Chapter 49 Chapter 49 Beef Feast Solo...
The man was very happy. "Yes, I'll take you there right now."
Lin Qiuran gave Xiao Dashi some silver and told him to go. "Dad, if the meat is good, buy it. And the tripe, please bargain."
A cow weighs several hundred pounds, and some even weigh over a thousand pounds. However, it is not all meat. It has to be bled, and there is fur, tripe, and bones.
If the price difference is not too big, then buy both. The bones are good for making broth, and even if the beef doesn't sell well in restaurants, you can still eat it yourself. Lin Qiuran didn't want them to cut it up, and she didn't want to damage some of the beef tendons; she was still counting on this to make money.
Xiao Dashi nodded and went out with the man. They had to see if the man died of old age. If he did, they could decide on the marriage today.
It was almost closing time, but there were still two tables of customers who hadn't finished their meal. They'd been eating for almost half an hour, adding another dish. Hearing there was beef, they curiously asked, "Are you going to buy beef? Can you make it tomorrow?"
Lin Qiuran said, "If I buy some, I'll make it tomorrow. I'll make braised beef, braised beef shank, and Maoxuewang. If you're free tomorrow, you can come and have a look."
The customer nodded and said that he had not eaten much beef yet and would come to ask about it tomorrow morning.
There were no other guests, and Lin Qiuran and the others were also having dinner. She left some dishes for Xiao Dashi to eat when he came back.
Shopkeeper Shi and Lu Fan were hungry after a busy day, so they went to get some unsold steamed buns. Lin Xia and Lin Dong stood by, looking a little helpless. Lin Qiuran said, "Sit down, we're all eating together."
The two of them didn't dare to eat too much on the first day they came. They just ate one steamed bun, and only dared to pick up a piece of meat. They didn't dare to use their chopsticks, and they didn't even dare to eat too much shredded potatoes.
Even so, I still find it rare because the food tastes better than the one at home.
Sun felt a little sorry for the two of them and wanted to pick some food for them, but Lin Qiuran stopped her.
After a tiring day of work, there were so many dishes. They weren't told not to eat them, but they couldn't just wait for orders every time. Furthermore, Manager Shi and the others were watching, knowing that these were purchased maids, so anything too outrageous would definitely not be acceptable.
You have to get used to it slowly.
Even so, after finishing their meal, the two looked at Lin Qiuran with a hint of gratitude. Lin Xia even secretly said to Lin Dong, "I don't miss home that much anymore."
Lin Dong didn't say anything. She hadn't missed home for a long time. She just hated it. She worked so hard and didn't even dare to eat more, but her parents sold her. No, those were no longer her parents.
After dinner, Shopkeeper Shi and Lu Fan left. Aunt Liu came over to clean up the dishes. The two of them helped tactfully. After waiting for a while, Xiao Dashi and the man came back.
Since they had bought a lot of meat, the man brought over the beef. Xiao Dashi saw that he was indeed old and dead, so he negotiated the price. He calculated that the price of the meat alone and the meat and bones were not much different, so he didn't give a cent.
After a while of haggling, the price was reduced by one cent per pound. The remaining beef tripe of more than 400 pounds of meat was originally priced at 12 cents per pound, but Xiao Dashi took the opportunity to negotiate it down to 8 cents per pound on the grounds that it was difficult to clean and had a strong smell, for a total of 320 pounds.
After giving him seven taels and five cents, the man also gave him a cow's face. The fur must have other uses, but Xiao Dashi didn't see it.
To be honest, he didn't know how to eat this meat and had never eaten it before, but since Lin Qiuran asked to buy it, he bought it.
Lin Qiuran thought the meat looked good, including beef shank. It was getting late, so the meat would have to be divided tomorrow. The tripe had a strong smell, so it needed to be cleaned thoroughly before use. Because he was a farmer, his meat was generally lean.
She had Xiao Dashi and Sun Shi hang the meat upside down in the kitchen and lock the door before leaving. The temperature was low now, so hanging it overnight would help remove the acid and make it less tough when eaten.
Come early tomorrow morning to separate the beef shanks and cut a few pieces of beef for the braised dish. The beef shanks will definitely be more expensive, but the other meats can be sold at a cheaper price.
