Chapter 25 Chapter 25 The Problem
Jiang Xi herself likes chicken feet very much. In her opinion, chicken feet are chewy and fragrant when chewed, especially the middle part, which tastes particularly delicious. But why are they not selling well in the steel plant?
Jiang Xi ruled out the smell of chicken feet as the cause. She would taste the products to be sold every day, and Wu Yaqin would also check with her. They would only sell them after both of them were sure that there was no problem.
As for food spoilage, that is even more impossible. Jiang Xi buys fresh ingredients every day, and they even soak and cook them in the middle of the night to ensure the freshness of the ingredients.
So since there is no problem with the taste and the ingredients, then the issue is the price?
But Jiang Xi changed her mind and ruled out this possibility. Her chicken feet were not expensive, only twice as expensive as raw chicken feet. The things sold in those snack stalls were three or four times more expensive than simple ingredients, but their business was not affected and they still had a lot of customers. These were not the reasons. So why was it?
In order to find out the reason, Jiang Xi deliberately recommended chicken feet to the workers of the steel plant, but they all refused. Compared with chicken feet, they preferred edamame and lotus root. Some people even told Jiang Xi to prepare more lotus root.
Jiang Xi was not upset about being rejected. She had never done business before and she started her business on a whim. It was normal that her products were not liked by others, but she wanted to find out why.
After being rejected for his chicken feet recommendation, Jiang Xi asked the thirty-year-old man in overalls in front of him, "Brother, excuse me, can I ask why you don't want to buy chicken feet?"
Jiang Xi explained, "Brother, don't misunderstand me. I don't mean to blame you. I just think chicken feet are very good, but they don't sell well here, so I want to know the reason."
The eldest brother didn't get angry, but said cheerfully: "I can't eat chicken feet. It's just a layer of skin. It's gone in two chews. I find it too tiring to chew it."
These days, people's lives are not rich, and the money they have is spent on the right things. Although the workers in the steel factory will not be stingy when buying some food, what they want to eat is big fish and meat, not small chicken feet with bones.
Jiang Xi secretly took note of this. After about an hour, the edamame and lotus roots were sold out, leaving only chicken feet.
Wu Youli frowned as he saw the many chicken feet still left. Yesterday, he thought business was good because the items were sold out immediately. But today, they were no longer selling. "It's getting late. Should we go back now? But what about these chicken feet?"
Jiang Xi was not discouraged: "Uncle, wait a moment, I'll try again."
Jiang Xi kept observing the workers and pedestrians coming and going, and came up with an idea.
This time she sold chicken feet only to women.
"Sister, try the chicken feet. They are very chewy and bouncy, and the taste is refreshing."
The older sister who was called was about forty or fifty years old. Being called sister by such a beautiful girl like Jiang Xi, she was immediately overjoyed: "What kind of chicken feet are these? Why do they smell like alcohol?"
Jiang Xi replied, "This is braised chicken feet, a secret recipe of the Wu family. You can't find it anywhere else. We buy fresh ingredients every day and braise them right before we sell them. You can try it. If you don't like it, you don't have to buy it."
The elder sister picked up half a chicken foot and stuffed it into her mouth. It was good. The chicken foot was very chewy and very tasty without any fishy smell. The elder sister liked the taste of the chicken foot very much. "How much is the chicken foot?"
Jiang Xi said, "Our stall business is based on small profits but quick turnover. A serving of chicken feet costs one yuan, and weighs about three taels. You can take it home to make a side dish, or have it as a snack."
The eldest sister frowned and thought it was a bit expensive: "How much is a pound of chicken feet? You only want one dollar for these. That's too expensive."
Jiang Xi looked at her elder sister and suddenly had an idea. She remembered a phrase she had read in the newspaper: "Sister, chicken feet are the best food for us women. They can replenish collagen and beautify the skin. I guarantee you will become more and more beautiful if you eat them."
The eldest sister couldn't help but touch her face and said, "Really?" She was very happy to be praised for her beauty, especially by such a pretty girl. The elder sister was even happier: "Then have one."
Jiang Xi pressed the issue, "Sister, we don't sell chicken feet every day. We only make them occasionally. We might not have them tomorrow. It's fate that we met you today. If you want another one, maybe we won't sell chicken feet tomorrow."
The older sister was puzzled: "Aren't these chicken feet good? Why are they not for sale anymore?"
Jiang Xi explained: "Sister, we are from Liangshui Village. It takes two or three hours to walk to the county. Chicken feet are just a bonus. And chicken feet are hard to buy, so we only have them occasionally."
The elder sister thought about it and realized that most families only eat chicken occasionally, let alone chicken feet. A chicken has only two feet. How long would it take to accumulate so many chicken feet? Even a county town cannot digest many chickens in a day, so chicken feet are even harder to buy.
The eldest sister said, "Then give me two."
Jiang Xi smiled and packed two servings of chicken feet for the elder sister, and then recommended chicken feet to several ladies. The female workers liked the taste of chicken feet very much, and the chicken feet were sold out in a short while.
