"Crack!"
Jiang Xuan picked up a suitable piece of black gravel from the creek, threw it at a big stone, and the gravel cracked. Jiang Xuan picked up a thin piece of stone, and the fracture was very sharp.
Then, he untied a big fish from the rattan, used stone flakes to remove the scales and gills, and opened the intestines and belly.
“So much fish oil!”
Fish in autumn are very fat and have a lot of fish oil in their bellies.
Jiang Xuan was delighted. Most of the beasts on the mountain had lean meat and very little fat. For the tribesmen, meat and fat were a good thing and were more popular than lean meat.
He tore off the fish oil bit by bit, put it in a bamboo tube, kept the swim bladder, and threw the rest aside.
Fish maw is just fish foam. After it is dried and boiled, fish maw glue can be obtained, which is a highly viscous adhesive glue.
Red peony root and Uncaria also found sharp stones and helped kill the fish together. After all the fish were taken care of, Jiang Xuan got about a pound of fish oil and a dozen fish bladders of different sizes.
As for the fish offal, Jiang Xuan asked the red peony root to be packed in bamboo tubes and poured them all into the pond dug earlier, so as to attract more fish.
After finishing, Jiang Xuan and others rinsed all the fish and took them back to the bamboo house to grill.
In fact, they couldn't eat that much fish in one meal, because these dozen fish weighed at least fifty or sixty pounds in total.
But there is no way. If we don't bake all these fish, given the autumn weather, these fish will stink in a day and night at most.
In the bamboo house, above the fire pit, there is a thick bamboo beam. It is not very high and can be reached by standing up and stretching out your hand.
There are more than a dozen two-braided ropes hanging from the bamboo beams. The ends of these ropes are tied with rope sets, which can be connected to other ropes for hanging the endless meat.
The flames of the fire pit are non-stop day and night, and the high temperature and smoke are constantly smoking the meat hanging on the beams. Mosquitoes cannot get close, bacteria cannot grow, and the meat will become smoked and dry. This method can extend the storage time of the meat.
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This method was not thought up by Jiang Xuan, but is a common practice of the Deer Tribe and represents the survival experience and wisdom of the tribesmen.
Without this method, raw meat would not be preserved for long without salt.
"Leave two for later and hang up the rest."
Jiang Xuan and Undeng tied the fish one by one to the ropes hanging from the beam, and hung them high above the fire pond to be smoked by the fireworks.
There were two fish, which were pierced with wooden sticks and grilled next to the fire pit.
For those dozen fish bladders, Jiang Xuan found a thin vine and hung them on the wall of the bamboo house for later use.
Jiang Xuan added some firewood to the fire pit, and the fire quickly burned very brightly. The firelight reflected the fish and the faces of the five people.
There is a circle of big stones next to the fire pond. Jiang Xuan placed the wooden stick with the fish on it on the two opposite big stones, and just flipped the fish over from time to time instead of always holding it in his hand.
Although the fish has been cleaned, it still has a faint fishy smell.
"The fishy smell..." Jiang Xuan seemed to remember something.
"Don't grill the fish yet, I'll go out for a while."
Jiang Xuan moved the fish aside, then stood up, picked up the bone and walked outside. Chi Shao hurriedly followed, fearing that Jiang Xuan would go too far and be in danger.
"Xuan, where are you going?"
"I'm going to find some spice."
"What are spices?" Chi Shao was puzzled.
"You'll find out later."
Jiang Xuan walked to the forest on the right side of the bamboo forest. Not far away, he saw a plant with yellowing leaves on the edges.
He walked over and tried to pull it out, but it didn't come up, so he dug out the plant and its underground roots with a razor blade. The plant's fine roots broke, and a pungent smell suddenly filled the air.
This is a wild ginger plant that can be seen everywhere in the southern wilderness mountains and forests. There are several plants in adjacent areas, but Jiang Xuan did not dig it again.
Chi Shao looked at the wild ginger dug by Jiang Xuan: "This is a herb that can detoxify. Why are you digging this?"
Tribal people use many medicinal herbs, and wild ginger, which is common in the mountains, is also one of them.
"I heard from people in the tribe that this herb can not only detoxify, but also remove the fishy smell and make barbecue more fragrant. I want to try if it can be used to grill fish."
Jiang Xuan's face didn't turn red and his heart didn't beat wildly, but he pushed the matter to the people of the Lu tribe. Anyway, he would die without any evidence.
