Zhu Cuilan got up early today, and when Yang Donghu arrived, she had already prepared all the necessary ingredients.
There are many ingredients in Laba porridge, and the order in which they are put in is very important.
For things like red beans and lotus seeds that are resistant to cooking, you have to put them in early and simmer them slowly. When the time is almost up, you can put other things in.
You have to stir it from time to time to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. If it sticks to the bottom of the pot, no matter how well it is cooked, it will not taste good.
Zhu Cuilan held the lid in one hand and stirred the porridge in the pot with the other. Her face could not be seen clearly in the smoke.
"Auntie, let me help you."
Zhao Fangchu hadn't gotten up yet, so Zhu Cuilan had to light the fire and cook the porridge alone. Yang Donghu saw that she was a little overwhelmed and took the initiative to speak.
"No, no, I can prepare this myself. Have you eaten yet since you got up so early? The red dates and peanuts haven't been put into the pot yet, so we have to wait a while. Are you hungry? Your uncle bought some sesame cakes. Bring two over and put them on the stove to toast. I'll give them to you two."
Yang Donghu shook his head: "No, we've already eaten."
Zhu Cuilan covered the pot and turned off the open flame in the stove, leaving only the red-hot wood pieces, so that the porridge would become sticky.
"It's better for you two to get up early. Look at how lazy Fang Chu is. What will happen if he goes to someone else's house in the future? It's really annoying." Zhu Cuilan said worriedly.
Yang Donghu understood her concern for her children and said comfortingly, "Fang Chu is still young. Besides, he has a good personality and can get along with anyone. He will definitely have a good life in the future."
Zhu Cuilan was still worried: "He's not young anymore. He'll be seventeen after the New Year. Some people who met earlier would have already decided by now. Look at him, he's still like a child. How can I feel at ease? I'm so worried."
Although Seventeen was still young in Yang Donghu's eyes and had not yet reached adulthood, people in this world got married early, and neither of Zhu Cuilan's two children had started a family, so it was reasonable for him to be anxious.
But Zhao Fangchu was laughing all day long, with nothing on his mind. He only thought about buying delicious food. The more Zhu Cuilan thought about it, the angrier she became: "Look, it's already this late, and he hasn't woken up yet. No, I'll go wake him up. Donghu, you help me watch the pot."
After saying that, he rushed out of the kitchen.
After a while, Zhao Fangchu screamed in pain.
"Why are you yelling? Look at the time. I've already prepared the meal and I'm not here yet. Hurry up and come over to eat."
Yang Donghu listened to his aunt's roar and looked at the peanuts and red dates on the stove that had not yet been put into the pot, and he couldn't help laughing.
Zhao Fangchu took a long time to come to the kitchen. He was still rubbing his eyes which were not fully open when a large piece of ice was suddenly stuffed into his mouth.
Now I am completely awake.
Because of Zhao Fangyu's affairs, Zhu Cuilan would sometimes explode at the slightest provocation. Zhao Fangchu dared not speak out, so he moved to Yang Donghu's side and asked quietly, "What's wrong with my mother? Who offended her?"
Yang Donghu shook his head to indicate that he didn't know, and whispered, "I just arrived, and it happened after just a few words."
Zhao Fangchu sighed and said, "She must be worried about my brother. You don't know, my uncle sent a message yesterday saying that my cousin is getting married on the 22nd of the twelfth lunar month and asked my mother to go over early to help. My cousin is a year younger than my brother, so my mother must be worried."
"Brother Fang Yu is so old, why hasn't he settled down so early?"
Zhao Fangchu looked up at Zhu Cuilan, and seeing that she was busy and not paying attention to them, he lowered his voice: "Well, actually, my brother has been in a relationship before. But at that time, my family was not well off, and the matchmaker chose a boy for my brother. My mother didn't care much about whether it was a girl or a boy, as long as he had a good heart. But it turned out that the boy was a widow with a child. We were about to get married, but this interruption ruined it. Since then, my brother has stopped looking for a date. He always feels that others look down on us because we don't have money."
Yang Donghu felt that this was too tragic. Why did this kind of thing happen to Zhao Fangyu every time?
"My parents sometimes think that suffering a loss is a blessing, and they don't like to compete with the villagers for petty gains. Maybe others think that my parents are honest and easy to bully. But my mother is the same. She has been fooled once, so she can be fooled a second time. She is quite impressive, right?"
Yang Donghu pursed his lips to prevent himself from laughing: "I guess Auntie must be scared this time."
Zhao Fangchu couldn't control himself and raised his voice: "More than that..."
As soon as he spoke, he realized something was wrong. Seeing Zhu Cuilan looking at him, he quickly lowered his head and pretended nothing had happened.
Zhu Cuilan shouted, "What are you mumbling about? Have you washed your face?"
"Oh, I've washed it, I've washed it." Zhao Fangchu continued in a lowered voice: "My mother gets a headache every time she hears about matchmaking. My brother finally got over the blow he suffered last time, and I don't know when he'll be willing to meet someone this time. What kind of fate does my brother have?"
Yang Donghu disagreed, "It's their fault for meeting the wrong person, it has nothing to do with our family. If you do it again and again, maybe you'll meet a good one next time."
Zhao Fangchu nodded: "Maybe, my brother is a good person, maybe he can."
Zhu Cuilan interrupted their conversation and said to Zhao Fangchu, "The red dates are ready to be cooked. They'll be ready to eat in a little while. Go get your father to light the firecrackers, and then go to the main room and get some rock sugar. I'm going to make pickled garlic with it."
"Okay."
The sound of firecrackers has been heard one after another in the village, and the air is filled with the smell of saltpeter.
During this special holiday, people always set off a string of firecrackers before cooking. Originally, they only set off fireworks before eating the New Year's Eve dinner. Chinese New Year is a day of family happiness, and setting off firecrackers not only adds to the festive atmosphere but also symbolizes reunion.
Later, gradually, everyone loved to set off firecrackers during every family reunion festival, such as the Lantern Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, or other traditional festivals, no matter when, just for the fun.
As the sound of firecrackers rang out, Zhu Cuilan began to prepare Laba garlic.
I cut off the heads and tails of the garlic when I peeled it yesterday, so that it will be easier to absorb the vinegar. No matter what kind of pickled vegetables you make, there must be no raw water in the jar, otherwise it will grow mold before fermentation.
The method of pickling Laba garlic is very simple. Cover the garlic with rice vinegar, add a few rock sugar, and then add a few drops of white wine to sterilize it. Place it next to the stove or in a place where it can be exposed to sunlight and pickle it for a while.
It is said that the garlic from Laba Festival should be eaten on New Year's Eve. By the day of New Year's Eve, it will almost turn green. It is best to eat it with dumplings to relieve the greasiness.
Yang Donghu and Zhao Fangchu watched and learned from the side. This thing is simple and does not require advanced skills. It is the easiest to learn.
After the Laba garlic was cooked, the porridge in the pot was also ready. The porridge that had been simmered over low heat for a whole morning was fragrant. Zhu Cuilan served a bowl of it and asked Yang Donghu to take it back and put it in his own kitchen to offer sacrifices to the gods.
After drinking this bowl of soft, sticky Laba porridge, the New Year is one day closer.
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