Half of it was bones, so the meat alone would cost twenty coins per pound. The man was quite good at business. If Xiao Dashi wanted to buy just the meat, he would say, "Go home and cut it yourself, and I'll give you the bones."
The rest of the meat can be used to make stir-fried yellow beef, and the beef tripe can be used to make Maoxuewang. You can ask the pork stall for pig blood. It is relatively easy to get the ingredients for Maoxuewang.
Lin Qiuran has been asking someone to make bean sprouts, so he doesn't make them at home to save trouble. To be honest, Lin Qiuran wants to eat all these dishes.
The remaining minced meat can be used to make large dumplings with lard and green onions. They are big and greasy when you bite them. Lin Qiuran also wants to eat this.
I spent more than seven taels of silver to buy beef, and I don’t know if I can make my money back. It’s dark and I can’t see clearly, so I’ll come and take a good look tomorrow.
It's cold now, so the beef should be able to be kept for a long time.
Sun's Xiao Dashi didn't know what to do, and didn't say what to do if he lost money. To be honest, he just said that if Lin Qiuran wanted to eat this, the money would be worth it.
What's the point of making money if you don't spend it? It's nothing if you just eat something.
After returning home, Lin Xia and Lin Dong acted according to Lin Qiuran's instructions.
Lin Qiuran said, "Our house is small, so you can sleep in this room with me."
After washing up, the two of them lay down obediently on the newly built bunk bed.
Before going to bed, Lin Qiuran told them what they would do tomorrow. "Tomorrow we'll make beef. You two will go to the restaurant. We don't usually need so many people. Lin Dong will learn to cook from me. Lin Xia is younger, so she'll stay home in the mornings and do chores. Then you can go to the restaurant by yourself for lunch. You should also learn the route these few days."
In the afternoon, she helped out at the restaurant and went back with them in the evening. Because lunch was late and there was no need to go there early, Lin Xia followed Sun in the restaurant first.
I can do some odd jobs to make Sun's life easier.
It's easier to teach one than two. Flipping the wok is strenuous work, and Lin Xia is too young to do it. Learning to serve food and wait on the table will help him fill in if the owner, Lu Fanshi, leaves and there's no time to hire someone.
The two nodded, and Lin Qiuran fell asleep.
Lin Xia and Lin Dong found it a bit unbelievable. Lin Dong was surprised that Lin Qiuran wanted to teach her how to cook, as this was a skill he could teach his family. Lin Xia was surprised that Lin Qiuran even cared about whether she had eaten or not. Before, when they were at home... before, they never cared what she ate when they went out.
The Xiao family is not a wealthy family and their place is not big, but Aunt Sun and Uncle Xiao are very nice people, as is Mrs. Lin.
The quilt is old but very warm.
The next day, the two of them got up early. Xiao Dashi was surprised. He was not used to having two more people in the house.
The two of them took over the job and moved very quietly, unlike Xiao Dashi who made crackling noises when sweeping the floor, which allowed Lin Qiuran to sleep well.
She dreamed of eating beef hotpot with a child. The child was enjoying the meal, but she couldn’t taste anything in the dream. After waking up, she felt a little unsatisfied.
Lin Qiuran touched her belly. Was this the child in her dream?
Thinking of this, Lin Qiuran felt the fetus move in the morning and was kicked. She smiled. After being pregnant for so long, she had some feelings.
Today is the last day of October, and tomorrow will be November. Lin Qiuran has been in this world for almost four months, and the child is almost seven months old. The birth will take more than two months.
Lin Qiuran was looking forward to giving birth to the baby as soon as possible, but she was also a little scared.
Fortunately, she went to the clinic and found a midwife. The midwife said that the fetus was in the right position and she was in good health. She also said that Lin Qiuran's belly was not big, so it would be easier to give birth and there would be no problems.
The birth date is in the first month of the lunar calendar. It is cold in the first month of the lunar calendar, and it is a little difficult to have confinement in cold weather, but it is better than in summer.
If it happened to be the Lunar New Year, they could open the shop later. Furthermore, Lin Qiuran was also worried about whether he could teach Lin Dong in two months.
