Chapter Twenty-Five: Steamed Pork Patty with Preserved Mustard Greens + Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes...
"Okay, everyone come over and register." As soon as Yu Miaoyin finished speaking, Xiao Tangbao came over and handed a notebook to Yu Miaoyin. "Here, sister, please register."
"Okay, thank you, Xiaotangbao."
When the other people in the shop learned that they could order water chestnut cake, they all crowded around, very enthusiastic and excited.
Yu Miaoyin said with a smile, "Everyone gets a share, everyone, don't worry."
The boy wrote down his contact information and breathed a sigh of relief. "My grandma specifically asked for food from your restaurant. I have no idea what kind of magic it has."
But he had to admit that the food at this restaurant was indeed quite delicious.
Upon hearing this, Grandpa Xu quickly spoke up for Xiaoyin's small restaurant, "Young man, you've eaten less than I have. I dare say, this restaurant is the best in the entire Yuncheng. In my opinion, it's number one."
As he spoke, Grandpa Xu gave a thumbs up.
Little Tangbao also said, "Yes, brother, my sister's cooking smells so good! It's especially delicious, the best in the world!"
Chen Churuo patted Xiaotangbao's head and agreed, "Sister also thinks you're right. Sister also really likes the food your sister makes."
Everyone at the small restaurant was praising the food, leaving him speechless.
"Alright then, boss, what else do you have here? I'll take some back for my grandma to eat. Anyway, she likes your water chestnut cake, so she should like your cooking too," Liang Hekang said. He scratched his head and glanced at the dishes that everyone had half-eaten. Putting everything else aside, they certainly looked and smelled good.
"Okay, and there are also some tea eggs, sweet and sour pork with pineapple, and stir-fried pork belly with pickled cabbage. Do you want them all?" Yu Miaoyin put the notebook aside and asked.
"Hmm, one of each, please." Liang Hekang felt a headache coming on just thinking about his picky grandmother.
"Okay." After saying that, Yu Miaoyin went back to the kitchen, turned on the stove, and heated the pan to cook the vegetables.
Liang Hekang was sitting in an empty seat playing on his phone when Xiao Tangbao brought him a tea egg, saying, "Brother, here's the tea egg you wanted."
Liang Hekang turned off his phone. "Thank you, little friend."
The tea egg emitted a rich aroma of tea and savory gravy, which was very tempting. The steaming "smoky" smell wafting from the kitchen was also fragrant; it was indeed very delicious, so much so that he began to understand why his grandmother insisted on eating the water chestnut cake from this shop.
"Here, all the dishes you ordered are ready. I also packed a few bowls of rice for you." Yu Miaoyin handed the rice to Liang Hekang.
After paying, Liang Hekang couldn't help but think to himself how cheap the food was. Although he admitted that the food was delicious, he still took a detour to the snack street and bought himself some fried skewers, since fried skewers were also very tasty.
Back at the hospital, Liang Hekang put the food on the small dining table and called out, "Grandma, time to eat."
"Do you have water chestnut cake?" Grandma Liang asked.
"No……"
Grandma Liang snorted, "It's not water chestnut cake, I'm not eating it!"
After retiring, Grandma Liang stayed at home to grow flowers and plants, but as an elderly person, she was prone to injury from a fall.
Fortunately, it was just a sprain, and no bones were broken, but she still needs to be hospitalized for a few days. After the whole family found out, they all rushed to see Grandma Liang, and now the ward is full of people.
Feng Yuan pushed open the ward door. "Mom, I made you some porridge. Come and try it."
The person who came was Liang Hekang's mother. She opened the insulated box, which contained only a simple bowl of plain porridge. "You don't want to eat anything, would you like some plain porridge? I also brought you some pastries, which will go well with the porridge."
Liang Hekang nodded: "Yes, Grandma, you can't skip meals. You keep telling me to eat properly, but you don't set a good example yourself! But I have good news for you. Although the water chestnut cake is sold out, I begged and pleaded with the owner to make some more, and he agreed. You can have water chestnut cake tomorrow! Aren't you happy?"
Upon hearing this, Grandma Liang's previously sour face finally relaxed, and she smiled, "That's good, you truly are my good grandson!"
"Hehe, by the way, I bought these dishes from that store too. Grandma, would you like to try them?"
As he spoke, Liang Hekang opened the lunchbox, and immediately, a steaming aroma wafted out. Liang Hekang looked and saw that the stir-fried pork belly with pickled cabbage was glistening with oil, with large pieces of pork belly and pickled cabbage intertwined together, while the sweet and sour pork with pineapple also emitted a strong sweet and sour smell.
"Quickly, bring me my reading glasses, let me see," Grandma Liang said hurriedly.
