pjbooks Chapter 51 Winning Over Mom, Braised Dishes
Chapter 51 Winning Over Mom, Braised Dishes
The TV was accepted, so the fan wasn't a big deal either. Although we bought a lot of them, they weren't expensive.
Upon seeing the freezer, just as Mom was about to speak, Lin Chuan promptly presented her with a watch and, accompanied by sweet words, successfully appeased her.
After dinner, Mom said she wasn't going to watch TV, but she held the shoes for a long time without even sewing them.
Lin Chuan found it amusing and didn't disturb them. He went to the kitchen and started a fire.
Today at the department store, I actually saw spices, like star anise, Sichuan peppercorns, and cinnamon.
He wanted to buy it last time but couldn't find it, but this time he finally found it, so there's no doubt he'll buy it all.
Lin Chuan took out a wild boar head and a set of pig intestines. Although they had been smoked for a day, it hadn't been long enough to affect the cooking of braised pork.
After carefully scraping off the smoke marks from the surface, Lin Chuan blanched the spices and then began to stir-fry them. Before long, the fragrant aroma attracted several people watching TV.
"Brother, what are you doing? Didn't we already eat?"
Lin Xue stared longingly at the pot, her little nose twitching. Lin Chuan found it amusing and deliberately rubbed his belly.
"Hey, I'm not full yet, I'm going to eat some more. Xiaoxue, you've already eaten, do you still have any more to eat?"
"Brother, I don't think I'm full yet. I can eat a little more."
Lin Xue swallowed hard, pinching her fingertip with her thumb to indicate that it was just a little bit.
When Wang Yan saw Lin Chuan looking over, she followed suit and started pinching her fingers together. She didn't say anything, but her meaning was clear.
Lin Chuan smiled and shook his head, but out of the corner of his eye he noticed Lin Feng also pinching his fingers...
"What did you make? It smells so good. Make more so I can try some."
Seeing that his mother had joined in, Lin Chuan stopped teasing them and said:
"This is braised vegetables, which need to be braised for one or two hours. You'll have to wait if you want to eat it, but I suggest eating it tomorrow. It tastes even better if it's braised overnight."
The group looked at Lin Feng with resentment. He gave an awkward laugh and turned back to continue stir-frying.
The aroma of the spices was so tempting that the group stayed and watched Lin Chuan work.
Lin Xue's mouth was practically watering. She tilted her head back and asked:
"Brother, what's braised vegetables?"
"It's made by simmering it with star anise and Sichuan peppercorns, then soaking it overnight. Tomorrow, you can just mix it with light soy sauce and eat it directly."
"Oh, won't you heat it up a bit?"
"It's not hot, eat it cold."
"Huh, how can we eat it cold? I don't want to eat cold dishes."
Lin Xue was a little disgusted; they didn't have the concept of cold dishes here, not even smashed cucumbers.
The only cold dish was tomatoes with sugar, which wasn't served at the table; it was eaten as a snack outside of mealtimes.
Seeing his younger sister's doubts, Lin Chuan added boiling water to the pot, put the lid on, and turned to Lin Feng, saying:
"Go pick a few cucumbers, I'll show you a trick."
The cucumbers were quickly picked and washed, and Lin Chuan was very satisfied with his younger brother's good eye.
Having keen observation skills indicates attentiveness and intelligence. If such a person also has high emotional intelligence and a silver tongue, they can generally get along well.
It's a pity my brother wasn't talkative, and later he married that woman, which ruined his life.
However, now that I've been reborn, I definitely won't let this happen again. At crucial moments, I'll have to break them up.
Lin Chuan was thinking about all sorts of things, but his hands were moving quickly.
He picked up a cucumber, cut off the ends, smashed it a few times, chopped it into sections, threw it into a bowl, and added soy sauce, vinegar, MSG, ginger, and chili pepper pieces.
The seasonings were a bit odd, but that was all.
Heat a spoon over a fire, pour in oil, add salt and peanuts, stir, and you're done.
"Hey, eat up."
People usually eat cucumbers raw, so they're not that resistant, but they still had some hesitation.
Lin Xue was the bravest one. She picked up a piece about the size of her thumb, put it in her mouth, and swallowed it with two crunching sounds.
"How is it? Is it delicious?"
"I... I can't taste it. Let me try again."
Lin Xue picked up another piece, chewing it with a crunching sound, and then a third piece.
Seeing how much she enjoyed her food, the others started eating as well, and in no time, the two cucumbers at the bottom of the bowl were all gone.
"Brother, this is so delicious! You're amazing!"
"This is nothing yet, there's no garlic yet. It would taste even better with garlic."
"This tastes delicious, brother. I want to eat it again tomorrow."
"Okay, I'll make it for you tomorrow. Go watch TV now."
After shooing everyone away, Lin Chuan waited for the braising liquid to boil and then removed some firewood, as a large fire would easily burn out the firewood.
Keep the water boiling, add the pig's head, and then soak the intestines in a basin of warm water.
The pork intestines were blanched before smoking, and soaking them now is just to remove some of the smoky smell.
After the pig's head had been braised for an hour or so, Lin Chuan added the pig intestines.
After waiting for another half hour, until a chopstick could pierce through it, the fire was turned off, and the stew was left to soak overnight. The stew was then ready.
He went to take a shower, and when he came out, he saw Lin Xue and Wang Yan guarding the door. As soon as Wang Yan saw him, she ran over and looked at him with teary eyes.
"Hey, what's wrong, Yanzi? Who bullied you?"
Lin Chuan squatted down and patted her head. Upon hearing this, the little girl immediately burst into tears.
It was only after Lin Xue explained that Lin Chuan understood what had happened.
It turned out that Wang Long came while he was taking a shower, and he told Wang Yan to go back to sleep.
Unexpectedly, Wang Yan didn't want to go back, but Wang Long disagreed, leaving Wang Yan feeling wronged.
"Ah~, it's okay, Yanzi. If you don't want to go back, you don't have to. You can sleep here tonight, and you can share a bed with Xiaoxue, okay?"
Whether it was good or bad was a question for Wang Yan to ask, and a question for Lin Xue to answer. Later generations taught Lin Chuan a valuable lesson:
Children deserve respect, or rather, they deserve even more respect.
If you respect them, they'll remember you for a long time; if you respect adults, well, nobody cares.
Lin Xue and Wang Yan nodded happily, and Lin Chuan led them into the hall, one in each hand.
Wang Long, that guy, said he came to call Wang Yan home, but he was so engrossed in watching TV that he was completely absorbed in it himself.
"Hey, Chuanzi, this color TV looks so different, it's much better than a black and white TV."
"If you like it, go buy one too. I'll give you the money first, and then deduct it from your share later."
"Let's forget about it. This is a decision my dad has to make. If I dare to do it myself, I'll definitely get a beating."
"Don't be afraid, your dad isn't going to beat you to death. He'll just beat you up and then buy you a color TV. It's not a bad deal."
"Get out."
The two chatted quietly on the side. Wang Long told Lin Chuan that he and Wang Liang were planning to sell fish again tomorrow.
Lin Chuan nodded and told them about going hunting for the government the day after tomorrow.
The hunting trip organized by the government involved a small number of people, and there were many pig-related disasters in the county, so not everyone went together; they went separately.
Actually, Lin Chuan alone is enough for hunting; he had originally planned to bring Lin Feng along.
But after some consideration, I decided to bring Wang Long and Wang Liang along as well.
He was certainly not the only hunter in the mountains, and as everyone knows, humans are more dangerous than wild animals.
Bringing more people along would not only help him drive away prey, but also provide mutual support.