"Really? Why haven't I heard of it?"
Chi Shao was doubtful, but she didn't ask any more questions. It's not her character to ask for details.
"You'll know when you go back and give it a try."
Jiang Xuan took the bone grass and wild ginger and walked back. Chi Shao thought the same thing, there is no harm in it anyway, just give it a try.
Jiang Xuan returned to the outside of the bamboo house, put down the bamboo shoots, went to the stream to wash the wild ginger, broke off the stems and leaves, and cut the wild ginger into several pieces with sharp stones.
After returning to the bamboo house, Jiang Xuan divided the wild ginger in half, stuffed it into the bellies of two grilled fish, and simply sewed the fish stomachs together with thin vines to prevent the wild ginger slices from falling out.
Jiang Xuan placed another big stone on the edge of the fire pond, put the two fish on it, then pulled the red-hot charcoal fire from the center of the fire pond, and grilled the fish directly on the charcoal fire.
Fish grilled over an open fire will burn, but charcoal fire is relatively mild, so the grilled fish will not burn easily.
Time passed bit by bit, and under the charcoal fire, the grilled fish gradually exuded the aroma of meat and a faint smell of wild ginger.
The surface of the fish is gradually browned, and the aroma fills the entire bamboo house.
"It's ready to eat!"
Jiang Xuan placed the two grilled fishes on a clean stone board, then used chopsticks to pick up a piece of fish meat from the back of the grilled fish, blew on it, and put it into his mouth.
When building the bamboo house, he used bamboo to sharpen several pairs of chopsticks. Unfortunately, except for himself, Chi Shao, Uncaria and others, they preferred to eat directly with their hands.
The fish is roasted for a longer time and is relatively dry. The rich meat flavor is accompanied by the fragrance of wild ginger.
This original freshwater fish has excellent texture and taste. Even if only two pieces of wild ginger are added, it tastes delicious.
"It tastes good. Let's try it."
Jiang Xuan greeted him while continuing to eat.
Chi Shao also picked up a pair of chopsticks. She was not used to using chopsticks, but Jiang Xuan liked it, so she tried to get used to it so that Jiang Xuan would not be alone.
Chi Shao awkwardly picked up a piece of fish with her chopsticks and held it up with her hands, for fear of falling.
After she put the fish meat into her mouth, she chewed it a few times and nodded with satisfaction. Her eyes were slightly squinted with a smile, like a crescent moon.
"With the addition of that herb, the roast is indeed much more delicious than before."
Chi Shao fully affirmed Jiang Xuan's method of stuffing wild ginger into the belly of fish to grill the fish.
"Hot, hot, hot..."
Uncaria, Stone Loach, and Nan Xing tore the fish meat directly with their hands, shouted that it was hot, blew on it, and stuffed it into their mouths.
“It’s delicious!”
"Xuan, the fish you grilled is great!"
"I still want to eat."
The three of them quickly ate up a big fish. There were no small fish bones in the big fish, and Jiang Xuan roasted it dry. Therefore, although they ate quickly, no one got stuck by the fish bones.
After eating the two big fish, the five of them were still not satisfied, so they skewered the fish oil on small wooden sticks, grilled it on the charcoal fire, and then ate it.
The taste of fish oil is actually not very good, but no one cares, as long as it can be eaten.
After eating the fish, Jiang Xuan thought to himself, it would be great if he could make a pot of fish soup. He would get bored of eating grilled things all the time.
However, making soup requires a pot. If you don’t have a pot, you must at least have an earthen pot.
"Crock..."
Jiang Xuan muttered in a low voice and his eyes lit up: "Why not make some pottery?"
Chi Shao on the side heard his words and said in surprise: "Xuan, you can also make pottery? How much have you learned in the tribe?"
Chi Shao always has an unreal feeling. Her biological brother is so powerful, why didn’t she realize it before?
There are indeed people in the Deer Tribe who can make pottery. Although it is only the most primitive and simple earth pottery, it is still pottery and has the basic functions and characteristics of pottery.
Jiang Xuan said sheepishly: "I've only seen them do it. As for whether it can be successfully fired, I'll have to try it before I know."
Chi Shao nodded and said: "Then give it a try, Xuan, I believe you."
This place is rich in resources. Now that we have fishing methods, hunting, and digging plant roots, as long as we are diligent, it is not particularly difficult to save enough food for five people for the winter.
To be continued...