Chapter 443 Glutinous Rice Cake
According to the old custom in the southwest, there must be meat and fish on the New Year's dinner table. This is a "regardless" practice that every household accepts.
Even in the poorest times of the past, even if they had to barter food and cloth with neighbors, the most financially strapped families would still put a meat dish on the New Year's Eve dinner table, hoping for good luck: "Meat in the New Year, prosperity in the coming year."
But this year was different. With consecutive spring and summer droughts, most of the rice in the fields had turned yellow and withered, with few ears of rice forming. Not to mention the fish I used to raise in the paddies, which had long since vanished along with the cracked soil.
Fortunately, there is a small river outside Taohua Village, so it is more than enough to catch a few fish from the river during the New Year.
But fishing is a big deal. Today is only the 25th day of the 12th lunar month. Grandpa Gu had looked through the perpetual calendar several times in the past few days, repeatedly confirming that "today is a good day to slaughter animals, but not to break ground." Only then did he make the final decision: "Today is the day to slaughter the New Year pig!"
In Taohua Village, slaughtering the New Year pig is an event that is more lively than going to the market and is no less lively than holding a small banquet.
As soon as the neighbors knew who was going to slaughter a pig, they would put on aprons early and rush to the pig-killing family with their own kitchen knives and chopping boards in hand.
The men helped to carry the pigs and boil water, the women helped to cut the meat and refine the oil, and the children gathered around to watch the fun and wait to get some freshly roasted meat. The whole village was filled with a lively atmosphere.
Early in the morning, Grandpa Gu, his eldest uncle and his second uncle got up, set up a big iron pot in the corner of the yard, and boiled a pot full of boiling water.
Water vapor rose up with a whoosh, making the surrounding air warm.
When all the able-bodied men in the village arrived, a dozen men worked together to drag the big fat pig weighing four or five hundred kilograms out of the pen.
The pig probably knew its fate. It kept grunting and struggling to escape, but it couldn't withstand the men's strength and was soon pressed down on the long wooden table that had been set up in advance.
This year, Zhang the butcher is the most popular person in the village, and every household is looking forward to inviting him to slaughter pigs.
As soon as he opened his eyes every day, the butcher knife in his hand never stopped. As soon as he finished killing one family, another family came to urge him to kill.
His work would not be in vain. He could have a pig-killing meal at the owner's house during the day, and when he left, the owner would cut a piece of meat for him to carry. In any case, he would not suffer any loss.
However, he has been a little worried recently because several of the boys in his family have gone to school, and it seems that no one will inherit his craft.
Another thing that gave him a headache was the girls in his family. The girls in the village all learned embroidery and glass making, and the more outgoing ones learned accounting.
But his daughter is interested in everything. She follows Hu Zi every day to learn boxing and kicking! Recently, she seems to be interested in his skill of butchering pigs. When she sees him holding a butcher knife, her eyes light up, which is very scary.
Forget it, there’s no point in thinking too much. Let’s just kill the pig first.
I saw him skillfully rolling up his sleeves, holding the pig's neck with his left hand, and raising the pig-killing knife with a cold flash in his right hand.
With a "puff", he stabbed it in. The movement was quick and decisive. In less than a minute, the fat pig was motionless and collapsed on the wooden table.
Butcher Zhang held a grass root in his mouth and poured boiling water on the pig without stopping his hands.
After the pig hair was softened by scalding, he took the razor and started shaving it with a "chi chi" sound.
After a while, the originally black pig's clean white belly was exposed.
Then he turned his wrist and cut a hole in the pig's belly with the butcher knife. He quickly sorted out the internal organs, pig's trotters, etc. His movements were so smooth that the children standing by were staring in amazement.
The children in the school had been waiting at the edge of the yard, holding bamboo tubes in their hands and staring at the meat on the wooden table.
They all knew that after Butcher Zhang cut the pig into eight pieces, it would be time for the "bamboo tube barbecue", which was a delicacy so fragrant that it would make people dizzy.
Butcher Zhang cut the pork into large pieces, and the men carried the pork to the table and placed it there.
The women gathered around and each took a piece and cut it into different shapes according to their uses.
The fattier meat is used to make oil, the fatter and leaner meat is used to make sausages, and the fresh lean meat is kept to be used to make the pig-killing meal later.
Gu Jiayue also came over and cut a piece of pork belly with even fat and lean meat. She cut it into thin slices and placed it in a large bowl. She added peppercorns, star anise, salt and other spices to the bowl, mixed them with her hands, and marinated them.
This is used to grill bamboo tube meat, which will be more flavorful after being marinated.
