Reborn as a Landlord-Chapter 768 - 393 Glutton_1

Only the last half-basket of corn cobs had yet to be chopped. Nearby, petty officials busily weighed corn in sack after sack, keeping records. Wu Lang and Wu Jiaxing returned earlier than the scheduled Chinese hour because they had arranged with the mill in advance. As soon as they arrived at the mill, they didn’t have to queue and could mill the flour immediately.

The flour that was milled was divided into several small bags. It was first shown to Shen Liu and others before it was brought to Lian Manman.

Lian Manman handed the corn cobs she was holding to others to chop and called Lady Zhang, Lian Zhizhi, Lady Zhao and Lian Yeye. They took the few bags of corn flour and headed straight to Lian’s Shop’s kitchen.

The few bags of corn flour varied in texture due to the different milling and sifting processes.

The coarsest type couldn’t really be called flour but rather corn ’chaff.’ It was made by roughly milling slightly tender and undried corn without sifting. Such corn chaff, when cooked into porridge, has a fragrant, soft texture with enough chewiness and is also very sweet.

Next was the corn flour milled once coarsely and once finely, sifted once. This is how the sorghum flour commonly eaten by tenant farmers is milled. The texture is somewhat coarse, and tenant farmers, who are accustomed to coarse grains, find this the most economical option to satisfy hunger.

Then there was the finely milled corn flour, milled once coarsely and twice finely, sifted once through a coarse sieve, then once through a fine sieve. The sorghum flour used in Lady Zhou’s favorite big buns was milled this way. This finely milled corn flour was finer and could be used in more elaborate dishes, like making skins for dumplings.

In another bag was the bran sieved out of the corn flour. Like the sorghum bran, it is a high-quality feed for feeding chickens, ducks, pigs, cattle, horses, and other domestic fowl and livestock.

Both big stoves were lit, and the corn chaff porridge was set to cook first.

As for the corn flour, Lian Manman planned to make several different kinds of food.

Corn is high yielding and filling; it’s worth promoting if it can be used as food. The people outside have probably tried tender boiled corn, but fully matured corn is likely new to them.

Just hearing about it wasn’t enough; everyone needed to try for themselves to see if it was truly edible and satisfying.

The coarser corn flour was mixed with water to make patties on the side of a large iron pot, and at the bottom of the pot, tenant farmers’ most common dish, stew, was prepared. Main and side dishes were cooked together in one pot, convenient and time-saving. It was filling, nutritious, and ideal for the farmstead lifestyle.

The finely milled corn flour was prepared, considering that those who came today, including Shen Liu, were probably accustomed to exotic delicacies. Their mouths and digestive tracts might not handle coarse food, although it would be beneficial to their health.

Lian Manman’s idea was to let these people accustomed to luxurious foods know that corn doesn’t just yield a lot and solve the hunger problem for more people, but also, with a slightly more refined preparation method, the taste can be quite good. Thus, promoting corn cultivation should be more successful.

A small ladle of fine corn flour was mixed with sugar to make dough, then fermented to make a steamer full of corn sponge cakes. Another ladle of corn flour was mixed with white flour and finely ground bean flour, fermented, and made into a steamer full of tri-blend corn bun—half of which were solid buns, while the other half contained a filling made from finely chopped salty vegetable strips and a bit of minced meat.

Several people busied themselves in the kitchen when they heard the noisy footsteps outside. Shortly after, the door curtain was lifted, and Shen Qian walked in from outside.

"Ha..." Upon entering, Shen Qian ran up to Lian Manman and shouted loudly.

"Manman, what are you making to eat?" Shen Qian sniffed lightly and looked towards the large iron pot with its lid on tight, steaming vigorously.

"Corn patties," Lian Manman replied. "Why have you come? Why didn’t you get off your ride? And why did you get off after all?"

Shen Qian pouted slightly upon hearing Lian Manman’s questions.

"Manman, quickly take Ninth Master inside to talk. This outer room is all smoky and sooty; don’t let Ninth Master get smoked out," Lady Zhang wiped her hands on her apron and said.

The work was nearly done, with only watching the fire left, so Lian Manman agreed, took off her apron, and pulled Shen Qian into the inner room.

The servants didn’t follow inside. They stayed in the kitchen, saying that Shen Liu had sent them to help Lady Zhang.

Once inside, Lian Manman asked Shen Qian to sit on the kang bed. She took out a packed box filled with pastries and fruit from the cupboard and invited Shen Qian to eat.