Fan Xuan made soup, patted a cucumber, mixed several large pots of tofu, and served it. There are only seven or eight eggs in the soup, which is just a little eggy. There is no other way, the army is poor, and eggs are too expensive now, so this is the only way. Patching cucumbers did not exist in this era. In fact, this dish has not been around for a long time in New China. The characteristic of cucumbers is that they taste better when eaten cold and eaten cold than after they are cut. This is a result of practice. The other is freshly made tofu. While it is still steaming, it is poured with garlic sauce, soy sauce, etc. and mixed before eating.
This is the condition of Wang Xiao's hunting army at this time. It is not a treat, and it is difficult for him to eat meat for once.
When the yellow rice was served, Wang Xiaolie asked everyone to pour the roasted eggplant on the rice. For a while, he was satisfied with the meal.
After eating, everyone continued to read. It can be seen that he is much more serious than before.
By dinner time, the braised meat was also ready. The army cut some for the officers to eat, and everyone praised it together. I haven’t seen the smell of meat in a few days, so these braised pork just satisfy everyone’s craving. For a time, the army was filled with joy.
On the afternoon of the second day, Wang Yan led five of his men to Wang Xiao's hunting army.
Entering the counting room, the guests and hosts took their seats. Wang Xiaolie held up his hands and said, "Lieutenant, these are—"
Wang Yan said: "These five are my subordinates. They were with me in Shaanxi and are familiar with military affairs. You have come to me several times and asked me to borrow a few people to help you train your troops. They just came back from Huazhou yesterday. , will be delivered to you today.”
Wang Xiaolie was overjoyed and thanked him hurriedly. He looked at the sky and said to Wang Yan: "It's rare for the Taiwei to come here, so he uses some wine and meat. The army just bought a jar of wine yesterday. Let's have a taste today. This morning, the men went outside the city and caught a few big fish. , just in time to drink."
Wang Yan didn't shirk and readily agreed. As the largest force in Kaifeng Mansion now, Wang Yan is not living well. He came from the Taihang Mountains and had little savings. How much money can Zongze give? There is no shortage of military rations, which is pretty good.
Wang Xiaolian called Wang Zhong and asked him to tell the cooks in the army to prepare a banquet.
Seeing that Wang Zhong was hesitant to go out, Wang Xiaolie stood up, confessed his crime to Wang Yan, and walked out.
When Wang Zhong saw it, he hurriedly stepped forward and crossed his hands: "Xiaoshe people, Wang Taiwei is a very important person, so we can't wait any longer. There is no meat in the army, how can we entertain them? Yesterday we did have some braised meat, but how can we entertain the nobles with that kind of food?" "
Wang Xiaolie said: "Why can't we entertain? Although the food is not valuable, the cooking method is not found in other places. Also, we caught a few big fish today, please order two big ones. I asked Fan Xuan to make a few Vegetables, and then use fish bones and tofu to make a soup, it’s very delicious.”
After hearing this, Wang Zhong could only sigh secretly in his heart. Nowadays, the army is too poor, so it seems really shabby to treat guests like this.
After a while, Shao Ling, Cao Zhiyan and Xie Linong came over, and Wang Xiaolie asked them to go in and accompany the guests. He walked to Fan Xuan's kitchen and taught him how to cook. It's good to be poor in the army, but Wang Xiaolie had too many ways of eating for future generations in his mind. Even if he wasn't a person who liked cooking in his previous life, it was enough to rely on what he had in his memory and Fan Xuan's skillful hands.
Arriving at the kitchen, Fan Xuan hurriedly stepped forward to salute.
Wang Xiaolie said to Fan Xuan: "Lieutenant Wang came here today and brought some generals with him. He wants to train the soldiers in our army. Don't neglect them. You should cook some dishes carefully and make sure they are satisfied."
Fan Xuan thought for a while and said: "There is still a lot of the braised vegetables yesterday, which can be regarded as a dish. There is also tofu, which is newly made today, and can be mixed into a dish. And the big fish caught today can be used as a dish. Use it to make fish soup. Add some fruits and vegetables to the rest, it should be enough."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Wang Zhong mentioned just now that Wang Taiwei is an honored guest, so it's a bit disrespectful. Let's do this, we will mainly focus on fish today. I ordered people to send two big fish. You take the meat and cook it first. Fish fillet. One portion of the fish fillet is stir-fried and one portion is deep-fried. It can barely be regarded as a meat dish. The remaining fish bones and tofu are cooked in a large pot. When cooked until it is white, it is served up and looks better than the fish. The soup is much better. Chop the rest of the fish and make it into fish balls. Put it in the pot and cook it until it is cooked. Serve it with the soup. It is also a dish. Cut some braised vegetables and serve it with wine. "
After hearing this, Fan Xuan frowned and said, "This is like using fish as the main course. But we northerners don't know how to deal with it."
