Ordinary observers in fast time travel

Chapter 1263 Mochi and Fried Pork Belly

Shi Jia returned to the kitchen as if nothing had happened. She first went to Manager Luo to select ingredients for lunch, then picked up a small basket of red dates and glutinous rice flour and began to think about the afternoon dessert.

Completely oblivious to the slightly strange atmosphere in the kitchen.

On the contrary, Wang Quan, the simpleton, couldn't stand the pointing fingers and whispers from the other kitchen helpers, and couldn't help but ask, "Master Li, did the old lady call you over just now to ask you anything?"

"Huh?" Shi Jia didn't quite hear what he said and looked at him in confusion. "What is it?" She subconsciously glanced at everyone in the kitchen and frowned. Why were they all looking at her like that?
Wang Quan repeated it.

"Oh, it's nothing, it's just that I won't be responsible for the old lady's meals anymore." Shi Jia felt a little helpless, thinking of Madam Wang's angry appearance.

She couldn't possibly change her mind, especially since the decision was backed by a contract. Besides, she'd been working eleven hours a day, from five in the morning to six in the evening, for a long time already.

"Huh? Why? Is it because the old lady doesn't like the food?" Wang Quan asked in surprise. He had tasted Chef Li's cooking yesterday, and the taste was absolutely top-notch.

To put it bluntly, even Master He couldn't compare to him.

"Well, maybe she's just used to Chef He's cooking," Shi Jia said irresponsibly. Glancing at the group of kitchen helpers out of the corner of her eye, she saw their expressions—half disappointed, half excited—and was speechless.

"Huh?" Wang Quan was even more puzzled. How come he had never heard of the old lady having a preference for Chef He's cooking?
Shi Jia ignored her; she had made up her mind to make glutinous rice and red date mochi, a recipe she had remembered from her dream last night. She couldn't wait to try it. However, mochi is sticky and hard to digest, so it would need to be served with a sweet soup.

Thinking of this, Shi Jia turned and went to the storage room next door. "Manager Luo, has the estate sent any goat milk or cow milk?"

"A lot of goat milk was delivered. Does Chef Li need it?" Steward Luo had also heard about what happened in the old lady's courtyard, but so far the old lady hadn't taken any action against Chef Li. Therefore, Steward Luo's attitude towards Shi Jia remained unchanged.

"Yes, I'm going to make some desserts for the second young mistress. I also need sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and soybean oil." Shi Jia listed the ingredients she needed, and Steward Luo quickly found them for her.

As for sweet soup, just stew a white fungus and lotus seed soup.

"Thank you. I'll make a little more later, so Manager Luo can have some too."

"Oh, then this old man is in for a treat." Manager Luo nodded with a smile. Life is all about eating and drinking. This Chef Li, aside from anything else, is indeed a master chef. No wonder the Second Young Master went to such lengths to invite her here.

Back in the kitchen, Shi Jia got busy. The goat milk needed to be processed, otherwise the fishy smell would be too strong. Boiling it with almonds would remove the fishy smell very well.

Add an appropriate amount of goat milk (for removing the fishy smell) to soybean oil and sugar, stirring until emulsified. Then, pour in glutinous rice flour and stir until smooth, forming a paste. Next, beat the eggs and pour them into the batter, stirring until the batter becomes like yogurt.

Shi Jia then poured the batter into a round plate and placed it in a pot over water.

"Xiao Tian, ​​start the fire. Steam for fifteen minutes after the water boils," Shi Jia called out, and the fire starter immediately took his place and began to tend the fire.

Shi Jia took this time to make red date and bean paste sauce. Fortunately, the kitchen had made red bean paste yesterday, and there was still a lot left, which she could use directly.

She chopped the red dates, mashed them, and added them to the red bean paste, then added brown sugar and stirred. But looking at the lumpy red date pieces in the bowl, she frowned.

After thinking for a moment, he instructed the woodworker to light another small stove and place the small iron pot on it. Soybean oil was added, followed by the red date and red bean paste, which was then stir-fried. A fragrant aroma of roasting and red beans quickly filled the air. "Take the fire off," he said.

