The morning in the village in the city is awakened by the smell of food.
Su Quangen and his wife Miao Yinhua started to get busy at 3:30 in the morning, kneading dough, cooking soy milk... I wish I could treat myself as two or three people. At 5:30, the sky gradually dawned, and the old couple pulled up the shutter door on time. The steaming hot air of the food in the house is mixed with the aroma, slowly spreading to the whole street.
Sujia snack shop, which operates breakfast, lunch and dinner. The main meal provides some stir-fried and steamed dishes that can be ordered. There are two kinds of stewed dishes that can be selected every day. Because the price is affordable and the taste is good, it is well received by the surrounding neighbors .
Even though this is a small restaurant run by two elderly people, they earn a lot of money every month.
Sujia has two buildings in Chengzhong Village. The snack shop is on the first floor of the house near the street, covering an area of about 120 square meters. The second and third floors are where my family lives, because this is my own shop. , which saves on rent.
In a developed southern city like Xijiang, the monthly rent for a shop of this size is at least tens of thousands. The environment in the villages in the city is a bit worse, but twenty to thirty thousand is still not worth it.
The other building of Su’s house is specially rented out to foreigners who come to Xijiang to work hard. The old couple had a vision and rebuilt the original small second floor into an eight-story building before the government issued a policy not to allow people’s houses to be raised without permission. Small building, the foundation of that building is larger than the one I live in. There are rooms of different sizes planned in the building, and they are rented out to single or family tenants according to their needs.
Over the years, more and more migrants have poured into Xijiang, and the rents in urban villages are relatively cheap. Therefore, every rental house in Sujia has never been vacant, and it can bring about 100,000 yuan in income to the family every month.
Coupled with the small restaurant of the old couple, the monthly income of the whole family can be much higher than that of ordinary executives.
At this time, the old couple had worked together to push the breakfast cart outside the shop. The fire under the cart was still burning, and all kinds of buns in the tall steamer above exuded an attractive aroma.
Their urban village is located in the center of the city, next to the city's CBD. Every day, many white-collar workers pass by this street, smelling the aroma of food, and occasionally many people walk two steps inside to buy some simple food. Bring breakfast to the office.
Therefore, in order to attract more strangers, the couple will push the breakfast trolley to a conspicuous position outside the store, so that people passing by the street can see it.
"Old Su, bring me a pot of soy milk, and six more sugar glutinous rice cakes. Today's biscuits are quite delicious. Give me four, one sweet and three salty."
An old man wearing a white cultural shirt and slippers on his feet, with a shiny face, appeared outside the snack shop and handed the kettle in his hand to Su Quangen.
This is also one of the charterers in the village in the city. Most of them are used to the food from the small food shop in the home. The price is fair and the ingredients are fresh and clean. Many people are used to bringing their own tableware to take away, which saves themselves. Grocery cooking and cleaning afterward.
The old man carrying the kettle obviously knew the Su family very well.
"Hey, old Su, you two just can't think about it. Isn't the monthly rent not enough? You're not a young guy anymore, and you're not afraid of exhausting yourself."
He watched Su Quangen take out the stacked steamers from the shop and put them on the breakfast cart outside the house, then bent down and beat his back with his hands, feeling a little resentful in his heart.
The couple of them have aged so fast in these years, and obviously the rent is high, but they are reluctant to eat and wear, and they are working hard to manage the snack shop.
These old friends have persuaded him that he really wanted to open this snack shop, so he stopped for breakfast. Anyone who has done catering knows that selling breakfast is really tiring, getting up early, and a lot of hard work, young It's too much for people, let alone two old people who are over 60 years old.
"Get used to it, get used to it."
Su Quangen smiled, took the kettle from his old neighbor, and asked his wife to fill it up.
Facing his attitude, others have nothing to say.
"Here, your sugar glutinous rice cakes and sesame seed cakes, this pot of soy milk is ready."
Su Quangen packed the breakfast he wanted and handed it to him.
The old man in the cultural shirt neatly scanned the QR code to pay, and before leaving, he still couldn't help but say something.
"You two, you really have to take care of your son and grandson. How old are you? If you don't want to go to work, you can't come to help at home? As long as they are willing to intervene, you and your sister-in-law don't have to be so tired."
Said, shook his head and left.
After hearing what he said, Su Quangen sighed, but soon many customers came to the store, and he didn't have time to think about it, so he was busy soon.
*****
At 9:30 in the morning, there were not so many people buying breakfast, and the couple finally stopped, took a sip of water, and took a breath.
"Is the son still awake? Did he save his breakfast?"
Su Quangen sat on the round stool behind the dining car, fanning the wind with the towel around his neck as a fan, and asked his wife beside him.
