BXBX NOVEL Chapter 115 - 115: Boiled Fish
Now that Qiao Xiaomai had said she would teach the main chef at Jiwaiju how to cook tofu in the afternoon, she would naturally go ahead. At the moment she had come home early because there was nothing to do in the town, so she decided to do some chores around the house.
As for being angry, of course she was angry, she had stealthily crushed a handful of melon seeds while walking back home with her hand in her basket.
After turning the seeds into dust, the sulking within her was ventually gone.
When she got home, it was not yet noon. It seemed like the whole family went out for the market day.
Qiao Xiaomai went into the hall to check the bean sprouts. They had grown as long as a finger, and thus were ready to be eaten.
She scraped off the scales of two grass carps, excised their internal organs, and sliced the meat into pieces. Next, she marinated the slices in egg whites and seasoning.
She got Qiao Dami to light the fire. When the pot was hot, she poured in oil and added ginger, garlic, hot pepper, Sichuan pepper and other seasonings. After stir frying the seasonings until they became fragrant, she put in the fish heads and sauteed them. Then soup was added and the pot was left to simmer.
When the water was boiling, she ladled the fish slices and added them in to continue boiling.
Since there was only soybean paste made from soybeans available here, without any doubanjiang (a kind of broad bean sauce), she didn’t use any paste.
While the pot simmered away with the fish slices, she turned over a pottery pot to cook the sprouts.
By the time the sprouts were cooked, the fish slices were also ready. She first put the cooked sprouts at the bottom of a bowl and then slowly poured the boiled fish slices into the bowl. This boiled fish dish was now considered prepared.
The water-boiled fish she made didn’t look very enticing, but it tasted great. The fish didn’t have any odd taste, but were fresh and fragrant, with a tint of numb and spiciness.
The fish was much more delicious than the little fish they had caught in the small river, each of which was only as long as a finger.
With some steamed buns, the three of them ate a whole basin of water-boiled fish.
The two fish, weighing a total of over six kilograms, were all polished off in one meal!
Qiao Dami patted her bulging belly, generous with her praise. “Sister, your cooking is getting better and better!”
Qiao Changshun, who sat nearby, nodded again and again, “If anyone else comes to invite you to cook a village feast, bring these sprouts with you. They’re tasty.”
Qiao Xiaomai just grunted in acknowledgement.
In truth, she didn’t very much like eating sprouts. But this type of sprouts were not unpleasant to eat. Even if she didn’t like them, others did, and moreover, one kilogram of soybeans could produce seven to eight kilograms of sprouts. It was quite a profitable business.
Upon thinking of this, she spoke, “Later, let’s send some to Aunt Guilan’s house and to Grandpa as well.”
She had only soaked one kilogram of soybeans initially, but now there were plenty of sprouts, making it possible for these to be given away freely.
Qiao Changshun nodded, “Alright, we’ll send some to the Village Chief’s house too. And ask him to announce it to the whole village so that everyone can know about our food.”
“Okay,” Qiao Xiaomai had no objections to this.
So, after the meal, she and Qiao Dami first went to Aunt Guilan’s house and then to the old Qiao Family courtyard.
When she and Qiao Dami arrived, the people at the old courtyard were preparing to work in the fields. Seeing her come over, everyone, except Qiao Qinghe and Qiao Dazhu, stared at her like enemies with unfriendly expressions.
Qiao Xiaomai could not be bothered to deal with them, just handing the basket in her hand to Qiao Qinghe. “Grandpa, this is the new bean sprouts I’ve made from soybeans. They are good for stir-fry or stew and taste pretty good. Please try some.”
Hearing that there were gifts, Sun Family’s facial muscles which had been taut relaxed. She came over to look at the sprouts and harrumphed, “So, you’ve come up with a new dish again.”
Qiao Xiaomai did not even grunt in response, and instead directly handed the basket to Qiao Qinghe.
Sun Family observed all this and became even angrier. “You impudent girl, what’s with your attitude?!”
“Shut your mouth!” Qiao Qinghe gave her a stern glance, “If you don’t say anything, no one will think you’re mute!”
As he spoke, he took the basket and quickly returned home to pour the sprouts into a wooden basket.
After being scolded, Sun Family’s anger flared up even more, and she was tinged with resentment. Just as she was about to launch a new scolding tirade, Zhu Cuiying squeezed over.. Her pockmarked face was full of smiles and her tone was very friendly, “Xiaomai, how much are you selling these new sprouts for?”