Of course, this doesn’t mean teaching you how to cook. You can learn a few dishes first, such as stir-fried shredded potatoes. As long as you learn it, you won’t need Lin Qiuran to come.
After cleaning up here, they went to the shop. Xiao Dashi had been there earlier because he had to buy pig blood today. When Lin Qiuran and the others arrived, Xiao Dashi had already finished his shopping and returned.
However, Lin Qiuran didn't look at it. She just let it sit in the yard while she went to the kitchen to prepare the lunch. Beef was a bit expensive, costing around 20 wen per pound. If she served it rashly, no one would necessarily want to eat it.
So Lin Qiuran asked Shopkeeper Shi to put up a sign at the door saying that the restaurant would sell beef in the evening. He also mentioned this to customers who came to eat at noon.
We definitely can’t sell all this beef in one night, so you can come back in a few days.
The effect of the sign was immediate. Just then someone came to ask, even the customer who had dined yesterday, "Did you buy beef yesterday?"
Shopkeeper Shi said, "I bought it, but I have to clean it up and prepare it before I can eat it tonight."
The guest was very happy and said, "Okay, I will definitely come over tonight."
The news of selling the beef in the evening had already been announced, but Shopkeeper Shi was still curious about how Lin Qiuran planned to cook the beef. Old beef was tough and difficult to cook, and sometimes he wouldn't buy it even if it was on sale.
The reason why beef is hard to buy is that working oxen cannot be slaughtered. A butcher only gives a dozen pounds of beef to a stall owner, and it sells out quickly.
But it’s just not easy to burn. I hope Lin Qiuran has a way.
In the kitchen, Lin Qiuran stewed the vegetables to be sold at noon and then began to divide the beef. The beef shanks had to be divided into whole pieces so that they would be easier to braise and cut.
This is when the advantage of having a good knife comes into play. It would be really difficult to do it if you only have a kitchen knife.
The ox head is a gift. I will braise it with the ox tendon in the afternoon. I will keep the ox horns for now and ask a carpenter to make two ox horn combs for them later, so that I can make the best use of them.
Because the beef is old, only the tendons and bones are cut off and left for stewing. Although it looks like a mess of meat, it can still be sold out, and it tastes best when mixed with rice.
Lin Qiuran asked Sun's Lin Dong and Lin Xia to clean up the cow tripe. It contained half-digested grass and had a strong smell, so it had to be washed thoroughly with wood ash.
Before doing business at noon, Lin Qiuran divided the beef into parts and braised the beef shanks first. The pot was not needed at this time. It would take more than an hour to braise, which was just right for taking it out and soaking before cooking in the afternoon. There was no need to worry about affecting the afternoon cooking.
The braised beef and braised pork tripe are all in the pot. Lin Qiuran made broth with beef and pork bones and added a chicken. He hasn't figured out how to use the broth yet, but it will definitely be useful.
At noon, Lin Qiuran specially fried a plate of stir-fried beef to try it out and asked Manager Shi and others to taste it. Because only onions and garlic were enough, but there was no coriander, Lin Qiuran felt that the taste was not very good.
There were also chili peppers. The family only had dried chili peppers, so Lin Qiuran used more pickled peppers. He asked Zhao Shi to buy them and stocked up a lot.
The pickled peppers were rather sour, and this dish tasted less like stir-fried yellow beef and more like double pepper beef. But without the Hangzhou peppers, Lin Qiuran wasn't sure.
Shopkeeper Shi was wondering how to make beef delicious, but after tasting it, he was convinced and had nothing to say.
The garlic has a meaty aroma, the beef is tender and tasty, and it has a sour and spicy taste. After all, there are sour pickled peppers, and the spiciness is even stronger, so spicy that it makes people sweat on their foreheads. Shopkeeper Shi is not afraid of spicy food. He picks up a chopstick and mixes the dried chili, pickled pepper and garlic with the rice. It is really satisfying to take a big bite.
Lin Qiuran asked: "How is it?"
Shopkeeper Shi is not afraid of spicy food, but his voice is hoarse. The chili peppers available now are just dried ones. It would be better if there were fresh chili peppers in summer and autumn.
