Pork Rib Soup

Song Shixia returned home and thought about what to cook for lunch. The worst thing about this era was that there were no supermarkets and she couldn't cook whatever she wanted. But she never wanted to treat herself badly when it came to food.

Finally, she decided to use the pork belly to make twice-cooked meat and stir-fried meat, and the spare ribs to make garlic spare ribs and stew a spare rib soup.

She took out dried chilies and peppercorns from the shelves in the space, as well as the ingredients needed for the stew, and put them all in bags she found in the kitchen, pretending that they were brought from the countryside.

Thinking that Aunt Feng would come over later, she didn't lock the door, but she didn't expect Aunt Feng to come over as soon as she put down her things.

"I found a piece of tofu at home and brought it to you. It's not worth much, so please don't reject it."

Song Shixia didn't say anything polite to her: "How could I dislike it? Tofu is a good thing. It can beautify your skin."

Aunt Feng likes girls who are carefree and not shy, it makes communication so much easier.

"Okay, you go ahead and do your work, I'll come over and give you a hand later."

"Don't worry, I can handle it by myself, just come over at mealtime."

Aunt Feng was not very reassured, as her youngest son had been having a fever for the past two days and was said to have a seasonal cold.

"Then you wash the vegetables first. I'll wake the child up and bring him over to help you. He has a cold and hasn't been to kindergarten these past two days."

As soon as Aunt Feng finished speaking, she left like a gust of wind.

Before Song Shixia could say no, Aunt Feng had already walked into the yard.

She thought that her hands and skin didn't look like the delicate skin of a young girl, and she had done farm work in the village, so why didn't Aunt Feng believe in her cooking skills?

Song Shixia took the vegetables out of the basket and washed them. She should buy another piece of tenderloin to make boiled pork slices, and it would be even better if she had beef.

The vegetables she bought are perfect for boiled pork slices, and lettuce and greens can be placed underneath as side dishes. But you can't use up all the vegetables at once, it's hard to go from extravagant to frugal. There are only two people in the family, so they can't eat more than a few dishes in one meal. The child should only eat children's meals at his age.

Song Shixia prepared the dishes and took some dried goods from the space and put them in the kitchen cupboard. In order not to reveal her tracks, she recorded this expenditure as two yuan in the account book, but in fact the money went into her own pocket.

Dried goods include kelp, shiitake mushrooms, black fungus, dried bamboo shoots, etc. It is convenient to take them out all at once and use them later.

It was still early for lunch, so Song Shixia blanched the ribs to drain the blood, put them into the pot along with the stew ingredients, and simmered them slowly over the coal stove.

The ribs that are going to be made into garlic ribs are also put into the soup pot to boil off the fat, and then returned to the pot for a second stir-fry. This way, no oil needs to be added to the stew, as she likes to drink light soup.

When Aunt Feng brought the children over, Song Shixia had just picked fruits from the space.

The fruits on the fruit trees in the space have all been picked, but a new batch of fruits have grown just one day and one night later. They are delicious, but it’s a pity that they cannot be taken out.

Song Shixia only dared to take a few apples, as the off-season fruits in the space grew too fast and could only be used to make wine.

"Auntie, eat an apple."

Aunt Feng was too embarrassed to take the apples, as apples were not cheap at this time of year. However, her son in her arms did not agree with her and stretched out his hand to take the apples.

Song Shixia stuffed the apple into the child's hand. The child looked skinny and small, just like a little monkey.

She touched the child's head.

"It's just an apple. We are neighbors, why are you being so polite to me?"

Aunt Feng was not shy and asked the child to thank Song Shixia.

"Xiao Yu, quickly thank Sister Xiao Song for giving you the apple."

Song Shixia quickly corrected: "I am an aunt, his original name was Xiaoyu."

Aunt Feng smiled and said, "You are only in your early 20s, but you are my elder sister, right? His full name is Xie Yu, which means jade, and his nickname is Xiao Yu'er."

As expected of the professor's son, his name is so nice.

Song Shixia smiled and said, "Xiaoyu must call Mr. Ji uncle. Mr. Ji and I are husband and wife. It would be confusing for him to call me sister."

Aunt Feng slapped her head and said, "Oh, I always thought of you as a young lady. If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about Professor Ji."

The little fish held the apple and said timidly:

"Thank you, Sister Xiao Song."

Aunt Feng smiled and said, "Look, my little fish thinks you are her sister. Just call her that. Professor Ji will definitely not mind. You are still so young."

Song Shixia did not refute, thinking in her heart that this child is really a little angel.

The two chatted for a while, and then she took Aunt Feng to the kitchen to cook.

Upon learning that Song Shixia didn't know how to use the gas stove, Aunt Feng was extremely glad that she came over.

Song Shixia explained helplessly: "In our village, we all use earthen stoves to cook. There are no gas stoves." Why didn't Aunt Feng believe that she could cook?

Aunt Feng suddenly realized: "Hey, why can't I think straight? I came from the countryside too, and I feel like I became dumber after giving birth to Xiaoyu. My brain is like a layer of paste. What do you think I should do?"

Song Shixia was half teasing her: "It's called one pregnancy makes a woman stupid for three years, and this year is the last stupid year."

Aunt Feng believed it and said, "Really? Is there such a saying?"

She could only make a random excuse: "I heard in the village that pregnant women's reactions will slow down, but they will get better in the future."

Aunt Feng finally breathed a sigh of relief. She lowered her voice and

"You don't know that I was boiling water in the pot the night before, but I forgot about it because I was so busy. When I found out, the kitchen was full of black smoke. I was scared to death. Fortunately, nothing happened. I haven't slept well for the past two days."

Song Shixia was frightened for her when she heard this.