When the children saw Gu Jiayue carrying the basin to the kitchen, they followed her, each holding a washed bamboo tube in their hands, and lined up behind her.
The method of bamboo tube barbecue is very simple.
Stuff the marinated pork belly, your favorite glutinous rice, and potato cubes into a bamboo tube, seal it, and roast it over a fire. Once it's roasted, use a knife to cut the tube open. The aroma of the meat, rice, and bamboo will waft out, making your mouth water.
The children were not afraid of the heat. They reached out and took out a piece of barbecued meat from the bamboo tube and stuffed it into their mouths. They exhaled because of the heat, but they were reluctant to spit it out.
"What a nice smell! What a nice smell!"
“So hot, so hot, huhuhu…but so delicious!”
When they had almost finished eating the barbecue, the children started to build a small fire in the yard and roast potatoes, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, and even covered eggs with mud and roasted them in the fire.
Their stomachs seemed to have a bottomless pit, and no matter how much they ate, they could never feel full, and their faces were full of satisfied smiles.
"Eat less, we'll have a pig-killing dinner later."
It was not until it was completely dark that the children reluctantly said goodbye to Gu Jiayue and went home, looking back every few steps.
Lying in bed, they felt sweet in their hearts as long as they thought of the barbecue and laughter during the day, and they even smiled in their dreams.
I think this kind of happiness can be remembered for a long, long time.
Many years later, some of these children became officials, some became doctors, and some became craftsmen, shining in their respective fields.
Whenever we meet each other, as long as we mention the scene of eating pig-killing meal and roasting bamboo tube meat at Gu's house on the 25th day of the twelfth lunar month, everyone can't help laughing, their eyes full of nostalgia.
Many people from the Gu family came to help today, and they ate a lot of meat.
When clearing the dishes after dinner, my aunt looked at the empty meat bowl and couldn't help but murmur, "I think we ate over 50 kilograms of meat today! If we kept this, our family would have enough to eat for over a month!"
She remembered that when Gu Jiayue first came to the Gu family, she was scolded by her mother-in-law for "not knowing how to be frugal" just because she took a second look at the meat. Now she is willing to use so much meat to entertain outsiders, and she feels really distressed.
Grandma overheard her words and patted her on the back, her tone serious. "It's a different time now! Do you think these villagers came because they think highly of you? Isn't it because Jiayue and Yuchuan are capable, running the school well and improving life in the village? Don't be petty. Neighborly harmony is more important than anything else."
My aunt-in-law blushed and dared not say anything. She could only lower her head and clean the yard.
Looking at the scattered melon seed and peanut shells on the ground, she couldn't help but feel distressed. "What a sin this is! Such good things are being wasted!"
Gu Jiayue stood aside and didn't dare to tell her.
Most of the New Year's goods I bought in the county town were eaten by the children today.
If my aunt knew the truth, she would probably not be able to sleep well before the New Year.
Forget it, she'd better hide it if she could. The elderly are careful about their lives, and there's no need for her to worry about such trivial matters. She would secretly go buy it tomorrow to make up for it.
After slaughtering the New Year pig, the next thing to do is to bake the bacon and stuff the sausages.
The school was on vacation, and Gu Jiayue, who had been busy for a year, finally had some free time. She thought about going to the mountains with her uncle to cut pine and cypress branches.
In the southwest, pine and cypress branches are often used to make bacon. It is said that bacon smoked with these branches will have a light pine aroma and taste more mellow.
But the uncle shook his head. "The mountain is high and the road is long. In winter, the road is slippery and there are many potholes. What if you fall? Stay home and help your aunt and uncle make clothes and soles. They need help with these tasks."
Without giving Gu Jiayue the chance to act coquettishly, he and his second uncle picked up the axe and walked out. After walking a few steps, he looked back and made sure that Gu Jiayue was not following them before walking up the mountain with peace of mind.
Gu Jiayue stood at the gate of the courtyard dejectedly, feeling a little lost.
She was really not good at delicate work like making clothes and sewing soles. It would be more interesting for her to go to the mountains and cut trees.
Forget it, if you don’t want to take it, then don’t take it. Go back to your room and read a book. It’s better than sitting there poking and pointing.
When she returned to the room, Gu Jiayue was about to pick up the book when she found an envelope on the desk.
The handwriting on the envelope was vigorous and powerful, a font she was familiar with.
Jiang Luli.
The name was both strange and familiar, and she couldn't help but feel a sense of resentment in her heart.
This person has been away from Taohua Village for so long, and finally he remembered to write a letter back?
She threw the letter aside and didn't open it as if she was angry.
If there is something you want to say, why don't you say it earlier? She won't read it if you write it now.