Wang Xiaolie said: "Don't worry, I will teach you on the side and you will get it done."
The customs of this era were actually the same in later generations. Southerners were better at eating fish than northerners. At this time, when eating fish in the north, except for special cases, they can only cook it or make soup. In the south, there are more fish dumplings and other methods. However, northerners are not used to this food. In the city of Kaifeng, once someone knows how to cook fish dumplings, many southern officials will come to visit him.
Fan Xuan is from Ruzhou, Wang Xiaolie’s hometown, and has never cooked fish many times in his life. At this time, I couldn't help but feel unsure.
Not long after, the soldiers brought over two fish, both of which were large herrings weighing more than 20 kilograms. There are many lakes and lakes around Kaifeng, and there are also many fish. Locals don't fish much, and there are big fish in many swamps. Wang Xiaolie then ordered people to find a few places with plenty of water outside the city to catch some fish. If you don’t have money to eat meat, you can always catch fish by yourself. Done well, it can also attract people.
He commanded the soldiers to kill the two fish. Wang Xiaolie said to Fan Xuan: "This fish is so big, and the meat is the fattest. Take a knife in your hand, hold the fish down, go down on both sides, and remove the bones first. We only want the fish meat and the fish bones to stew tofu."
Fan Xuan is a cook. Although he has never handled fish, according to Wang Xiaolie, it went smoothly. Although the fish bones cannot be removed cleanly, there is still a lot of meat on it, as long as there are no spines in the meat. After cutting the fish and removing all the small thorns, Wang Xiaolie asked Fan Xuan to slice the fish into fillets.
Straightening up, Fan Xuan said: "This is a delicate job! My waist is sore after cutting for a long time!"
Wang Xiaolie said with a smile: "Cooking is a delicate job, and it's not just about cutting fish fillets. One portion of the fish fillets is fried, and the other portion is fried in the oil pan and served to everyone. Then. The rest is chopped into pieces, shaped into fish balls, and served with soup."
Fan Xuan didn't know what to do. Wang Xiaolie taught on the side and watched him do what he said carefully. If there is anything wrong, just replace it with fish fillets. Two big fish, I can never use them up.
Put the fish fillets and fish balls into the pot and slowly watch them cook. In the large pot next to it, fish bones were placed and cooked together with tofu.
Seeing that everything was ready, Wang Xiaolie told Fan Xuan to go up immediately when it was cooked. Do not let fish meat cool, as it will smell bad once it cools. He also asked him to cut a lot of braised lamb liver and lamb tripe, use more minced garlic, add some coriander, and mix it evenly.
At this time, there was a meal-sharing system, which was different from that of later generations. Although the meal-sharing system is inconvenient, it also has many advantages. The biggest advantage is that you don’t need to cook too many dishes for one table. Today there are nearly ten people, and these few dishes are enough for everyone to drink.
Back in the living room, Wang Xiaolie saluted Wang Yan: "Wait patiently, Lieutenant. In fact, there is not much food in the army. The distinguished guests are coming, so I have to prepare it myself. Meat in the city is more expensive these days, and I really can't afford it. . We in the army bought some liver and tripe and the like and stewed them for eating. Also, we went to Caizhou a few days ago and bought some beans and made them into tofu, which can also satisfy our craving. In addition to the fish caught today, Taiwei Don’t be dissatisfied.”
Wang Yan smiled and said: "We who are marching and fighting, why are we so picky about food? As long as we have wine and can chat a few gossips."
Wang Xiaolie sighed: "We still have wine. However, now most of the armies in the city make their own wine, and the prices sold outside are not cheap. Although the army always has it, the quantity is not large."
Wang Yan said: "What Xiaoshe said is right. Our army also came to Kaifeng City not long ago and is worried about this matter."
At this time, wine was indispensable in the army. However, in these war-torn times, the price is not cheap. Wang Xiaolie only ensured that there were several tanks in the army for entertaining guests, and he did not drink often.
Fan Xuan commanded the soldiers and brought up the mixed liver and tripe. The wine was placed and poured in front of everyone.
Wang Xiaolie raised the bowl: "This is braised in the army. Although it is not valuable, the taste is decent. Lieutenant, please drink! How about a taste?"
Drinking wine. Wang Yan tasted the liver and tripe in front of him and couldn't help but slapped the table and said: "Okay, okay! If the meat is not cooked carefully, it can't compare to this taste! Xiaosheren, please teach me how to braise meat." I!"
Wang Xiaolie naturally agreed. The method of stewing is not difficult, but the difficulty is making the stewing taste good.
After drinking no more than three rounds, the fried fish fillets were served again. This is something that no one has eaten. It's fragrant and crispy. We say yes after eating it.