"Oh, okay." Xiaotian was flustered.

Shi Jia frowned, looking at the somewhat dry filling in the pot. She had to admit that she seemed to have messed up. She suddenly felt a little frustrated and unwilling. After thinking for a moment, she picked up a spoon, scooped up a spoonful, and put it in her mouth. Sweet!
The raw bean smell has been completely removed, and the flavor of the red dates has been incorporated. However, some of the hard outer skin of the red dates remains, which makes the taste less than ideal.

Shi Jia's eyes lit up. That's it! She could peel the dates first!
Without hesitation, she packed up the filling and set it aside, then instructed Wang Quan to wash the pot. She then turned around and went to ask Manager Luo for some red dates.

As she had predicted, this time it was a great success. She even made two kinds of fillings: one made from pounded red dates and brown sugar, and the other made from red beans, red dates, and brown sugar.

While Shi Jia was busy, the mochi was already steamed. She then asked Wang Quan to take it out and let it cool before wrapping the filling.

Just then, the kitchen helpers finished slaughtering and cleaning the chickens and ducks needed for the day. It was time to prepare lunch.

Shi Jia asked Wang Quan to fetch the three fish and two chickens needed for lunch, as well as a piece of pork belly with alternating layers of fat and lean meat.

Today, I'm preparing meals for three people again: Lu Xing'er, Prefect Wan, and Wan Anshou. Wan Anshou's attendant told her this early in the morning.

The fish will be used to make fish soup, two fish for soup, and one fish for braising. One chicken will be made into soy sauce chicken, and the other will be stir-fried. The pork belly will be used to make two dishes: braised pork belly and braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens. Then there will be stir-fried pickled bamboo shoots with wood ear mushrooms and stir-fried vegetables.

Because of yesterday's recipe, Shi Jia recalled a lot of cooking memories, so cooking is now very easy for her.

It's a bit of a shame that these dishes weren't made for ourselves.

Shi Jia swallowed hard, recalling the taste of the dishes. Should she save some for herself later? Her eyes lit up, a smile playing on her lips, and her mood brightened.

Braised pork belly and braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens are both time-consuming dishes, so Shi Jia immediately got to work after receiving the pork belly. She washed the meat, scraped off any remaining pig hair, and ensured the skin was smooth and clean.

Cut half of the pork belly into large chunks and the other half into smaller chunks. Blanch both together in boiling water, then drain. Pierce the skin of the larger pork belly chunks with bamboo skewers to make it easier to fry them into beautiful flower-shaped patterns later.

After piercing with bamboo skewers, apply vinegar and a small amount of salt, partly for the base flavor and partly to make the crust flaky.

Pour oil into a wok and start frying the large pieces of pork belly. The key to this step is controlling the oil temperature; too high a heat will cause the oil to burn easily. However, this wasn't a big problem for Xiao Tian, ​​the fryer.

Under Xiaotian's precise control of the heat, the pork belly turned golden and glossy, especially the crispy crust, which looked incredibly delicious.

"Great, I'll make it and you can have a taste later." Shi Jia nodded in satisfaction.

Xiao Tian was delighted to hear this, "Thank you, Master Li."

Shi Jia just smiled, put the fried pork belly aside, and asked Wang Quan to ladle out the oil from the pot. She then used this time to wrap the mochi.

The mochi had cooled down and was very soft and chewy to the touch.

I put some roasted soybean powder on my hands, shaped the mochi into a small ball about half the size of an egg, pinched it in the middle with my thumb, stuffed in a filling that was a little smaller than half an egg, then used my right hand to slowly wrap the filling with the mochi, rolled it into a ball, and then coated it with some more soybean powder. A mochi was now complete.

Shi Jia swallowed hard, subconsciously looking around. The next second, the mochi in her hand disappeared, and her cheeks puffed out.

The kitchen helpers, who had been secretly observing, widened their eyes in shock – she was stealing food!
A quarter of an hour later, an exclamation came from the second young mistress's courtyard, "Wow, it's so delicious! What's this dessert called?"