After breakfast, Li Menglan saw that it was still early, so she planned to first sort out the fresh chili peppers that she had asked Zhang Yuniang—her mother—to set aside; whether it was chopped chili, chili sauce, or dried chili peppers... she had to get everything prepared first no matter what.
Li Menglan first selected seven or eight jin of mature chili peppers, which she planned to keep for seeds; she wanted to try growing them herself next year. Since these chilies could grow wild, cultivating them shouldn't be too difficult.
"Uh... after these mature chilies are dried, I can probably get three or four liang of chili seeds, right?" Li Menglan thought uncertainly; while thinking, she said to Li Dazhu, "Dad, help me quickly get out the winnowing basket; dry these mature chilies under the sun. I want to save some seeds."
"Alright, good daughter." Li Dazhu grinned good-naturedly.
"Daughter, didn't you say you were also going to make chopped chili and chili sauce?" Zhang Yuniang had firmly remembered Li Menglan's words—after all, their daughter was getting smarter and smarter.
They had picked over forty jin of chili peppers on the mountain. After selecting seven or eight jin of mature ones for seeds, there were still over thirty jin left... Li Menglan planned to use ten jin for chili sauce, fifteen jin for chopped chili; all the rest would be dried into dried chili peppers.
"Dad, then I'll go wash the chilies by the well; you go get our mortar out and wash it clean, then find a few earthenware jars of similar sizes in the storage room; after washing them, rinse them inside and out with strong liquor, then put them in the sun to dry thoroughly; remember, don't let them touch oil at all." Li Menglan repeatedly instructed her father Li Dazhu.
Nowadays in the Li family, as long as Li Menglan said something, basically no one would object; Li Dazhu responded readily, "Got it, daughter. Are we using the mortar to make chili sauce?" Li Dazhu asked with some curiosity.
"That's right! Dad, you'll have to help me in a bit." Li Menglan smiled, her eyes curving into crescents.
"Alright, Dad won't let our daughter get tired." Li Dazhu's eyes were full of doting as he looked at Li Menglan.
After the water on the chilies had dried, Li Menglan had Li Dazhu help her start grinding the peppers. Because the chilies for chili sauce didn't need to be ground too finely; after about an hour, the chilies were ground. After grinding, Li Menglan put them into an earthenware jar; then added an appropriate amount of salt and a small amount of liquor, mixing them together evenly. Only then did Li Menglan seal the mixed chili sauce for storage; if kept in a cool, dry place, the chili sauce could be opened and eaten after a few days.
Moreover, as long as when taking chili sauce from the earthenware jar, the sauce inside hadn't touched oil; after taking some out, the jar should be immediately sealed again. That way... the chili sauce in the earthenware jar could be preserved for half a year without spoiling.
As for the chopped chili, it was even simpler; it just took slightly more effort in terms of time compared to the chili sauce during production; Li Menglan had Zhang Yuniang help her put the drained chilies into a large winnowing basket and chop them up, then mix them with salt and similarly put them into a jar and seal it well; and pour some clear water around the rim of the jar mouth, to prevent the chopped chili from changing flavor or spoiling.
"Dad, Mom, come over and move the earthenware jars into the corner of the storage room; the storage room is relatively cool and dry, so the chili sauce and chopped chili can be stored for a longer time; once they're ready, if you want to eat them, just go to the storage room and take them out."
Li Menglan thought for a moment, then went inside to get string. She tied up the remaining chili peppers one by one with string, hanging them in bunches below the roof beams; this way they wouldn't spoil easily, and they would dry faster. It would also be very convenient to take them when using the dried chilies.
After all the tasks were finished, Li Menglan took a look—huh... good heavens; it was almost noon: "Mom and Dad, thanks for your hard work, there's nothing else now; Dad, you let Mom measure you, and when she has time, have her make you a new set of clothes. I'll make lunch in a bit; today at noon I'll make pig offal for everyone. I guarantee you'll want more after eating."