"Keep it, keep it warm in the pot. The kid played games and slept late yesterday, so he probably got up and ate lunch directly."
But even so, I still have to save a portion of breakfast, so my son will wake up later.
"Where's Tianyuan? You didn't come back last night. Will you come back today?"
the old man asked again.
"Just now I took the time to call the child, but I didn't answer, maybe I haven't gotten up yet, I'll call again later."
the old lady replied.
"The meat that Xiao Zhu sent today is very good, it looks almost as good as the local pork we bought from the countryside, if Tianyuan comes back, I will cook him a sweet and sour short rib with fine steak, Tianyuan likes it. "
"Well, if Tianyuan doesn't come back, he will have to burn it. Our son likes to eat it too."
The old man nodded.
The couple were talking about their son and grandson respectively.
His son Su Aobai is a widow in his 40s. He has no job. He is an old man. He is the only son of the old couple. In addition, the small food shop business run by the old couple is also considered prosperous, so Su Aobai has never been short of money, and finally got a college diploma. Difficult, I left my job and went home after working for three days.
A few years ago, he said that he wanted to write novels and become a big man like Jin Yong Gu Long, but he didn't see anything famous in his writing. Anyway, he was still raised by his parents. After a few years, he might have given up. He said he wanted to He plays games full-time, but his operation is very stinky, and he hasn't improved in a few years. Instead, he asks others to help him upgrade his level, which costs a lot of money.
Recently, he said that live broadcasting is more profitable, and it seems that he has to change his career again.
The old couple didn't have any opinion on this. In their hearts, the son was also striving for his career, but he was not very successful. As parents, they had to support their son and not undermine his confidence.
Su Tianyuan is the grandson of the old couple. He is still in his senior year this year, and his grades are not good. In the end, he got into a local pheasant school. Going to school every day is just a mess. Asking grandparents to ask for money has also formed the habit of asking grandparents for money.
He is still studying, and his monthly living expenses are five to six thousand, which is not counting the pocket money he asked his grandparents to ask for after spending the money.
But the old couple loves their son and their grandson. When the daughter-in-law gave birth to the child, the amniotic fluid embolism was not rescued, and the son was really sad for a while without his wife. The grandson was brought up by the old couple.
Afterwards, the son refused to marry another wife, so how could the old couple not feel sorry for such a little grandson.
In fact, they also knew in their hearts that their children and grandchildren seemed to have been spoiled by them, but now the two of them couldn't control them cruelly, so they could only comfort themselves in their hearts. There are two buildings, at most the two of them will work hard to earn more money, leaving enough legacy for them to live on.
With such an idea, the old couple no longer cared about their children and grandchildren. They worked like old scalpers every day, running their own snack shop, and saving more money for their children and grandchildren.
However, since he passed sixty-five the year before last, Su Quangen felt that he was a little powerless.
Machines can be used for kneading noodles for breakfast, but not for dinner at noon and evening, so many stir-fried vegetables have to be thrown away. He uses an ancient cast iron pan here, because the dishes fried in this pan have the same taste as before. Similarly, this kind of pot is also very heavy. After a day, my wrist hurts so much that I can't lift it.
Once, Su Quangen almost missed the pot when he was flipping the spoon, and the pot hit the ground, cracking the tiles on the floor.
Miao Yinhua is younger than her wife, but she can't shake the iron pot even more, and her cooking skills are not as good as Su Quangen's. Back then, Su Quangen was the chef of a state-owned restaurant, and some old gourmets in Xijiang knew that Su Quangen was a chef. The old man at home, it's a pity, that old man also doted on children, and refused to let Su Quangen practice boy kungfu hard since childhood. Later, when the old man left, Su Quangen also learned a little superficial.
But just like that, Su Quangen's craftsmanship is enough to impress the nearby neighbors, killing those ordinary fast food restaurants in seconds, otherwise, Sujia's snack shop wouldn't have stood firm in this urban village for decades.
*****
Su Aobai was awakened by the smell of bone broth.
Opening his eyes, looking at the unfamiliar layout around him, he realized that he had come to a new world.
The original body's memory was quickly absorbed. After a few minutes, he rubbed his temples, got up from the bed, and walked downstairs.
It's eleven o'clock at noon, and there are already customers in twos and threes sitting in the snack shop. Miao Yinhua is holding a notebook to record the dishes they want to order, while Su Quangen is busy in the kitchen at the back.
Because the business was good, they hired a foreign woman who rented their house, and the man of the other party was working on the construction site, because the couple took the two children from their hometown to study, and the expenses were relatively high, so she worked every day at noon and night. They will come to the shop to do odd jobs.