Grandma Liang put on her reading glasses and was immediately drawn to the dishes in front of her; everyone in the ward also gathered around.
"It smells so good," Feng Yuan said.
Even though he had just eaten a lot of fried skewers, Liang Hekang suddenly started to feel hungry again as soon as he smelled the aroma of the food.
"I want to eat this," Grandma Liang said. "It's delicious. Everything the owner of that shop makes smells delicious."
Feng Yuan agreed, but she didn't want to take things from the elderly. Everyone in the ward was also envious and came over to ask Liang Hekang, "Xiao Kang, where did you buy this?"
"I bought it from Yu's Restaurant, which is opposite Yuncheng No. 1 Middle School," Liang Hekang said.
Opposite No. 1 Middle School?
Grandma Liang opened the rice container, picked out a piece of pickled cabbage, and put it in her mouth. The pickled cabbage was crisp with a hint of spiciness, and it absorbed the aroma of the pork belly. The flavors of the meat and the pickled cabbage melted on her tongue. Grandma Liang picked up another piece. It was just ordinary pickled cabbage, so why was it so delicious?!
After being hospitalized for several days and eating only bland food, she felt her tongue was awakened by the delicious food. The spiciness and saltiness stimulated her appetite, and she quickly picked up several more pieces.
"It smells so good, Xiaokang, you really are Grandma's good grandson!" Grandma Liang said while eating.
Liang Hekang: He was a bad boy when he couldn't buy water chestnut cake in the first place!
Feng Yuan swallowed hard and said what she really wanted to say, "I want to eat it too, it smells delicious."
Grandma Liang opened the package of another dish. "Xiaoyuan, you've been bringing me food every day these past few days. Come and have some."
The people in the ward looked at each other, but thinking they couldn't compete with the old lady for food, they said, "Um, Mom, I'll go out to eat too, and come back to keep you company later, okay?"
They were also craving food and were thinking of going to the small restaurant Xiaokang had mentioned for a meal.
Grandma Liang is just unable to go out and play due to mobility issues, and she doesn't need so many people to take care of her. However, her children are indeed filial and are afraid that the old lady will be lonely, so they come to the hospital to chat with her and play cards with her.
Grandma Liang smiled and said, "Go eat, go eat. You don't need to come and keep me company."
The people in the ward immediately scattered, and only then did Liang Hekang dare to take out the tea egg. "Grandma, aren't I your good grandson? Can I have one of these tea eggs?"
"What are you saying? Eat, eat, eat! If you want to eat, Grandma will give you food!" Grandma Liang said.
Liang and Kang quickly peeled the eggshell clean, took a big bite, and their eyes widened. No wonder Grandma kept asking for water chestnut cake from this shop. If a shop can make such delicious tea eggs, how bad can its other dishes be?
This is even tastier than fried skewers!
He licked his lips contentedly and said, "Grandma, I'll buy you food from this restaurant from now on!"
"Okay, okay!"
Feng Yuan chewed on the pork belly, the edges of which were crispy and charred. Dipped in the tangy and spicy pickled cabbage, the taste was even richer. She ate happily, "I want some too, bring some back for me, it's so delicious."
After saying that, Feng Yuan scooped out a small half bowl of white porridge and ate it with pickled vegetables. The originally bland and tasteless white porridge became flavorful.
After leaving the hospital, the group took a taxi to Yu Ji Restaurant. When they arrived at the intersection, the driver said that there was a school inside and they couldn't drive in, so everyone had to get out of the car and walk in. The group was quite large. Grandpa Xu was watering the plants on the roof, and when he saw the group walking this way, he took a curious look.
Grandpa Xu's eyes widened. How could this look so much like a □□?
Huh? Looking closer, it seems they're heading towards Xiaoyin's little restaurant.
Grandpa Xu was worried that Xiaoyin's restaurant was too popular and that someone was jealous and wanted to sabotage it, so he quickly put down the watering can and ran downstairs.
The group walked to the entrance of the small restaurant, looked up at the signboard, "Yu's Small Restaurant," then at the tightly closed door, and exchanged bewildered glances.
"Why is it closed? We're late!"
"That's a pity, let's come again tomorrow."
Then came a chorus of sighs and lamentations, and after they finished speaking, they turned back.
Grandpa Xu stood not far away listening, and his heart finally settled down. He thought to himself, "So it's a meal. What a pity, I missed the mealtime!"
The sky in the distance was a deep blue. The path around the high school was always quiet, with only a few birds chirping and the sound of traffic not far away, which made the figures of these people look even more lonely and desolate.
...
Yu Miaoyin went to the supermarket again and bought a lot of water chestnut flour. Last time, she made it at night and put it in the refrigerator, so it didn't taste as good as freshly made. She decided to make it again after dropping Xiaotangbao off at school tomorrow, and the customers who had ordered said they would come to pick it up at noon.