Lu Fan coughed twice because of the spiciness, then drank a large glass of water. "It's...it's delicious. No, it's delicious."
Sun thought it was a bit spicy, but it was spicy enough to satisfy her. The beef was also soft, not tough at all. She had never eaten beef before, but this time she thought it tasted better than pork or mutton.
Shopkeeper Shi took a break and said in a hoarse voice, "Mrs. Lin's cooking is excellent. It was so hard when I ate it before. It really tasted nothing like pork."
This was something Lin Qiuran had marinated with cornstarch in advance, and then cut against the grain, making the pieces small and thin, so it naturally didn't taste hard.
The three of them were not cooks, they just thought it was delicious and couldn't come up with any ideas for improving it.
Lin Xia and Lin Dong rarely ate chili peppers before, but now their noses turned red from the spiciness.
This dish was eaten up by Shopkeeper Shi, leaving no side dishes. He used the steamed buns to dip the little bit of soup.
As a cook, Lin Qiuran was still very happy. She didn't sleep at noon, watched the fire of braised beef tendon, and taught Lin Dong how to cut vegetables.
Although Zhao Guangcai said that Lin Dong and the others cooked at home and did so often, it was better to start from scratch since a great building starts from the ground up.
Lin Dong listened carefully and cut the vegetables carefully. Lin Qiuran's most common advice was, "Whether it's cutting vegetables or cooking, you have to do it according to what I teach you. No matter how you did it before, whether it was delicious or not, you can't add your own ideas. Just do it according to my instructions. These are all tried and tested methods. If you add anything else, it won't be a good idea."
Lin Dong nodded and glanced at Lin Qiuran. "Madam Lin, go and have a rest. I'll cut it slowly myself."
Lin Qiuran is pregnant and has been busy for a long time.
Lin Qiuran smiled and said, "Well, if you are tired, take a rest."
She went back to her room and lay down for fifteen minutes, then began to cook the afternoon meal. Because there was beef, she made less of the other dishes.
Lin Qiuran even specially wrote a menu. The braised beef platter cost 30 cents per plate, which included beef cheek and braised beef in soy sauce.
Braised beef shank was 50 wen a plate, as was stir-fried yellow beef. Braised tendon and shank were 61 wen a plate, with potatoes as a side dish. Maoxuewang (bloody stew) was 71 wen, with tripe, tripe sheets, pig's blood, and bean sprouts. It tasted similar to boiled pork slices, but because it was fried in butter, it was more fragrant and spicy.
Lean beef also contains butter, and Lin Qiuran saved some for hot pot someday.
She prefers winter to summer without a refrigerator.
The main course was a large steamed beef dumpling, which cost six cents each.
Wanniang also bought a plate of braised beef shank. The restaurant provides meals, but it depends on whether there is any leftover meat. If not, she will mostly eat tofu, potatoes, etc.
It would be good enough if Lin Qiuran could make one portion for lunch. Even if there were any leftovers, he would not give them to the shop assistants because the beef was too expensive.
Wanniang wanted to take some back for Zhao Shi to try, and she wanted to buy some other things, but she had to be frugal. This beef shank was so delicious, it looked like a flower when you cut it open.
Lin Qiuran also left some for breakfast tomorrow. Beef is better than rice and steamed buns.
After finishing other work in the afternoon, she used lard, green onions and relatively fine and lean beef to make the filling, using live dough and plenty of green onions. She wrapped willow-leaf dumplings the size of her palm and steamed them. The dumplings had translucent skin, with thin skin and large filling.
Lin Qiuran didn't know how the business was in the evening. Manager Shi said that someone came to ask, but the person who asked might not come here to eat today.
Night falls. Today the day is short and it gets dark very early.
The white breath exhaled from the mouth was more obvious in the night. Before dinner time, five people came to the Xiao family restaurant early.
These guys are strong and are regular customers of the restaurant.
Lu Fan and Manager Shi were still setting up the charcoal brazier. Hearing the noise, Manager Shi asked Lu Fan to get busy and went to deal with the situation himself.
The visitor asked, "What dishes do you make with beef? Do you have a menu? Let us see it."
