Chapter 276 Scallop Mushroom Porridge, Three Fresh Hot Pot
At 10 o'clock, Zhao Xiaojing couldn't help laughing while looking through the refrigerator.
She never expected that the task assigned to her by the system to prepare a New Year's Eve dinner for Dong Mei would be accomplished by overcoming difficulties and obstacles in this way.
Zhou Jianye's fever this time was quite serious. Although he slept soundly all night thanks to the numbness of his body after being drunk and the heat brought by the alcohol, his body was not made of iron after all. When Dong Mei took him out to see a doctor, he no longer had the energy to argue with Dong Mei. He looked weak all over and shivered constantly as he had a fever.
It was difficult to get a taxi during the Chinese New Year. Zhao Xiaojing sent them downstairs, and they walked on the road in the cold wind for nearly half an hour before a taxi stopped in front of them. If it had been a little later, Zhou Jianye would have called an ambulance for himself.
During this half hour, Dong Mei used her usual expertise to vent her anger by scolding Zhou Jianye. Zhou Jianye stood there in the wind, looking sick and unable to speak fluently. He looked like an angry mute who couldn't speak.
Zhao Xiaojing hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Dong Mei originally wanted her to just eat her own breakfast and they could make do in the hospital for lunch. Zhao Xiaojing waved her hand and reminded Dong Mei that today was New Year's Eve and it was a question whether there was food in the hospital. Besides, cooking was her specialty now, so she told Dong Mei to just come back after finishing her lunch.
Zhao Xiaojing soaked the dried shrimp, scallops, chanterelles and shiitake mushrooms she brought back in warm water, and then took out half a chicken, two handfuls of spinach, a head of cabbage, a few eggs and a piece of pork leg from the refrigerator.
Dong Mei has a lot of stockpiles, and there are all kinds of vegetables in the refrigerator, but the task requires that they are simple and suit Dong Mei's taste, so she simply cooks some porridge, mixes some spinach, and makes a three-fresh hot pot.
Although these dishes are a bit simple on New Year's Eve and even look shabby among the dazzling family reunion dinners, Zhao Xiaojing knows Dong Mei. If you really cook a table full of them for her to eat, she will feel uncomfortable. She will feel that she has not taken good care of you and has made you work hard. Looking at a table full of dishes, let alone not being able to eat, she will feel like she is sitting on pins and needles.
Zhao Xiaojing took the ingredients out of the refrigerator and placed them on the countertop, then turned on the quality inspection module to check them one by one.
【Frozen grain pork hind leg: Level 4
Fresh eggs from farms: Level 3
Frozen free-range hens: Level 2
Planting base seasonal fresh spinach: Level 2
Planting base seasonal fresh cabbage: Level 2
Refined local rice: Level 3
The overall quality is okay, but it’s New Year’s Eve, so we have to eat better. Since the form is simple, the quality of the ingredients must be improved.
Upgrading to special grade is too noticeable, and people who cook frequently can easily see the difference. Although there are also significant changes in level one, it can still be used to fool people.
Zhao Xiaojing's store's premium quality module upgraded all ingredients to level one, spending a total of 332 yuan.
In addition, the dry goods she brought back were all secretly upgraded by her before, and they were also first-class ingredients. This seemingly simple but actually low-key and luxurious family reunion dinner must taste good.
Zhao Xiaojing curled up the corners of her mouth in satisfaction. This task was not difficult. The trick was that it required sufficient understanding of Dong Mei.
Dong Mei is not picky about food, but in fact, nothing she eats tastes good. Most of the time, she just cooks whatever others like and eats it casually.
But if you look carefully, you can find that even if Dong Mei eats casually, there are still differences in how much she eats.
The reason why they made porridge during the Chinese New Year was because when Zhao Xiaojing made porridge for her mother before, she found that her mother could eat a little more, and Dong Mei also ate half a bowl more.
As for mixed spinach and three-fresh hot pot, they are Dong Mei's fixed combinations for meals. She likes to cook a pot in winter and then mix some not-too-cold vegetarian dishes, and eat them together, which is warm and refreshing.
