Rebirth: Starting from the Cafeteria

Chapter 37: Mixed Fish Tofu
Then, Qin Xiaomei and Wang Liwen began to process the miscellaneous fish, Li Guixiang washed the vegetables, and Du Shaojie cut the vegetables and prepared various condiments by himself.

At noon, he planned to make [mixed fish tofu] and cold-mixed Chinese cabbage, and the staple food was corn steamed cake. The steamed cake had already been steamed, and it would be ready when the dishes were ready.

[Mixed Fish Tofu] is a home-cooked dish. Although he has never made it, he has already thought about how to cook it in his mind.

Learning cooking skills requires application in practice and adapting to local conditions. It is not impossible to copy recipes, but you must have the conditions to do so.

I happen to have tofu and a big bucket of miscellaneous fish today, so they can be combined together perfectly.

After all the preparations were ready, Du Shaojie first heated the pan, then put some cooking oil into the pan and began to fry the miscellaneous fish.

Small miscellaneous fish should be fried whole, while larger fish should be cut into pieces and fried, making sure to maintain the consistency of the ingredients.

When the fish is done, take it out and leave some oil in the pan to start frying the small ingredients. The small ingredients include green onion, ginger, garlic, chili peppers, and a little yellow bean paste. After frying until fragrant, pour in soy sauce and then pour the fish into the pan.

Add hot water to cover the vegetables and bring to a boil over high heat.

Then add the chopped tofu cubes and start seasoning.

Add salt, a little pepper and some sugar as seasoning, and simmer for about ten minutes before serving.

At this time, the whole cafeteria was filled with the aroma of fish, making people swallow their saliva involuntarily.

Next, blanch the bok choy, add mashed garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, a little sugar and other seasonings, and finally drizzle in a little cooked oil.

At the end, he was very considerate and made a pot of chili oil. If anyone likes it spicy, they can scoop a spoonful themselves.

When it was time for lunch, Chen Jizhou and others lined up and walked into the cafeteria.

"It smells so good! The smell makes me even hungrier."

Zhai Yucheng raised his nose and sniffed, and immediately felt hungry.

At noon, Du Shaojie and Qin Xiaomei were getting lunch in the front. The steamed cakes had just come out of the pot and Li Guixiang was carrying them.

Chen Jizhou was also very excited at this time, but there were still many people in front of him, so he could only patiently move forward step by step.

Finally it was his turn. He quickly extended his rice bowl and said, "Xiao Du, give me two more pieces of tofu."

Du Shaojie smiled and nodded, scooped a large spoonful of mixed fish and tofu into the rice bowl, and then put a portion of cold cabbage on the lid of the rice bowl.

Chen Jizhou first put the dishes on the table, and then went to get two steamed cakes.

After a while, Zhai Yucheng, Jiang Yong, Jiang Xianfa and others gathered around and sat with him.

"Although these are just some small fish, Xiao Du can cook them with great fragrance. And this tofu has absorbed the delicious taste of the fish meat, it is really enjoyable to eat."

This is Zhai Yucheng’s old habit. He always feels like something is missing if he doesn’t make any comments.

The other few people responded with “hmmmm” and focused on eating.

The same goes for the other people in the labor study group. No one can resist the temptation of delicious food.

At this moment, it seemed as if the hard work of half a day was not so unbearable, and a feeling of joy quietly spread among the crowd.

Of course, some people are unhappy, like Lin Zuo.

After Lin Zuo entered the cafeteria, he did not immediately line up for food. Instead, he stood on one side of the line, looking around.

He had never thought that the farm canteen could be so fancy. These people came here to learn how to work, not to enjoy themselves. Therefore, he was dissatisfied, very dissatisfied.

But this cannot be said publicly. The study and labor group has a fixed quota for food expenses every month, and they have not exceeded it. What is there to say?
"Team Leader Lin, it's time to eat."

Lin Zuo's two men helped him get food, then found an empty table and called him over.

He then walked impatiently to the table and sat down, his face gloomy, as if someone owed him a hundred dollars.

