The New Year's Market is truly unmatched. It's no exaggeration to say it's packed with people. The only difference is the limited variety of items.
After walking down the street, we got a little bored and decided to go back.
Before leaving, Wen Xi persuaded me to go to the mutton stall again and insisted on eating it.
The others expressed their disapproval. Eating mutton wasn't popular in Beijing, and the meat was quite smelly when cooked. So even though the mutton was cheap, they weren't tempted.
But Wen Xi likes it! She's done her own research on mutton! There's nothing a foodie like her can't discover.
Finally, unable to resist Wen Xi's nagging, I bought half a white-striped lamb, which weighed about twenty pounds. Because they didn't sell by the pound. (White-striped lamb refers to the weight of the lamb after removing the skin, internal organs, head, and hooves.)
Wen Xi begged and pleaded, and finally accepted a set of sheep's offal and a set of sheep's trotters for another twenty cents. She even bought a large backpack for these things.
Finally, we've come back with a great result! It would have been even more perfect if we ignored the disgusted expressions of the Mao family members.
They went to the pharmacy and bought some dried ginger before they started their return journey.
When they got home, Aunt Du had already returned and had boiled a large pot of water for them.
After just a few days of spending time with her, Wen Xi felt that Grandma Du was a very discerning and measured person. She wasn't the type to take advantage of others. Occasionally, when someone else brought her a bowl of rice, she would always return it. Even if the return was a bit shabby, it showed her thoughtfulness.
Such people are the most comfortable to get along with, maintaining a distance while still being able to interact. Be polite when necessary, and lend a hand to those who need help, regardless of whether you can help or not.
Mutton is not a very expensive thing here, so when Wen Xi suggested inviting Grandma Du and Fang Qiang and his sister who had helped a lot today, Mao agreed with great pain.
Mao's original idea was to buy some gifts and send them over, but since her family consisted mostly of women, it would be a bit inappropriate. But Wen Xi took over.
Today, Mao took Gu Shengmo out to collect firewood, while Wen Xi, the head chef, and Xiang Ye, the deputy chef, started the mutton feast.
In fact, lamb is probably the most simple of all meats. The more civilized way is to eat lamb, pay attention to the original flavor.
Unlike other meats that require different seasonings to enhance their flavor and characteristics, lamb is eaten for its pure nature.
To put it simply, just boil it in plain water. If you don’t want it to smell smelly, just add some ginger and scallions.
Following Wen Xi's instructions, Xiang Ye separated the meat from the sheep, leaving only the sheep skeleton. Then she removed the sheep's ribs, spine, and leg bones.
Wen Xi took it over and placed it in a pot of cold water. She added some scallions and a few slices of dried ginger, and began its long, slow simmering journey.
"Aunt, roll up the meat you just plucked, and roll it a little tighter. Hang it outside later, and it'll probably be hardened by freezing overnight. You can add some to stir-fries later."
Xiang Ye looked at the large and small pieces under her hands with embarrassment, even kneading them into small pieces. Wouldn't it be difficult for herself to roll them up?
When Wen Xi saw this, she realized that she had taken it for granted, assuming that everyone knew the origin of the well-known shabu-shabu mutton dish.
He patted his head and came over with a smile:
"Auntie, I'll do it. Just help me find some oil paper and a hanging basket."
As he spoke, he wrapped the small pieces of meat in the largest piece and rolled it up tightly. There were about four rolls of meat in total, big and small.
When Xiangye came back after putting the meat away, she saw Wenxi washing the pile of smelly mutton offal.
"Xi'er, we don't have to be so hard on ourselves. If you really want to save money, we can just not eat meat."
Wen Xi looked at Xiang Ye with a puzzled expression, only to see her looking at the goat offal in her hand with disdain. It seemed the ancients were truly unprepared for the deliciousness of animal offal. No wonder time travelers always have this essential item!
"Don't worry, auntie. Trust my cooking skills. Just be a little more reserved when you eat it later!"
The bragging was a little too natural, which made Xiangye roll her eyes.
After a lot of hard work, I finally got rid of the strong smell. Of course, I also used up the huge pot of hot water.
Xiangye saw that the water in the water tank was running low, so she picked up the shoulder pole and went out. She had used so much water, so she couldn't let an old lady like Grandma Du carry it all, could she?
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