Siheyuan: Bringing Warehouses to 1959

The kitchen was as hot as a steamer, but Zhang Xiuzhi was reluctant to leave the kitchen. The taste of the braised toad gave her strong confidence in tomorrow's sales. Now the large intestine was added to the mix. She followed Zeng Wangcai and learned seriously.

"Okay, turn off the fire after an hour, then pour the toads in and soak them together. Seal it in a small jar at night and put it in spring water from the back mountain to calm it down so it won't go bad. Soaking it overnight will make it more flavorful. Three parts braising and seven parts soaking are the key to braising." said Zeng Wangcai, who had completed the last step.

Food preservation in summer is a big problem in the absence of a freezer.

Fortunately, the Zeng family's location is unique. If you go out the back door and walk a little further up the mountain, you will find a mountain spring. The water is clear and sweet, warm in winter and cool in summer, much better than the well water in the village.

The Zeng family has two small jars, which were used to seal up perishable items and soak them in mountain spring water for preservation in the summer. However, they were not used much this year because they were not needed.

Zhang Xiuzhi memorized them one by one, and went into the house with Zeng Wangcai to find the dusty small jars, and each of them carried one to the back mountain.

After cleaning the jar and placing it in the front yard to dry, Zeng Wangcai returned to the kitchen. It was time to cook.

Second Aunt Ma Ping came in with a bag of flour, about two or three pounds, and in her other hand she held a pot that exuded the aroma of local wine.

"Second Aunt, are we eating white flour buns for dinner?" Zeng Wangcai asked in surprise.

With meat, even mixed flour steamed bread is delicious, and it is too luxurious to pair it with steamed buns.

Ma Ping fetched water and kneaded the dough while answering, "Your second uncle invited the village chief's family to dinner. This is what the village chief's wife sent over to join in the meal. Mix some of the cornmeal you brought back into the dough to make steamed buns. Let's have a dry meal today."

Haha, you’re quite a good person.

Zeng Laosan's son was not at home, and there were only three people in his family. It was reasonable for him to come to our house for dinner and bring some flour and wine to share the cost.

Zeng Wangcai took control of cooking again and asked the eldest sister and the second daughter of Zeng Laosan's family to light the fire. The second sister pulled the third sister to follow him and watch him cook.

The braised large intestines are ready. Pick out two and set aside to have as a dish in the evening.

When the marinade is taken out of the pot, the whole room is filled with tempting aroma, attracting the man who is cooking the fire and the people who are following him, staring at the bright red large intestine without blinking.

"A bunch of little greedy cats."

Zeng Wangcai laughed and cried. He cut half of the large intestine with a knife and started feeding it to the guests. He first gave a piece to Erya who came to visit, and then gave a piece to each of his three sisters.

"Jinhuan, your elder brother is so nice, and the large intestines he cooks are so delicious. I wish he was my elder brother." Zeng Erya said quietly at the door of the stove, savoring the taste of the large intestines.

"No, that's my elder brother." Xiaohuan's face was full of vigilance.

The sisterhood almost became a fake one because of a mouthful of intestines.

"You are really good at cooking." Zhang Xiuzhi, who was also fed, said while sucking her fingers.

"I have more than one skill, you will know it soon." Zeng Wangcai smiled and activated the skills of a single dog in his previous life.

Cut the pork liver into thin slices, wash off the blood, drain and season.

There were no green peppers, only ginger, garlic, a handful of wild garlic, and a handful of dried peppers that Zeng Wangcai secretly prepared.

Turn on the fire, heat the pan on high heat, add ginger and garlic into the hot pan and add dried chilies after sautéing. After slightly frying, add a small portion of pork liver.

"Cough, cough, ugh, cough..."

"Brother, what are you cooking? It's so choking."

When the peppers were stimulated by the hot oil, the pungent spicy smell had no time to escape from the chimney, and made the girls cough continuously.

Zhang Xiuzhi's eyes lit up as she stared at the red peppers in the pot. The pungent spicy taste had no effect on her at all, but instead had infinite appeal.

Chengdu people, is there anyone who doesn’t eat spicy food?

After Zhang Xiuzhi came to Zengzhuang, the only thing she was not used to was that she couldn't eat spicy food.

When the pork liver is about 70% to 80% cooked, immediately pour in the wild garlic, stir-fry a few times and serve. A small portion of your own version of stir-fried pork liver is ready.