Shopkeeper Shi brought up the menu. The customer looked at it and ordered, "One plate of braised beef, one plate of braised beef shank, stir-fried yellow beef, tendon, and blood curd, and one plate of stir-fried shredded potatoes. Hey, how big are these steamed dumplings?"
Shopkeeper Shi was a man with big hands. He showed half of his palm and said, "It's this big. It's stuffed with beef and green onions. We don't usually sell steamed dumplings. We only have them these past few days. I don't know when they'll be available again."
Five people should have at least two dumplings each, so they discussed it and said, "Then let's have ten more steamed dumplings and a pot of liquor."
Shopkeeper Shi smiled and said, "Okay, please wait a moment, sir."
Shopkeeper Shi worked for someone else, but Lin Qiuran treated him well, providing him with enough delicious meals every day. Seeing the customers ordering so many dishes, he was sincerely happy for Lin Qiuran.
With so many dishes, it would cost four hundred coins for one table.
This table of customers seemed to have made a good start, and business was very good in the evening. Several tables of customers ordered dishes like the first table, while the others mostly ordered a plate of braised pork, a beef dish, and finally a plate of shredded potatoes.
Some people are willing to buy steamed dumplings, while others are not.
I can't bear to watch others eat such big dumplings. One bite is full of meat filling, and the oil and soup are left. It smells delicious, but it is really expensive. Think about it, pork buns of similar size with meat filling only cost two cents each, but this one costs six cents.
In the end, I couldn’t help but order one to try, and it was really delicious. Not only were the dumplings delicious, but the other dishes were even more fragrant.
Some ordered a table full of beef dishes, and they were all very good at eating. They scooped a spoonful of tendons and stir-fried yellow beef with rice, took a sip of wine and a piece of braised beef, and ate the Maoxuewang and tender bean sprouts covered with red oil in big mouthfuls. The tripe was crispy and tender, and they had a bite of a big dumpling. It was really a delicious and spicy meal.
The aroma filled the restaurant, but I was short of money, so I could only come back tomorrow.
Someone asked, "How long will the beef last?"
Shopkeeper Shi said, "Let's sell them for three or four days. This is because we found some dead cattle. We don't usually have these. If you want to eat them, you'd better come early. We don't know when we'll have them again."
Shopkeeper Shi was in high spirits. How could he not be? The price of this dish was basically close to that of braised lamb in red sauce. The cheapest one was fifty cents a plate, and the most expensive one was seventy cents.
Normally, a plate of braised pork costs 40 cents, which is much more expensive. Today's turnover must be greater than yesterday's. When Manager Shi was pouring wine, he looked at the wine barrel and felt that the wine was being consumed faster than usual.
It's natural to be happy when business is good.
The Xiao family restaurant closed late tonight and the kitchen was choking. The stir-fried beef was the spiciest dish, so Lin Qiuran had to find a cloth to cover his mouth and nose.
She was exhausted, but business was good. All the dishes cooked in the kitchen were sold out. There were still customers after midnight, but the restaurant was closed. Manager Shi said to the people, "Come earlier tomorrow."
There had been times when business was good in the past, and Lin Qiuran was also good at preparing dishes, but this was the first time that sales were so good.
There is actually still meat, but we can't overwork ourselves because of business. Besides, others definitely don't want to work overtime, and Wan Niang's husband Zhao Shi is already waiting.
Wan Niang was also happy today. As a shop assistant, Lin Qiuran gave her a good discount on the beef shank. She said to Zhao Shi happily, "I bought this new dish from the shop today. You must try it when you get home."
Zhao Shi took his daughter over and wrapped her tightly in swaddling clothes. "Hmm, it smells good. I'm lucky to have received this. Let's go home."
Shopkeeper Shi and his companions stayed for dinner. Since they were too tired today, Lin Qiuran cut a piece of braised beef for them. There was some raw meat left, so they would braise it tomorrow.
The dish was a simple scrambled egg and stir-fried cabbage, but it tasted quite good. There were some steamed dumplings left, so Lin Qiuran shared them out, and everyone ate one.
