The Northern Stories of Chef Lao Tan

Chapter 268

After listening to what Lao Tan said, Mr. Xiang summed it up. It's not that he hasn't thought about this method, but the design and decoration have always been together and never separated, so he hasn't done it for a long time.

"I'll think about it." Mr. Xiang said.

"Think about it," Old Tan said.

After the three of us had dinner, the rain stopped outside, but the sky was still cloudy, and we didn't know when it would rain again.

After returning to the store, Zhou Xiaomei missed her parents and called home. She was very anxious when she learned that her father had fallen. Hohhot.

It was already dark when we got home, Xiaolong was watching cartoons, mom was cooking in the kitchen, and dad was lying on the bed listening to storytelling.

Lao Tan and Zhou Xiaomei entered the bedroom, Xiaomei's father noticed someone approaching, opened his eyes and saw that it was the girl and Lao Tan, hurriedly turned off the electric box, and tried to sit up.

"Lie down, Dad." Zhou Xiaomei said and stepped forward.

"It's okay, it doesn't hurt so much, I can sit up." Xiaomei's father insisted on sitting up, and Xiaomei went up to help.

Old Tan asked with concern: "Brother, is it not serious?"

"Hey, it's not serious, it's just here, the road is hard, if there's nothing wrong at home, you won't get angry." Xiaomei's father said.

"Then pay attention, after all, age is what matters, it's not younger than younger." Old Tan said.

Xiaomei's mother came from the kitchen and brought Lao Tan some tea.

Zhou Xiaomei asked about the details of the fall, and since the doctor said nothing was wrong, and seeing that her father's condition was indeed not serious, she felt relieved.Then he criticized his father for being careless, and warned that he should not go out when the weather is bad, and he would take his mother with him so that he could take care of him.

Xiaomei's father accepted the girl's criticism sincerely.

Xiaomei's mother had already prepared the meals, but Lao Tan stayed behind instead of leaving.

Xiaomei's parents are elder brothers and sisters-in-law of the second sister-in-law of Lao Tan's close branch. They are really relatives, and they are out of town, so they feel like coming home here.

Xiaomei's father drank two cups, but his wife and girl disagreed. He argued with the reason of relaxing muscles and promoting blood circulation, and added the enthusiasm that Lao Tan should be with him when he came, so his wife and girl acquiesced.

Old Tan said: "Brother, drink less, I am not an outsider."

"I know you're not an outsider, isn't this---in my house?" Xiaomei's father winked when he spoke, and the meaning was self-evident—using Lao Tan as a shield, he drank a lot.

Zhou Xiaomei said while pouring wine, "I'll accompany my uncle, so you drink less."

"Drink less, drink less." Xiaomei's father agreed.

Xiaomei's mother fried dried tofu, boiled cabbage, fried small yellow croaker, and a plate of peanuts. The rest were the three old dishes on the table in the Northeast: miso, scallions, and dry cucumbers.

Dried tofu with sharp peppers is a famous dish in the provincial capital. Although it cannot be served on the table, it is loved by ordinary people.The dried tofu fried by Xiaomei's mother also contains chili, but it is different from the dried tofu with sharp pepper in the provincial capital. It is an authentic Beipiao recipe, and it tastes like home.

The method of Beipiao is to cut the dried tofu into elephant eye pieces without blanching. After frying the pork belly slices, the scallions are sautéed until they are fragrant, and the soy sauce and pepper noodles are boiled in a pot. Add the dried tofu to the soup and half fry and half stew until the soup in the pot is almost gone. When the soup is almost gone, sprinkle garlic Just put it on a plate at the end, don't collect the juice or thicken, what you eat is the original flavor of dry fragrance.

Beipiao water is good, and the dried tofu is delicious whether it is fried or stewed. It can also be mixed with cold dishes, and the tofu has a strong flavor.

The cabbage boiled by Xiaomei's mother is also the pure Beipiao method.In Chaoyang, Chifeng, and Tongliao areas, stewed dishes are called nao dishes. In rural areas, housewives often hear: "I don't know what to eat, so I can boil a dish."

This boil (ao) is boil (nao).

What I often make are boiled cabbage, boiled sauerkraut, boiled tofu, and boiled dried radish.

Pork belly, vermicelli and potato sticks are put in the boiled cabbage. It looks like a stew. When it comes out of the pot, it is a bit dry and tastes delicious.Boiling sauerkraut is stewed sauerkraut. If pigs are slaughtered during the Chinese New Year, adding blood sausage is a pig-killing dish, a Northeast specialty.

Cooking tofu is a bit particular. It looks similar to stewing, and most people can't cook it well.The boiled tofu has honeycombs in it, which is full of flavor, and the taste of the pot is strong, and it tastes more fragrant than meat.

Boiled dried radish is a pure hometown dish in the Beipiao area. Beipiao people eat it deliciously, but outsiders are not used to it.The freshly brewed one has a radish smell, so it's best to eat it hot for the second meal.

"Sister-in-law, the cabbage you boil is delicious, just like home." Old Tan said to Xiaomei's mother.

"I just want to boil it. The cabbage here is not good. It's all deliberate. If our Daqing gang in Beipiao cook it, it will taste better than this." Xiaomei's mother said.

"The dumplings made with cabbage are not delicious either, they are too sweet." Xiaomei's father took over the conversation and said, "Pickled sauerkraut is not good either. If you have a bad heart, just look at it."

Old Tan said: "These are all Shandong cabbage. This season, the Northeast cabbage does not come down, and the ones that come down are all second-grade cabbage, which is tender."

"That's not right, our Northeast cabbage is old Qiu." Xiaomei's mother said.

"Your restaurant also uses this cabbage to make dumplings?" Xiaomei's father asked.

"No, we use second cabbage for making dumplings in restaurants, and this cabbage for cooking. After the local cabbage comes down, we will use local cabbage to make dumplings." Old Tan said.

"That's okay. Dumplings made with cabbage taste delicious." Xiaomei's father said.

A few people chatted while eating, and there was no theme, most of them were chatting at home.Zhou Xiaomei's parents are in their sixties, and the elder Tan is in his twenties. There is a whole generation difference, and they know more about the past than Lao Tan.

"Brother, your old man is a good man, he can read and write, he is a well-known gentleman in three miles and five villages, he can speak well and is decent." Xiaomei's father talked about Old Tan's father.

Lao Tan's father, who was seven years old, was young at that time, and he didn't have a deep impression of his father. Although his mother said something, it was incomplete.

"Yeah." Old Tan nodded with a smile.

"At that time, my father didn't like your second brother. Your second brother just came back from the army. His family was poor and poor. Your second brother's father, you can call him the seventh uncle. I can't kick a fart." Xiaomei's father said.

Old Tan smiled.

Xiaomei's father continued: "My father is stubborn, no one can tell, if it weren't for your father, your second brother and your second sister-in-law to get yellow."

"I heard my mother nagging." Old Tan said.

"At that time, I had just married for two years, and my words didn't count. Besides, my father didn't listen to me. Your old man was very powerful, and he stopped my father in a few words. Your second brother and your second sister-in-law Just got married."

"That old man is reasonable, but our old man is messing around, so just let him go." Xiaomei's mother interjected.

One sentence made Lao Tan and Zhou Xiaomei laugh.

Before her father could speak, Zhou Xiaomei said, "My grandfather doesn't mess around, but he's a little unreasonable. My father is not like that, but he is stubborn." She laughed.

Xiaomei's father sighed, and said regretfully: "Hey, your old man has been overwhelmed by illness. If he is not ill, he is a capable person, and he would have arrived in town early."

Old Tan smiled and took a sip of his wine.

"Hey——" Xiaomei's father sighed again, and said, "My old aunt of your family has a hard life. The widow is unemployed and pulls six of your sisters. She has suffered a lot."

Speaking of his mother, Lao Tan fell silent.

"The old aunt is enjoying the blessings now. Let's talk about it. Those who are old in the old Tan family count as one. Don't care about the housekeeper. Who dares to compare with the old aunt?" Xiaomei's mother said.

"My mother can do it now. At my fifth sister's place, I don't have to worry about food and drink, no one gets angry, and my health is better than mine." Old Tan said.

"My grandma is in good shape. Last time I went to celebrate her birthday, I saw someone who didn't look like someone in her [-]s. She talked vigorously, and she just talked about the truth." Zhou Xiaomei continued: "In addition, my sister-in-law served That's okay, my little uncle's son-in-law didn't say that he was the same as his son."

"Your grandma will be blessed when she grows old." Xiaomei's mother said.

Xiaomei's father said to his wife, "Let's go back and see my old aunt this time."

"Well, old aunt should have gone to see it a long time ago. I don't know when I will go back this time and next time—" Xiaomei's mother said.

Man, the older I get, the more I miss home—

　Thank you for your continued support!Thanks!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)