The sumptuous meal finally ended amidst cheerful chatter.
Eric carefully packed some of the meatballs for each person to take home, not forgetting to set aside a bowl for Leo, wondering which corner the little rascal was off playing wildly in.
The boy and Flower, along with several other young beasts, had recently become obsessed with a competition against the Dwarf children to see who could make more adobe bricks in a day. The Snow Wolf pups had great strength but were less dexterous, while the Dwarf children had nimble hands and feet. Both sides gave it their all, creating a very lively atmosphere.
He had been busy lately and hadn’t made tofu. Of the beans collected daily in the tribe, apart from the portion set aside for storage, Luci had left the rest in the shed in the corner for him, which had now accumulated into a small mountain. As for the fruits and eggs Luci brought, Eric had moved most of them into the cellar for longer preservation.
Eric used several large pottery jars to soak all the beans. Since the Dwarves’ arrival, his busy schedule hadn’t given him a chance to show off his skills, so besides Luban, the other Dwarves had not yet eaten tofu.
Eric planned to share some with the Dwarves tomorrow, letting them taste a new way of eating beans. They had plenty of grains, and beans were also a staple food; if they learned how to make tofu, they would have another delicious dish in the future.
Thinking of the large, four-story cellar that the Dwarves had enthusiastically dug for him, Eric couldn’t help but smile. These Dwarves were just like the Snow Wolf people—simple and hardworking.
He looked towards the brightly lit huts, silently wishing that these peaceful and bountiful days would last forever for both tribes.
Early the next morning, Eric put the soaked soybeans into the stone mill and began to grind. He had to admit, the large iron pot the Dwarves had forged for him was truly useful; it could cook a large amount of soy milk at once.
After grinding a potful, he told Leo to go call Jessica and the Dwarf, Iris, to come and learn.
By the time the soy milk in the pot was about to boil, the two had arrived. Eric poured some water into the pot to cool it down, slowly stirring on one side while pouring in brine on the other.
He handed the large iron spatula to Jessica, telling her to try it herself. For the past few days, Jessica had been by his side every time he made tofu; she had seen most of the process.
Jessica imitated Eric’s posture, slowly stirring the tofu pudding that was beginning to curdle in the pot. After scooping a bowl for each person, she laid a linen cloth in a basket, placed the tofu pudding on top, and then pressed it with a stone.
Eric added a large spoonful of thorny beast honey jam to each person’s bowl of tofu pudding.
Iris used a spoon to scoop up a wobbly, snow-white spoonful of tofu pudding. After putting it in her mouth, she felt it melt instantly—soft, smooth, sweet, fragrant, and with a rich bean flavor.
"Oh, spirits, is this really made from beans?" She held up the bowl of tofu pudding in her hand and asked in disbelief.
"One of the staple foods of the Dwarves is beans, so I want Iris to learn how to make this. In the future, you all will have more varied dishes," Eric replied.
Iris looked at him with grateful eyes. It was known that in the human world, this kind of technique could be considered a family treasure. Yet now, Eric was teaching it to her so casually.
Today, they made even more tofu than the time they made it for Sam. The baskets were clearly not enough, so Jessica and Iris skillfully began weaving new ones on the spot from straw.
Eric, a man who was only good in theory, went back to grinding the beans. He had just ground two batches when he saw Sam running from a distance, shouting loudly.
"Eric, you’re finally making tofu! I’ve been craving it to death these past few days!" he complained with teary eyes, then perceptively took over the grinding task.
This foodie’s nose is sharper than a hound’s, Eric mused.
With someone else doing the work, he was happy to be idle. He took out a small iron pot and stir-fried a savory sauce with minced beast meat and wild onions.
Sam was strong and ground faster than Eric, quickly producing a large pot of soy milk. After the soy milk boiled, Eric let Jessica make the tofu pudding herself. Jessica had watched many times, so doing it herself was not difficult.
The soft tofu pudding was topped with the stir-fried sauce, and Eric added some chili powder for himself. The others were all eating savory tofu pudding for the first time, and their taste buds were immediately conquered.
Tofu pudding was truly a wonderful thing, delicious whether sweet or savory.
Speaking of which, Eric suddenly craved fried dough sticks. He quickly stood up, used flour mixed with old leaven, kneaded a large basin of dough with warm water, and placed it near the fire to rise.
Iris watched Eric’s dough-kneading process, which was very similar to their way of making bread, except the Dwarves’ flour was not as finely milled.
She thought Eric was going to make bread, but after looking around and seeing no oven, she guessed he must be making another kind of dish.
After two more large pots of tofu pudding were pressed into tofu, the dough had also finished rising. The large iron pot was still needed to cook soy milk, and the small iron pot was too small, so Eric took out a large pottery jar, added animal fat, and began to heat it.
He vigorously kneaded the large dough to release the air, then rolled it into a long strip and divided it into small pieces.
He rolled the small dough pieces into long, thin strips, stacked two on top of each other, pressed down the middle with a chopstick, and then fried them in the pan.
The fried dough sticks cooked very quickly; in less than a minute, golden-brown dough sticks were coming out of the pot.
The large batch of dough Eric had prepared was quickly fried, and the air filled with the fragrant aroma of fried food.
The others eagerly took a bite. The crispy outer layer enveloped a soft and chewy interior, fluffy yet crisp. It was even more delicious than the white bread Iris had eaten before!