Baozi Xishi's Struggle

Chapter 107 Millet Porridge and Pan-fried Buns

Shen Yu didn't expect that Li, who was always stingy and loved money, would be so generous this time. She was moved and said, "Thank you, mother. You are such a good person."

Li waved her hand in disdain, "Go away, I'm not a good person. I just didn't dare to use my strength because of my back injury. I saw that you've been pulling the cart too hard these days, so I asked that brat to help out for a few days. It's just a few meals, I can afford it."

Not long after, Dun Dun and his mother were seen walking towards them from the market.

Dun Dun probably told the woman that Shen Yu had asked him to help her, and the woman was very grateful.

She knew in her heart that the girl hired Dun Dun to help push the cart because she felt sorry for her and her son. It was just an excuse to make sure the mother and son had something to eat.

When it was time to close the stall, Shen Yu was still pulling the cart in front. With two more people helping, she hardly needed to exert any effort. She just steered the cart and pulled it briskly all the way back to her home in Liushu Lane.

They opened the gate and parked the cart, letting Li collect her precious money box. Shen Yu and Yutao hurried to get a basin of water and asked Dun Dun and his mother to wash their hands and faces first, as dinner would be served soon.

Because there were two more people for breakfast today, Shen Yu thought about going to Qiaozuoju on Chengdong Street after breakfast, looking at the ingredients, and preparing to make some pan-fried dumplings.

She asked Yutao to cook the millet porridge first, and she cut a piece of fermented dough, pinched it into small pieces, rolled it into a round shape, flattened it, and rolled it into a circle slightly larger than the dumpling skin. She took the seasoned meat filling and deftly pinched the folds of the buns with her fingers. In a short while, she had wrapped dozens of white, plump, and small buns.

Put the pan on the stove, heat the pan and pour in the oil. When the oil is hot, put the wrapped buns into the pan one by one.

After filling the pot, he covered it and asked Yutao to turn down the fire under the stove and fry it slowly over low heat.

While frying, Shen Yu mixed some flour and water in a large bowl, lifted the lid of the pot, and carefully used a wooden spatula to scoop open a bun and take a look. The bottom of the bun already had a light golden layer.

Shen Yu nodded. When the heat was just right, he picked up the flour water, slowly poured it along the edge of the pot, and covered the pot.

After waiting for a while, you will see steam coming out from the edge of the pot lid.

Shen Yu instructed Yu Tao: "Just keep the heat low. When the edge of the pot is no longer steaming, it's done."

After saying that, he went to prepare the next batch of buns.

Just after wrapping dozens of small buns, Yu Tao called Shen Yu: "Sister, come and take a look, is it ready?"

Shen Yu looked at the edge of the pot lid and found that the heat had died down a lot. He lifted the lid and saw that the originally small buns had all risen and were crowded together in the pot. The water in the pot had dried up and beautiful icicles had formed on the edges of the buns.

Shen Yu took a small bamboo basket and used a shovel to scoop up the dumplings from the pot one by one, and put them upside down in the small bamboo basket, filling it up tightly.

By this time, Li had already put away the money box and led Yucheng and Dundun's mother and son to unload the car.

Shen Yu handed the bamboo basket to Yu Cheng and told him, "Let Dun Dun and his mother eat first. We'll finish the next pot. They must be hungry."

Yu Cheng nodded sensibly, and called to Dun Dun and the woman, "Brother Dun Dun, my eldest sister said that you and your mother should eat first, and we will eat the next pot."

The woman said anxiously, "How can this be done? Let the young master eat first."

Li said, "Well, for a family like ours, we are not the young master. You can just call him Yucheng. Come and eat quickly. It won't be so delicious if it gets cold."

A small basket of soft, fluffy, and greasy pan-fried buns, golden in color.

The bottom of the bun is slightly crispy, with beautiful icy flowers on the edge, while the top is white, tender and soft, with a circle of thin folds.

Take a bite, the skin is thin and the filling is rich, the rich and fragrant gravy fills between your lips and tongue, the taste is rich, fragrant and not greasy.

The most delicious part of the bun is the bottom of the bun, which is soaked with the gravy contained in the filling, and is full of freshness and fragrance. The bottom is crispy and not hard, and tastes very fragrant.

The millet porridge is cooked to just the right temperature. It looks very thin, but the millet grains inside are distinct and golden. A sip of it is rich, fragrant, thick, light and tasty.

Dun Dun and his mother were quite reserved at first. They just picked up the porridge bowl to drink and were too embarrassed to eat the buns.

Li watched from the side at first, but then she realized that the mother and son would not feel comfortable eating if she was around, so she winked at Yucheng, and the two of them left the house and went to the kitchen, leaving Dundun and her son to eat alone.

Here, Shen Yu had already put the second pot of fried dumplings into the pot and started making the third pot.

When the third pot of pan-fried dumplings came out of the oven, Yutao turned off the stove, and Shen Yu and Li came into the house carrying a small basket of pan-fried dumplings. When Dundun and his mother saw Shen Yu come in, they both stood up quickly.

Shen Yu smiled and said, "The pan-fried dumplings are delicious. If they're not enough, there are more here."

The woman said, "That's enough, thank you very much, Miss."

"Miss?" Shen Yu couldn't help but laugh. She said nonchalantly, "My last name is Shen. You can call me Miss Shen, or Yuzhi."

The woman looked reserved and said hurriedly, "How can that be possible? Young lady let us do the chores and also gave us mother and son food, so you are the masters of the family."

Shen Yu shook her head. Yutao and Yucheng came in with porridge. Yutao said crisply, "Auntie, you and Dundun are just helping us. It's only right that you get paid for your work and have meals provided."

Shen Yu continued, "What do you call me, madam? I only know that you are Dun Dun's mother."

The woman hurriedly said, "My maiden name is Jiang."

Shen Yu said: "You look older than my mother, so we will call you Aunt Jiang."

Seeing that Shen Yu really didn't regard her and Dun Dun as hired servants, the lady Jiang nodded gratefully and called out, "Miss Yuzhi."

Li urged, "Hurry up and eat. This is the first time I've eaten fried buns. They smell delicious, but I don't know how they taste. They won't taste good if they get cold."

Shen Yu asked Dun Dun if he was full, and if he was not, he could sit down and continue eating.

Dun Dun didn't say anything after being pulled up by Jiang. He just stood aside and listened to Shen Yu and the others chatting, with his head down and his eyes looking at the ground.

When Shen Yu asked him if he was full, he hesitated for a moment and said nothing. Jiang smiled and replied, "Yes, Miss Yuzhi was busy cooking, but she was still hungry. Please eat quickly."

Shen Yu looked at Dun Dun's expression and knew that he was not full. He thought that the mother and daughter must have been hungry for many days, and it would not be good for them to eat too much all at once, so he smiled and said, "Then you sit here and rest for a while. We will assign you work after we finish eating.

Jiang responded and pulled Dun Dun to sit on a small stool in the yard, waiting for Shen Yu to finish his meal.

While eating, Shen Yu said to Li: "Mom, after you finish your meal, please find two sets of clothes for them, and boil some water for them to take a bath, and then change their clothes."