Miao Chu

Chapter 11 Knock on the door
For the students of Guanzhong Middle School, yellow steamed buns are certainly good, but if they could have meat, they would be even better.

Besides yellow steamed buns, she also plans to make some mutton steamed buns.

Lamb is expensive these days, so steamed buns made with lamb are more presentable than those made with pork or beef.

Song Miao took out various ingredients, cut the lamb leg and pork leg in half, cut one half into small pieces the size of a fingernail, and minced the other half. She also cut the carrot into short shreds and the scallions and green onions into small sections.

Once everything was prepared, she didn't rush to mix the filling. Instead, she cut off a piece of fatty pork and rendered lard with ginger. Then, she used the lard to cook half of the prepared mutton and pork.

Once the meat is in the pot, it's pan-fried over high heat, and the aroma is irresistible.

If the cook doesn't steal, the harvest won't be plentiful.

As Song Miao fried the meat, she added seasonings. As soon as she added salt, she was so enticed by the aroma that she couldn't help but pick up a piece of mutton with a spatula and taste it with her chopsticks. She found that the meat was fried to perfection, with a good balance of fat and lean meat. The skin was half-charred and the inside was tender. When she bit into it, the juices burst in her mouth. It was so delicious that she couldn't help but try a piece of pork as well.

The pork I ate this time was very lean, but because it was lean, it was fried until it was even more crispy and fragrant, and it even had a slightly crunchy outer shell.

Song Miao couldn't help but sigh as she ate.

Such good meat is already very fragrant on its own. If you could wrap it in perilla leaves or very tender cabbage leaves, add a couple of cloves of garlic if you like, and serve it with some pickled radish...

The aroma of meat juices and oil, the sourness of radishes and the spiciness of garlic slices, all cut through the richness. The perilla and cabbage leaves were uniquely fragrant and crisp, respectively. If only she could afford a little pepper to enhance the flavor...

Song Miao dared not think any further, fearing that she might lose control and eat the gift Cheng Zijian was going to give her.

She quickly added half of the shredded carrots, stir-fried them until just cooked, and then scooped them all out. Only then did she begin to properly prepare the filling.

Food tastes different to everyone, especially a very common staple like mutton steamed buns, where every family has its own way of making it, and no one can say that anyone else's is better.

Song Miao's approach emphasizes the combination of raw and cooked ingredients, and the use of both lamb and pork.

Only half of the pork and mutton is used for stir-frying. Firstly, it brings out the aroma, and secondly, it enriches the taste. Of course, there's also the fact that mutton is too expensive, so adding some pork makes it less expensive.

The same applies to carrots.

Carrots are naturally beautiful in color. Once fried in oil, their red and yellow hues seem to melt into the oil, giving them a natural sweetness and beautiful color. However, it's important to leave half of them raw to cut through the greasiness and retain their shape, otherwise they will lose their appearance once stirred.

Of course, it's also essential to mix in water with scallions, ginger, and Sichuan peppercorns to remove the fishy smell.

After she had mixed all the different kinds of meat and side dishes, she lifted the lid off the large pot next to her.

Inside were two large basins, both containing dough that had risen last night. One basin contained millet flour, and the other contained regular dough. Because of the cold weather, the dough was rising slowly, so this was the perfect time to check on it.

After dividing the dough into portions, Song Miao began wrapping the steamed buns.

She doesn't make small steamed buns; the ones she makes are as big as an adult's fist. She doesn't pursue excessively thin skin, but she is very particular about the thick filling. When the buns are wrapped, the eighteen pleats on them look like closed flower petals, each one lying beautifully in the pot.

After wrapping the mutton buns, they also wrapped the yellow steamed buns.

Unlike mutton steamed buns, the filling for yellow steamed buns doesn't need to be prepared fresh to prevent it from becoming watery if left out for too long. The filling for yellow steamed buns is just red bean paste, which I prepared before going to bed because of the cold weather. It was rolled into balls perfectly in no time.

After preparing the two items, she checked all the ingredients and, seeing that it was almost time, placed the steamer on the two small pots beside her, then put the small pots on the stove on the cart, and set off.

She arrived quite early today, but as soon as she got there, Cheng Zijian was already waiting at the alley entrance. Seeing her car arrive, he hurriedly came to greet her. Song Miao nodded to him and smiled, "Don't worry, young master, it's all ready."

Sure enough, once the stall was set up and the lids of the two small pots were lifted, steam rushed out, along with an indescribable aroma—the mutton buns and yellow steamed buns had already been steamed along the way.

To avoid mixing flavors, she specially prepared two small pots.

The aroma of meat buns is completely different from that of glutinous rice. The flavor of mutton is so strong that those who love it call it fragrant, while those who don't call it gamey. No one can escape it.

However, this is the capital city, not the south, where more people love mutton. In addition, scallions and green onions were added, so when the lid was opened, the aroma was so strong that it hit people's heads, and those nearby looked over.

Several people were already queuing up to buy glutinous rice, and naturally everyone was craning their necks. One of them, disregarding the heat, couldn't help but stick his head into the steam and asked anxiously, "Miss Song, is this mutton steamed bun? It smells so good! Do you sell steamed buns too? How much are they?"

As he spoke, he began to swallow hard.

Before the steam had completely dissipated, Song Miao quickly picked up the mutton buns and yellow steamed buns and put them into two separate food boxes, handing them to Cheng Zijian beside her. She then smiled at the student who had asked the question and said, "I don't sell steamed buns. If you want to eat mutton buns, the aunt over there sells them. I tried them yesterday; they have thin skins and generous fillings, and they taste great!"

After saying that, he gave Cheng Zijian a meaningful look, signaling him to leave quickly.

The biggest taboo in doing business is going to extremes.

Everyone in this food alley has always lived in peace, each selling their own food. She had carefully selected her dishes before coming, fearing that she might cause trouble by having the same items as others, so she naturally refused them outright.

Cheng Zijian wasn't stupid; he picked up the two food boxes and left quickly.

This time, Song Miao prepared a large quantity of food, including three large pots of glutinous rice and eighty servings of tangerine peel and mung bean drink. In less than half an hour, all of it was sold out.

Even so, some people who didn't manage to buy any still came to complain, asking her to make more the next day.

Song Miao was so busy that she didn't even have time to drink a sip of water. When she heard this, she just smiled and said that she was too small and weak to do so much.

As soon as she said this, she clearly noticed that several stall owners around her were looking over, but she pretended not to notice.

Including today, Song Miao has only been running her stall for three days, but she sells more each day.

The number of students who regularly come out to buy breakfast is the same; if she sells more, naturally some people will sell less.

Fortunately, she controls the quantity she sells each day, leaving as soon as she's done and never being greedy, which prevents her from having too much of an impact on other people's businesses.

Cheng Zijian carried two food boxes and went into the inner dormitory of the students.

It was still early before the bell rang, and there were only two people inside. One was sitting in the corner, engrossed in a book, without looking up, while the other was tidying up the table.

Although he had studied at the Imperial Academy for two years, this was his first time entering the inner quarters. He knocked lightly on the door, but no one answered. He had no choice but to go up to the person tidying the desk and ask in a low voice, "Excuse me, sir... is there someone here named Cai Xiu?"

The man turned around and said, "That's me."

This man was quite tall and had a handsome appearance. His dark brocade robe made his skin appear even whiter, and his demeanor was elegant and refined, befitting a scion of a noble family.

Thank you so much, Shuixiu Fanhua, for the lucky charm! ^_^
Thank you everyone for reading, commenting, and voting!
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(End of this chapter)