12dz Chapter 38 Gardenia
Chapter 38 Gardenia
"San Ya, why are you picking them? The peppercorns haven't grown yet. You can only pick them in autumn. The peppercorns don't have much flavor at this time."
"Second sister, these pepper leaves can be used as fragrant leaves after being dried, and fresh leaves can also be eaten after being fried. There are also mulberry leaves. Wrap them in a layer of egg liquid and fry them in a pan. They are very crispy. Sizzle, sizzle~ My mouth is watering just thinking about it."
Zhou Mingqi put down the backpack and started picking the fruits.
As long as it can be made delicious, there's nothing wrong with eating some leaves. Not all the vegetables we eat at home are made of leaves.
"Mulberry leaves can be eaten, too. I've learned a lot from following you every day. I know where there are mulberry trees. Why don't we go take a look?"
"Sure, how far is it, can you make it back before dinner time?"
"It's very close! Many people have mulberry trees in their fields. Maybe we can pick one or two mulberries."
"Yeah, okay, let's go home, this is enough food."
The two sisters clapped their hands and returned with their fully loaded baskets on their backs.
The other heavier backpack is carried alternately.
"Hey, this mushroom is so beautiful."
Zhou Mingqi pointed at a clump of mushrooms with a stick, the light yellow color of which was very obvious.
From a distance, Zhou Mingshu recognized that this was broom mushroom, and he squatted down and wiped it out immediately.
There was a bunch of them, one for each flower, and she had no place to put them, so she just held them in her hands.
"Can you eat this mushroom? What if your grandma scolds you again when you get home?"
"It's okay, go ahead and scold me if you want, it won't cost you anything anyway."
"Haha, okay, you are really brave."
The two sisters returned home laughing. Old Mrs. Zhou and Mrs. Feng had already built a pen for the chicks in the yard and set it in the corner.
Zhou Mingyuan and Xiao Minghua caught snails and small insects to feed the chicks.
After the two children had their fun, they stopped pestering the adults.
"I'm back. Why did you pick so many wild gardenias? Can we eat them?"
Old Mrs. Zhou turned over the backpacks and took a look. One of the baskets was full of wild gardenias.
"Why can't we eat them? Both the Sophora japonica and the Wisteria flowers are edible."
"How can this be the same? No one has ever eaten it. What if it's poisonous?"
Old Mrs. Zhou was unsure. Her family was not so poor that they could not even afford to eat, so they had to deal with all these unnecessary things every day.
How can you eat anything you put into your mouth?
"Grandma, these gardenias can be cooked and eaten. Don't worry, they are not poisonous. They are the same as pumpkin flowers. However, you need to blanch them in water first, and then cook them the same way as usual."
Old Mrs. Zhou looked at the basket full of gardenias and felt uncertain.
"Then why are you picking so many mulberry leaves? Are you two going to raise silkworms? And what are these? They are Sichuan pepper leaves."
"Yeah, grandma, San Ya said that these leaves are very fragrant when fried with egg liquid."
When Mrs. Zhou heard that all the food was ready to be eaten, she got so angry that she threw the food in her hand back.
"What? Are you going to eat poisonous mushrooms again?"
That handful of tender yellow broom mushrooms is also quite eye-catching.
Old Mrs. Zhou suddenly roared, and Zhou Mingqi was so scared that he didn't dare to look up or speak.
"Mom, the two girls don't recognize it, so they just don't eat it. Why are you angry with them?"
Feng changed the subject at a very opportune moment.
"Every time I go up the mountain, it makes me worry. I won't go there anymore."
"No, I will go. Everything in the mountains is edible, but you just don't know it."
Zhou Mingshu didn't dare to confront Old Lady Zhou and could only resist silently in his heart.
She crushed the pale yellow coral fungus and threw it into the chicken coop. A group of chicks came over with their half-grown wings flapping, and pecked at it.
"Look, this mushroom is not poisonous. If it were poisonous, this little chick wouldn't eat it."
When I turned around, I saw that Old Mrs. Zhou had not yet put down the broom.
It looked like he had just escaped a beating.
Mrs. Feng, who was standing by, was also very frightened. It had been a long time since her mother-in-law had been so angry.
San Ya is constantly stepping on the old lady's bottom line.
Zhou Mingshu disagreed, saying that these rules would be broken sooner or later.
Otherwise, they would not accept so many new things and their family would not become rich.
She encountered so many things on the mountain today. She knew that many plants and fungi were beyond their knowledge, so she did not pick them all, but picked some that were easy to accept and took them home.
For example, pepper leaves, mulberry leaves and broom mushrooms.
She will not let others make these things, she will make them herself and present these delicious foods on everyone's table.
Of course, Mrs. Zhou would not do these things.
So Zhou Mingshu had no intention of waiting until mealtime.
Putting the leaves and gardenias in a basket, she began to wash them.
"Second sister, help me light a fire and boil some water."
"it is good."
Fortunately, there is always someone in this family who is willing to believe in her and help her.
Seeing her grandmother helping with other things, Zhou Mingqi ran to the kitchen to wash the pot and add water.
After Zhou Mingshu washed the gardenia flowers and leaves, he broke two eggs in a bowl, added flour and some seasonings, and stirred well.
Then put mulberry leaves and pepper leaves in a bowl and stir until they are completely coated with egg liquid.
"Saya, the water is boiling."
"Okay, second sister, I'll be right there."
Zhou Mingshu poured the gardenia flowers into the pot, blanched them and placed them in a basin of cold water. He removed all the stamens and rubbed them repeatedly, and after draining off the water, he could cut them into small ingredients and start stir-frying.
She put some lard in the pot, and when the oil was hot, she fried the pepper leaves and mulberry leaves one by one with chopsticks.
When the leaves slightly curl up, become hard and crispy, put them into a plate and they are fried.
There is just some oil left at the bottom of the pot. Stir-fry the chopped garlic until fragrant. Then add the gardenia and stir-fry. Add some seasonings and stir-fry before serving.
"Second sister, okay, turn off the engine."
When two dishes were served, Zhou Mingshu started with mulberry leaves.
Each bite is crunchy and fragrant.
Zhou Minghua and Zhou Mingyuan's eyes kept following her movements.
"Want to eat?"
"Want to eat."
"If you want to eat, go wash your hands. I'll only make this little bit. It will be gone after my second sister and I finish eating."
When the two children heard that they were about to run out of water, they ran to the basin to wash their hands.
Seeing the two children eating with relish, Mrs. Feng walked over.
"Er Ya, San Ya, are these leaves really edible?"
Since Feng was pregnant, she didn't dare to eat anything careless.
But these two children ate so deliciously that even she, an adult, couldn’t help herself.
"Auntie, you can really eat, and it tastes really good."
Zhou Mingqi held a leaf in one hand, his fingers were covered with grease. It was just as San Ya said, fragrant and crispy, with the unique fragrance of leaves. It was really delicious.
Next time she goes up the mountain, she will have to pick more.
The two children washed their hands and came over to eat.
The crispy, light and thin leaves gave them an unreal feeling when bitten in the mouth.
This stuff is really delicious!
"Mom, you eat too."
Xiao Minghua fed Feng a piece of the cake. She tried to taste it and it was indeed as she thought, very fragrant.
She believed San Ya. She had eaten a lot of it herself, so it was definitely not poisonous.