It is mainly responsible for washing and cutting vegetables and finally helping the old man and old lady to wash the dishes and clean the kitchen. The salary is three thousand and five thousand a month. This kind of salary is not high, but the old couple allow her to bring back some vegetables, fish, eggs and meat left over from the day. Home, because the Sujia snack shop only sells freshly delivered ingredients on the same day, so that the family can save a lot of food expenses, and it is also close to home, so the woman began to help in the shop, and she worked for six years. many.
"My son is up, have you washed your face and brushed your teeth yet? There is a breakfast left for you in the back kitchen. If you don't want to eat breakfast, let your father cook a few small dishes for you to eat."
Seeing her son coming down the stairs, Miao Yinhua hurriedly gave some instructions.
The meal times for catering are not regular. The lunch of the old couple and the helper is basically settled after one or two o'clock when there are fewer customers.
"Today's short ribs are very good. They have been soaked in blood in advance. If you want to eat them, ask your father to copy a sweet and sour short ribs for you."
The customer who was ordering at the side heard it, and hurriedly ordered a sweet and sour short rib. The proprietress said something good, it must be good.
Su Aobai nodded and walked towards the back kitchen.
The Sujia snack shop has been renovated several times before and after. The most recent renovation even installed an air conditioner in the back kitchen, because the back kitchen is too stuffy in summer, and several stoves are fired at the same time. The heat is enough to make people faint, so When Su Aobai walked into the back kitchen, he didn't feel very hungry.
Su Quangen had already started frying vegetables, and the woman in the kitchen was busy cutting vegetables. The aroma he smelled before was coming from the two large earthen pots stewed on the stove.
"Get up."
Su Quangen glanced at his son out of the corner of his eye.
"What to eat?"
Before I'm busy, I quickly made it for my son.
"I'm not hungry yet."
Su Aobai waved his hand. He didn't go to bed until four o'clock in the morning. Before going to bed, he ordered a barbecue, a fried rice, and drank a can of beer. He wasn't very hungry at the moment.
Seeing what he said, Su Quangen didn't urge him to eat.
Su Aobai inspected the back kitchen. There are five stoves against the wall on the left side of the door. Two stoves are stewing soup, and one stove is a pot of boiling water. Occasionally, when someone orders steamed vegetables, go up. With the addition of a steamer, the pot can be steamed at any time, and there are two stoves specially used for cooking. When busy, the old man has to take care of both sides.
The back kitchen is not big, but it is very clean. There is a long table in the middle of the kitchen, which is filled with all kinds of seasonings and clean dishes.
The fried dishes will also be placed on this table, and will be taken out when Miao Yinhua comes over.
Su Aobai strolled casually in the kitchen, Su Quangen didn't ask his son for any help, he simply ignored him, and the woman who helped the kitchen didn't say anything, but when she lowered her head to wash the vegetables, she used a disdainful expression He glanced secretly at him.
Her family can't raise this kind of waste snacks. They are still gnawing on old people at a very old age, and they are useless.
Su Aobai walked to the stove where the two pots of soup were simmering, lifted the lid of the pot and took a look at the soup stewing inside.
One pot is soybean pork knuckle soup, and the other pot is tomato egg drop soup.
Sujia snack shop only serves two kinds of stewed soup every day, one is free, and you can get a bowl as long as you order, and the other is to buy some for money, and the price is not expensive. Between 5 and 12, if you are eating together with a large family, you can order a large bowl, such as the soybean and pork knuckle soup in front of you, a large bowl is only 38, which is much more cost-effective than outside restaurants.
The pig's feet are stewed early in the morning, and the skin and meat are already stewed. In many places, the stewed pig's feet with soybeans are stews. They eat pig's feet and thick bottom juice, but here in Xijiang, they eat more and drink. Soup, soy pork trotter soup I don’t like to fry pork trotters with soy sauce in advance. They like to stew the original flavor of pork trotter soup. If the soup is thick and white, it is a success.
The small fire was simmering under the casserole, and the soybeans were bubbling in the pot with the air bubbles. This was the scent he had smelled upstairs before.
Su Aobai took a small bowl and filled it with a clean spoon.
There is still some soup in the soup, because it has not been seasoned with salt, the taste is a bit light, but at this time, it can taste its original taste.
Su Aobai smacked his mouth and drank all the pig's foot soup in the bowl.
"This kid hasn't added seasoning yet."
Su Laogen had just finished frying a dish. Seeing his son drinking a bowl of bland pig's foot soup, he quickly took another bowl, added some salt and chicken powder to the bottom of the bowl, and wanted to fill another bowl for him.
"Dad, I'll do it myself."
Su Aobai waved his hand.
