It's almost noon and the temperature is so hot, I'm not worried about my child getting heatstroke!
Chen Hong picked up the phone and dialed Xiao Yun's cell phone, "Xiao Yun, what time is it? Why aren't you back yet? Aren't you worried about the child getting too hot!"
Hurry home, I need to make lunch. I'm waiting for your tender corn and peanuts to cook!
Okay, I got it! Want some cold noodles? Sure, that's the easiest! I'll prepare the toppings right away! Boil some water and cook them when you get home, otherwise the noodles will clump together and won't taste good.
It's getting hot, and everyone's craving cold noodles!
Chen Hong thought this was the simplest and easiest meal to make. After hanging up the phone, she went to the vegetable garden in the backyard to pick vegetables.
There are roughly three types of cold noodles in Jinan, Shandong. The noodles are all boiled and rinsed with well water two or three times. The difference lies in the toppings.
One type of dish consists of cucumber shreds, chopped pickled carrots, chopped pickled toon sprouts, minced garlic water, balsamic vinegar, and sesame paste (called "ma zhi" in Shandong).
One type is stir-fried shredded meat with soybean paste, various green beans, kidney beans, celery and other seasonal vegetables as a topping.
There's an even simpler way: just add seasonal vegetables and egg flowers to make a sauce, then pour it over cold noodles to make cold noodles with sauce.
Chen Hong hadn't made hand-pulled noodles in a long time, and she was craving them herself. Since there were many people with her, it was worth making them.
She scooped out half a basin of flour, added a pinch of salt to the cold water, and started kneading the dough.
Chen Hong's dough is very stiff; she's the only one in the family who can roll out dough herself.
Even her dad would have a hard time rolling out the dough into a flatbread, but the noodles she made were very chewy and springy, and the broth was always clear.
Chen Hong has a strong hand. Since she was ten years old, whenever her family needed noodles, they would wait until she was home and had time to make them.
After rolling out the dough, cutting it, and laying it out to dry on a bamboo mat, she started preparing the toppings. Since Chen Hong had nothing else to do and there were many people eating, there would definitely be different flavors to choose from.
Chen Hong prepared a variety of side dishes, including many kinds of pickled vegetables she made herself, and all kinds of seasonal vegetables picked from the backyard were carefully selected and washed.
Then, they took out pickled carrots, pickled toon sprouts, pickled cowpeas, and pickled garlic from the pickle jar.
First, I shredded the meat and stir-fried it with green beans, kidney beans, and celery. Then I stir-fried some hot and sour shredded potatoes and minced meat with pickled green beans.
I boiled ten salted duck eggs and made tomato and egg sauce and fish, shrimp and seaweed sauce.
Finally, I stir-fried diced pork belly with minced scallions and ginger until fragrant, then added soybean paste and sweet bean sauce to make a bowl of fragrant fried sauce.
To cater to the tastes of Beijingers, Chen Hong also shredded some radish, cucumber, and cabbage.
Then, blanch the celery stalks and pea sprouts in boiling water, rinse them in cold water, drain them, and arrange them on a plate.
I minced the garlic and added a little water to loosen it. I also chopped the pickled carrots and toon sprouts. Then I took out a bottle of sesame paste.
All the ingredients are ready, and the water in the big pot is boiling. We're just waiting for someone to come home so we can start cooking the noodles.
The large group hadn't gone home yet, and Chen Hong was getting quite curious. She really didn't know what was so special about the orchard that made these city dwellers linger there so much.
Just as Chen Hong was about to go back inside to call Xiao Yun again to urge her, she heard a noisy chatter outside the yard.
Xiaoyun and the others came back. As soon as they entered, Yu Yang led Nini straight to the kitchen.
"Mom, is dinner ready? We're hungry!"
"Alright, alright, we'll eat soon! If you're hungry, why didn't you go home earlier? It's so hot, aren't you afraid of getting heatstroke!"