"Eat it, try the taste, it's made especially for you!"

"Made it especially for me?"

"Otherwise, who in the family can eat spicy food? Grandma can't, and neither can Jinhuan and the others. Eat it, there's still a lot, I'll make more for them."

Zhang Xiuzhi took a bowl of spicy and fragrant stir-fried pork liver out, took a bite with chopsticks in the backyard, and couldn't help feeling a sour nose.

As strong as she is, there are times when her defenses are broken.

"Xiuzhi, the most important thing for a woman is to find a man who can love her..." Grandma appeared out of nowhere to help her grandson.

In the kitchen, Zeng Wangcai was still busy. Don’t fry the next portion of pork liver yet, as it will taste much worse when it gets cold. Second uncle went to the commune to deliver meat and brought brothers Zeng Hu and Zeng Bao to help. No one knew when they would be back for dinner.

Tonight, except for one wild vegetable, the rest is meat.

Before officially starting, there is still an important task to be done - refining lard.

Zeng Wangcai has his own way of refining lard. He throws the cleaned pork fat into the pot, adds water and slowly stir-fryes it, while adding some ginger, garlic and other seasonings. After the water is boiled away, simmer it over low heat. When the oil comes out, put a pinch of salt and pepper and soybeans in the oil tank. This way, the lard is not only white and greasy, but can also be stored for a long time.

"Brother, I want to eat oil residue!"

Three maids gathered around the stove, watching the pork fat turn into golden dregs. Zeng Erya stood behind them, looking timid. She wanted to eat but didn't dare to ask.

"Wait, it's too hot now and not crispy. When it cools down, add some salt and it will be crispy and delicious again."

Children seem to never be full. Xiaohuan, who had just gone to the yard to get a piece of pork liver and cried because of the spicy taste, has stopped crying and is now waiting eagerly to eat the oil residue.

There were a lot of lard residues. Zeng Wangcai put some in a bowl and sprinkled a pinch of salt on it. The fragrant lard residues were ready, and he gave them to the four maids to enjoy.

Later on, he would make twice-cooked pork, stir-fried pork liver, and cold-mixed purslane, which were not difficult at all for Zeng Wangcai.

In the evening, the bamboo beds were set up, and a large portion of twice-cooked pork, a large portion of stir-fried pork liver, a large portion of cold-mixed purslane, a portion of braised pork intestines, and a bowl of lean meat soup was made separately for grandma and the youngest Xiaohuan.

The staple food is dry, a basket of steamed buns made of 20 grams of flour.

Zeng Youhuo and Zeng Laosan came back with smiles on their faces, both empty-handed. Behind them, brothers Zeng Hu and Zeng Bao were holding two bottles of wine and a paper bag.

Secretary Wang of the commune gave me a bag of peanuts and two bottles of authentic Niulanshan liquor in return.

Although there is not much to offer, the attitude is clear and Zeng Youhuo has successfully become popular with his Banshan pork.

That night, Zeng Youhuo and Zeng Laosan got drunk and ate all the dishes.

......

Zhang Xiuzhi got up early before dawn, washed up, and went to the bamboo bed where Zeng Wangcai was sleeping in the main room.

"Get up! Zeng Wangcai, get up, Wangcai..."

Zeng Wangcai opened his eyes dazedly. It was still dark outside. "Why are you in such a hurry? It's not even daybreak yet."

"It's getting late. We have dozens of miles to go. Grandma and Second Aunt are making pancakes for us."

Zeng Wangcai got up and became much more sober. He remembered that he had to take Route 11 to go back and could not ride Yadi.

After washing up, Zeng Wangcai called the Tiger and Leopard brothers to go to the back mountain and dig out two water vats. One vat was full of braised food, and the other was filled with pork, a pig leg, ribs and other things that they were going to take back.

Yesterday grandma was worried that it would go bad, so she sprinkled a layer of salt on the meat.

Each jar weighed dozens of pounds, so it was not easy to carry it back, so grandma and second aunt tied the two jars with a hemp rope and carried them on a shoulder pole when they left.

The Tiger and Leopard brothers were assigned the task of escorting Zeng Wangcai back to Sijiu City, and they took turns carrying the load on the way.

Before leaving, grandma reluctantly saw him off to the door and said, "Grandson, take good care of Xiuzhi and don't lose her... Also, don't rush back, take her home and let her take a nap..."