"Knock knock knock~, Xiao Lei, Qian Qian, your sister-in-law is back."
Wei Yuyan gently knocked on the door.
"Sister-in-law, you're back."
"Sister-in-law~"
Less than a minute later, the two children rushed over to open the door.
"Okay, let's go inside and talk about it."
Wei Yuyan carried the things inside and put down the basket on her back.
"Wow, chicks! Sister-in-law, didn't you say you weren't going to raise them last year?"
Qianqian thought the chicks were so cute with their fluffy feathers.
"Well, we can't just not raise them. Eating vegetables every day isn't very nutritious. If we raise them properly for a few months, we can eat eggs every day after six months."
Wei Yuyan then recalled that last year the original owner bought five chicks, but the last one did not survive.
They all died of illness, so the original owner, in a fit of anger, said he would never raise chickens again.
"Sister-in-law, shouldn't we build a chicken coop?"
Wu Lei remembers that the chicks at Xiao Pang's house were growing very well, probably because his chicken coop was big and clean.
"Yes, it is necessary. This afternoon, my sister-in-law will go and cut some bamboo."
Wei Yuyan nodded and took the meat to the kitchen to check if they had eaten breakfast.
He noticed that three steamed buns were missing, nodded in satisfaction, and washed the lard and pig liver thoroughly, especially the pig liver.
I rinsed the pig liver with water again and again, and after washing it clean, I marinated it with salt. I'll eat it tomorrow. Today, I'm going to eat pork belly.
There's no meat on the big bones anyway, so I won't wash them. I'll just hang them in the well and make soup tomorrow.
Then, wash the pork fat, cut it into small pieces, and start rendering the oil.
Wu Qian was watching the chicks drink water in the yard when Wu Lei came over to help start a fire.
Wu Lei couldn't help but gasp when he saw so much pork fat on the stove.
How much oil will this produce? Enough for a small basin, right? Wu Lei felt very secure. He had food, oil, his sister-in-law, and his younger sister at home. He was very content.
"I almost forgot about the salt."
Wei Yuyan took out the half-pound of salt she had bought that day, poured some into the salt jar, and put the rest away.
"So much salt."
Wu Lei remembers that his sister-in-law used to only buy a few ounces of salt a month and eat it sparingly.
"Since I'm going to buy it anyway, I might as well buy more and keep it at home in case the price goes up."
Wei Yuyan's words are only good for fooling children. Salt doesn't easily increase in price these days, at least not in the next few years.
"Xiao Lei, keep an eye on the fire. Don't burn the oil cracklings. Call me when they turn slightly yellow."
Since rendering lard doesn't require constant supervision, Wei Yuyan decided to start preparing lunch. They were going to have a hearty lunch today.
I'm making braised pork with potatoes for lunch today. First, I need to prepare the ingredients: pork belly, potatoes, scallions, ginger, and dried chili peppers. The only problem is I don't have soy sauce at home; I'll need caramelized sugar instead.
"Xiao Lei, do you have any candy left at home?"
Wei Yuyan couldn't remember if there was any candy at home.
"There are still a few pieces of rock sugar."
Xiao Lei remembers that it was last year when his younger sister caught a cold, and the medicine she got was really bitter.
The older sister-in-law bought a few pieces of rock candy for her younger sister, and there were a few pieces left in the corner of the cupboard. Wu Lei's little hand immediately pulled them out.
"Okay, these few pieces are enough."
Wei Yuyan never expected that there would actually be candy.
"This stove can be used too, one stove is too troublesome."
Wei Yuyan wanted to steam rice, but then she discovered that the stove was rendering lard. Actually, it was a double stove, but there was only one pot.
"Sure, but we don't have a pot."
Wu Lei really felt that his sister-in-law was acting strangely. Didn't she know that there was only one pot in the house?
"I'll buy one next month."
Wei Yuyan was thinking of selling the medicinal herbs next month and then going on a big shopping spree.
"Sister-in-law, the pork cracklings are ready."
Wu Lei quickly called Wei Yuyan, who came over and took a look. It was indeed almost done. She stirred the pork cracklings a couple more times, then scooped them out and poured out the pork fat.
I was going to cook the rice first, but seeing the little bit of lard at the bottom of the pot, I felt it was a waste, so I stir-fried some bok choy and then steamed the rice.
After the rice is cooked, stew the pork belly. Clean the pork belly and cut it into small pieces.
Place the pork belly in a pot of cold water, add scallions and ginger, bring to a boil, skim off the foam, and remove the pork belly for later use.
Heat oil in a pan, add a few pieces of rock sugar and stir-fry until they turn a dark reddish-brown color. Add the pork belly and stir-fry until each piece is coated with the caramelized sugar.
Add scallions, ginger, and dried chili peppers, stir-fry evenly, then add plenty of boiling water. Because it will be stewing for a long time, simmer for 45 minutes. During this time, cut a few potato chunks and set aside.
After adding the potatoes, cover the pot and simmer for another 15 minutes.
While stewing the pork belly, Wu Lei and Wu Qian were attracted by the aroma and squatted down next to the stove.
"Sister-in-law, is it someone's birthday today?"
Wu Qian remembers that last year on her birthday and her brother's birthday, her sister-in-law bought half a pound of meat. On other days, she only bought meat during holidays.
"Nobody's birthday, we're just celebrating to see how many herbs we picked that we can sell."
Wei Yuyan happily shared this with them.
"Really? Sister-in-law, then let's go pick some more this afternoon. I've already memorized what it looks like."
When Wu Lei heard that he could sell the herbs, he was so happy that he almost skipped dinner to go and collect them.
"Xiao Lei, Qian Qian, calm down. Your sister-in-law is telling you that you can't tell either of you that herbs can be sold for money."
Otherwise, if others find out, they'll all go and collect the herbs, and we won't have any left to collect, you understand?
Wei Yuyan thought Xiao Lei definitely wouldn't tell anyone, but she couldn't guarantee Wu Qian's safety, so she still had to warn her in advance.
"Understood, sister-in-law."
Seeing their sister-in-law's serious expression, the two children's expressions also turned serious.
"Well, there's no rush to gather herbs. We can go gather them tomorrow if we're not busy."
After Wei Yuyan finished speaking, she lifted the pot lid. It seemed about time; it was time to eat.
"It smells so good."
The two children's eyes practically popped out of their sockets; it smelled so good.
"Have a meal".
Wei Yuyan brought a large bowl of braised pork with potatoes to the table, along with a side of bok choy.
Wu Lei helped serve the rice. There were three bowls of rice, but the portions were different. Wei Yuyan's bowl was full and almost overflowing, while Wu Lei and Wu Qian's bowls were not full.
"Why are you serving yourself so little? This is too much for me, I can't finish it."
Wei Yuyan thought Wu Lei must want to save food, so she ate some of her rice for him, because boys won't grow tall if they don't eat more.
"Thank you, sister-in-law."
Wu Lei swallowed hard as he looked at the braised pork on the table.
"Come on, help yourself to the food."
Wei Yuyan originally wanted to serve them food, but then changed her mind and told them to serve themselves.
"Wow, braised pork."
When Wu Qian heard her sister-in-law tell her to pick up some food, she was so happy she almost fell over. She quickly picked up a few pieces of braised pork and put them in her bowl.
"I think this potato will definitely taste delicious."
Wu Lei only picked up one piece of pork belly and several pieces of potato.
“We need to eat more. Think about it, what if Auntie comes over again later?”
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