When Meng Zhao returned from Shenjia Village, it was still early, so he divided the pork in his hand into small pieces.
"No wonder you always complained about the pork you bought, Zhao Zhao. It turns out there really is such good meat." As soon as Madam Gu entered the courtyard, she saw the pork on the worktable and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
Meng Zhao skillfully picked up the cleaver, first cutting off the pork fat and setting it aside. Then, she selected two pieces of high-quality pork belly and a piece of pork leg.
Then, the neck and back meat was cut off. This part of the meat has a good balance of fat and lean, and is shaped like a plum blossom. It is very tender and perfect for grilling.
The remaining meat and offal were cleaned and then braised together in a pot by Meng Zhao.
When the meat was ready, it was already afternoon. As soon as the freshly braised meat was brought into the shop, a steaming aroma wafted out. Some passersby who hadn't originally intended to buy meat were attracted by the tempting smell, stopped to take a look, and bought a small piece to take home.
"Mrs. Meng, the aroma of your braised meat is so strong! I can smell it as I walk across the street," a regular customer said with a smile as he entered the shop.
Since they were acquaintances, Meng Zhao made a couple of jokes, "I deliberately chose this spot close to the street corner to lure you here, haha, what would you like to order today?"
The pig farm is currently limited in size and cannot guarantee that it can fully supply the needs of her two shops, so she did not specifically mention that the meat in this pot was made from pigs they raised themselves.
"Give me half a pork knuckle, two rabbit legs, and that piece of pork belly next to it too."
"Alright, please wait a moment." Meng Zhao replied as she neatly packed the items the customer had ordered, then handed them over with a smile, "It's eighty-five coins in total, please take it."
Most customers who eat braised meat take it away, while a small number choose to eat it in the store. Meng Zhao always pays close attention to their reactions during her busy moments.
Even after finishing their meals, most diners didn't notice any difference between today's braised meat and their usual dishes.
After all, braised meat has a strong flavor. After being braised for a long time with a variety of seasonings, even if the pork itself has some fishy or gamey smell, it is basically removed, making it difficult to taste the subtle differences.
Moreover, although her scientific feeding method is very effective, no matter how hard she tries, she can only improve the quality as much as possible. It still cannot be compared with the high-quality pig breeds that have evolved over many years, so naturally she cannot achieve a qualitative leap.
However, many diners would happily tell Meng Zhao after finishing their meal, "Boss, your skills have improved! This braised meat is really delicious today."
It is evident that diners with a sensitive palate, or those who frequently eat braised meat, can detect the difference between the two.
As long as she sees results, that's good; then she can confidently expand the scale of her pig farm.
After finishing her work and returning home, Meng Zhao called out from the yard, "Qingze, Qingyu, and Xiaochuan, come out and help!"
Ever since returning from Hongnong County, Meng Zhao had Xiao Chuan go to school with the two children. At first, Xiao Chuan was unwilling, saying that he preferred to stay in the shop to work and didn't like studying.
Meng Zhao could naturally guess his intentions; he felt that only by helping her with chores could he repay her kindness and he was unwilling to spend any more of her money.
So she patiently persuaded him, "Xiao Chuan, do you know how much wages Uncle Zhou next door gets?"
Xiao Chuan, who was always inquisitive, immediately replied, "About four taels of silver."
Meng Zhao nodded and continued, "Yes, an accountant's monthly salary is at least two or three taels, and it's not uncommon for it to be four or five taels. We're doing the same work, so why is there such a big difference? Xiao Chuan, if all you can do is deliver these simple jobs, how will I be able to bring you with me when I go out in the future? How will you help me with my tasks?"
Xiao Chuan listened and nodded thoughtfully. "I understand, Sister Meng. I will listen carefully to the teacher's lessons and learn more skills so that I can help you more and more in the future."
Since then, the children have spent more time at school, so there's naturally less work to do at the shop. But barbecue is different; what's the point of just lying around waiting to eat? It's only fun when you do it yourself. So as soon as she came back, she called everyone out to help.
Wei Jinglan took out the bamboo skewers that Meng Zhao had asked her to soak. These bamboo skewers were meant to be roasted over a fire, and if they weren't soaked in water beforehand, they would easily burn through.
Since the barbecue was smoky and fiery, it naturally had to be done in the yard. Meng Zhao found a lot of low stools at home, but it still wasn't enough, so he went to Aunt Qian's house next door to borrow a few. Just as he was about to leave, he saw that Aunt Qian and Uncle Zhou hadn't cooked yet, so he called out, "Uncle Zhou, Aunt Qian, haven't you cooked yet? We're having a barbecue today, do you want to come and join in the fun?"
At that time, roasting was a common way of eating food, but it was usually done by wealthy families. Uncle Zhou had eaten it once, but Aunt Qian had never eaten it before. The two looked at each other and were both tempted.
Aunt Qian looked a little embarrassed and said, "I feel so bad for coming to your house to freeload."
Meng Zhao waved his hand with a smile, "What's the big deal? Barbecues are more lively with more people. Stop cooking and come eat with us."
The two of them simply couldn't resist the temptation of the barbecue, and after hesitating for a moment, they nodded in agreement.
When you go to someone's house for a meal, you can't go empty-handed, but unfortunately, they didn't buy any meat today, so I could only bring a basket of mushrooms that I bought this morning.
Uncle Zhou felt that bringing so little was not presentable, so he gritted his teeth and took out the jar of wine that their manager had given him before.
I heard that if you were to buy this jar of wine, it would cost at least two or three hundred coins.
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