The two subordinates had no idea what was wrong with their leader and did not dare to speak. They just lowered their heads and ate quietly.

Lin Zuo was sulking for a while, then he picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth. Then the expression on his face became particularly wonderful. The mixed fish tofu made by Du Shaojie was too delicious. The rich aroma exploded on his taste buds, making him unable to stop.

The more this happened, the more he hated these guys who went against him.

After finishing the meal in silence, Lin Zuo dropped his rice bowl, stood up and quickly left the cafeteria.

His two men didn't understand what was going on, so they quickly washed the rice bowls and chased after him.

"Old Chen, did you see that? Lin Zuo didn't want us to eat better, but he couldn't resist delicious food. It was such a dilemma to eat this meal, it was hilarious."

Zhai Yucheng has such a personality that when he finds something interesting, he will tell it out, otherwise he will feel uncomfortable.

Of course, there were no outsiders at their table. They were all old colleagues who knew each other well, and he deliberately lowered his voice when he spoke so as not to be overheard.

"Who does Lin Zuo think he is? He was a boilerman a few years ago. He is just a nobody. He is the worst kind of person."

Jiang Yong snorted coldly. He didn't look down on the workers, but he looked down on villains like Lin Zuo who had gained power overnight.

Chen Jizhou waved his hand and said, "The Master said that only villains are difficult to raise. This is the case. I am not worried about anything else. I am only worried that Xiao Du's good intentions will be used as a handle by others."

"It's okay, it's okay. The fish were caught by Xiao Du and the people from the farm office. We didn't spend any public money. What can they use to hold us responsible? However, Lin Zuo will definitely not let it go. He will probably cause trouble in other ways."

Jiang Xianfa said this with a smile, and when he looked up, Du Shaojie had left the place where he was getting food and went to the kitchen.

Several people sighed and lost interest in continuing the chat.

"Master Du, you didn't inform me when you made delicious food for lunch. That's really not nice of you. Everyone says today's mixed fish and tofu is delicious. Is there any left?"

After Chen Jizhou and others finished their meal, they left one after another.

Zhao Dajun, Chu Xiaowei and others arrived late and walked quickly into the empty cafeteria.

With his loud voice, he called out Du Shaojie again.

"No matter who I forget, I can't forget you, Director Zhao. Don't worry, there's a big pot of mixed fish and tofu left for you. Why don't you go and inform the people in the farm now? Give each family one portion and send it back as an extra dish."

The cold-mixed bok choy was gone, but Du Shaojie left out a large bowl of mixed fish and tofu.

The reason why I didn't notify Zhao Dajun and others in advance was that I wanted to wait until the labor study group finished eating.

Now there are a few more annoying guys in front of everyone, especially Lin Zuo. He can find fault with everything, which is really annoying.

"Haha, I knew Master Du was perfect at what he did, right? Hurry up, go get some help."

Zhao Dajun laughed and asked Chu Xiaowei to notify everyone.

Soon, every household sent a representative to the canteen to get food.

Chu Xiaowei followed the farm manager's request and asked each household to bring their vegetable coupons when he notified them.

People on the farm are different from those in the labor study group. They need meal tickets to eat in the cafeteria, and they need to buy the meal tickets themselves.

"Director Zhao, most of the fish today were caught by Uncle Chu. Wouldn't it be inappropriate to collect vegetable tickets?"

Qin Xiaomei and Li Guixiang brought out a large bowl of mixed fish and tofu, and Du Shaojie prepared to serve everyone.

As a result, Zhao Dajun asked him to collect vegetable coupons, and he was a little unhappy.

Zhao Dajun stretched out a finger and pointed silently outside, the meaning was self-evident.

In the past, the field office took over the labor study group and nothing happened. Now the bureau has sent a working group, and Lin Zuo is in that kind of character, so he doesn't want to cause trouble for Du Shaojie.

Du Shaojie was silent for a while, and then asked everyone to pay for the most common vegetarian dishes as a token of their appreciation.

This time Zhao Dajun didn't say a word, and before long, the pot of mixed fish and tofu was empty.

(End of this chapter)