Chapter 1806 Steamed Meat (February Monthly Ticket Plus 5)
After thinking for a moment, he said, "But if you can buy some beef, you can bring some back. I'll chop it up and make it into sauerkraut for you, or make it into a sauce to take back to the palace. That one tastes better than mutton."
The three of them had their eyes brightened. Man Bao looked at Bai Shan and Bai Er Lang and said anxiously, "I have to go to the palace to be on duty tomorrow."
Bai Shan said, "I'll go find Yin Huo."
Bai Erlang: "I'm going too, I'm going too!"
The three of them stood at the kitchen door for a quarter of an hour, and finally left after Xiao Qian's repeated urging.
Daji had already given their things to the servants to take back. Seeing them running back in a hurry, he couldn't help but glance at the kitchen.
The three of them washed and changed their clothes as quickly as possible, and then ran to the kitchen in the West Courtyard together.
Xiao Qian had just started the steamer. She poked a piece of meat with chopsticks and confirmed that it was soft. Then she wrapped her hands in a cloth and took out a bowl for them, then turned off the heat and let the meat simmer.
She placed the steamed meat on a small table in the kitchen and asked them to sit on small stools to eat. She smiled and said, "It's not the best time to eat it yet. Let it simmer slowly. It will still be hot when we have dinner. The steamed meat will be the best when we take it out now."
The three of them nodded in unison. Bai Shan took three pairs of chopsticks from the side and gave one pair to the two of them. Then he looked at Xiao Qianshi and asked, "Sister-in-law, do you want to eat with us?"
Xiao Qian smiled and shook her head, saying, "You guys eat, I'll eat in the evening."
He glanced at the sky outside again and said, "Hurry up and eat. Lixue and the others will be back soon."
Manbao picked up a piece of steamed meat with his chopsticks first, and Baishan and Bai Erlang followed closely behind. While eating, they thought, Lixue is so pitiful, he is the eldest sister-in-law's biological son.
Seeing their eyes sparkling with joy as they ate, Xiao Qian was also delighted. She said to the three of them, "After dinner tonight, I'll take out three bowls and leave them outside to freeze. You can try to bring them into the palace to eat. Don't you have a stove in the palace?"
Manbao ate while saying, "Sister-in-law, our holiday is until the seventh day of the Lunar New Year. This is definitely not enough for the family to eat."
Xiao Qian smiled and said, "Then I'll do it again when you're about to enter the palace, but meat is expensive during the New Year..."
Bai Shan waved his hand generously and said, "We'll figure out a way to deal with the meat. Don't worry, sister-in-law."
There wasn't much steamed meat in a bowl shared by three people, just three pieces per person. Not only did they finish the steamed meat, they also ate up the white radish under the steamed meat.
The three of them were still a little unsatisfied, but Xiao Qianshi said, "Save some space for dinner. We'll have dinner together. Aunt Rong is already cooking. I'll go over and help."
Meanwhile, Old Madam Liu, who had been waiting for her grandson to arrive in the East Courtyard, smelled a faint fragrance in the air and said with a smile, "The child must have gone to the West Courtyard to eat meat."
Not to mention, even Zheng was a little greedy.
She said, "We're far away, but the servants who came back said the streets near the west courtyard are filled with the aroma of meat, and there are already several families hanging around the side door today."
Madam Liu thought for a moment and smiled, "That's an idea. Don't the Zhou family know what gifts to give their neighbors? If it's too heavy, it won't be good. If it's too light, it won't be good either. Why not just give them something homemade?"
Xiao Qian's cooking skills are not very sophisticated, at least in terms of appearance, they are not as good as those of the chef, but the dishes she makes have a unique flavor that makes people want to eat more, and they feel that the taste is just right no matter how you eat it.
Even Old Madam Liu had seen Xiao Qian teach Aunt Rong how to make meatballs. They used the same meat, the same flour, and the same steps, but the meatballs tasted two different ways.
Xiao Qian's products are more tender and chewy.
This year is the first time for the three families to celebrate the New Year in Beijing, and since Lao Zhou has a large family, they prepared a lot of good things.
As early as around the time of the heavy snow, the Qian family started preparing New Year's goods.
They smoked bacon and sausages at the farm, and also made a lot of jar meat and jar fish. After the Little New Year, she even made meatballs at Zhou's house...
Even Aunt Rong was tempted by her to show off her special cooking skills. The two of them, together with the people in the kitchen and the sisters-in-law of Old Zhou's family, cooked a lot of delicious food.
It can be said that the thing that Zhou’s house has the most of now is food.
Although, with the current financial resources of the three families, there is no need to prepare these delicacies in advance and they can just eat ready-made ones, but Mrs. Liu still expressed her support.
Just watching these children excitedly running around the kitchen every day is enough.
As the sun was setting, Old Zhou and Mrs. Qian returned with their children and grandchildren. Old Zhou was overjoyed to see Manbao and said to her, "The restaurant is closed. We've packed up everything and we can go out and play tomorrow. Where do you want to go?"
Manbao looked regretful and said, "Dad, I have to go to the palace to guard tomorrow."
Old Zhou was not disappointed and asked with a smile, "That's all right, shall we go out and play later?"
Manbao nodded hesitantly, "If I'm not too sleepy and can get up."
Qian stopped Old Zhou and asked Manbao, "How many days will you be on duty?"
"I'll be on duty tomorrow and the 30th."
Qian frowned slightly, "Do we still need to be on duty on the night of the 30th?"
Old Zhou was also a little unhappy, because it was the New Year.
Manbao sighed and said, "Doctor Liu said that our Dean Xiao hasn't been home for the New Year in six years. He's always on duty on New Year's Eve."
Old Zhou felt a little sympathetic when he heard this. "Six years? The last time I saw Xiao Yuanzheng, he wasn't young anymore. Does he have a grandson?"
Manbao nodded, "Yes, he seems to be six or seven years old?"
Old Zhou suddenly felt that there was nothing wrong with his daughter going on duty for the 30th. He sighed and said, "Then go ahead. This is the last time we've spent the New Year together since our grandson was born."
So pitiful.
Qian glanced at Old Zhou and said to Manbao, "Talk to mother about what you can bring into the palace. I'll ask your sister-in-law to make something for you to take with you, so you can eat it while on guard duty at night."
Manbao swallowed and said, "Steamed meat?"
Qian smiled and tapped her nose, "You're so greedy, just eat it tonight. Your sister-in-law makes a lot, you can eat it for two days in a row, why bother bringing it to the palace?"
That being said, Qian also agreed.
Everyone had dinner together in the evening. Because there were so many people, they were divided into three tables. Manbao and the younger ones sat at one table, while Mr. Zhuang sat at another table with Old Zhou and Mrs. Liu.
He missed Xiao Qian's cooking skills very much, especially the steamed meat that he could only eat during the Chinese New Year.
Because Mr. Zhuang is Manbao's husband, he is the only one who can send a bowl of steamed meat to their family. Even the Bai family does not have this honor. Bai Shan and Bai Erlang can only follow Manbao to Lao Zhou's house to eat.
See you tomorrow
(End of this chapter)
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