Zhao Xiaojing used the quick module to chop the upgraded half chicken into pieces and soaked it in a basin of bloody water.
The upgraded chicken is as fresh as if it had just been killed. There is no need to blanch it. Just soak it in blood water and put it in cold water to skim off some foam.
While soaking in the blood water, Zhao Xiaojing continued to use the quick module to cut and wash all the prepared vegetables. The rice was soaked in a container, the vegetarian dishes were automatically sorted and placed in various preparation baskets, and the pork was processed into stuffing.
The dried shrimps and scallops expanded a little after being soaked in warm water. Zhao Xiaojing took them out and wiped them dry with kitchen paper and cut off the shrimp heads.
Then put the shrimp heads and shredded ginger into a casserole with a little oil, stir-fry until the slightly red shrimp oil comes out, and stir-fry the shredded ginger until it changes color slightly. Then take out the shrimp heads, pour in clean water, and skim off the slight foam after the water boils.
The dried scallops are quite large and the soaking time is not long. Zhao Xiaojing cuts the dried scallops into slightly thick strips. After the water boils, she pours them into the casserole together with the diced mushrooms, dried shrimp tails, and rice that has been soaked for a while.
The flavor of dried mushrooms and seafood becomes stronger. After being tossed in boiling water for a while, the long-hidden unique aroma begins to emerge and fills the entire kitchen in an instant.
Zhao Xiaojing stirred it a few times with a spoon, then turned down the heat, covered it with a lid and simmered it over low heat.
The chicken is used to make the base of the three-fresh soup. Slow-cooking it is not long enough and it wastes a stove. Zhao Xiaojing washes it and directly adds ginger and scallion segments to stir-fry until fragrant. After boiling the chicken in water for five minutes, she adds the chanterelles and puts it directly into the pressure cooker on the side.
Fortunately, Zhou Chuyan replaced the pressure cooker with an electric one two years ago, otherwise Zhao Xiaojing, who was used to working at a row of stoves in a restaurant, would have had trouble using it.
When processing the pork filling using the quick module, slightly larger particles were deliberately selected. Now that she was free, Zhao Xiaojing took out the meat filling and chopped it with a horseshoe knife to increase the taste.
After chopping for about five minutes, Zhao Xiaojing added chopped green onion, minced ginger, and a little seasoning, then added water in small amounts several times, stirred in one direction, and then let it stand.
The meat filling is used to make egg dumplings, which are a staple in Yangcheng's "Three Fresh Hot Pot." There are some in the refrigerator, the egg dumplings Dong Mei bought, but Zhao Xiaojing knows the taste of egg dumplings from the Yangcheng market all too well. The egg skin has been diluted countless times, lacking any egg aroma. The filling, while seasoned, is too finely blended by the machine and lacks any flavor.
Since I have plenty of time, I might as well cook it myself and let Dong Mei have a comfortable meal.
Zhao Xiaojing beat six eggs, beat them evenly with the quick module, filtered them twice, and then added a small amount of starch water to make a smooth egg liquid.
Then heat the frying pan, add cold oil to the hot pan and pour out the oil, leaving a thin layer of base oil on the surface of the pan. Turn down the heat, scoop a small amount of egg liquid into the pan with a spoon, turn it evenly around, and a round egg skin will quickly take shape.
Zhao Xiaojing turned the pan with one hand and held a small iron spoon in the other hand, putting the prepared meat filling into the middle of the formed egg skin, then turned the egg skin over and folded it in half from the middle, and a golden and fluffy egg dumpling was successfully out of the pan.
Six eggs were used to make about twenty egg dumplings. Dong Mei had ready-made glutinous rice balls and crispy pork in her refrigerator. You could tell they were made by Dong Mei herself, so she just used them directly.
All preparations were complete. The porridge simmering on low heat on the stove and the chicken soup in the pressure cooker both needed time. Zhao Xiaojing washed her hands, set the alarm, and returned to the living room.
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