Jiang Xi immediately understood that it was not that the chicken feet were bad, but that she had not found an audience. She had no master to learn from and no examples to refer to. She had to rely on herself to figure everything out. Jiang Xi did not feel frustrated, but rather very excited. This feeling of accumulating little by little and working hard on her own made her feel at ease.
While sorting things out, Jiang Xi kept thinking that she needed to adjust the products she sold based on customer feedback.
More edamame and lotus roots can be produced, but the profit margin is very thin. It takes three servings of edamame to equal one serving of chicken feet, but the workers don't like chicken feet. Although she can sell chicken feet to women, it will invisibly increase the sales cost. Instead of doing this, it is better to find ingredients that the workers like more.
Jiang Xi recalled what the uncle had said just now. What they liked was to eat meat with big mouthfuls. That meant meat with less bones and more meat. Jiang Xi needed to find some meat dishes that could be marinated and meet the needs of the steel plant workers.
Braised pork can be paired with many ingredients. Whether it is chicken or fish in meat dishes, it can be used to make braised pork, and even seafood is suitable for making braised pork.
But Jiang Xi couldn't get any seafood, and fish was hard to buy as it was subject to seasonal restrictions. Even if it was available, fish had bones, which didn't suit the steel plant workers' habit of eating meat. They even found it difficult to eat chicken feet, and eating fish might be even more troublesome.
Jiang Xisi thought about it, what kind of ingredients are easy to buy, suitable for marinating, and meet the preferences of the steel plant employees?
Jiang Xi suddenly thought of chicken! He could try making braised chicken! The cost would be manageable, the ingredients would be easy to find, and since it was meat, he could make more money.
Jiang Xi is a man of action. Once he decided to make braised chicken, he wanted to prepare the ingredients immediately and go back to experiment.
Jiang Xi said to Wu Youli, "Uncle, you stay here and watch the stall. I'm going to buy some things. I'll meet you later and we'll go back together."
Wu Youli didn't ask any more questions, just nodded. Now he was helping Jiang Xi and obeying Jiang Xi in everything. The more he got along with Jiang Xi, the more Wu Youli felt that Jiang Xi was very organized and he couldn't help but be convinced.
When Jiang Xi arrived at the market, many pork stalls had already closed.
Pork is in short supply and requires a ticket, especially for the fat meat, which can only be sold as much as possible. It is usually sold out early in the morning.
Jiang Xi walked around several stalls and found that all meat was selling well, and almost all the meat at the stalls was sold out.
In desperation, Jiang Xi had to walk to a stall that was still open and asked, "Uncle, how much are your pork ribs?" The boss was very strong, a rare strong man in this era. Pork sellers were never short of money. He was washing the knife. There were a few pork ribs on the table. There was not even a trace of meat filling on the bones, just pure bones. Generally, few people would buy them to eat, so they have not been sold yet.
Hearing Jiang Xi's question, he glanced at the bones and said, "These bones are fifty cents, you can take them all."
Although Jiang Xi also wanted to buy some meat, there were only a few bones on the table. These bones weighed about four or five pounds, and fifty cents was not expensive.
"Then help me put the bone on."
After buying the ribs, Jiang Xi asked the shop owner, "Uncle, do you know where I can buy chicken?"
The shopkeeper, who was wiping the chopping board, looked up and asked, "What do you want the chicken for?"
Jiang Xi didn't tell the truth but just answered vaguely: "I want to make something delicious to nourish the people at home."
The shop owner understood that chicken is a good thing. If there is a pregnant woman in the family, people will buy chicken often if they have the conditions. Chicken stewed in soup is especially nutritious.
The shop owner said, "I have a few chickens at home. If you want, I'll catch them for you right now."
This was a pleasant surprise, and Jiang Xi quickly replied: "I want one, a bigger one."
The shop owner said, "Okay, I'll pick out a big one for you."
Jiang Xi asked, "How much is one?"
The shop owner said, "A raw chicken, feather-on, costs 1.3 yuan per pound. My chickens are fat and I've raised them for over a year. Each one weighs about 10 pounds."
Jiang Xi calculated that a chicken costs about ten yuan, which sounds expensive at first, but if you calculate it by kilogram, it is not so bad, and it can be profitable to make it into a marinated chicken.
Jiang Xi nodded: "Then give me one."
The owner turned around and went into the house very quickly. After a while, he brought out a big rooster. The rooster had a bright red comb and its head kept moving. There was a gleam in Xiaodou's eyes. It was a very strong chicken.
"Is this one okay? I picked a big one just for you. The quality is impeccable. My wife has been feeding it for a year, and the children at home even find some grasshoppers for the chickens to eat. The meat is quite good."
The owner spoke with pride as he carried the chicken, and Jiang Xi couldn't help but smile. It seemed that the owner and his wife had a very good relationship.
"Okay, I'll take this one."
After buying the chicken, Jiang Xi bought some other things. The family was short of everything. Although the money he earned now was not enough to buy big items, it was still enough to improve his life. He secretly planned to deal with the chickens he bought quickly and see the market feedback.
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