Chapter 227 Killing the New Year Pig
Pork stewed with vermicelli is a life ideal pursued by people in the Northeast in this era.
When slaughtering the New Year pig in the Northeast, people usually take out half of the pig and sell it to the neighbors so that everyone can have a taste of the meat. When slaughtering the New Year pig, Wang Yuanchao could not handle it alone, so he naturally had to ask others for help. In those days, every household slaughtered the New Year pig, and the village was filled with joy.
When a family slaughters a pig, the whole village comes to watch, especially the children who are more excited.
Killing the New Year pig is a technical job, so the one who usually handles the butchery is someone who has this skill.
The person Wang Yuanchao invited was also a pig butcher in the village.
Not only did this group of people do a great job, they also didn't waste anything. They cleaned up the hooves, blood, offal and the like neatly. As everyone said, "we could get an extra five pounds of meat out of them."
After the New Year pig was slaughtered, Wang Yuanchao gave the head, hooves and some offal as rewards to the butchers who came to help. They did not refuse because it was an established custom.
Wang Yuanchao solidified the blood of his own pig with salt and put it away. He planned to ask his mother-in-law to make some tofu the next day and make Wang Yuanchao's favorite pig blood and tofu soup. Then he would throw the pig's tail and bladder to the children watching and ask them to cook them and eat them.
In the Northeast, on the day of slaughtering pigs, close relatives and friends are invited to come and eat the slaughtered pig dishes, both to maintain relationships and to express congratulations.
Therefore, the relatives of the Zhang and Du families also came to Wang Yuanchao's home early to help with things.
The one helping with the cooking today is Auntie Xinghua.
I saw her chopping the bloody neck of the freshly slaughtered pig into large pieces and cooking it, then cutting it into large slices and putting it into the pot, adding sauerkraut, water and seasonings while cooking. After the meat was tender and the vegetables were cooked, she poured the stuffed blood sausage into the pot and cooked it.
When the dish is served, meat, sauerkraut, and blood sausage, the three-in-one pig-killing dish, has tender meat and delicious soup. It is both appetizing and satisfying, and is the most typical Northeastern dish.
Next up is the famous Northeastern dish, stewed pork ribs with pickled cabbage. Pickled cabbage is a very oily food, so when you put it in a pot with pork ribs and stew it,
The fat in the pork has been absorbed quite cleanly by the sauerkraut, so even though there is a little fat on top, it doesn’t taste greasy at all;
The sauerkraut with meat flavor has a unique aroma.
Not to mention the boneless meat, the lean meat stewed in the sauerkraut pot is torn into small pieces and eaten directly with soy sauce and mashed garlic, it is really a feast for the taste buds.
The main reason why everyone is happy about slaughtering the New Year pig is that they can drink big bowls of wine and eat big chunks of meat. The taste of wine and meat will make anyone feel dizzy.
After a pig-killing feast, Wang Yuanchao's family cut the remaining half of the pig, more than 100 pounds of pork, into strips and put all the meat into a large water tank on the porch to freeze.
Thaw it when you want to eat it, and it will be just like eating fresh pork.
After seeing off the relatives who came to eat the New Year pig, only Aunt Xinghua and the three sisters Zhaodi, Pandi and Niandi were left at home. The three sisters loved their little brother, Zizi, the most. In those days, boys were valued more than girls. For families like Zhaodi, Pandi and Niandi, their parents and the neighbors and relatives around them had been nagging about having a boy since they were born.
Now that their father has passed away and there is no boy to support the family, the three sisters now regard their aunt's little boy, Zizi, as their spiritual support.
Ever since the baby turned one month old, the three sisters have come to play with their nephew every day. With such concern for his well-being, Wang Yuanchao even worries that his baby will be spoiled by these aunts.
But the three girls in Aunt Xinghua's family have been ingrained with the idea that men are the breadwinners since they were young.
Every time Wang Yuanchao tried to reason with them, they wouldn't listen . Wang Yuanchao didn't want to lose his temper with the little girls, so he just turned a blind eye and took the pig's head and pig's legs rewarded by the team to the kitchen to prepare braised pig's head and pig's legs to eat.
Wang Yuanchao likes braised pork head and pork leg, especially after braising, he cuts the pork head into slices.
Stir-fry ginger, garlic, onion, and chili pepper, simmer with wine, and then remove from the pan.
The taste is amazing, the pig head is fat but not greasy, and the fragrance of chili, garlic, ginger slices and braised meat are mixed together, while maintaining the original flavor of the braised pig head. It is crunchy and refreshing when you take a bite.
Since hibernating, Aunt Xinghua's family has basically eaten lunch and dinner at Wang Yuanchao's house. On the snowy day, Wang Yuanchao's fish pond caught more than 3,000 kilograms of fish, which filled two tanks in Wang Yuanchao's home. Now they are frozen, so they can eat fresh fish whenever they want.
The three little girls, Zhaodi, Niandi and Pandi, now like their aunt and cousin's house the most. Besides playing with their nephews and nieces every day, they also have endless candies and snacks to eat. Their meals every day are rice, flour, big fish and meat. This makes the three little greedy people very happy.
Wang Yuanchao now spends his days sitting by the stove, making tea, and eating melon seeds and peanuts.
He just took his young wife to study high school textbooks and math, physics and chemistry books. Although life was comfortable, he still had to have dreams. After all, after the reform and opening up in the future, Wang Yuanchao's family wanted to leave the countryside and return to the city as soon as possible. The college entrance examination was definitely the first choice. Of course, if Wang Yuanchao's family really failed to get into college at that time,
By that time, Uncle Lu would surely have recovered and returned to the army. With Uncle Lu's status and position, it would certainly not be difficult to rescue Wang Yuanchao's family. However, if that were the case, Wang Yuanchao's future life would lack a lot of initiative. Therefore, for Wang Yuanchao, taking the college entrance examination and returning to the city would be his first option.
As for whether my young wife and mother-in-law would follow me back to the city,
Wang Yuanchao had never thought about this problem. Women of this era all hold the idea of "marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog". Men have the final say on major family matters. As long as Wang Yuanchao has made a decision, Wang Yuanchao believes that his young wife and mother-in-law will support his decision.
"Brother-in-law, brother-in-law, this meat is so delicious.
Can Pan Di have one more piece?"
Wang Yuanchao tapped Pan Di's little nose and said with a smile, "Of course Pan Di can eat more. The dishes are prepared for everyone to eat. If Pan Di likes to eat, then eat as much as you want. Eat more. Come, brother-in-law, serve some for Pan Di."
Wang Yuanchao looked at the three little girls, Zhaodi, Niandi, and Pandi, with dry yellow hair, pale faces, and thin bodies.
I always feel sad, but there is nothing I can do. The three little girls are now without a father, and the whole family depends on Aunt Xinghua to work in the fields to support them.
Although my mother-in-law often brought some meat from home to supplement nutrition, and although the work points of the Red Flag Brigade were valuable and the welfare this year was good,
But that was just a drop in the bucket. The three little girls had never eaten anything good since they were young.
They are all relatives, and since Wang Yuanchao has the conditions, he naturally wants to give the three little girls a good treat.
(End of this chapter)
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