https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-123-Officials-on-the-23rd-Commoners-on-the-24th-Boat-Dwellers-on-the-25th/12849238/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-125-The-New-Son-in-Law-Returns-Home/12849240/
Chapter 124: A Joyful New Year
Chapter 124: A Joyful New Year
In Bobai County, there are two essential items for the New Year: gray water rice cakes and large rice cakes.
Right now, Deng Shirong was making large rice cakes at home, with his children and eldest daughter-in-law helping out or watching.
The method for making large rice cakes involves soaking glutinous rice, grinding it into powder, and then stirring it with boiling water. The mixture is then kneaded into thick, arm-sized strips and boiled in a pot of boiling water until it becomes a cooked dough.
Next, the pot is cleaned, and a bowl of water is added along with brown sugar. The sugar is slowly melted over a low flame to create a syrup. The cooked dough is then added, stirred until evenly coated, and the water is cooked off.
It sounds simple, doesn’t it? However, when you actually try to make a large rice cake, you realize how difficult it can be.
The earlier steps are indeed easy, but the final step is the real challenge. As the water evaporates during the stirring process, the dough becomes increasingly sticky. By the time the dough is almost formed, the stickiness can be so intense that it makes a normal person question their life choices.
Each stir requires the strength of a newborn baby, and anyone not used to hard labor will likely tire out within two minutes.
If you stop stirring, the pot will burn unless the fire is extinguished.
Even if you have the strength, if you don’t know the proper technique, you still won’t be able to make a large rice cake. The dough’s stickiness can be so strong that sometimes, when you try to stir, you might lift the entire pot. There are plenty of examples of people damaging their pots while trying to make large rice cakes.
Breaking a wooden spoon is also a common occurrence.
Because making large rice cakes is so challenging, they are rarely eaten outside of the New Year.
“Ah-Zhen, keep the fire steady, not too high or too low. A high flame will burn the pot, and a low flame will make it hard to stir evenly,” Deng Shirong said as he stirred with all his might.
Deng Yunzhen glanced at the stove and replied, “Dad, I understand. The fire is just right now.”
Standing nearby, Deng Yuntao saw his father struggling and said, “Dad, you look tired. Why don’t you let me give it a try?”
Deng Shirong, indeed a bit tired, didn’t refuse. He nodded and said, “Alright, give it a try.”
He handed the large wooden spoon to his eldest son and gave him some pointers on how to apply force and stir.
Deng Yuntao, being a skilled potter, was familiar with the techniques. After a brief explanation from his father, he understood!
However, once he started stirring, he realized just how difficult making a large rice cake truly was.
Fortunately, having someone to take over halfway through made a significant difference.
After the father and son took turns, Deng Shirong saw that the timing was right and instructed, “Ah-Zhen, you can extinguish the fire now. Ah-Ping, go get the bamboo shells from the table.”
Deng Yunzhen responded and used a poker to put out the fire.
Zhang Xiuping quickly brought over the stack of bamboo shells from the table.
In this era, there were no suitable containers, so the villagers in Naye Village used bamboo shells to hold the large rice cakes.
These bamboo shells were made from the local Niugule bamboo (Hakka dialect), the largest type of bamboo in the area, which was also used for making bamboo rafts and measuring cylinders.
Most bamboo shells have small, prickly hairs, but this type of bamboo shell was large and completely smooth. Every year, during the season when the shells fell, the villagers would collect them, clean them, flatten them, and dry them for use in making rice cakes.
With the bamboo shells ready, Deng Shirong began to fill them.
It took about seven or eight shells to finish the entire pot of large rice cakes.
Next, the most anticipated part for the children was scraping the pot for the crispy, caramelized bottom.
The pot bottom left behind after making the large rice cakes was incredibly fragrant, sweet, and chewy—a rare delicacy.
The only downside was that it was a bit tough on the teeth. A piece the size of a child’s palm could take a long time to chew.
There was enough for everyone, and Deng Shirong also took a small piece to try.
The taste was exactly as he remembered—fragrant, sweet, and chewy. As long as you didn’t eat too much at once, the chewiness was quite enjoyable.
In the modern era, although large rice cakes are still a must for the New Year in Bobai County, they are made using machines. The rice cake powder is poured directly into the machine, and out comes the ready-to-eat large rice cake, making the process much simpler and more convenient. The texture is also better than the handmade version.