She warned us seriously: "Don't leave when cooking. Even if you are just boiling water, you should leave someone to watch. It is a blessing in disguise that nothing serious has happened."

Aunt Feng nodded in agreement: "Who said it wasn't? Anyway, I won't dare to do it again. If something really happens, what will my children do? I'll teach you how to use the gas stove. It's very easy to use and much faster than a stove."

Song Shixia prefers wood-fired rice to gas stove rice, because it has a special taste that cannot be replaced. However, gas stoves are more convenient to use and sometimes boil water faster.

Aunt Feng learned it after she tried it once.

"That's why they say you young people have very sharp brains. You can learn something after just one look."

"Auntie, please help me steam the rice in the big pot and I'll cook the vegetables."

Aunt Feng sat in front of the stove and stretched her neck to watch her work. Xiao Song's skill in cutting vegetables really looked like she often went to the kitchen.

She couldn't understand why all the pretty girls she knew didn't like to go to the kitchen and carried a book with them wherever they went. She thought Xiao Song was the same as them. Xiao Song was pretty and could cook, which was very popular in the countryside. Why did she marry Professor Ji?

It’s not that Professor Ji is a bad person, but Professor Ji has two children. Which innocent girl would be willing to be his stepmother?

Although Professor Ji's children are not his own flesh and blood, he said that he would raise them as his own.

She knew that many girls had feelings for Professor Ji, as he was a professor at a young age and handsome, but they gave up when they thought that marrying him would mean becoming a widow.

The braised pork and stir-fried pork were served one after another, filling the whole kitchen with the alluring aroma.

Aunt Feng took a deep breath and said, "Cooking is just one step, how come yours smells so good?"

Song Shixia took out half of the ribs from the soup pot.

"Now you believe me, I really can cook."

"I believe it, I believe it. With your skills, you can open a shop."

Song Shixia shook her head: "I just like to cook home-cooked meals to satisfy myself. I'm too lazy to cook for others."

Aunt Feng smiled and joked, "Professor Ji is so lucky."

Add minced garlic into the pan and sauté until fragrant. Add the pork ribs and stir fry evenly.

"He, he eats in the cafeteria, he doesn't have this luxury."

Aunt Feng asked tentatively, "Comrade Xiao Song, how did you get to know Professor Ji?"

Song Shixia answered without even looking up: "We met at a blind date, and I fell in love with him at first sight."

Aunt Feng suddenly felt complicated: "Did you know his conditions at that time?"

"Yes, he said he would find a mother for the child. I thought he must be a kind man since he was so good to the child. Plus, he was the most handsome, so I thought he must be the one."

This was a reason she made up. As for the original person's psychological activities, she had no idea. She probably was confused by the face.

Aunt Feng didn't know what to say.

"You silly girl, you're lucky you didn't meet a bad guy. Although Professor Ji is a little cold, he's still a nice person."

Aunt Feng suddenly felt that she shouldn't ask so many questions. Perhaps Professor Ji was indeed a good man for Xiao Song. She put away her wild thoughts. As long as the young couple didn't have any major conflicts and could live a good life, it would be fine. Why should she worry about it every day?

All the dishes were served, and Song Shixia scooped half of the pork ribs soup from the pot and placed it on the table.

Aunt Feng brought Xiaoyu in from the yard. The child's body and hands were covered in mud.

"This kid is catching earthworms in your yard and doesn't mind the dirt at all."

Song Shixia smiled and asked Aunt Feng to take Xiaoyu to the bathroom to wash their hands and prepare for dinner.

Aunt Feng exclaimed in her heart: "Your bathroom is so clean. Unlike my bathroom with so many children, it smells really bad."

Song Shixia suddenly felt a little unwell. What if her own child was like this?

She is not afraid of naughty children, but she is afraid of children who like to roll around and crawl around and get their clothes dirty when they go out, which means that a lot of workload has been added to her invisibly.

Aunt Feng took the child to sit down, and Song Shixia scooped a bowl of pork rib soup for the child. The pork rib soup was stewed in a particularly light way.

"Will your soup taste good without oil?"

Song Shixia motioned for her to serve a bowl: "Try it."

After taking a sip of the hot soup, Aunt Feng wanted to swallow her tongue along with it.

"How did you make this soup? Why is it so delicious?"

The sparerib soup cooked by Xiao Song is so delicious, without any meaty smell at all.

"Just use less oil. I added a lot of ingredients, such as dried mushrooms and black fungus brought from my hometown. These ingredients make the soup taste fresh and fragrant."

Aunt Feng blushed and said, "Can you give me two even pieces of dried mushrooms? I want to make some soup tonight."

Song Shixia said without hesitation: "Sure, would you like some kelp and fungus?"

Aunt Feng felt that she had gone too far, coming over to eat and drink for free and even asking people for things.

"I'll buy it directly from you."

Song Shixia rejected her suggestion: "No, if you feel bad, just pick some cabbages from your yard for me, and I won't go out to buy vegetables for the next two days."

She has several barrels of dry goods. If she makes soup twice a month, it will probably take several years to use them all up.

"No problem. Go pick any vegetables you like in my yard and I'll bring them to you tomorrow morning."

Xiaoyu drank the soup, his eyes fixed on the meat on the table.

The dishes on the table were so delicious that the children were about to cry.

Song Shixia held back her smile and picked up a piece of pork chop for him.

"Chew slowly and don't bite the bones with your teeth."

Both the twice-cooked pork and stir-fried pork contain chili peppers and are not suitable for children. The garlic pork ribs do not contain too much garlic, but they can satisfy their cravings.

Aunt Feng was helpless: "Once he touches meat, he can't give it up."

Song Shixia touched Xiaoyu's head and said, "We two adults eat meat and let him watch. He has become a glutton. It's okay for children to have a taste of it occasionally, but we can't give it to them all the time."