Potato Starch

When Xiaoguo returned home, the first thing she did was to put down the potatoes. The weight of the basket gave her shoulders a lot of pain along the way. To add to that, Li Zhaodi delayed the time that she could get home. Zhuang Zhuang watched Xiaoguo rub her shoulders and walked over to blow air on her shoulder. “It won’t hurt anymore after I blow on them.”

“Yes, it really doesn’t hurt anymore. In fact, it feels so nice. My son is really my little comfort blanket.” Xiaoguo hugged Zhuang Zhuang affectionately and leaned on his little shoulder. “You are Mother’s little man.”

Zhuang Zhuang happily straightened his back to make his shoulders more comfortable to lean on. Xiaoguo watched Zhuang Zhuang’s movements in amusement and patted his cheek affectionately.

It was still too early for lunch. Xiaoguo remembered that there was a millstone at home, but she couldn’t remember where she had seen it. She rummaged around and found it in one corner of the kitchen. It had not been taken out for a long time, and was hidden below a stack of firewood.

Having found the millstone, Xiaoguo wondered how she could move it onto the table when it was so heavy. Looking around, she found a long wooden plank and placed a large stone under it. Using these as leverage, she tried to haul the millstone onto the table. Xiaoguo stepped down hard on one end of the plank, and the millstone rolled smoothly onto the table.

After getting the millstone ready, the next step was to peel the potatoes. This was a tedious job, so Xiaoguo had to speed up. Zhuang Zhuang wanted to help, but Xiaoguo was worried that he would cut himself. The boy sat beside Xiaoguo and asked her curiously, “Mother, why do we need so many potatoes?”

“Mother will make them into potato starch, and use them to make noodles. Together with our fish balls, they can become a delicious dish of potato starch noodles in spicy mushroom soup. I will bring these to the market to sell.” Xiaoguo explained to Zhuang Zhuang. Her favorite food in the past was potato starch noodles. She especially liked it when it was paired with sliced noodles and cooked in a spicy soup base. All of that with a topping of fish balls—that taste was really the best ever. As Xiaoguo was describing the dish, she could almost feel herself drooling.

Zhuang Zhuang was salivating as he listened to his mother’s explanation. Xiaoguo said to Zhuang Zhuang, “I’ll make you some when I’m done.” Zhuang Zhuang nodded vigorously and helped his mother wash the potatoes.

Xiaoguo cut the washed potatoes into small pieces and mashed them in the millstone. Then she added water and filtered the mixture. The potato dregs were then discarded and the filtered starchy water was set aside.

After Xiaoguo was done with the potatoes, it was already noon. There were three large basins of starch water. Xiaoguo left them in the shade to settle before washing her hands. It was time to cook.

Zhuang Zhuang looked at the basin curiously. How could there be dry powder in such turbid water? Zhuang Zhuang thought about the powder that his mother had stored in the kitchen within a small bag. No matter how hard he thought about it, he just couldn’t figure out how it was possible.

Filled with doubt, Zhuang Zhuang went to ask Xiaoguo about where the powder could come from. She answered him, “It’s because the starch had been rinsed out from the potatoes into the water. If you leave the water alone for some time, the starch will slowly settle in the basin. After the water has evaporated, what is left will be starch.”

Zhuang Zhuang nodded thoughtfully. He found it amazing. He couldn’t wait to see what it looked like when it was dry.

Xiaoguo dropped the noodles she’d been preparing into a pot. “Zhuang Zhuang, bring the dishes to the table.”

“Okay.”

“Be careful not to burn yourself,” Xiaoguo reminded him worriedly.

Xiaoguo scooped the cooked noodles into some cold water and brought the bowls and chopsticks into the house. “Let’s eat. Mother has been a little busy these past two days. Let’s make do with a simple meal for now.” As she spoke, she scooped a spoonful of minced meat with eggplant and put it in Zhuang Zhuang’s bowl.

“This is good enough. Mom makes the best noodles.” Zhuang Zhuang felt really blessed to be able to eat noodles every day. He even had the chance to taste all the various dishes and meat. This was something he didn’t dare to dream of.

Xiaoguo smiled. She knew that they were truly having a spread. There were plenty of people who didn’t have enough to eat during this time. But she was from the future, after all. In the past, her mother had always ensured a minimum of three dishes and a soup for every meal. This comparison made Xiaoguo feel like she wasn’t doing enough for her child.