Ancient Foodie Survival Guide Chapter 53
Translated by Serena Love
Edited by Azure
Chapter 53: Meat Slices with Garlic Sauce
Jiang Shuyao said that she wanted to cook for her, but in Zhou-shi's view, it was all talk. She had only helped Jiang Shuyao find a rescuer, it was not a life-saving grace, so there was no need for her to repay it.
After all, Jiang Shuyao was not a cook. She was not even supposed to cook for her elders or her husband. It was really wrong to cook for her second sister-in-law in a separate branch.
However, to her surprise, Jiang Shuyao did as she said and appeared in her room at lunchtime the next day.
"Why are you here?" She sat up and couldn't react for a moment.
"I brought you food." Jiang Shuyao waved, and the two maids behind her put down the dinner tray.
Zhou-shi was speechless.
"Does the second sister-in-law want to eat in bed or come to the table?" She has a warm and natural attitude and treats Zhou-shi with the mentality of caring for a sick friend. Zhou-shi was a little overwhelmed for a while.
The maids avoided her, so she hadn’t scolded people today, but seeing Jiang Shuyao like this, she couldn’t speak bad words no matter how upset she was.
She murmured, "It's not like there's no cook in the house. It's no big deal for you to cook yourself." She attempted to get out of bed.
Jiang Shuyao hurriedly went to help her. When her soft arm was about to touch her, she was so scared that she immediately avoided her. She almost fell to the ground and aggravated her injuries.
"You, what are you doing!" She had been married for many years. There was only a sister-in-law who did not care about her, the rigid mother-in-law, and fearful and humble maids around her. She had never met someone like Jiang Shuyao.
It was impossible to say that Jiang Shuyao was not a good person. Zhou-shi has limited IQ, but she was naturally sensitive and could feel Jiang Shuyao's sincerity.
She was enthusiastic and generous, tolerant of her cold face, regardless of previous complaints, soft and gentle... But the problem was, why was she so good to her!!!
"I want to help you up." Jiang Shuyao lowered her head and looked at Zhou-shi's left leg, which was wrapped in gauze. Thinking of how she did not flinch when she drew the sword that day, her expression became softer.
She stared at Zhou-shi with a bright, soft smile on her face, making Zhou-shi tremble with fright. Zhou-shi said uncomfortably, "No, I can go by myself."
Then she stood up quickly and limped to the table.
Zhou-shi has not received kindness from others for many years, and her temperament has been sarcastic. Just now, she was agitated by Jiang Shuyao, so she habitually said, "I don't eat randomly."
From her tone, there was an inexplicable "high and arrogant" feeling.
She jumped to the table, "I hate porridge the most—"
Before she finished speaking, she saw the white rice porridge on the table.
She choked in a hurry, with an air of arrogance and disdain on the surface, but she was secretly annoyed at her mouth.
"You are a patient. You have to stay in bed these days. When you drink porridge, it is not easy to get bloated." Jiang Shuyao didn't mind and explained patiently.
Zhou-shi was even more uncomfortable, and she muttered, "Okay, okay."
She glanced at the dishes on the table. In addition to the white rice porridge, there were also big bones and two plates of sliced meat. One plate was topped with sauce with rich color, and the other was plain with no extra seasoning.
Jiang Shuyao sat down opposite her and pushed the plate of sliced meat without sauce in front of her, "Eat this plate."
The sliced meat was thinly sliced and evenly thick, squarely stacked together, one by one in a circle, looking extremely neat and comfortable.
The meat slices were equal in fat and lean meat. The lean part was light pink-brown, and the fat part was crystal clear white, like jade. The bottom part had a light yellow skin, and the color transition was uniform, which made it comfortable to look at.
Zhou-shi glanced at the sliced meat, which appeared tender but light in color, then shifted her gaze to Jiang Shuyao's plate of meat slices drenched in red oil sauce. She swallowed her saliva.
Having grown up in the north, she was unlike the elegant and refined nobles of the capital. She despised light broths and hadn't had dry buns with meat in a long time.
However, she knew her health was fragile and that she should stick to nourishing, light food. Reluctantly, she accepted Jiang Shuyao's arrangement.
She picked up a piece of sliced meat, the fatty part translucent against the light, faintly glistening.
She was impressed by Jiang Shuyao's meticulous knife skills, feeling a small sense of anticipation for the sliced meat. After all, someone with such precision in their knife work wouldn't possibly prepare something subpar, even if it was just boiled meat in plain water.
Sure enough, after the first bite, she could taste the deliciousness of the meat. Jiang Shuyao hadn’t added any condiments like soy sauce; she had simply rubbed a light dusting of salt on the surface. Though the salt was fine, it still offered a subtle grainy texture, enhancing the tenderness of the sliced meat.
The fat was boiled tightly, melted in the mouth, oily but not greasy. The lean meat was chewy but not woody, and the inside was fresh and tender. When chewed with the original sauce, accompanied by simple fine salt, it enhanced the freshness and flavor while retaining the meat's mellow and delicious flavor.
Zhou-shi had eaten a few slices in succession, and she had to admit that the originally lackluster food also had a special flavor. After eating a few slices of meat and then drinking a sip of warm white porridge, her stomach felt a lot more comfortable, and it relieved her irritability and depression.
She ate from her plate but looked at Jiang Shuyao's plate. She was guessing how the meat with red oil tasted.
The dish in front of Jiang Shuyao had garlic sauce. Both sliced meat and cucumber slices were as thin as paper, with garlic, soy sauce, and chili oil poured on the surface. It was bright in color and rich in garlic fragrance.
