Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside
Chapter 80 - 080: Tofu

Chapter 80: Chapter 080: Tofu

Besides making tofu and bean dregs cake, soybeans can also be used to extract oil, make soybean paste, soy sauce, and sprout beans. There are so many things that can be made from them.

"Bean cake?" Luo Huiniang frowned deeply as if she remembered something unpleasant: "Is it the kind of cake made by crushing soybeans? Third Grandma and some elderly folks in her hometown have made it, and it tasted terrible; it had a strong astringent taste. Moreover, the steamed bean cake crumbled and did not form well, it was even worse than just boiling soybeans." Boiling them until they are soft and mushy, eating them hot would still retain some bean fragrance.

I also have this memory, where Third Grandma and the others found continuously stewing soybeans too monotonous, so they thought of grinding the soybeans into a powder and then mixing it with water to make bean cakes, similar to grinding sorghum or wheat flour, but they failed.

They failed because they didn’t soak the beans, nor did they add any flour to the soybean powder, so the soybean powder couldn’t bind together.

The reason they did not soak the beans and add flour is that, in their knowledge, water would spoil the beans, and flour was a precious food item that they only got to eat during festivals; naturally, they were reluctant to add it to the crushed soybeans.

Gu Jinli looked at Luo Huiniang’s distressed face, seemingly so upset that she wouldn’t even wash the millstone, then he smiled and said: "Don’t worry, the bean cake I make will definitely be different from what Third Grandma made. It was taught to me by an old lady while fleeing from famine; many families in her place eat bean cake as a staple, it’s very delicious."

"Really?" Luo Huiniang’s eyes lit up: "Then let’s quickly wash the millstone and make something delicious." And then she happily joined in washing the millstone.

Tian Family and Luo Family lived in the same courtyard. When Tian Erqiang and Tian Xiaohua saw them cleaning the millstone, they also came to help.

Tian Erqiang went to fetch water, and Tian Xiaohua grabbed a grass brush made of dry straw and helped them clean.

The millstone was one meter in size and had been abandoned for a long time; it was covered in dust and mud. They washed it five times to finally get it clean.

Luo Huiniang was nearly exhausted, leaning against the millstone and panting heavily; after resting for a while, she found the strength to ask Gu Jinli: "Xiao Yu, can we make tofu now?"

She added: "That name doesn’t sound very nice though, tofu tofu, it sounds like rotten beans."

Tian Xiaohua didn’t really understand what tofu was, but she knew that by following Sister Xiao Yu, there were opportunities to eat meat and earn money, so she didn’t ask too much and just kept on working.

Gu Jinli said: "Yes, the beans have soaked long enough."

"Soaking, soaking the beans!" Luo Huiniang exclaimed: "You soaked the beans in water? Oh no, you’re in trouble, you better run. If your parents find out, they will definitely beat you."

Beans were their sustenance. Xiao Yu misusing the beans like this, even if Uncle Dashan and Aunt Dashan were good-tempered, they wouldn’t be able to restrain from scolding her.

Luo Huiniang pulled Gu Jinli to run, but Gu Jinli grabbed onto the wooden handle of the millstone and said, "I’ve talked about it with Third Grandma and my mother. They gave me five catties of beans."

Third Grandma and Mrs. Cui were both compassionate towards children; although they felt sorry for the beans, they still agreed to give her five catties of soybeans, but they made it clear: if it didn’t work, she was not to try it again.

Luo Huiniang’s jaw dropped: "Third Grandma and Aunt Dashan are really good to you." Five catties of beans! If she were to squander food like that, her mother would chase her with a broomstick.

The two of them along with Tian Xiaohua hurried to Gu Jinli’s house, fetched the soaked soybeans from the kitchen.

Not long after, they returned to the courtyard shared by the Luo and Tian families, carrying the soaked soybeans and an empty wooden barrel, and started grinding the beans.

Gu Jinli rolled up her sleeves and said: "Xiao Hua, use a wooden bowl to scoop the beans into the holes of the millstone, just a little at a time, Hui Niang and I will push the millstone."

