Upon arriving in the kitchen, Xia Liang had the two sit aside and watch the fire. She took out flour and starch in a 1:1 ratio, mixed them evenly, sprinkled in salt and five-spice powder, and mixed well. The simple batter for fried chicken was ready. She divided half of it into another bowl, cracked in a few eggs, added water, and stirred it into a paste. She rolled the marinated chicken in the paste, ensuring the whole chicken was coated, then rolled it in the flour, squeezed it, and shook off the dry flour. After both chickens were coated, the fire was lit. Xia Liang placed a large pot on it and poured in half a pot of rapeseed oil. This action made Liu Ma's eyes twitch, and she thought to herself: "I've never seen such a wasteful wife, nor such a capable one."
When the oil was about 40% hot, Xia Liang put the chicken in: "Girl, keep the fire low! If the fire is too high, it will burn and we won't be able to eat it." Gu Yunxi wanted to nod, but she knew that if the fire was too high, she would add firewood. What if the fire was too low? Seeing her daughter's puzzled expression, Xia Liang couldn't help but laugh, forgetting that her daughter was still a child. Liu Ma quickly stepped forward and said, "Let me do it!" As she spoke, she pulled out two pieces of firewood from the stove, which made the fire low. Seeing the chicken that had just sunk to the bottom now float to the surface, Xia Liang knew it was almost ready, so she scooped it out and said, "Turn up the fire." Aunt Liu, always obedient, put the two pieces of firewood that had just gone out back into the stove, and the fire immediately roared to life. Xia Liang then put the fried chicken back in to fry. Little Gu Yuanzhi asked in confusion, "Mommy, isn't it already cooked? Why do we have to put it back in the pot?" Xia Liang smiled and said, "The first frying is at a low temperature to cook the chicken through, and the second frying at a higher temperature is to make it crispy and crunchy. That's how it tastes best." The little one nodded, looking enlightened.
Xia Liang brought the fried chicken to the living room and tore off two drumsticks for her daughter. It looked delicious, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, incredibly crunchy with every bite. The two little ones ate with gusto, their mouths dripping with oil, praising her repeatedly, "Mom, you're amazing! You can make such delicious food; you're a truly all-around amazing mom!" Xia Liang wasn't embarrassed by her daughters' praise, because she genuinely felt she was quite capable. Unexpectedly, Aunt Liu chimed in, "Director Xia is indeed amazing, and she always has all sorts of ingenious ideas. The things she makes are both novel and delicious." The four apprentices, Chen Yanling and her two brothers, who had just entered, nodded in agreement after tasting Xia Liang's fried chicken. Hearing this, Xia Liang blushed. She had learned to make these dishes from short videos in her previous life, and while they were passable, they were still far from the level of those who had formally learned. Aunt Liu's cooking was exceptional, and hearing her say that made Xia Liang feel incredibly ashamed.
Ever since the two little ones ate fried chicken, they think their mom is a master chef and often pester her to cook delicious food. With butter, Xia Liang can make even more dishes.
That day, Xia Xinran and Xia Yuxuan, who were on holiday, also came to the capital. Since the adults were busy, the two little ones went directly to their aunt's house. Xia Liang saw several children practicing martial arts in the yard and thought she should get them something nice to eat. Xia Liang rode a pedicab, calling Chen Yanling, who wasn't teaching, to come along. Chen Yanling, pedaling, asked curiously, "How much groceries are you buying? And you're riding a pedicab!" Xia Liang wrapped her scarf around her head, feeling uncomfortable in the cold wind. "I'm planning to get them some roasted meat." She then looked at Chen Yanling, who didn't want to wear a scarf, and said, "Aren't you cold? I'm freezing sitting in the back, and you're not even wearing a scarf!" Chen Yanling chuckled, "We martial artists train hard in the coldest winter and hottest summer; this little bit of cold doesn't bother us." Xia Liang gave her a thumbs up.
Xia Liang directed Chen Yanling to a village outside the suburbs. Whether they could even buy it in the city was another matter, but it would be too conspicuous. Upon entering the village, they heard lively, joyful sounds, accompanied by the faint sounds of pigs being slaughtered. Xia Liang guessed correctly; it was the end of the year, and rural families had already begun slaughtering their New Year pigs. After all, they had raised them for a year, and at the end of the year, they were counting on the fat pigs to have a prosperous New Year!
Xia Liang asked Chen Yanling to lock the tricycle nearby, and the two walked towards the bustling area. Sure enough, everyone was gathered there slaughtering pigs for the New Year. This was common practice these days; villagers would gather to slaughter pigs together, helping each other out. Suddenly, seeing two strangers enter the village, a young man asked, "Ladies, are you visiting relatives?" Normally, relatives wouldn't visit at the end of the year; even the poorest families would prepare for the New Year, and anyone with common sense wouldn't do so. But judging from Xia Liang's attire, she seemed like a high-ranking official, and he figured she wouldn't take advantage of relatives. However, he didn't know what Xia Liang was there for, so he could only ask if she was visiting relatives.
Xia Liang chuckled and rubbed her hands together, saying, "No, comrade, I came here to ask if you sell pork. If you do, I'd like to buy some." The man was overjoyed to see Xia Liang was there to buy meat: "Yes, of course! We slaughtered a big, fat pig this year, over 300 jin! How much do you want?" Xia Liang said shyly, "I only want pork belly and pig's feet, is that alright? As much as you have." The man nodded: "Sure, that's fine. I can cut them for you right now." After all, if he didn't have pork belly, he could eat other things, and the pig's feet weren't very appealing, so he might as well sell them for money. He was getting married soon, and he still owed a lot on the dowry!
Xia Liang followed the young man to his pig before the New Year. The large, fat pig, already gutted, lay on the long table, pale red blood dripping onto the ground, creating a small crater. The young man confirmed again, "All the pork belly and trotters, right?" Xia Liang nodded. The man continued, "How about 1.5 yuan per pound for the pork belly and 0.8 yuan for the trotters?" Xia Liang readily agreed, nodding, "Okay, just cut them off and weigh them for me."
The young man swiftly chopped off the pork belly, and the four pig's trotters were also neatly chopped off. The pork belly weighed a little over 28 jin (approximately 14 catties), and the pig's trotters weighed 4 jin (approximately 2 catties). While the young man was still mentally calculating the price, Xia Liang had already given him the correct answer: "The pork belly is 28 and a half jin, that's 42.75 yuan. The pig's trotters are 4 jin, 3.2 yuan, that's 45.95 yuan in total. I'll give you 47 yuan. Later, can you help me carry the meat to the village entrance? Where is my tricycle parked?" The man was initially surprised by Xia Liang's calculation skills, but then, hearing that he would only receive an extra yuan for helping him carry such a short distance, he was overjoyed and speechless, only able to nod repeatedly.
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