With the pot lid covered and the hot pot base simmering, a rich spicy aroma filled the air, the pungent fragrance making Chen Lan cough.
Instantly, the spicy aroma permeated the entire kitchen, with the spiciness of chili and the numbing scent of Sichuan peppercorns. It could be described as a fragrance that traveled ten miles.
Lifting the lid, she saw the bubbling red soup, a layer of red chili oil floating on the surface, coating chilies, peppercorns, Sichuan peppercorns, and other unidentifiable seasonings.
Habitually, she checked the system time with her mind. Good! She hadn't expected herself to be so efficient and fast.
It was still a bit early to start cooking, only three in the afternoon.
Covering the pot and removing the large logs from the stove, she closed the stove door and got up to leave the kitchen.
Stepping out of the kitchen, she saw Hui and Hui wrestling. Her mother was holding Hui, who was fussing, and seemed unable to handle them.
Without paying attention to Yao, who was crawling under the sofa, Chen Lan saw this dangerous situation as soon as she stepped out and rushed forward a few steps, grabbing Yao, who was about to fall off the sofa, and pulling him into her arms.
She looked up at her mother, who was still pacing Hui, and asked, "Mom, what's going on with these two siblings? What are they trying to do?"
Her mother heard Chen Lan's voice, turned back, and said with relief, "Sigh! These two little rascals, they drank a few sips of milk after their nap and then refused to drink more. They smelled the aroma from the kitchen and kept saying it was fragrant, insisting on going in. I told them to wait, but they wouldn't even let me push the stroller, and now they're fussing."
At this moment, Yao pointed to the kitchen with his chubby little finger and said, "Mom, fragrant, look."
Hui also stopped fussing when she saw her mother come out of the kitchen, and with her fleshy little hand, she pointed to the kitchen and said, "Mom, fragrant, fragrant."
Her mother, holding Hui, who had stopped fussing, asked, "Lan'er, what are you cooking in the kitchen? Why is it so fragrant? And there's a numb and spicy smell that stings the nose."
Chen Lan smiled and replied, "Mom, I feel like it's been raining for several days, and everything feels damp and uncomfortable. I don't have much appetite.
So today I made mala hot pot. Eating spicy food can dispel cold and dampness. Secondly, mala hot pot is salty, fragrant, and hot. It can not only relieve greasiness but also help digestion.
Her mother agreed, saying, "Hmm! That's good. We should all eat something spicy to get rid of the dampness.
But, Lan'er, what are you going to feed the children like Wen Kai, Wen Qi, Ming Zhe, Xiao Shit頭, and Hu Tou, who can't eat spicy food?"
Chen Lan slapped her forehead. She had forgotten to prepare a non-spicy broth for the little ones.
Fortunately, it was not too late to rectify her mistake. Since it was still early, she had time to make a non-spicy broth.
So she said to her mother, "Mom, I'll go back to the kitchen and make a non-spicy broth. What do you think, chicken soup base or pork bone broth base?"
Her mother thought for a moment and said, "Didn't you say a few days ago that the children need to supplement vitamins and calcium? You should drink pork bone broth more often? Let's make pork bone broth as the base today."
Chen Lan immediately put down Yao, whom she was holding, and said to the two little ones, "Hui, Yao, no more fussing, okay? Be good babies, understand? Mommy will make food for you."
As Chen Lan was disciplining the twins, she saw Chun Cao coming out of the guest room with Xiao Dou Zi in one arm.
Chen Lan quickly greeted her, "Sister Chun Cao, you're up. Come, sit on the sofa here. Xiao Dou Zi, come here and play with your brothers and sisters."
After settling the three little ones, Chen Lan told her mother and went back into the kitchen to simmer a nutritious pork bone broth for the children who didn't eat spicy food.
She opened the system with her mind and ordered five pounds of fresh pork bones and a freshly slaughtered pigeon from the store that specialized in hot pot ingredients. She planned to simmer the soup with the pork bones in a large clay pot.
She also ordered tofu, bean curd sheets, vermicelli, fish balls, beef balls, chicken balls, and other ingredients suitable for children from the system.
She remembered that there were also a large winter melon and an old pumpkin in the cellar. So she went to the back and carried a large winter melon and an old pumpkin from the cellar.
She peeled and seeded them, and sliced them thinly, to be eaten with the soup in the hot pot.
When everything was ready, she went out of the kitchen again. All that was left was to wait for everyone to come back from work for dinner.
She thought she hadn't informed Lin Mai and the others yet, so they wouldn't have to cook dinner today and could come to her house to eat.
So she hurried to the study and called out to Wen Kai and Wen Qi, saying, "Wen Kai, help your sister run an errand and go to your Sister Mai's house to tell her not to cook dinner today, and bring everyone from the sewing cooperative to eat hot pot at our house.
Wen Qi, go to the greenhouse construction site and tell everyone to come to our house for hot pot tonight."
The brothers readily agreed, put on their cotton coats, and ran out of the house one after another, heading to Lin Mai's house and the greenhouse construction site respectively.
As dusk fell, the workers returned, and everyone in the valley gathered, creating a lively atmosphere.
Chen Lan finally got to eat the mala hot pot she had been craving.
Impatiently, she picked up a piece of lamb and swished it in the pot.
Taking a bite of the lamb, her whole mouth felt like it was on fire, her throat was burning as if it were ablaze, her tongue felt scorched, and her lips were burning and stinging! It felt like her mouth could spew fire.
It was as if hundreds of ants were biting her lips simultaneously, and her lips felt numb and swollen.
The heat spread to her earlobes, making them feel hot. But she still wanted to eat, constantly drinking water while her chopsticks kept reaching into the pot.
After eating for a while, her mouth and oral cavity slowly adapted to the spicy taste. The ingredients finally left a fragrant, spicy, and fresh taste in her mouth, refreshing and not greasy, truly lingering and unforgettable!
Soon, her whole body felt warm, and she was sweating profusely. It was truly satisfyingly spicy and delightfully numbing.
It fully embodied the essence of mala hot pot: fragrant, spicy, numbing, and hot!
Looking up again at everyone's reactions after eating the mala hot pot, Xiang Xi's face was flushed red from the spiciness, tears streaming down his face, and snot flowing freely, a veritable stream of snot and tears.
He kept reaching for food from the pot with his chopsticks, eating large mouthfuls, and drinking large mouthfuls of water.
Xiao Shan was also sweating profusely and his face was flushed red. While wiping his sweat with a towel, he kept putting food into his bowl with his chopsticks. He kept slurping with his mouth.