Chapter 44 Making Pickles
Hearing this, Li Guofeng became excited.
That is their family’s life-saving food!
Speaking of which, this person has a hard time.
I have an old mother at home who has poor legs and feet.
He also has a widow and two nieces, who are now with him.
There is an older brother in the family who got married and had children a long time ago and now lives alone.
He looks good, but his original family is too much of a burden.
I'm already thirty and still haven't found a wife.
At this age, it is not considered a big deal in later generations.
But for people in the seventies, that meant being a bachelor.
Liu Yunshuang is the same age as him, while Zhiqing is already ten years older than him. The difference between them is obvious.
“I’m not sure about the details, you can go and ask around.
But don't give me away, you know our relationship."
"Don't worry, I definitely won't. I definitely won't cause you any trouble."
"Um!"
Liu Yunshuang was quite satisfied with what he said.
It doesn't matter if you say just one more sentence.
"I heard that Xu Lanchun is going on a blind date recently. She is a big treasure in the Xu family.
He also cares about his reputation and will definitely not let others laugh at him."
Upon hearing this, Li Guofeng's eyes lit up.
"I understand, thank you, Comrade Liu Yunshuang.
Do you want to go back? I'll help you carry this."
As he spoke, he picked up the larger bundle of willow branches next to him.
"Oh, no need, I can carry it back myself."
"It's okay. I'm going back too. It's on my way."
After saying that, the man walked down the mountain.
Liu Yunshuang quickly picked it up and followed him home.
Li Guofeng did not go into the house, but put the things at the door.
He had more pressing matters to attend to, she understood.
He quickly thanked the man and moved the two bundles of willow branches inside.
"Mom, you're back. Who was that person just now?"
Xu Zhiqing came over to help her move, and when she ran out of the kitchen, she obviously saw other people.
"Uncle Li Guofeng, he helped carry down a bundle. I couldn't get it back by myself."
"Oh, Mom, come in quickly, I have prepared the meal."
"Well, my daughter is awesome. She is mom's right-hand man."
Xu Zhiqing was particularly fond of this and laughed so hard that her eyes and nose were invisible.
The two of them put all the things in the yard, spread them out evenly, and then went back to eat.
"Mom, how do I fry this celery to make it delicious?"
The celery I planted yesterday all has cores, and the larger ones on the outside have been broken off.
“It’s okay, let’s steam some buns tonight.
Stew the fan bones at noon and refine the oil at night, which is just right for making buns stuffed with oil residue.
Put some celery and some cabbage in it."
You can’t put any meat in it, you have to cook it all today.
"Okay, I'll soak the meat in a bit."
"Okay~"
Let’s do it right away. In addition to cooking today, we also have to marinate the vegetables.
It was left to air dry for a day yesterday and it's ready now.
Liu Yunshuang also went over to make some dough. Now there is no baking powder, so they use starter, which takes a little longer.
Xu Zhili was not idle either. He led Zhiyi and Dazhuang to clean several large vats and dry them.
Then, put the largest jar into the house.
It is placed in the northeast corner of the east room. The reason it is put there first is because we are afraid that it will be full in the back and everyone will not be able to move it.
There is no other way. They are all food, so they should be kept inside the house.
The room will also be hot at the back, so it won’t have any impact.
Next is the small jar used for making kimchi.
There are many steps in pickling sauerkraut. The large leaves on the outside have to be peeled off, leaving the tenderer parts inside.
After washing, scald it in warm water, making sure there is no cold water.
She usually only blanches it once, so that the sauerkraut is crispier and more refreshing.
It tastes better when eaten.
I’ll leave two of these cabbages for eating in the next two days.
The rest were all pickled in the jar, filling up a big one.
"Mom, we need a pressure stone, but we don't have one now, what should we do?"
"It's okay, look, it's all out.
Let's put the curtain on and use this to hold it down for a while."
In less than a day, it will soften and the lid can be closed.
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
She just needed to go to the west river in the afternoon and get a piece of stone to press the jar.
There are too many things to do today, so I'll just use a stone from the yard to press down on the curtain.
Xu Zhili quickly washed it, put it in the sun to dry, and then took it over after it was dry.
Then everyone started cutting radishes.
Since you are going to pickle the kimchi, cut it into smaller pieces so it will be easier to eat later.
Wash the sour beans, remove the heads and tails, and put the whole beans in.
In order to meet Xu Zhili's request, he also brought a small jar and pickled some sweet and sour garlic.
This new garlic is just right, and you don’t need to peel it, just marinate the whole head.
This busy schedule lasted until noon.
"Zhiqing, Zhili, clean up this place. I'm going to stew the meat."
"Okay, Mom, go ahead."
Xu Zhili couldn't wait any longer and even started to urge her.
Liu Yunshuang smiled and didn't expose him.
Today I have been burning the pot outside the east room, so I can just stew the meat here.
Put it in a pot with cold water, squeeze out the blood first, and then take it out.
Heat oil in a pan and stir-fry the large bones. I had the butcher chop them into two large pieces, so it was not very convenient to stir-fry them.
But it's possible.
"Zhiqing, bring the thermos over here."
"Okay~"
You need to use hot water to stew the meat so that it won’t taste dry.
Zhiyi has bad teeth, so soft and rotten things are suitable for her.
Soon, the whole courtyard was filled with the aroma of meat.
She washed some rice, put it in a small basin, and poured in an appropriate amount of water.
Put a grate in the pot and place the grate directly on it.
By the time the meat is cooked, the rice will be ready too, which is very convenient.
She also washed some tender cucumbers and made a salad.
It's refreshing and delicious.
I originally wanted to pickle some cucumbers, but there was only a little bit and I couldn’t keep it all, so I just ate it.
Soon, the bones were out of the pot, with a lot of meat on them.
“Wow~”
Several children were extremely excited, including the usually calm Xu Zhiqing, whose eyes were full of stars.
"Okay, let's eat~"
"Mom, you eat first~"
Liu Yunshuang curled the corners of her lips, cut off a piece of meat and put it in Xu Zhiqing's bowl.
"The first piece is for your eldest sister. She helps with the housework and takes care of you two. She is mom's right-hand man. Eat it quickly."
Xu Zhiqing was a little moved. Looking at the meat in the bowl, she didn't know what to say.
When she was at Old Xu's house, she did even more work than she does now.
But I still get scolded, and the food is the worst.
Liu Yunshuang cut off another piece and put it in Xu Zhili's bowl.
"This has helped the men in our family become more responsible and know how to help with housework.
Keep going, little man."