When Mo Yuan and his group returned home, the yard was empty, and he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed when he didn't see Lin Xue. He knew it wasn't Lin Xue's time to come home yet, so he didn't think much of it. Lin Xue would be back around noon, Mo Yuan thought, she was probably just out busy for a while.
His elder brother and sister-in-law hadn't returned from their stall yet, and only Mo Youxian was home. Mo Yuan asked Mo Youxian to keep Zhou Yongli company while he went to the kitchen to prepare a meal. Although Mo Yuan didn't particularly care for that half-pig, it was a very precious ingredient in the countryside. He had to handle it properly, at least to ensure it didn't spoil.
Since there's no refrigerator and the temperature is quite high, this pork will quickly spoil if not processed soon. If it were during the Lunar New Year period, weather conditions would permit, and it could be made into cured meat, which would preserve it for a long time without worrying about spoilage.
But the current temperature is obviously not suitable for making cured pork, and it is not realistic for them to finish half a pig at once.
After thinking for a moment, Mo Yuan suddenly had an idea. He remembered a method for making braised pork in a jar and thought it was a good solution. So, he decided to process all the pork except for the ribs into braised pork in a jar. This braised pork in a jar is not only delicious, but it can also be preserved for a long time, even without a refrigerator, it can last for a year without spoiling.
Mo Yuan acted immediately, setting out to put his idea into practice. First, he divided the pork into different parts: the ribs were set aside, while the rest consisted of pork belly and fatty pork. The pure fat was used to render lard, while the remaining pork belly needed to be rubbed with salt and left to absorb the salt for a while. Only in this way could the resulting braised pork have the best flavor.
Making braised pork in a clay pot is relatively simple and doesn't require many spices; the key is in the time it takes to impart its unique flavor. Sometimes, nature and time can achieve the ideal result for food even better than the most skillful chefs.
Mo Yuan waited for the pork to fully absorb the salt before cutting it into palm-sized cubes. If cut too small, the pork would shrink when fried. Then, he washed the meat again, added firewood to the fire, and prepared to cook the stewed pork in his family's earthen stove in a large pot. Before that, he was also stewing chopped spareribs in another pot, making a delicious braised spareribs dish.
Once the ribs are prepared, put them on the stove to simmer over low heat.
Mo Yuan focused on making the braised pork. Before that, he rendered the fat into lard. After removing the cracklings, he didn't scoop out the lard from the pot and store it in a jar as usual. Instead, while the oil was still hot in the pot, he put the large pieces of pork that had been washed, dried, and salted into the oil to fry.
The purpose of this is to force out excess oil from the pork chunks. This process requires patience and cannot be rushed.
Time passed slowly, and after several tens of minutes of frying, the originally large pieces of pork had shrunk considerably, turning golden and crispy, emitting an enticing aroma. At this point, the heat was just right, and the air was filled with a rich meaty fragrance, which distracted the few people chatting in the main room, who couldn't help but shift their conversation to Mo Yuan's culinary skills.
"Mo Yuan, that kid, is still such a good cook. This smells so good!" Mo Youxian couldn't help but smell the aroma, sniff the air, and praised it without reservation.
Zhou Yongli, who was standing nearby, immediately chimed in, saying that he had personally witnessed Mo Yuan's culinary skills and greatly admired them.
"Indeed, what I admire most about Brother Mo Yuan is his skill. You two don't know, but this time at the coal mine, we almost had an accident. It was Brother Mo Yuan who discovered it in time and prevented the danger."
Moreover, he was also in charge of our mine's food supply. Don't laugh, but those were the best days I'd ever eaten at the mine. I wished I could live in the kitchen! To be frank, I even wished I could leave Brother Mo Yuan at the mine so he could eat such delicious food every day. But that's just a joke. Mo Yuan is a very capable man; he wouldn't stoop to working for us. Otherwise, our mine manager would definitely welcome him and arrange a good job for him!
Zhou Yongli was a talkative person to begin with, and at this moment he praised Mo Yuan incessantly.
He knew how to build rapport with others, and praising Mo Yuan was undoubtedly an excellent way to do so. Moreover, what he said was not empty words; it came from the bottom of his heart.
However, when these words reached the ears of the two elderly men, Mo Youxian and Mo Youshan, they had a completely different effect. They couldn't help but wonder: Liangkou Coal Mine was a secure job, could Mo Yuan really be that capable?
Is this really the same carefree, irresponsible young man he used to be? How could he have changed so much? Come to think of it, it's only been about two months. Ever since Mo Yuan brought Lin Xue home, a series of events have followed, and now Mo Yuan's behavior is getting better and better. Is this the so-called magic of love?
Although Mo Yuan had always performed well and received high praise from everyone, this time was completely different. Liangkou Coal Mine was a well-known large enterprise in the county, yet they valued Mo Yuan so highly!
Zhou Yongli even said that if Mo Yuan was willing, the mine manager would personally welcome him to work at the mine. This was a secure job, after all; a single word from him could easily secure him a position. Moreover, if the mine manager and accountant were both willing to help, it would be a piece of cake.
For a moment, Mo Youshan was somewhat dazed and hesitant: Should he let Mo Yuan work in the mine? That way, after more than ten years of hard work, he might be able to get a position like Zhou Yongli, which is a secure job, and he would be stable and worry-free for life.
However, Mo Youshan quickly abandoned the idea. He knew his youngest son quite well. Although his son was sometimes mischievous, he was actually a very smart and quick-witted person with a very active mind. Why would someone like that want to work in a coal mine for a fixed salary? If he really wanted to do that, he wouldn't have been so unruly in the first place.
Mo Yuan has become very sensible, which makes Mo Youshan very gratified and satisfied. Since Mo Yuan married Lin Xue, he has never worried his parents again and has greatly improved the family's living conditions, with new changes every day. Mo Youshan believes that as long as they continue to work hard, it won't be long before the family can build a big brick house. This is his lifelong dream!
As time passed and lunchtime approached, Yu Xiu'e and Lin Xue returned home. They were overjoyed to learn that Mo Yuan had returned. Yu Xiu'e went into the kitchen, chatted briefly with Mo Yuan, inquired about the guests in the living room, and then left the kitchen, leaving Mo Yuan and Lin Xue alone.
The young couple, separated for several days, couldn't contain their longing for each other. They embraced tightly, their feelings unspoken but deeply understood.
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