Chapter 141: Chapter 80: Farmhouse Idle Talk (Part 2)

Shi Tou’s mother said, “I’m not worried about that. My family raised them before. I know a thing or two, so you can just come and ask Third Brother when the time comes.”

The Yang Family interjected, “Why go through all that trouble? You raise pigs to butcher for money, but can’t you also make money from a sow birthing piglets? More people will be raising pigs next year, so you won’t have to worry about selling the piglets. You should just raise a sow. That way, when we need piglets in the future, we can just get them from your place. It’ll save me the bother of raising a sow myself, which is such a pain.”

Shi Tou’s mother’s face lit up as she replied, “That’s wonderful. Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. We won’t even need other people to buy them; raising two sows will be enough for both our families.”

The Yang Family said caringly, “You’re having a baby next year, so you can’t take on too much work. It’s better to start with just one sow.”

Shi Tou’s mother told her cheerfully, “My mother is coming over in a few days, and she’ll stay until I’ve finished my postpartum confinement. My brother said he’d worry less that way.” Only then did the Yang Family feel reassured.

As they chatted, the acorn flour was finished grinding.

The Yang Family then explained to them in detail how to wash the flour, let it soak and be rinsed for two more days, and only then could they make the tofu.

Grandma Huang’s face crinkled into a smile, and she said repeatedly, “I understand, I understand. My family is making soybean tofu as well. I’ll have the kids bring some over for you this afternoon. Don’t you bother making any. If each of our families sends you a couple of blocks, that’ll be more than enough for you to eat.”

Shi Tou’s mother readily agreed.

The Yang Family asked, “Grandma Huang, you’ve already prepared so much for the New Year. Are you making soybean tofu on top of that?”

Grandma Huang replied with a broad smile, “Ah, yes! We have new in-laws visiting for the first time this year. If we don’t prepare a generous spread, I’m afraid our new granddaughter-in-law will lose face.”

The Yang Family suddenly understood. She had forgotten that Huang Dagunzi’s son had just taken a wife in the spring. For the new in-laws’ first visit, one had to prepare an especially abundant feast, or it would be a loss of face.

Juhua suddenly asked, “Grandma Huang, what do you do with all your soy pulp?”

Grandma Huang quickly replied, “The soy pulp? We feed it to the pigs. What else would we do with it?”

Juhua said hurriedly, “In that case, could you give the soy pulp to me? I want to try and see if I can cook it into a dish. If it turns out well, I’ll bring you some so you’ll know how to make it yourself in the future. It seems like a waste to just feed it to the pigs, isn’t it?” ’Fermented soy pulp was a favorite dish among the poor.’

Shi Tou’s mother chimed in, “Grandma Huang! You should definitely bring the soy pulp over. I’ll bring you some of my tofu when I make it later, too. If Juhua can really turn this soy pulp into a dish, then we shouldn’t waste it on the pigs anymore. It’s a shame to waste food.”

Grandma Huang agreed immediately and repeatedly. ’If acorns could be made edible, why couldn’t soy pulp?’ she thought. ’It’s just that none of them were as clever as Juhua and hadn’t found the method yet.’ The old woman hated wasting food more than anything, so she quickly consented, telling Juhua to give it a try and not to worry if it failed.

But Shi Tou’s mother said with a laugh that she was sure Juhua could turn the soy pulp into a proper dish.

Grandma Huang laughed. “We’ve eaten soy pulp before. When we were poor, it was enough to fill our bellies. It just didn’t taste good, but it was better than eating chaff, right?”

The Yang Family looked at Juhua, wondering what she was planning to do with the soy pulp. She asked, “In that case, can the pulp from washing the acorn flour be eaten too?”

Juhua grimaced at the question. “Mom, you can’t compare acorns to soybeans! After grinding and washing the acorns, even pigs won’t eat the pulp. Soy pulp is much better.”

Everyone thought about it, realized she was right, and burst out laughing.

That evening, Huang Dagunzi did indeed deliver a large bundle of soy pulp, still in the cloth used for straining, and also brought a few blocks of tofu for the Zheng Family. Juhua untied the bundle and shook the soy pulp into a clean wooden basin.

Handing the cloth back to him, she smiled and said, “Uncle Huang, thank you for going to all this trouble. I’m sorry to make you come all this way.”

Huang Dagunzi, who was in the middle of a conversation with Zheng Changhe, turned at her words. “What a thing to say! It’s no trouble at all for me to make a trip over. However,” he added with a chuckle, “if you manage to make something tasty from this soy pulp, don’t you forget about your Uncle Huang.”

“Of course not,” Juhua replied with a laugh.

After Huang Dagunzi left, she said to the Yang Family, “Mom, let’s stir-fry the soy pulp first to get the moisture out. Then we’ll form it into balls. It needs to sit for a while before it’s ready.”

The Yang Family asked suspiciously, “We dry it out and form it into balls, but we can’t eat it right away? If we let it sit, won’t it get moldy?”

“It’ll be fine,” Juhua said with a laugh. ’Isn’t that the whole point?’ she thought. ’If it doesn’t get moldy, I’ll have to warm it up to encourage it!’

So, Juhua started the fire while the Yang Family vigorously stir-fried the soy pulp in a large wok. Once it was semi-dry, they scooped it into a basin to let it cool.

Juhua found a large wicker basket and grabbed a big handful of rice straw. She stripped off the tough outer sheaths, dusted it off, and then used it to line the basket.

Once the soy pulp was cool enough to handle, she and the Yang Family began shaping it into balls.

The Yang Family watched Juhua take a handful of pulp and squeeze it tightly, then followed her lead. “Won’t they just fall apart?” she asked as she worked.

“They won’t,” Juhua said. “They would if we had fried it too dry, but you got it just right today, Mom—not too dry and not too wet. Still, you have to squeeze them very firmly.”

The Yang Family smiled, pleased.

The mother-daughter pair placed the finished balls on the straw in the basket, not stopping until they had made more than twenty. Juhua then covered the basket with an old cloth. After thinking for a moment, she pressed more straw on top before moving the whole thing to a corner of the room.

Looking up, she saw the worried look on the Yang Family’s face, a look that said she was afraid the soy pulp would get moldy. Juhua, worried her mother might try to ventilate the basket, quickly advised, “Mom, it’s fine even if it gets moldy. We’re just experimenting, right? Think about soy sauce—isn’t that made from cooked beans that get moldy and are then dried in the sun? We eat that and we’re fine. So, it’s okay if this soy pulp molds. It might even turn out to be delicious!”

The Yang Family clapped her hands. “How could I be so dense? You’re right, that’s exactly how they make soy sauce. This method must work for the soy pulp too. Look at me, I’d completely forgotten.”

Seeing that her mother was convinced, Juhua grinned. “See? It’s going to be delicious for sure.”

Qingmu walked in and asked, “What’s delicious? Mom, are we sweeping the house this afternoon?”

The Yang Family replied, “We’ll sweep the day after tomorrow. We’re butchering the pig tomorrow, aren’t we? Once that’s all done, the whole house will need a thorough cleaning, inside and out.”

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep