Chapter 30 Eating new rice, traditional laolao rice
Li Xiang packed the selected rice in baskets and weighed it in batches. He recorded the number after weighing a basket, and then carried it over and dumped it into the newly purchased barn.
Of course, this kilogram is minus the weight of the basket.
In the final total, 310 kilograms of new rice were harvested.
Li Xiang and his grandma were quite happy. They had only divided the fields into sixty-seven, and they had not fertilized or sprayed any pesticides. They had harvested so much, and it was purely organic. It could be considered a bumper harvest.
In the end, two baskets of rice were left outside, not because the barn couldn't hold them, but because they planned to use a tricycle to haul the rice for grinding tomorrow.
When new rice is harvested, it is natural to try it as soon as possible.
The net weight of these two baskets of rice is about 106 kilograms. After being crushed at the rice milling station, the resulting rice is about 74 kilograms of japonica rice and about 31 kilograms of bran. There is a slight loss, but not much.
In the past, when there were no rice mills, rice was pounded by hand in rural areas. The rice was put into a stone mortar and then pounded slowly with a pestle. Not only was the efficiency low, the key was that there would be a lot of broken rice, and the chaff (husk) was not fine enough. , now that there is a rice mill, the efficiency has been greatly improved. Although there is also broken rice, it is better than hand pounding.
In addition, the chaff produced by the rice mill is very fine and is suitable for feeding pigs.
The rice milling station is not far from the temporary market where Li Xiang bought vegetables. It is a small, lonely house. It is said that it used to be a power station in a nearby village. Later, the power station was moved, and this old house was contracted and opened. meters station.
It is also convenient for the surrounding villagers. Otherwise, you have to go to the town or county to grind rice, which is too inconvenient.
It only took Li Xiang about 15 minutes to get 106 kilograms of rice, and the processing fee was 10 yuan.
The quotation posted on the wall was 10 yuan per 100 kilograms of rice. Although Li Xiang was a little more, the other party didn't charge more and said it would be just 10 yuan. Li Xiang handed the master a cigarette to express his gratitude.
He also wants to take the bran back because he plans to raise pigs next year. The bran is very good pig food. Although there is not much, he can save it first.
After returning home and storing the new rice in a clean rice jar, Li Xiang scooped out two bowls and washed the rice for cooking.
After the new rice was soaked in water, he picked it up with his hands and put it in the palm of his hand to look at it. He saw that the grains were plump and crystal clear, like pearls, and also had a light natural fragrance. To be honest, Li Xiangting enjoyed the process of washing rice.
In the art of Kung Fu Tea, there is a step of "exhibiting tea". Simply put, it is to watch the process of tea leaves stretching. Appreciating the tea leaves is like a beautiful picture, which is pleasing to the eye.
If it is green tea, it is not as complicated as scraping the foam, rubbing the tea, shaking the incense, entering the sea, dancing with butterflies, showing tea, falling butterflies, and unifying. However, many people like to use glass cups to make tea because the glass cups are transparent and can The changing process of tea leaves in water was clearly observed. The better the green tea, the more beautiful this process is.
The same goes for Li Xiang when he is washing rice now. He soaks the new rice in water and puts it in the palm of his hand to look at it. He can't put it down, just like appreciating pearls and jade.
The grains are as white as frost, and they are as bright as wet. When they are steamed, the aroma fills the room, and you can taste them everywhere.
But no matter how beautiful it looks, it still has to be eaten. Li Xiang washed the rice in admiration and walked into the kitchen.
Grandma had boiled a pot of water and it started to boil slightly. Li Xiang put the new rice in the pot, covered the pot, and then went to prepare other dishes.
In his newly built kitchen in the backyard, the wood-burning stove is a two-piece stove with two pots that can cook porridge and stir-fry vegetables at the same time.
Otherwise, if you use one pot, the food will be cooked a little too much, and it will be cold by the time it is done. And in terms of efficiency, it is definitely faster to operate two pots at the same time.
In addition, there is a channel dedicated to boiling water and a channel dedicated to simmering soup. There is no need to take special care of these two channels. Just burn the fire normally and the heat will pass.
If you are not simmering the soup, just put water in the jar.
When the three dishes of stir-fried pumpkin, braised winter melon, and rice flower fish and tofu soup are ready, the porridge has been cooked until the rice is half-cooked. Use a slotted spoon to pick up a little bit and take a closer look. You will know that the color of the rice center is different from the surface. wrong.
Or pinch it with your hands, the rice center is still a little hard. Then, Li Xiang took a bamboo strips woven bamboo basket (one side is flat, the rest is like a sieve, used in rural areas to drain rice), used a colander to take out most of the rice, and placed it in the bamboo basket to control the water, leaving an appropriate amount of rice grains. Still cooking until the consistency is right, this pot of porridge is very sweet and can be eaten by humans and cats.
You can also add some corn kernels, yams or sweet potatoes to the porridge and cook it according to your personal preference to create a unique flavor.
The drained rice is poured into a rice steaming wooden barrel and steamed over high heat.
The rice steamed in this way is very chewy, has a first-class taste and is fragrant. It is called "Laolao rice" or "Laolao rice".
Steaming rice has a long history. It is mentioned in the Book of Songs "Daya. Shengminzhi. Xunzhui". There is a word "餴饎" in it, which refers to this method of steaming rice. First, cook the rice until it is half cooked, and then scoop it out. Take it out and put it on the pot to steam until cooked.
Although the word "餴饎" has long been abandoned, "Lao rice" has remained standing for three thousand years. Anyone who has eaten it knows that the steamed rice is much more fragrant than the rice cooked in the city with a rice cooker.
Some rice cookers are designed with a "firewood rice" mode. However, no matter how good the design is, it is just a simulation, so how can it compare with real firewood rice?
The half-cooked rice was steamed in the steamer, and Li Xiang added two more dishes, braised beef and braised pork.
Didn’t I buy braised buns, beef and pork before? I braised eight kilograms of beef and ten kilograms of pork in a large iron pot, and also put in several handfuls of dried chili peppers. The braised meat was fragrant and fragrant. I refrigerated it with the brine in the refrigerator. , full of flavor. At this time, I took out a few pieces, cut them into separate plates, and steamed them together on rice.
Today is another simple meal of four dishes and one soup, three meat and two vegetarian dishes.
Check out the 16-9 book bar and see the correct version!
It’s much better than working as a worker in a big city!
Li Xiang took a video of the new rice coming out of the pot and showed it to everyone, and fans expressed their envy.
"This rice is crystal clear and smells delicious!"
“I really want to eat it!”
"It turns out to be the legendary fried rice. It's a bit strange, but it looks really appetizing."
Li Xiang: “Not only does it look good, it also tastes better!”
In ancient times, there was a grand ceremony for eating new rice. This is a custom that farming culture takes very seriously.
It usually includes a series of sacrifices and celebration activities, such as choosing an auspicious day, cooking new rice, setting off firecrackers, worshiping ancestors, performing Nuo opera, performing martial arts, etc. It is mainly to celebrate the harvest and thank nature and ancestors for their blessings.
But now, the complexity has been simplified, and just enjoying the deliciousness of this new rice is full of ritual.
Of course, Li Xiang did not forget the two dogs and the litter of cats.
The dog's meal was a little heavier, with vegetable soup, winter melon, pumpkin, and a few slices of braised beef and pork in the rice, while the mother cat and kitten had a lighter meal, mainly eating porridge.
Li Xiang filled a bowl of porridge for them, poured in fish soup and fish meat, and stirred evenly.
There was not even a single thorn in the fish meat. Li Xiang picked it out very carefully. His grandmother couldn't stand it anymore and couldn't help but said, "Are you still worried that cats will get stuck on the thorns? They can spit out thorns better than you!"
Li Xiang: "..."
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(End of chapter)