Zhou-shi stared at it for a while, without holding back, and asked, "What is the one on your plate?"
When Jiang Shuyao looked up at her, she retracted her eyes, pretending to be careless, "I'm just asking."
Seeing her like this, Jiang Shuyao pushed her plate to her, "If you are curious, you can taste it. It won’t be a problem to eat a little."
Zhou-shi's heart leaped for joy. She picked up a piece of sliced meat wrapped in cucumber, dipped it in the garlic sauce, then opened her mouth and stuffed it inside.
The sliced meat was plump and juicy, tender without being mushy, while the cucumber offered a crisp, fresh contrast. Together, they were perfectly balanced, each complementing the other without overshadowing. The sauce was spicy with a strong garlic kick, its initial bite a bit fiery, yet it enhanced the layers of flavor, sparking the appetite.
She chewed the rich, tender meat slowly, savoring the satisfying elasticity of the skin. Compared to the fatty part that melted in her mouth, it was a bit more chewy, making each bite irresistibly addictive.
After swallowing, a pungent aroma and the rich, meaty fragrance intertwined in her mouth.
Not one to hold back her thoughts, she asked directly, "What is that smell? It seems like the spicy scent of garlic, but there's something else to it."
Jiang Shuyao then remembered that it was Zhou-shi’s first time trying chili. Thankfully, she hadn’t added too much, so it wasn’t overly intense.
"This spice is the taste of chili," she explained.
Zhou-shi did not know what chili was but was convinced by the charm of chili oil. She picked up the sliced meat and dipped it in the red oil, "Chili? I haven't heard of it. It seems to be a good thing."
Jiang Shuyao hurriedly stopped her, "Eat less. If you eat too much spicy food, your stomach can't stand it." Zhou-shi didn't adapt from cornel oil to chili oil like Xie Xun, so maybe she couldn’t handle it.
Moreover, Xie Xun was in good health, and it was not a problem to eat a little more, but Zhou-shi was different.
"I can bear it," Zhou-shi said while picking out a few more slices quickly. Jiang Shuyao was unavoidably worried and dragged the plate away.
Although Zhou-shi was disappointed, she couldn't embarrass herself by going to someone else's plate to grab food, so she had to give up.
She drank the porridge with her head lowered, and suddenly she heard a sucking sound in her ear. When she looked up, she was shocked.
Jiang Shuyao pinched the big bone with her fingertips and was sucking at the bone non-stop.
Zhou-shi was in a trance for a moment.
Wasn’t this in the capital? Wasn’t this a scene only available in the Northland? Poor people couldn’t afford meat, so they could only gnaw on the bones to relieve their greed, just like Jiang Shuyao now.
Jiang Shuyao sucked the juice from the bones and contentedly gnawed the meat off their surface. This was the most flavorful part, the essence of the big bones.
Noticing Zhou-shi’s reluctant expression, she pushed the basin of bones toward her. "Try it, it's delicious. Dip the tip of your chopsticks in a little salt, poke it into the round bones, then press hard and suck it out. It’s really tasty."
Zhou-shi hesitated. Though she had often been criticized for her bluntness and lack of refinement, she had never resorted to chewing on bones during her time in Mobei.
Jiang Shuyao blinked and looked at her, looking expectantly.
Zhou-shi almost said, "I don't want," and the words just reached her throat, but she pressed it back. She just asked someone to bring water in to clean her hands and then pick up a piece of leg bone after she learned Jiang Shuyao's movements.
According to what she said, she dipped her chopsticks in salt to poke the bones and tentatively sucked it with her mouth. The soft and waxy marrow was sucked out, accompanied by the bone broth stuck inside. The mellow and rich meaty fragrance filled her lips and cheeks instantly.
Unlike the fresh aroma of the meat, the scent of sucking bones was stronger and lingered longer. When the rich, soft bone marrow filled her mouth, the freshness of the fatty meat and the bold spice of the garlic were subdued by the pressure of the bones.
Once she had one, Zhou-shi couldn’t resist having a second. She joined Jiang Shuyao, both of them sucking the marrow together as they held the bones.
Zhou-shi was extremely satisfied with the meal and felt comfortable all over. She felt that even after the great sadness, this meal would make her smile again.
Jiang Shuyao originally planned to have something else for dinner, but Zhou-shi said she wanted to have another portion for dinner.
When Xie Xun returned, he saw a maid walking out carrying two plates of sliced meat and tube bones.
Jiang Shuyao made another batch in the afternoon to prepare a portion for dinner with Xie Xun, which was just right.
Xie Xun sat down after flicking his robe and asked, "Are the plates just given to the second branch?"
"Correct."
Xie Xun guessed so. He knew Jiang Shuyao really well. Even if it is to thank you, her first reaction is to cook someone a meal.
He chatted with Jiang Shuyao and said, "I don't know if it could match my second sister-in-law's taste."
Unexpectedly, Jiang Shuyao said incomparably smoothly, "Of course it is. At noon today, the second sister-in-law was not satisfied even after eating a whole plate."
Xie Xun immediately caught the key message, "Today's noon?"
"Yeah." Jiang Shuyao said as she ate, "I will eat with my second sister-in-law at noon for a while."
She was sincere, knowing gratitude, and also kind and generous.
But Xie Xun felt a little bit stuffy, even a little sour.
He wanted to ask: Second sister-in-law has lunch, what about him? He has not received her lunch box for several days.
Xie Xun felt wronged, but he did not say anything.
.
Spicy Pork with Garlic Sauce (蒜泥白肉) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wehZf8lQzcM
If you enjoyed Serena’s work, buy her a ko-fi! 