Siheyuan: The Qing Dynasty is back

Early the next morning, after Sha Zhu and Yu Li went to work, He Daqing rode his bike to the suburbs.

It is the tradition of our He family to do what we say, so He Daqing was determined to do it this time.

The Chinese New Year has just passed, and the water in the river is still a little cold. In some places there is even ice that has not melted.

He Daqing found a relatively clear section of the river, picked up a bucket, and went down to the river to feel for rocks.

What he wants to make is a special snack that originated from Enshi, Hubei, called "Suodiu"!

Legend has it that this dish was made with various seasonings because poor families had no food to serve to guests.

The stones used in this dish are also very particular. The authentic ones are made from pebbles from local mountain springs.

Of course, He Daqing doesn’t have such conditions now, so he can only choose a relatively clear riverbed here to search.

And the size of the pebbles is also important. They cannot be too big or too small. They must have a certain amount of soil and retain a fishy smell. Only such pebbles will have that flavor.

There may be fewer people coming to this section of the riverbed on weekdays, so He Daqing picked up more than half a bucket of pebbles in a short time.

Seeing that it was almost done, He Daqing carried the bucket and went back to the steel mill.

When he arrived at the door, the two guards had obviously heard about He Daqing's plan to cook with stones. Seeing him carrying a large bucket, they immediately ran over and looked curiously at the bucket full of pebbles.

A guard asked in confusion: "Director He, is this the stone you use to cook?"

He Daqing replied with a smile: "Yeah, what do you think? Do you believe it?"

Another guard shook his head and said, "I still don't understand. These are just pebbles from the river. How can they be made into food for human consumption?"

The guard next to him immediately retorted: "Nonsense, if you could understand, you would be like Director He and become a second-level chef!"

He Daqing smiled and said, "Okay, I'll go in first, and I'll let you guys taste it when I'm done."

After saying that, he pushed his bicycle towards the second canteen.

When he arrived at the door of the second canteen, He Daqing picked up the bucket and walked towards the kitchen.

Sha Zhu has been waiting for his father to come back from work in the kitchen today. He is very envious of his father's skill in cooking with stones.

Finally I saw my dad coming in with a bucket, so I ran over and said, "Dad, I'll do it. I'll carry it."

He Daqing casually handed the bucket to Sha Zhu. If someone else was helping, he could save some effort.

Sha Zhu watched He Daqing easily carry the bucket in with one hand. He thought it was not heavy, so he also followed He Daqing's example and caught it with one hand.

He didn't know that this half bucket of pebbles was so heavy that it almost fell on his feet. So he hurriedly picked it up with both hands.

He Daqing saw it and just smiled faintly. "Little guy, do you really think your father is old? Dealing with you is like dealing with a chicken."

Sha Zhu steadied the bucket in his hand and shouted, "Dad, why is it so heavy? Why didn't you remind me?"

He Daqing said angrily, "You are lazy in the kitchen all day long. You are so young, but you are not as good as an old man like me. Why do you eat so much food every day?"

After being scolded by He Daqing, Sha Zhu no longer dared to complain. He could only lower his head and carry the bucket to the back kitchen.

But when he looked at the pebbles inside, he was really curious about how his father made this dish.

Others in the kitchen also saw He Daqing and Sha Zhu coming in with a bucket. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at He Daqing with curiosity. They all wanted to see the secret of cooking with stones.

Next, He Daqing ignored the curious people around him and directed Sha Zhu to help cook.

First, let Shazhu find a large basin and pour all the stones into the basin to wash. This cannot be washed too thoroughly, just wash it a few times until there is no obvious dirt on it.

Then he found the little remaining meat oil in the small kitchen, put it into the pot, and added some spices, onions, ginger, garlic, chili peppers and the bean paste he usually made and stir-fried them together.

After these seasonings give off fragrance, pour the pebbles into the pan and stir-fry.

After frying for a while, add water, cover the pot and simmer.

After all the operations, not only the people in the kitchen were dumbfounded. Even Sha Zhu couldn't understand his father's operation.

Can the stone be cooked in this way?

At this time, it was almost time for lunch, and Li Huaide and Director Huang led a group of people into the cafeteria. Even Director Yang followed everyone to watch the fun out of curiosity and taste the dishes that He Daqing made with stones.

Seeing that He Daqing was still in the kitchen, Li Huaide said, "Master He, how is it? When will your dishes be ready? Everyone is curious and wants to try them."

He Daqing smiled and replied, "Director Li, please wait a moment. It will be ready soon. Why don't you get some rice first? When you are done, maybe my dish can be ready for the table."

After hearing what He Daqing said, Director Yang nodded and said, "Okay, let's go get some food first. It's time for dinner now."

So, a group of leaders, led by Director Yang, prepared the food and went into the private room to wait for He Daqing's stone dish.

Seeing that the time was almost up, He Daqing thickened the sauce and began to cook on high heat. After a while, a spicy stone dish was ready.

He Daqing pinched a stone with his hand and put it in his mouth. Wow, it was spicy, fresh and fragrant, with a faint fishy smell. Although this was his first time making this dish, he had to say that it tasted great!

Sha Zhu, Yu Li, and a large group of people in the kitchen stared at the delicious food in the pot with their eyes wide open. Just smelling the smell made everyone drool.

I didn’t expect that He Daqing actually made a dish with stone.

So everyone stretched their necks, wanting to taste it. Even a few more sniffs would be fine!

He Daqing couldn't take care of them right now. He first delivered the dishes to the private room.

He Daqing took out four or five large plates and filled each plate full, then asked Sha Zhu, Yu Li and Liu Lan to carry them into the private room.

As soon as you enter the private room, a spicy and fragrant smell fills the entire room.

Everyone put down their chopsticks and stared at the food on the plates.

Li Huaide was the most anxious. He stood up and said, "Master He, is this the stone dish you made? Just smelling it makes me hungry! You are really amazing, aren't you?"

He Daqing put the plate on the table and said, "Dear leaders, this dish is a little hot now. Please wait a moment before eating. Before eating, let me tell you the origin and how to eat this dish."

After hearing what He Daqing said, everyone suppressed their impulse and listened to him talk about this dish. Is there anything special about eating it?