After two days of plowing, the soil was finally finished. There wasn't much fertilizer at home, just some chicken manure, but it was better than nothing. Lin Yan had wanted to add some bean dregs, but they weren't composted yet, so he planned to ferment some during the seedling season so he could use it for the autumn peppers.
Breeding takes a long time, so you have to do it early. When the pepper seedlings are almost grown, you can transplant them. This usually takes one to two months, so there is no rush.
*
On this day, Lin Yan was selling tofu in the town as usual. Brother Li came to his stall to buy fragrant tofu and secretly told him that there was a new stall at the end of the street that also sold fragrant tofu. The business was average, probably because the taste was not that good, but people were still buying it.
Lin Yan's stall was close to the street, and some shoppers came in from the end of the street and finished their purchases before reaching the main street. The stall owner probably had this in mind: some people didn't know about Lin Yan's stall, but when they came across a new dish, they would be eager to try it.
Lin Yan smiled but said nothing. He had long anticipated this day. This fragrant tofu wasn't difficult to make; someone would always imitate it. Whoever made it delicious would have a long-term business. His chili sauce was his true essence, and it couldn't be imitated for the time being.
After closing the stall and returning home, Lin Yan told his family about this. Li Yuemei was worried: "What should we do? Will it affect business?"
Lin Yan comforted her: "Oh, it's okay. We can make more than just fragrant tofu. We can introduce more new foods so that others will always follow us."
Yu Ge'er rushed to ask, "Brother, what new food have you come up with?"
"No, not really. A few days ago, when I was selling tofu, I heard two women buying vegetables say that yong tofu is difficult to make and sometimes they're too lazy to make it, but their families like it. Do you think we can make yong tofu and sell it? We can just fry it until it's almost done, and people can buy it and steam it for a few minutes or simmer it for a while before eating it."
Li Yuemei lowered her head and thought for a moment: "Many people can make this stuffed tofu, but I've never seen it sold in town. Will anyone buy it?"
Zhao Qiming suggested: "We can make a small amount to test the waters the first time. If people buy, we can make more. If no one buys, we can eat it ourselves. Anyway, we like it ourselves."
Zhao Shiyun said: "You can also fry it on the spot, wrap it in oil paper, and eat it like a sesame seed cake."
Lin Yan's eyes lit up: "This is good!"
The family agreed to make it the night before the market because it was still warm and could be stored. When the weather got hot, they would need to get up earlier to make it.
*
Yu Ge'er's dream of stuffed meat finally came true. However, the only thing he had was lotus root. Lin Yan made him a lotus root stuffed with meat. The rest would have to wait until summer.
Lin Yan prepared a piece of lotus root, a piece of pork with fat and lean meat, two eggs, chopped green onions, minced ginger, salt and soy sauce.
Chop the pork into small pieces, add chopped green onion, minced ginger, salt, soy sauce, and eggs, and stir well in one direction. Lin Yan also secretly added a little of his father's wine.
Then wash the lotus root, peel it, and cut it into slices so that the two pieces are connected and not cut off.
Yu Ge'er was very curious about this dish and followed along to learn how to make it.
Lin Yan used chopsticks to pick up the meat filling and put it in the middle of the lotus root, pressing it gently. He handed it to Yu Ge'er and looked at it. "Here, this is it, you try it." Yu Ge'er followed suit and successfully picked up one.
After everything was ready, Lin Yan scooped some cornmeal, added water to make a paste, coated the lotus root sandwiches with the paste, and then coated them with a layer of egg liquid.
Pour two tablespoons of pork into the pot, and when the oil is hot, add the lotus root sandwiches. Fry on low heat until golden brown and then take them out.
Lin Yan lined the basket with a layer of oil paper and placed the lotus root dumplings on top. Fearing he'd get sick of eating this, he took a bowl of pickled radish that he'd previously soaked.
Yu Ge'er was very diligent today. When he saw Lin Yan picking up the radish, he was very considerate and brought the lotus root clippings, rice, bowls and chopsticks to the table.
Li Yuemei was mending shoes under the eaves, Zhao Shiyun went to the backyard to feed the chickens, and Zhao Qiming was cleaning today's tofu mold.
"It's time to eat!" Yu Ge'er called out. Once everyone was seated, he eagerly grabbed a lotus root dumpling. With a crunch, the lotus root was crisp, the meat filling tender, and after frying, the aroma of the lotus root and the meat blended together, creating a savory and delicious flavor. Yu Ge'er immediately fell in love with the taste. He ate so much that his cheeks puffed up.
Lin Yan smiled and said, "I just thought of this food when Yu Ge'er asked me if I could make stuffed meat. In this season, we can only make stuffed meat like lotus root, bitter melon, and green pepper, which can only be made in the summer."
"Brother, I love everything you cook!" Yu Ge'er was particularly supportive.
Zhao Shiyun laughed, "You love to eat delicious food, little greedy cat."
Yu Ge'er bared his teeth at him, turned his head away and continued eating.
Li Yuemei suddenly had an idea, "Can this lotus root with meat be sold as well?"
Lin Yan put down his chopsticks and thought for a moment, "This dish needs to be fried, and it uses a lot of meat, which is expensive. If I sell it too expensive, I'm afraid no one will buy it."
Zhao Shiyun nodded: "Yeah, it's okay to eat it occasionally at home. Selling it is not very realistic."
Lin Yan said: "When we sell stuffed tofu, we definitely can't put as much meat as we do at home. We can put more chives and less meat, and it will still taste good."
Others also agreed.
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