204 204 Tan Rou cooking
When Tan Rou came to the table, Tao Zheng and Tao Qi were already seated. After Mother Tao served the last bowl of soup, she also sat down to eat.
“Where’s your dad?” Mrs. Tao asked.
Tan Rou glanced in the direction of the study. “Dad seems to be packing documents.”
“Oh.” Mrs. Tao knew that it was probably information about the Tan family.
After a while, Father Tao came out with the same gentle expression that Tan Rou was familiar with.
“Let’s eat.” Mrs. Tao said.
Tao Qi didn’t really want to eat. He stared at the green vegetables on the table for a long time but didn’t eat.
Mother Tao didn’t like how Tao Qi was picky with his food. “Xiao Qi, you’re not allowed to be picky with your food. You have to eat both meat and vegetables.”
Tao Qi missed the green vegetables that Tao Rou made. He felt that only that was worthy of being called ‘stir-fried green vegetables’. Other green dishes shouldn’t be served.
How could Tan Rou not know what he was thinking? This little guy was a proud little man; even if he wanted to eat it, he wouldn’t say it.”
“Mom, I’ll cook tomorrow.” Tan Rou suggested.
Tao Qi’s eyes lit up.
Mrs. Tao would never let her cook. “I don’t want to affect your studies.”
“It’s fine. I also want to cook for you.” Tan Rou requested again.
Mrs. Tao had no choice but to agree. “Alright, then.”
Since they had to go to class in the morning, Mrs. Tao would be the one buying the groceries. Tan Rou told Mrs. Tao what she wanted to buy in advance, so that she could cook it directly when she came back. Mrs. Tao cooked the rice and helped Tan Rou wash the vegetables. This would save Tan Rou some time when she came back.
The vegetables that Mrs. Tao bought were fresh, and they were what Tan Rou needed. In her previous life, tan Rou had never cooked for her family. She had not even eaten many of the dishes her mother had prepared. After the rebirth, she was hoping that she would be able to cook for them.
Tan Rou washed her hands and began preparing the ingredients. Mrs. Tao had already washed some of the ingredients for her, but she had to handle the fresh ones herself, such as fish and prawns.
Tan Rou scraped off the scales of the lively bass, cleaned its internal organs, and washed it clean. The big live prawns were still jumping around in the basin. Tan Rou didn’t think that it would be cruel to eat them since they were bought to be served on the table. Tan Rou washed, removed the head, and picked the shrimp’s thread in one go. When she was done, the shrimp would still wriggle. This kind of shrimp is sweet, so it’s fine to just blanched it and with Tao Rou’s secret sauce added to it, it already smells fragrant.
The cooking method of bass was even simpler. Steamed bass was simply delicious. With the hot oil poured on the scallions, and the aroma of the fish mixed with the scallions could be smelled from far away. At the end, Tan Rou also added her secret seasoning to make the fragrance even more alluring.
With vegetables, there must be soup. Tan Rou used ham, eggs, tofu, tender bamboo shoots, and other types of starch to make a savoury soup. As soon as it was taken out of the pot, she sprinkled it with crushed coriander, crushed peanuts, and then drizzled it with a little sesame oil. It was delicious.
Of course, she didn’t forget to stir-fry Tao Qi’s favorite vegetables.
“It smells so good.” Tao Qi gulped. It seemed like she had been too conservative when she made those chicken wings before. This was her showing her true skills.
Mr. Tao came home late, so he didn’t see Tan Rou cooking in the kitchen. He found it hard to believe when he saw the table full of dishes.
“These… Xiao Rou did all these?” He picked up his chopsticks, not knowing where to start.
Tan Rou gave him a shrimp. “Dad, try it.”
Father Tao quickly responded, “Alright. Alright… Mhm! It’s delicious. This soup is amazing.”
The three of them ate heartily. Mrs. Tao was the only one who doted on her daughter the most. Needless to say, her daughter’s culinary skills had been trained in the Tan family. As for how she was trained, Mother Tao would never know. Her heart ached at the thought of it. Her daughter had suffered too much.
“Mom, eat the fish belly.” Tan Rou picked up some food for Mother Tao.
“Sure.” Mrs. Tao’s heart ached for her daughter. “My dear child, you’ve worked hard.”
Mother Tao was sincerely touched.
Tan Rou smiled and said, “Well… as long as mom and dad, big brother…” She glanced at Tao Qi, who was wolfing down his food. Tao Qi also stopped to look at her.
She smiled happily. “And also my little brother likes my food, I’ll be satisfied.”
Tao Qi’s heart ached, but he was still stubborn. “I didn’t say that I like your food.”
“Look at the pile of prawn shells in front of you. Are you still going to say that you don’t like them?” Mrs. Tao rebuked.
Tao Qi pouted. “Just… Just a little bit.”
“A little what?” Tan Rou asked.
“I only liked them a little!” Tao Qi shouted with a red face.
His expression made the whole family laugh. Tao Zheng seized the opportunity to film this moment with the camera he had set up earlier.