Ye Ren, who was hiding in a big tree outside the window, saw the whole scene clearly. He was extremely anxious, but he could do nothing.
The master only asked him to deliver the letter to Gu Jiayue, but did not ask him to watch Gu Jiayue open it!
Yes, that's right. He has completed the task entrusted by his master. As for whether Miss Gu can open it or not, it is not his business.
At noon, my uncle and second uncle came back carrying a large bundle of pine and cypress branches.
There are still fresh pine needles on the branches.
Grandma directed the family to drag these pine and cypress branches to the shed in the corner of the yard where bacon was baked, and spread them in the fire pit that had been dug in advance.
Gu Jiayue looked at the fire pit, which only had smoke but no flames, and asked in confusion, "Grandma, why don't you just light the fire? If you smoke it slowly like this, how long will it take?"
Grandma smiled and explained, "Meat roasted over an open fire burns easily and tastes bad. We have to use this slow fire to slowly smoke the meat, allowing the fragrance of the pine and cypress branches to seep into the meat. That way, the bacon will be fragrant and last longer."
Gu Jiayue nodded, not quite understanding what he was saying, feeling that she had learned something new.
Although I don’t quite understand the reason, I just do it.
In the blink of an eye, it was the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month. Gu Jiayue remembered that people in other places would make Laba porridge on this day, but the custom in Taohua Village was to make glutinous rice cakes.
This is a must-have food for every household during the Chinese New Year.
The day before, the family soaked the white and plump glutinous rice in water.
The glutinous rice that has been soaked for a whole day has absorbed enough water and become plump and round. It is then poured into a steamer and steamed over high heat in a large iron pot.
You need to use high heat to steam glutinous rice, otherwise too much water will enter the rice and the taste will deteriorate.
Steam the glutinous rice for at least an hour, until it becomes soft, sweet, and can be formed into a ball by pinching it with your hands.
The steamed glutinous rice was poured into a special stone mortar. The eldest uncle and the second uncle stood on each side of the mortar, stepped on both ends of the wooden mallet, raised it high, and then dropped it heavily.
The "bang bang bang" sound echoed in the yard, making the cooked glutinous rice more and more sticky.
After a while, the originally round glutinous rice grains turned into delicate and soft rice cakes, exuding a faint rice fragrance.
"Is the filling ready? Our glutinous rice cake is almost done!" Uncle stopped and shouted at the kitchen not far away.
The glutinous rice cakes must be made while they are hot, otherwise the glutinous rice will become hard when it cools down and cannot be wrapped with fillings.
"It's almost there! Why are you rushing me? It's like you're demanding my life!" My aunt's voice came from the kitchen, sounding a bit impatient, but her hands didn't stop moving. She was busy putting the stuffing into the bowl.
The filling of glutinous rice cakes in Taohua Village is different from that in other places.
Li took out the oil residue from slaughtering pigs a few days ago and chopped it into pieces; the tiny cowpea rice was soaked for half a day in advance, and then simmered over low heat for a day to become soft and cooked beans; the chopped oil residue and cooked beans were mixed together, and then chopped onions, ginger, garlic, salt, pepper and other seasonings were added, and pressed and stirred repeatedly with a spoon until the beans were pressed into a thick paste. A fragrant salty filling was ready.
My aunt brought the filling to the yard and handed everyone a piece of lard. "Come, wipe your hands with the oil first, otherwise the glutinous rice cake will stick to your hands and it will be difficult to knead."
Gu Jiayue obediently wiped her hands with lard. When her hands were covered with oil and she tried to make the glutinous rice cake, they were no longer sticky.
I saw grandma pinch out a piece of glutinous rice cake half an inch smaller than her fist from the stone mortar, knead it in her hands first, roll it into a circle, and then gently flatten it. Then she used her hands to circle the glutinous rice cake into the shape of a steamed bun, scooped a large ball of salty filling with a spoon and pinched the mouth tightly like making a dumpling, and then gently flattened it.
A round glutinous rice cake is ready.
The prepared glutinous rice cakes were neatly placed on the clean door panels.
Once it has hardened in the wind, you can put it in a jar and seal it. It can be stored for several months.
This kind of glutinous rice cake is delicious whether fried or grilled. It is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, and the aroma of the filling fills your mouth.
Of course, there are people in the family who like to eat sweet rice cakes, so my aunt also prepared another sweet filling.
Chop the brown sugar into small pieces, add the crushed peanuts and mix well.
The steps for making sweet glutinous rice cakes are the same as those for salty ones, but you need to be extra careful when eating them.
The brown sugar inside will turn into syrup when heated, which can burn your mouth if you are not careful, making you speechless but reluctant to stop.
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