Li Menglan smiled, her eyes curving into crescents, and said to Li Dazhu and Zhang Yuniang, "Or, Mom could first help Grandpa, Grandma, and my brothers make a few new sets of clothes!" Li Menglan was worried that Zhang Yuniang wouldn't be able to stay idle, planning to first find something for her to do.
"Alright." Li Dazhu and Zhang Yuniang naturally wouldn't oppose what their daughter said, nodding readily.
Li Menglan walked into the kitchen and blanched the pig intestines, pig heart, pig lungs, and pig stomach in hot water, then fished them out and cut them into pieces for later use; she added a bit of oil to the wok with the pig heart, adding ginger, chili, star anise, cinnamon bark, and garlic and stir-frying for a while, then poured in vinegar and soy sauce for color; added water and brought it to a boil over high heat, then switched to low heat to slowly stew; then she blanched the large and small intestines as before, cut them into sections, washed the blanching pot, and added seasonings and chili to braise them!
This was an authentic farmhouse cooking method. In Li Menglan's view, if one were to judge purely by deliciousness; farmhouse cooking was still the most authentic and tasty.
Not long after Li Menglan entered the kitchen, all kinds of fragrant aromas constantly wafted out from the kitchen; causing the brothers Li Zhiming and Li Zhihao, who were pressing persimmons in the courtyard, to become distracted.
Li Zhihao was the first who couldn't resist, sniffing hard as he asked Zhang Yuniang, "Mom! What kind of delicious food is our sister making in the kitchen? How come it smells so strangely fragrant?"
Zhang Yuniang rolled her eyes at him irritably and said, "What else could it be but braised pig offal! I see you're definitely craving it, the way you look!" The brat born from her own belly—how could Zhang Yuniang not know his character?
Hehe... Hearing his mother say this, Li Zhihao let out a dry laugh, somewhat embarrassed.
Li Dazhu said cheerfully, "Wife, I really didn't expect that pig offal smells so stinky; but now how come after our daughter cooks it, it actually smells so fragrant?"
By this time the food was almost done, and Li Menglan finally walked out of the kitchen; waving her sore little arms, she threw herself into Zhang Yuniang's arms and pouted, saying, "Mom, I'm exhausted today; but... I guarantee today I'll make every one of you so full of delicious food that you'll swallow your own tongues."
Looking at her daughter's bright, sparkling eyes, Zhang Yuniang quickly put down the needle and thread in her hands and said to her, "Daughter, you rest a bit. Tell Mom what else needs to be done; Mom will help you do it."
"It's fine, Mom! That food is almost done, just wait a bit longer and we can eat!" Li Menglan slightly closed her eyes, letting Zhang Yuniang's hand stroke her head intermittently; a wave of drowsiness welled up in her heart, and Li Menglan became somewhat sleepy.
At noon, Li Menglan called her family to put down their work; preparing to first wash up and eat lunch.
Li Menglan went to the kitchen and served out some of the heart, lungs, and intestines, filling a large bowl to the brim. She also carefully carried out the stewed pig stomach in a small earthenware basin. She also brought out a simple vinegar-glazed cabbage.
The small, dilapidated house was filled with thick food aromas. This day... was probably the best and most satisfying day the Li family had ever eaten.
Li Fujin and Lin Sanniang were getting on in years, and their teeth weren't very good either; the two elders preferred the pig stomach stewed until meltingly tender; as for the father and his two sons, Li Dazhu, Li Zhiming, and Li Zhihao, they favored the spicy pig intestines; Zhang Yuniang and Li Menglan weren't picky eaters, tasting a bit of everything.
Li Zhihao cradled his round belly and groaned, "Sister, terrible... terrible... Second Brother ate too much, my stomach is so stuffed now, what should I do?"
"Second Brother, then stand up and walk around first! Help your digestion." Li Menglan was genuinely a bit worried; the Li family usually had very little oily food; suddenly eating so well... Li Menglan was really worried everyone's stomachs would get upset.
Hehe... but, such days were really nice; weren't they? At the very least, Li Menglan seemed to be able to foresee her beautiful future right before her eyes.
Looking at the family before her, though poor yet harmonious, Li Menglan was filled with anticipation for the future.