The millstone was one meter in size, and it was made of two heavy stones piled on top of each other; it was very heavy, and she could hardly move it alone, so it required two people to push it together.

"Okay, I got it, Sister Xiao Yu," Tian Xiaohua scooped up the swollen soybeans with a wooden bowl and placed them in the hole on the millstone.

Gu Jinli and Luo Huiniang grasped the wooden handles in the millstone and pushed it clockwise. After a while, a white pulp began to flow from the gap between the two grinding stones down to the stone trough at the base of the millstone.

Gu Jinli called out to Tian Xiaohua, "Xiao Hua, add more beans."

Tian Xiaohua added more soybeans into the hole of the millstone. Gu Jinli and Luo Huiniang kept pushing, circling five or six times, at which point Gu Jinli would have Tian Xiaohua add more soybeans, repeatedly grinding the beans like this.

Luo Wu and Gu Jin’an came back from chopping wood and came over to help. Everyone took turns grinding the beans. After an hour, they finally finished grinding the beans, producing an entire bucket of soy milk and bean dregs.

Mrs. Chen heard that they were grinding beans to make tofu and came over with a bowl to watch the excitement. After seeing the bucket of soy milk, she tutted, "Oh, what a sin, wasting good food like this."

She earnestly advised Gu Jinli, "Xiao Yu, you can’t be so willful. Wasting food like this, you won’t find a good family to marry into."

Hearing this, Ms. Chu snapped back at Mrs. Chen, "Little Sister-in-law Da Gui, is that something you should say to a young girl who’s not yet married? If you don’t think Xiao Yu and the others can make tofu, don’t come here to watch. Wait until Xiao Yu actually makes tofu, and then don’t eat it."

As if Mrs. Chen would pass up such a bargain.

Mrs. Chen quickly changed her tune, "Sister-in-law Luo, look at what you’re saying. What kind of relations are our families? Xiao Yu is dutiful too. When she makes fresh food, of course, she should share some pounds with us."

Gu Jinli giggled: "I won’t share with those who speak ill of me."

After finishing her words, she and Luo Huiniang carried the bucket of mixed soy milk and bean dregs back to her house.

Afraid that Gu Jinli really wouldn’t give her tofu, Mrs. Chen quickly shouted towards Gu Jinli’s retreating back, "Xiao Yu, I’ll come to your house later to get tofu. Don’t bother bringing it to me."

Gu Jinli pretended not to hear, and when they got back home, Gu Dashan and the others had also just returned with big water jars. Five big water jars, two people carrying each, took them four hours and left them quite exhausted.

When Gu Jin’an saw Gu Dashan and Third Grandpa carrying the water jars back, he quickly got them water to drink and sweet potatoes to eat, urging them to rest a bit, eat some food, and drink some water.

Third Grandpa and Gu Dashan drank a bowl of water and finally felt revived.

Gu Dashan still remembered the promise to Gu Jinli from the previous night. Seeing them carrying soy milk to the kitchen, he called out towards the kitchen, "Xiao Yu, Dad will make the wooden boxes for you shortly."

Gu Jinli popped her head out from the kitchen and replied, "Dad, no rush, rest first. We still need to filter the soy milk and cook it; it’ll keep us busy for half an hour."

After saying that, she went and got a coarse burlap cloth, about a square meter in size, from Third Grandma, doubled it, and began filtering the soy milk, filtering it a total of four times until it was well filtered.

She poured the soy milk into a large iron pot to cook and placed the bean dregs in a pottery basin, saving them to make bean dregs cake later.

With lots of chores at home, Tian Xiaohua, after helping to grind the beans, left to do other work, leaving only Luo Huiniang to help with the fire.

"Xiao Yu, how long does this need to cook?" Luo Huiniang asked while watching the pot of soy milk. "Will it turn into tofu after it’s cooked?"

Gu Jinli replied, "We need to bring the soy milk to a boil, skim off the foam, then add brine. It turns into tofu pudding first, and after that, we press it in wooden boxes to get rid of the water. Only after it takes shape does it become tofu."

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