Pei Yichen has been studying harder than before, and he doesn't know if it's because Pei Erlang and Pei Dalang are watching him every day and constantly brainwashing him.
"Hey, I'm here." Pei Yichen put down his book and came over.
Pei Yao went to the kitchen and took out two steamed buns to eat. She had been running around in the mountains all morning and was indeed hungry.
These steamed buns were brought back by Yunniang and the others from town yesterday, and they can be heated up and eaten today.
The steamed buns sold outside are convenient to eat, but the skin is thick and the filling is small. Because people in this era generally love to eat fatty meat, the fillings of the steamed buns are mostly made of fatty meat, making them greasy.
Because they lacked the skill of proofing dough, the bun skins were never allowed to rise, resulting in a hard, unsoft texture.
Pei Yao ate one and then didn't want any more.
After finishing her meal, Pei Yao glanced at the mint she had just dug up from the ground, then picked up her hoe and went to the opposite side of Fanlazi Slope.
"Sister, where are you going?" Pei Yichen was peeling longans for Pei Xuan when he looked up and saw Pei Yao carrying a hoe.
Pei Yao explained, "Go plant the mint on the opposite slope."
Pei Yichen handed the peeled longan pulp to Pei Xuan and stood up, saying, "Then I'll go help you."
"No need, you stay home and read. Your father and uncle will be checking on you when they get back. There's not much mint, I'll be back in a bit." Pei Yao didn't have much mint in her hand, she estimated she could finish planting it in no time.
Pei Yichen gave an "oh" and sat back down, looking rather downcast.
Pei Yao carried her hoe out the door and walked towards the opposite hillside.
What was originally a small puddle on the slope has been enlarged into a small puddle by Pei Yao over this period of time.
There were also a few small crucian carp caught from the stream at the edge of the village, and some river shrimp.
Pei Yao didn't know if the small crucian carp had grown up, but she could see with her own eyes that the small shrimp had reproduced.
There weren't many shrimp at first, but after a while, when I came back, there were many more, and they were everywhere in a huge swarm.
There were a few unfamiliar wild birds by the pond, happily bathing in the sunlit water. When they saw Pei Yao arrive, they were startled and flew away, flapping their wings.
Pei Yao planted the mint she had just brought along a small circle around the edge of the pond.
Mint has a strong reproductive capacity; if you plant some near water, it will quickly grow into a large patch.
After Pei Yao finished planting, she took her things and went home.
Yunniang and the others returned early today. By the time Pei Yao arrived home carrying her hoe, Yunniang and the others had also returned.
They even bought a piece of meat when they came back today.
The Pei family actually prefers lean meat, but when Yunniang went to the butcher shop today, all the lean meat was sold out, and only a piece of pork belly that wasn't very fatty was left.
When Pei Yao saw the piece of pork belly, she thought of steamed buns, especially since the steamed buns she had eaten during the day were really awful.
Then she suggested, "Mother, how about we have steamed buns for dinner?"
Pei Dalang was the first to raise his hand in agreement upon hearing this.
"Steamed buns are great! They're delicious!"
No one else objected; they had previously eaten Pei Yao's sauerkraut buns.
Making steamed buns with pickled water celery mixed with minced meat is incredibly delicious.
Ever since they tasted Pei Yao's steamed buns, eating steamed buns from outside was a world of difference.
Seeing that everyone was very interested in steamed buns, Pei Yao decided to get right to it and decided to make a steamed bun with preserved mustard greens and minced pork.
First, take out the dried purslane that she had dried earlier and soak it in water. Yunniang assisted her by cutting the pork belly into small strips according to Pei Yao's instructions.
Pei Yao then took the flour from home and began to prepare the dough.
At this time, there was still no yeast, and everyone was making steamed buns without letting the dough rise. Fortunately, Pei Yao knew a way to make dough rise without yeast.
She first put three spoonfuls of flour in a bowl, then added some warm water and stirred it with chopsticks to form a dough.
Then add three large spoonfuls of high-proof liquor. The high-proof liquor that Pei Yao had previously planned to use for raw marinating came in handy.
Pei Yao stirred the dough with the added liquor into a paste, then covered it with a small wooden board and set it aside to ferment for a while.
Just then, Yunniang finished cutting the pork strips, so Pei Yao put the cut pork belly strips into the pot and stir-fried them over low heat.
Sauté the meat to render out the excess oil; this will make the meat crispy, fragrant, and less fishy.
Then add some ginger, minced garlic, soy sauce, and some sugar water.
This will result in a richer flavor.
Pei Yao took out the soaked dried purslane, washed it clean, and then chopped it into small pieces, the finer the better.
Once the pork belly is almost cooked, you can add the chopped dried purslane and stir-fry together.
After stir-frying for a while, add more water, cover, and then simmer over low heat.
At this point, Pei Yao could go and knead the dough.
The batter that was fermented with baijiu (Chinese liquor) has now risen to almost the required level, and the surface of the batter is covered with air bubbles.
Pei Yao used chopsticks to disperse the bubbles and set them aside for later use.
Then, in a separate bowl, pour the flour that will be used to make steamed buns into the bowl. Take the batter from earlier, stir the flour while pouring in the risen batter, until the flour forms clumps.
Now you can start kneading it by hand, and knead it into a smooth dough.
Cover the dough again and let it rise for a while.
The aroma of the stewed pork belly with dried purslane filled the air as Pei Yao opened the lid.
The rich aroma of meat combined with the refreshing scent of purslane is simply irresistible.
Even Shen Yu, who had just returned from Tongrentang in the county, couldn't help but stand at the entrance of the Pei family compound for a while.
It smells so good.....
Shen Yu's deep eyes gazed at the Pei family's courtyard, and Chen Fang saw Shen Yu as soon as she looked up.
"Xiao Yu, is the clinic closed again today?"
In response to Chen Fang's greeting, Shen Yu nodded, then walked into the courtyard, placed the pastries he was holding on the table, and smiled, "Aunt Fang, these pastries are for Yi Chen and Xiao Xuan."
Chen Fang looked at the pastries that Shen Yu had placed there. They looked very exquisite and expensive, and she immediately wanted to decline them.
"Xiao Yu, these pastries are so nice, take them back for Cong'er to eat."
Shen Yu waved the bag in his hand: "Aunt Fang, I have more here, I brought them for them."
Seeing that he said that, Chen Fang stopped refusing, but she was still a little embarrassed and said, "Xiao Yu, you haven't had time to eat since you got back, have you? Come to my house for dinner later. Yao'er and the others are making steamed buns."
Shen Yu immediately curled the corners of his lips, his tone several octaves higher than usual: "Okay!"
Seeing Shen Yu's agreeing expression, Chen Fang had a strange feeling that this kid had been waiting for her to say those words.
After saying that, Shen Yu went home first: "Aunt Fang, I'll go home first and come over in a bit."
"Okay."
Looking at the beaming smile on Shen Yu's face, Chen Fang was honestly quite taken with seeing Shen Yu smile like that...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com