HLnovel Chapter 256 Steamed Fish Pieces, Mother's Signature Dish
Chapter 256 Steamed Fish Pieces, Mother's Signature Dish
After seeing off the Liu family from Yingtun, Li Ju'an dragged his heavy legs back to the Li family's old house.
In the old house, Song Lanhua, the mother, was busy in the kitchen, chopping up the large carp he had brought back and making a steaming hot meat dish.
The villagers in the Xingan Mountains rarely eat fish, and the sisters-in-law don't know how to cook it. But my mother's family used to live by the sea, and she skillfully and deftly handled the fish, her knife work swift and efficient. As she stir-fried the fish in the oil, she kept calling out to him, talking about the dishes from their hometown.
Li Ju'an quickly washed his hands and went to the kitchen to help his mother cook.
This steamed fish dish perfectly captured the freshness of the river carp. My mother cut the river carp into 3-centimeter pieces, marinated them to remove any fishy smell and infuse them with flavor, then coated them in batter and deep-fried them thoroughly. Each large bowl was filled with fish pieces, steamed until cooked through, eight bowls steamed in one pot, one pot making a perfect dish for the whole table.
Steaming bowls were brought out of the steamer one by one, and then the steaming sauce was poured over them with a "whoosh". Little sister Li Xiao couldn't wait to sit at the kang table and tap the bowl with her little spoon. Her eyes were bright with excitement as she called out sweetly, "Brother, I've got the bowls and chopsticks ready."
Li Ju'an felt a warm glow in his heart at his sensible and considerate younger sister. He smiled, ruffled Li Xiao's hair, and called out, "Alright, come on, sit down and eat! Try Mom's braised fish!"
The steamed fish pieces tasted savory and refreshingly sour. Li Ju'an picked up a piece of steamed fish with his chopsticks and chewed slowly. The piping hot fish pieces, coated with sauce and with the soft and tender fish meat, were incredibly delicious. He savored the fresh and delicious fish pieces in his mouth, reluctant to swallow them, letting the fish meat roll around in his mouth before slowly chewing and swallowing.
He scooped up a large spoonful of sauce, then mixed the savory and salty fish chunks with the rice. The plump grains of rice absorbed the sauce and broth from the fish, carrying the aroma of rice and the fresh, savory flavor of the fish—it looked delicious just to look at it.
He buried his head in the sauce and mixed it with rice, eating three large bowls in one go. He wiped his mouth with the bowl and exclaimed with satisfaction, "Mom, it's so delicious! Give me more rice!"
Seeing her two children eating so contentedly, Song Lanhua, the mother, felt a sense of accomplishment and chuckled happily, saying, "Good, if you like it, eat more fish. Have two bowls less rice. You've already had three bowls. Eating too much will make you indigestion, and you'll complain of stomach aches again tonight."
Li Ju'an listened to his mother's rambling without feeling annoyed at all; on the contrary, he felt a warm and cozy sense of home.
After dinner, he and Li Xiao helped their mother prepare the remaining large river fish, and their mother, Song Lanhua, taught the siblings how to do it step by step.
"At your maternal grandmother's house, this is called 'picking and pounding,' which means washing the fish several times, then cutting off the tail, removing the scales and oil, and using scissors to gut it and remove the dirty things inside."
Li Ju'an tied on an apron and, following his mother's example, removed the fish's internal organs. After rinsing it again, he cut the fish into pieces, marinated them, wrapped them up, and placed them in the snow outside the windowsill to freeze for later use.
The villagers were freezing dumplings on their windowsills in the snow, and hunters would freeze leftover meat, such as wild boar and pheasant, in the snow for storage. But Li Ju'an was the first in the village to freeze leftover fish and meat.
The large river carp, weighing dozens of kilograms each, were processed and then frozen in the snow in the yard. Even the hunting dogs were sniffing the snow with curiosity, their noses pressed against the ground.
Lin Jiadong, the son of the Lin family, came to visit. He was there to deliver a message for Lin Mei. Lin Mei had just made some steamed buns and asked Lin Jiadong to bring them over for Li Ju'an to try. When Lin Jiadong saw his future brother-in-law, he smiled so broadly his eyes crinkled, and he chatted intimately with Li Ju'an.
When he saw Li Ju'an still wearing an apron and busy in the kitchen, he felt a deep sense of respect, even more so than giving him a thumbs up.
"Brother Li, it has to be Brother Li who's the best. He can even cook. If it were anyone else, they definitely wouldn't be able to get into the kitchen, and the women would have to do all the work."
Li Ju'an teased him, laughing, "Where did you hear all this nonsense? You're just a young kid, how old do you think the kitchen has to be a place for women?"
Lin Jiadong was puzzled and widened his eyes, saying, "Isn't that what Brother Sun and the others all say? The kitchen is a woman's battlefield. Men should go hunting in the mountains."
Li Xiao retorted in her childish voice, "No way! The older brother from the Zhang family next door also helps his wife cook. The older brother can cook, which pleases his wife, and their relationship will be better, so they won't quarrel."
Lin Jiadong was taken aback by the child's innocent words. He said, "How can they argue? They're just fighting."
The people inside burst into laughter. Li Ju'an led Lin Jiadong into the yard and said, "Alright, if you keep talking like that, the whole village will know that your parents are fighting."
Lin Jiadong was also delighted. He followed Li Ju'an into the yard. He had heard earlier that Li Ju'an and the Lu brothers had returned with sleds full of fish and bear meat.
He watched as Li Ju'an buried the prepared river carp one by one into the snow, his eyes wide with surprise. He exclaimed, "So many! This fish must weigh dozens of pounds! How long will it take to eat? Will it even taste good?"
Li Ju'an looked at him and laughed, "With your little tricks, even if you hadn't said anything, I would have made you take one back anyway. Here, take it, for your sister."
Lin Jiadong, his thoughts exposed, felt embarrassed and scratched the back of his head, grinning foolishly. He didn't stand on ceremony, handing over the basket of meat buns Lin Mei had asked him to bring, and taking the prepared river carp. The heavy carp nearly made him stumble, and he laughed heartily, saying, "This fish really does smell like fish, a very strong fish smell."
Lin Jiadong had heard of fish, but this was his first time handling one. The young man was very curious, filled with excitement. Li Ju'an chuckled and called out to his mother, "Mom, come help! Take off your apron!"
He tied his mother's apron on Lin Jiadong. Lin Jiadong had previously been shouting that grown men shouldn't be in the kitchen. But now, wanting to eat delicious steamed fish, he obediently came in to learn how to prepare the river carp.
There were still bits of snow and ice left on the carp, and his hands would get very cold when he cleaned them, so he had to work very quickly.
Li Ju'an had been busy for half a day, and his hands were freezing cold. He was a bit reluctant to handle fish; it was just too cold. Also, the fishy smell was incredibly strong; it was hard to say whether it smelled worse or worse than wild boar intestines. Either way, it was dirty work, so it was best if someone was willing to do it.
Li Ju'an praised enthusiastically, "Jia Dong is such a quick worker. With so many fish, it would take the three of us half a day to finish, but Jia Dong has almost finished processing one fish in such a short time."