The next morning, Yu Miaoyin opened the shop early, before He Li arrived. Having experience making water chestnut cake, Yu Miaoyin was much faster, mixing the raw and cooked batters and separating the white and yellow batters, steaming them layer by layer.
It was 11 o'clock, so the water chestnut cake was ready.
She went to do something else. Yu Miaoyin chopped the soaked dried plum vegetables and mixed them with minced meat. After adding seasonings, she pounded the mixture a few times to make it firm, then pressed it into a cake shape and put it in a pot to steam.
Grandpa Xu didn't have to go to work, so he quickly came to the shop to pick up his water chestnut cake. After receiving the cake, he exclaimed, "Your water chestnut cake smells so good, and it looks beautiful too!"
"I think so too." Yu Miaoyin smiled and happily accepted his praise.
Yu Miaoyin made quite a lot of water chestnut cakes, and wrote "water chestnut cake" on the blackboard again. Below the water chestnut cakes were steamed pork patties with preserved vegetables and scrambled eggs with tomatoes.
Both dishes are common home-style dishes, and it's safe to say that almost every household in Yuncheng has made them. Tomato and egg stir-fry is a national dish. Grandpa Xu was also looking forward to it, so he sat down in a chair and waited for the small restaurant to officially open for business.
"Boss, is the water chestnut cake ready?" Liang Hekang rushed in.
"Is it ready? Do you want it now?" Yu Miaoyin asked. She remembered that Liang Hekang wrote the time as 12 o'clock, so why did he come so early?
Liang Hekang scratched his head again, "I'll get it later."
Then, she turned her attention to the menu written on the blackboard and asked, "Do you want steamed pork patties with preserved mustard greens and scrambled eggs with tomatoes today? I'll pack a few portions to take home after you make them."
"Okay." Yu Miaoyin had already prepared the steamed pork patty with preserved mustard greens a long time ago. All that was missing was the scrambled eggs with tomatoes. Judging that the high school students would be getting out of class soon, Yu Miaoyin said, "I'll make the scrambled eggs with tomatoes now."
Peel the tomatoes, cut them into chunks, and stir-fry them to release their juices. Then add the eggs and stir-fry until cooked. A rich aroma of tomato and egg wafts out.
"How many portions do you want?" Yu Miaoyin asked Liang Hekang.
"Three servings!" There aren't that many people in the ward today; three servings should be enough for them.
"Okay, all done."
Liang and Kang smiled, their hearts leaping with joy as they flew away from the small restaurant back to the hospital.
"Grandma, your precious grandson is back!" Liang Hekang said with a beaming smile. "Did you miss me?"
"What did you bring me today? Is it from that store?" Grandma Liang quickly looked up and asked curiously.
Liang Hekang:......
So food is your real treasure!
Liang Hekang accepted the fact that he was not loved and took the food to Grandma Liang and Feng Yuan.
"It smells so good!" Feng Yuan said.
Liang Hekang was also tempted. "Grandma, I'll leave the water chestnut cake here for you. You can eat it after dinner."
"good."
Upon opening the lunchbox, one could see bright red tomato chunks and golden yellow eggs intertwined. Feng Yuan remarked, "This broth is so thick; it would be wonderful to mix with rice."
After saying that, she touched her nose. It was such a simple dish, but her tomato and egg stir-fry was terrible in both taste and appearance.
There are no bad dishes, no bad ingredients, only bad cooks. This is the truth, and Feng Yuan admits it; she really doesn't have a talent for cooking.
Grandma Liang was also attracted by the aroma in the air. She was the first to scoop out a spoonful of scrambled eggs with tomatoes. The fluffy eggs absorbed the sweet and sour tomato juice, making the eggs tender and smooth, and the tomatoes tangy and fragrant. It was so delicious.
The thick broth was also bright red, and the stir-fried broth had the sweet and sour taste of tomatoes and the aroma of eggs. When mixed with rice, Grandma Liang ate it in big mouthfuls.
"There are other dishes too, hurry up and open them," Grandma Liang said.
The meat patty was a light brown color, with dried preserved mustard greens evenly distributed on top. The salty and fragrant preserved mustard greens and meat aroma blended together, making everyone's mouths water.
"Eat quickly, it won't taste as good when it gets cold."
The nurses had been busy all day without even having a sip of water, and they were both hungry and thirsty. As they passed by this ward, the aroma wafting out of it made them even hungrier.
"Is this family such a good cook? It smells so good!" a nurse exclaimed.
“I think so too!” another nurse replied.
Soon, she cautiously suggested, "Why don't we go ask? Maybe they bought it?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
