuss which snack was the best.
Just as everyone was in high spirits, Ning Jia also received a call from Liu Yue:
"Dear guest, your car is about to arrive at the door. Please proceed to the designated location and board the vehicle promptly."
"I'll be there soon!"
Ning Jia slung her bag over her shoulder and quickly prepared to leave. Seeing the little ones looking reluctant to part, she quickly said:
"Don't worry, I'll be right back."
At the time, no one expected that this statement would turn out to be a huge mistake, and no one could have predicted that Ning Jia's return trip would be repeatedly postponed for various reasons...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