First, I'll take my younger sister to wash her hands, then I'll help serve the dishes. The noodles will be cooked soon; we're having cold noodles for lunch today.
Yu Yang led Nini to wash her hands, and didn't forget to call out to his aunt, "Auntie, my mom made cold noodles, hurry up and wash your hands so you can help serve the food."
Xiaoyun, Director Jin, Madam Guan, and others did not go inside. Instead, they rinsed themselves off under the tap in the yard.
Anyway, it's hot now and everyone is wearing less clothing, so it's more refreshing to wash with an open-air tap.
They washed their hands, face, arms, and feet, but hadn't taken a bath yet. Water splashed everywhere in the yard, leaving water stains all over the place.
Everyone changed into slippers in the yard, wiped their hands and feet clean, and rushed into the kitchen.
With more people working together, things get done faster. Some carried plates, some carried bowls, and some carried chopsticks, each person taking a little bit.
In no time, all sorts of stir-fries, fried sauces, vegetable toppings, seasonings, and minced garlic were served on the table.
Chen Hong then cooked the noodles, rinsed them in cold water, and served them in a bowl into the restaurant.
"This is too much! Haha, Chen Hong, you didn't just make cold noodles!"
Let me see, they also have Zhajiangmian (noodles with soybean paste) and Dalumian (noodles with gravy), which are all the northern-style noodle dishes.
"Children, dinner is served. Help yourselves to whatever you like and season it yourselves."
Director Jin and Mrs. Xiaoyun served noodles to everyone, handing them to the children one bowl at a time.
Everyone had a large bowl of noodles in hand and began devouring their favorite vegetable sauces or stir-fry gravy on the table.
Fang Xiaoying first filled a bowl halfway with noodles, then scooped on a large spoonful of fried sauce, mixed it well, and watched as the oily, reddish-brown fried sauce soaked into the snow-white noodles.
Pick up your favorite shredded cabbage, cucumber, and radish, toss it all together, and pop it into your mouth.
"Oh my god, this Zhajiangmian (noodles with soybean paste) smells so good! It's so delicious!"
These noodles are so chewy and springy! Sister Chen Hong's handmade noodles truly live up to their reputation!
This is the best hand-pulled noodles I've ever eaten. Sister Chen Hong, if you opened a shop in Beijing, you could make a fortune just by selling hand-pulled noodles, even if you didn't do anything else.
Beijingers love to eat noodles with soybean paste, and the soybean paste has its own secret recipe for flavor.
However, without considerable strength in your hands, you really can't roll out such chewy and delicious noodles by hand.
Chen Hong placed a piece of pea sprout on each of Fang Xiaoying's, Nini's, and Yu Yang's plates.
"Try these pea shoots. This is the first batch that has just grown. They are tender, fresh, and nutritious. Girls should eat more of them."
Nowadays, noodle shops all use noodle presses to make fresh noodles, which are quite chewy and delicious.
We are not competitive with machines when we use manual labor.
It's only because we at home don't mind the hassle of making noodles when we have time. But if you were to open a shop, the effort wouldn't be worth it.
Mrs. Guan nodded in agreement, saying that it was the least cost-effective way to compare manual labor with machines.
Now, as long as you find the right connections, you can earn more money doing anything than by working hard!
With more choices available, people are no longer limited to what they like to eat; they just mix in noodles of all flavors and try them all!
This really opened their eyes; the soup in the braised noodles was so smooth and delicious!
The noodles with soybean paste are bright red and have a rich, savory sauce! The cold noodles are sour, spicy, refreshing, and fragrant!
Each has its own unique characteristics and its own distinct flavor!
For lunch, Chen Hong cooked two large bowls of noodles, and each person ate an average of two bowls of noodles.
The dishes on the table were all gone, and even the remaining half bowl of gravy was drunk up as soup.
Chen Hong chuckled as she tidied up the dishes and chopsticks, stacking them into a basin.
It's good to finish your food! It makes cleaning up the dishes much easier!
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