The winter in the small mountain village is particularly cold, and at two o'clock in the afternoon of the 30th day of the lunar month, snowflakes began to float in the sky, and gradually, the snowflakes became bigger and bigger, turning into goose feather snow.

The cold weather can not stop the enthusiasm of the people for the New Year has been happy joy, the breeding area, Wang Shaodong boiled water in the small shed, and at the door of the shed, Wang Fumin put a big rooster with thighs tied in front of him.

This big rooster is very beautiful, with a large, red comb and smooth feathers.

"Dad, I didn't expect it to go so well. Wang Shaodong smiled.

Wang Fumin also smiled and nodded: "I really didn't expect our family to go so well this year, thanks to the blessing of our ancestors, we have to burn more yellow paper for our ancestors this year." ”

The snow was falling heavier and heavier, and soon the courtyard outside the small shed turned white.

The Wang family's kitchen is very simple, a small shed with an open side.

Zhao Shiling is now busy chopping stuffing and making dumplings in the house, while Wang Fumin's father and son's job is to kill chickens.

I still remember when I was a child, every year during the Chinese New Year, Wang Shaodong would scream in fright every time he saw his father killing chickens, but the next time he would still appreciate his father's cruel operation with apprehension.

Every time Wang Shaodong was so frightened that he screamed, his father would laugh so much that he was not brave enough.

Every time he thinks of these clips, Wang Shaodong will sigh with emotion for a long time.

Speaking of which, in his current memory, it was all more than thirty years ago.

The water was boiling, and the snow outside had spread a thin layer on the ground. With such a big snowfall, it won't be long before there will be a thick layer of snow on the ground.

While sharpening his knife, Wang Fumin glanced back at Wang Shaodong, who was looking at him, and said, "Dongzi, when you were a child, when you saw me killing chickens, you were so frightened that you screamed, do you remember?"

Wang Shaodong scratched his head a little embarrassed, and watched his father sharpen the knife: "Yes, I, I don't remember." ”

Wang Fumin shook his head and said, "Oh, more than ten years have passed since this statement, and you have grown into a young man." ”

As he spoke, Wang Fumin grabbed the chicken, pinched the chicken's neck, and cleaned the fine hairs under the neck of the big rooster, and the knife was about to be put on, while Wang Shaodong was so frightened that he hurriedly looked away.

Wang Fumin didn't seem to notice the subtle movements of his son next to him, the blood vessels of the big rooster were cut, and the chicken blood flowed into the big white bowl prepared in advance. The chicken blood must be cleaned, otherwise the cooked chicken will be red and will smell bloody, and it will not taste good.

Chicken blood is one of Wang Shaodong's favorite delicacies, whether it is stir-fried coriander with chicken blood, or chicken blood stewed when stewed with mushrooms, it is a very chewy and delicious ingredient.

However, from childhood to adulthood, the elders always said that eating chicken blood would make the face get older, and they always didn't like to let children eat chicken blood.

After the blood was removed, Wang Fumin threw the big into the patio. The big rooster fluttered and struggled on the ground, and the drops of blood stained the snow on the ground red.

It was too cold, and the chicken fluttered a few times, then lay down in the snow and struggled a few times, and his legs could not move.

Wang Fumin poured a pot of water boiled by Wang Shaodong into the vat, and then poured in two scoops of cold water.

"Son, boil another pot. ”

Wang Fumin handed the large teapot to his son Wang Shaodong, and then asked him to continue boiling water.

The bloodied chicken was already dead after kicking its legs, and after another five minutes or so, it was ready to start shedding.

Killing chickens is a technical job, and some people who can't kill chickens chop off the head of the chicken, and the chicken is still alive, which is embarrassing.

The process of dehairing is also very particular, you must wait until the chicken dies, and then the requirements for water temperature are relatively high, the water temperature should be between 70 and 80 degrees.

The water temperature is too high, and the chicken is directly cooked, and the chicken skin will be brought down directly when plucking.

The water temperature is too low to open the pores of the chicken skin, and it is more difficult to pluck the feathers.

Seeing that the chicken was almost dead, Wang Fumin tested the water temperature, and it was almost there, and then he picked the chicken back from the patio and soaked it in a large bucket to burn it repeatedly.

Wang Shaodong boiled another pot of water, and then went to the big house to do other work.

There was a stove in the big house, and the temperature inside the house was more than ten degrees higher than outside. The temperature inside the patio was already below zero, while inside the house was thirteen or fourteen degrees.

On the thirtieth day of the lunar month, every household was busy.

Wang Fumin was still busy killing chickens, and after Wang Shaodong arrived at the house, he began to help his mother make dumplings.

For northerners, it is a custom to eat dumplings during the New Year, which is the same as eating rice cakes in the south. Now the dumplings made by Wang Shaodong and Zhao Shiling are mainly eaten on the first and second days of the Lunar New Year. This year, the Wang family made a fortune, and the relationship with the neighbors was very good, and then they recruited so many hired workers, it is estimated that there will be many people who will come to their house tomorrow to pay New Year's greetings, and then there will be a lot of people who stay at their house to eat at noon, so they have to make a lot of dumplings.

On the first day of the New Year, the filling of dumplings must be vegetarian, generally cabbage and tofu are better. The custom here in Taohualing Village is that meat is not eaten on the first day of the new year. However, customs always changed as society progressed, and later in life they became less common.

In 2002, many families were still following these traditions, but it is impossible to determine why they did so.

Wang Shaodong wrapped a few to sleep, and then Zhao Shiling felt that his son was too slow, so he asked him to chop the stuffing.

In 2002, there were no dumplings in the market, so each family had to chop the meat filling by themselves.

Dumplings with meat fillings are eaten on the second day of the new year, but they should be wrapped in the Chinese New Year's Eve. During the Chinese New Year, everyone doesn't like to work more, so finish all the work in the Chinese New Year's Eve, and then it will be much easier for the New Year.

In fact, compared to the filling from the machine dumplings, the filling chopped out by the old-fashioned method is more flavorful.

The minced meat is not afraid of being fine, and the longer the chop time, the better.

Wang Shaodong's meat stuffing had not yet been chopped, and then Wang Fumin brought in the big that had been plucked clean and coiled, put it on a large plate, and then put the big plate on the table in the family hall.

The tablet of the ancestor has been invited, and then the wine cup and tea bowl have been arranged, and the incense is burning, but the rest of the offerings are not ready.

The chicken was put up, and then Wang Fumin put a big carp on the big plate and put it on the table in the family hall.

Wang Fumin was busy putting the offerings on the table in the family hall, while Wang Shaodong was busy chopping the stuffing, and Zhao Shiling was quickly wrapping dumplings on the side.