Pei Yao squatted down by the well and began cleaning the seafood she had collected that day.
Such fresh seafood doesn't need any complicated seasonings; just boiling it in water is enough to bring out its delicious flavor.
Most importantly, they had no other seasonings, not even the most basic oil and salt.
Thinking about this, Pei Yao felt that she could go to the beach some seawater and boil it to make some refined salt when she had time.
After all, salt was not cheap in ancient times, so buying it was definitely unaffordable.
As for oil, I can only buy it in town when I make some money. I also need to buy some rice and flour, otherwise eating seafood and wild vegetables every day won't work.
Pei Yao thought to herself.
It seems we need to speed things up when it comes to making money; they're really lacking everything right now.
Pei Yao cut off a small half of yesterday's winter melon and sliced it.
The rest were stored in the cellar behind the kitchen; the winter melon could be kept in a cool, shady place for two or three days.
She discovered the cellar while cooking breakfast that morning.
The Pei family's house was built against the mountain. Pushing open the door behind the kitchen, you could find a cellar about half the size of a house dug out of the mountainside. The temperature inside was very low and cool, making it perfect for storing food.
I washed the oysters I dug up today and put them in an earthenware pot to cook a pot of oyster and winter melon soup.
If we had oil, we could stir-fry the winter melon first before boiling it, which would make it more fragrant, but we don't have any now, so we can only boil it like this.
Then I took a larger earthenware pot, placed it on another stove, and put the remaining larger, unshelled oysters, mussels, whelks, and other shellfish into the pot, planning to cook them all in one pot.
Clean the soft-shelled blue crab, bighead carp, and goby, arrange them neatly in a ceramic bowl, and then steam them together in the ceramic pot where the mussels were being cooked.
After all that was done, there was still a large bowl of clams and sand clams, as well as some scallops left in the basin.
Pei Yao didn't plan to finish these in one meal; she would keep them in the basin.
Spitting out sand.
Then I picked a small handful of basil from the small slope outside the courtyard, washed it clean, put it into the oyster and winter melon soup that was about to be served, and sprinkled some wild scallion leaves on top.
I chopped some wild onions and sprinkled them on the fish. I also cut a lemon in half and squeezed some on top. The fish was tender, and since I thought Xiaoxuan could eat it, I didn't add any chili peppers.
Pei Xuan and Pei Yichen stood to the side, their mouths practically watering from the aroma.
"Alright, dinner is ready."
Pei Yao clapped her hands, looking proudly at the delicious food she had made.
Pei Xuan's stomach rumbled involuntarily as she looked at Pei Yao, rubbing her tummy and saying, "Sister, it smells so good."
Pei Yao gently patted her little head. "Little glutton, you can eat soon."
Pei Yichen readily helped carry the dishes to the table in the courtyard.
Pei Yao prepared a bowl of dipping sauce. Since there was no soy sauce, she could only pour some oyster soup into it to enhance the aroma of chili and garlic, and then squeezed in the juice of the remaining half lemon.
"Auntie, Mother, dinner's ready!" With Pei Yao's cheerful call, Chen Fang and Yunniang washed their hands and came over.
They smelled the aroma while they were busy in the yard, and almost thought it was a hallucination caused by extreme hunger.
What smells so good? It smells just like the aroma coming from the restaurants in Kyoto.
It didn't feel real until I saw the three large portions of food on the table.
Chen Fang took a sip of oyster and winter melon soup.
!!! !!! !!! !!!
This soup!
"Even in the best restaurants in Kyoto, I've never had such a sweet and delicious soup!" Chen Fang exclaimed.
I took a bite of the oyster, and the oyster, soaked in broth, burst open in my mouth. Even the winter melon inside was fresher and tastier than usual.
Xuan'er took a bite of the steamed bighead carp. It was fresh, sweet, tender, and smooth, almost melting in her mouth, with a slightly sour taste, but it was very refreshing.
"Sister! It's so delicious! Xuan'er loves it!" The little girl's sweet words pleased Pei Yao greatly, after all, no chef could resist such praise.
She used to enjoy her own cooking, but now that so many people love her food, she is very happy and feels a great sense of accomplishment.
Yunniang picked up an oyster with its shell on, tried to break it open but couldn't. After several attempts, she could only look to her daughter for help.
"Mother, let me teach you." Pei Yao smiled and took out a kitchen knife.
It startled everyone.
Until Pei Yao grabbed the plump oyster, used a knife to cut it open from the right side along the opening, revealing the plump and large meat inside.
"Here you go, Mother, you can dip it in this sauce."
Following Pei Yao's instructions, Yunniang dipped the sauce in it and, with Pei Yao's expectant gaze, put it in her mouth.
Instantly, the sweetness of the oyster meat and the spiciness of the chili peppers exploded in my mouth, mixed with a hint of sourness. This sourness is refreshing and appetizing when you take a bite in the summer.
Yunniang didn't know how to describe the taste; she just thought it was so delicious that she wanted to eat another one after finishing one!
It was so delicious that Yunniang couldn't bear to swallow it.
She felt this was the best food she had eaten in the past five months.
"Delicious!" Yunniang said affirmatively, swallowing the oyster in her mouth.
As for Pei Yichen, he was engrossed in eating, muttering under his breath, "Cousin, it's delicious."
Chen Fang patted him: "Swallow it before you speak."
Pei Yichen: "Mmm...it's really delicious."
Everyone was sweating profusely after the meal, but they also felt very refreshed and satisfied.
I wish I could eat such delicious food every day, and be full every day.
"Yao girl, these oysters are so delicious, I'll go get some more with your mother tomorrow!"
Chen Fang thought this stuff was so delicious that she could eat it every day without any problem.
Pei Yao thought for a moment. It was hot now, so the oysters couldn't be stored after being picked up. However, they could be dried and stored for winter consumption.
Or it could be made into oyster sauce, which can be used for everyday stir-frying, but that's a story for another time.
Pei Yao: "Okay, if we can't finish it, we'll dry it and eat it slowly in the winter."
Upon hearing that this stuff could be dried and stored for winter consumption, Chen Fang instantly became enthusiastic: "Okay, I'll get a lot more tomorrow."
We finished eating at just the beginning of Wei Shi (1:00 PM), which was still early.
Liu's eldest daughter-in-law, Hu Xiu, and third daughter-in-law, Su Tao, passed by Pei's house and invited Chen Fang and Yunniang to go to the stream at the edge of the village to wash clothes.
The stream flows down from the top of the mountain. Although the water level is not high, the villagers use this river for drinking and washing clothes. They drink water upstream and a small pond has been dug downstream for washing clothes.
Upon hearing that they were going out, Pei Xuan insisted on going as well.
"Alright, alright, Xuan'er will go too. Yao'er, do you want to go?"
Yunniang glanced at Pei Yao and asked her.
Pei Yao shook her head.
Before leaving, Yunniang told Pei Yao to rest well at home, as she was not fully recovered and should not run around.
However, Pei Yao couldn't stay idle. Although she could now go to the beach to get food, she couldn't eat it every day. She decided to go to the nearby hillside to see if there were any edible wild vegetables.
There were still many chilies on the north hillside, and she planned to pick the ripe ones to dry or pickle them.
Otherwise, it would be a waste if the fruit ripened too much and ended up rotten in the mountains.
Pei Yao found a basket, took the only kitchen knife in her house, and went up the mountain.
Just as they reached the hillside north of the long, spicy plant, Pei Yichen caught up from behind, panting as he ran.
"Cousin, wait for me."
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