"You child is really worrying."
Su Quangen looked at him uncomfortably, just at this time Miao Yinhua was calling for a new order outside the kitchen, seeing that the business was getting busy, Su Quangen could only tell his son a few words, and then went to work cooking up.
Su Aobai looked at the pile of seasonings behind him, took a few fennel, a little rock sugar, salt and chicken powder, then poured the seasonings in his hands into the soup casserole, and stirred them with a soup spatula.
The problem with this pot of soup is not big, the stew is often enough, and the ingredients are fresh, but there are still some areas for improvement.
The trotters themselves are not very clean ingredients, and if they are not properly treated in advance, they will easily leave a taste. Suquangen’s treatment of the trotters is still a bit rough, and the soybeans have not been soaked in advance, so the beany smell is more obvious .
The soup has been stewed, and these problems are difficult to correct now, and can only be made up through later seasoning.
The amount of seasoning is a difficult thing to grasp, especially for such a large pot dish, experienced chefs may miss it, which is why I used to eat rural flowing water seats, and the same chef occasionally made salty dishes. , Occasionally do the reason for the light.
Of course, this has to rule out some people's own tastes that are light and salty, and the big pot dishes cater to the tastes of the vast majority of people.
Su Aobai was once trained as the successor of a big restaurant and the successor of the king of chefs. Spices and seasonings are things he has been in contact with since he was sensible. In his short life, he spent most of his time in the kitchen. He didn't even go to school before, and all his homework was taught by his tutor between cooking practice.
If he hadn't met a guy who could fry egg fried rice to a golden light later on, he would have been on the top stage of cooking.
I don’t want to worry about those unhappy things, because strictly speaking, he is also a **** now. He used to hate those cheaters.
Once the fennel is in the pot, the aroma will become more complex immediately. Too much spice will cover up the taste of the ingredients themselves, but the right amount of spices can neutralize the peculiar smell of the ingredients themselves.
"You child, I told you to add the seasoning to the bowl, why did you add it to the soup pot!"
Su Quangen was almost scared to death by his son, so he quickly scooped out a bowl of soup to taste the saltiness.
His precious son, in his forties, has basically never been in the kitchen. Either the couple made it for him, or ordered takeaway. He didn't know how much seasoning he added just now. Don't give this pot of pig's trotter soup to him. destroyed.
After taking a mouthful of soup, Su Quangen was stunned.
It is thick and smooth, because it is pig's trotter soup, and it also has a slightly gelatinous texture after stewed skin and meat. The existence of these gelatinous textures makes the fragrant bone soup stay in the mouth and thick for a longer time, and the fragrance is long-lasting. scattered.
The trotter soup Suquangen has been stewed hundreds of times in his life. It is rare that he can control the saltiness so properly. He will also add a little fennel to the soup, but sometimes he is not sure of the amount, and it is easy to leave in the soup. The taste of fennel is too heavy, and some people don't like fennel, adding less will not be able to neutralize the smell of pig.
He drank the soup in the bowl in two or three gulps, smacked his mouth twice, and suddenly wanted to have another bowl.
"You have a good taste, but let Dad do this kind of thing in the future."
Su Quangen didn't think much about it, thinking it was just a coincidence.
"Old man, the guests outside are urging the food, so you should move faster."
Miao Yinhua came in and brought out several dishes that had already been fried.
"Okay, okay."
Su Quangen responded again and again, and forgot to chat with his son.
The air-conditioning was turned on in the kitchen, but Su Quangen was still sweating profusely. Miao Yinhua was running between the dine-in and the kitchen, and had to order again, serve the food and collect money, and her face was flushed from the bustle.
Even if he had to consider the original character design, it would be difficult for Su Aobai to watch the two old people work so hard.
It is definitely not allowed to help with cooking. On the one hand, it is difficult to explain why he has such good cooking skills before cooking. On the other hand, his father will not allow him to cook like this.
Su Aobai thought about it, and came outside anyway.
Miao Yinhua watched her son come out of the kitchen with the fried dishes.
"Which table are these two servings of stir-fried shredded lamb tripe and fried tofu?"
Miao Yinhua pointed in two directions in a daze.
"One serving of shredded lamb tripe and fried tofu is for that table, and another serving of shredded lamb tripe is for this table."
After her son passed by her, she came back to her senses, and then walked into the kitchen worriedly.
It's over, the son has come to show his courtesy again, and he must want to coax a lot of money from them again!
The author has something to say:
Thanks to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution during 2021-05-2922:33:42~2021-05-3019:30:48~
Thanks to the little angel who threw the mine: that young master one;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigate the nutrient solution: 30 bottles of Beier;
Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!