Shopkeeper Shi thought, dumplings are only six cents, and today's wages are higher, he is willing to work in the restaurant until he dies. But he and Lu Fan were reluctant to eat, because they have children and elderly people at home, and they will definitely be happy to take such good things back.
Lin Qiuran brought home a piece of beef shank that night, saving it for tomorrow morning. It wasn't that she didn't want to give it to Sun Shi and Xiao Dashi, but their attitude towards expensive things remained the same as before. They'd just take a bite, and then, no matter what Lin Qiuran said, they wouldn't touch it again. Eating pork was just a common thing in their family these days.
The Xiao family restaurant sold beef for four days, from the last day of October to noon on the fourth day of the New Year. Lin Qiuran planned to eat the remaining beef himself.
Now that the beef could be frozen, Lin Qiuran found a cool place and made a simple refrigerator out of a water tank. The temperature was high during the day, but with a lot of ice in it, it wouldn't melt.
Ten or so pounds of meat is enough for her to eat slowly.
Because of these dishes, the Xiao family restaurant business was booming, with many new customers and a much higher turnover, nearly doubled compared to before. The highest turnover was more than five taels of silver and more than seven thousand copper coins a day.
Shopkeeper Shi calculated the accounts for last month. He opened the shop on the 16th and made a profit of nearly 30 taels in half a month. However, this was also because he bought beef at the end of the month, so the capital was more than 7 taels. However, he made a lot of money from selling beef in two days, and he had already made back his investment.
I got paid at the beginning of the month, for the entire month.
The few of them were more motivated. Business was good at the beginning of the month and the turnover was high. The profit was not only from selling beef. Lin Qiuran estimated that he spent 7 taels and 5 cents on buying beef, and after recovering the investment, he made a profit of almost 22 taels.
As expected, the more you invest, the more you earn. Someone even asked when the next beef would be available, but Lin Qiuran had no idea; this time, he had just stumbled upon it.
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, Manager Xu also delivered the share from Wufangzhai, a total of one hundred and eighty-five taels, which was the profit from the bean cakes sold by several Wufangzhais in a month. Business was good in the first few days, but it became average afterwards. However, there were still people buying every day, so the profit was still considerable.
Manager Xu smiled and said, "Business will be slower next month, but it will get better in the twelfth month."
During the Chinese New Year, we buy snacks for home.
It was just a small amount of money for the Xu family. The most important thing was that they had suppressed Wuxiangju's business and had opened several more shops. These two were the only famous dim sum shops in the south. From now on, no matter where they were, Wufangzhai would dominate the market.
Lin Qiuran knew that Wufangzhai’s best business was not mung bean cakes, and she was very satisfied with this income. Including what she earned last month and the savings at home, Lin Qiuran already had more than two hundred taels of silver in her hands.
The total amount is two hundred and twenty-six taels. There should have been more, but a lot of it was invested in the decoration of the second floor.
Lin Qiuran glanced outside, planning to save the money to buy land. He asked Sun, and she told him that in previous years, snow only fell in the middle of the month, making it more economical to buy land in cold weather. If he planted land, the price would go up.
Lin Qiuran nodded. It was still early before spring, so there was no rush to buy land. As time passed, the shop's turnover returned to normal.
On November 18th, it snowed in Yu'an. It started snowing in the morning. Business was not very good at noon as every household stayed at home. It was estimated that business would be even worse in the evening.
The road was slippery due to the snow, and Lin Qiuran decided not to go back today for fear of falling on the road.
Sun said she wanted to stay to accompany Lin Qiuran, and Lin Dong and Lin Xia also said they couldn't go back, so the two of them could just spend one night together. The more they spent with Lin Qiuran, the closer they would be.
The snow was getting heavier, and those in Xiaojia Village who didn't go out to work stayed at home.
Just at this moment, someone knocked on the door. Aunt Juhua was lying warmly in the room, but she had to get up and open the door.
"Who is it? Stop knocking!"
When I opened the door, I saw a handsome face. He was very tall, and I had to tilt my head back to look at him.
"Aunt, do you know where my parents and Qiu Ran are?"
Xiao Xun went inside and looked, but no one was home.
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The author has something to say: Thank you for your support and the nutrient solution for irrigation~[猫头]
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