The only regret is that the machine-made rice cakes lack the crispy bottom crust.
As a result, children of later generations have no idea what the bottom crust of a rice cake tastes like.
In the evening, Deng Shirong steamed a large number of rice cakes. These were for his eldest son and daughter-in-law to take back to their in-laws' home on the second day of the New Year.
For a new son-in-law’s first visit to his in-laws, the occasion is naturally grand, and as a father, Deng Shirong naturally wanted to ensure his son’s visit was a success.
...
The next day, Deng Shirong began making ash water rice cakes.
The method for making ash water rice cakes involves burning pine wood, sesame stalks, or soybean stalks (any one of these) to ashes, then filtering the ashes with water to obtain an alkaline solution, which is the ash water.
The ash water is mixed with pre-washed glutinous rice, allowing the rice to absorb the water and swell. After soaking for about five hours, the rice is drained and placed in a wooden bucket, with a few holes poked in the top to allow for better heat distribution and ventilation.
The rice is then steamed for about an hour before being transferred to a wooden container. Using a wooden mallet, the rice is pounded continuously until it becomes evenly sticky, completing the process.
This sounds simple, but it’s actually quite challenging, especially in controlling the amount of ash and the soaking time. Too much ash water can make the cakes bitter, while too little won’t give them the desired fragrance.
Only by mastering this balance can one make ash water rice cakes that are fragrantly delicious.
Deng Shirong has been making ash water rice cakes every year. Even in his later years, he was the one who controlled the soaking process, so his experience is unmatched, and he has no worries about making them poorly.
Once the large rice cakes and ash water rice cakes were completed, it was New Year's Eve!
Our country is vast, and customs vary from place to place. For New Year's Eve, many regions treat dinner as the New Year’s Eve feast.
However, in Shuangwang, the midday meal is considered the New Year’s Eve feast.
On this day, those who can afford it slaughter chickens to offer to their ancestors.
Children also take baths and change into new clothes at noon, then help put up couplets and hang lanterns.
However, hanging lanterns is a matter of great importance. Only families who are debt-free are allowed to hang lanterns, while those in debt are not.
Although the Deng family was doing well this year, they still owed the credit union 6,000 yuan, so they couldn’t hang lanterns.
After offering to their ancestors, Deng Shirong, along with his eldest daughter and daughter-in-law, prepared a sumptuous New Year’s Eve feast.
As the family sat down to eat, Deng Shirong, as the head of the household, spoke up, “Compared to last year, our family has undergone significant changes. Your older brother Yungui and I have taken over the kiln, and business has been good. We’ve made a lot of money in the past six months.”
Deng Shirong then looked at his eldest son and said with a smile, “Yuntai has also become a master at the kiln, and his income is very good.”
In his previous life, the family was plunged into deep sorrow after the tragic death of his eldest son, making that New Year’s celebration very somber.
This time, having come back to life, he changed his son’s fate, which was the most heartening thing for him.
Hearing his father mention him, Deng Yuntai chuckled, “Dad, it’s all thanks to you.”
Deng Shirong smiled and turned to his second son, “Yunheng has also made great progress in his studies and is now firmly at the top of his grade.”
Yunheng felt very gratified by his father’s praise and the admiring looks from his younger siblings.
“Yuzhu has returned to school, and all of you have made significant improvements in your studies compared to last year. These are all things to be celebrated.”
Deng Yuzhu and Deng Yunhua exchanged glances, feeling a bit guilty as the two of them had not done as well as their siblings.
Finally, Deng Shirong turned to his daughter-in-law and said with great satisfaction, “Most importantly, our family has grown this year. Your daughter-in-law has joined the Deng family, and if she gives me two big, healthy grandsons next year, it will be even more perfect.”
Zhang Xiuping’s face turned a bit red, and she glanced at her husband, her meaning clear.
After speaking, Deng Shirong raised his glass, “Here, children, let’s all raise a toast to a better year ahead for our family.”
The children and daughter-in-law all raised their glasses, the adults drinking wine and the children tea, and they clinked their glasses together.
Then, they enjoyed their New Year’s Eve feast.
After dinner, Deng Shirong took out the red envelopes he had prepared and gave each of his children and daughter-in-law their New Year’s money.
(End of Chapter)
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